< Ezekiel 4 >
1 [Yahweh also said to me, ] “You human, take a large clay tablet/brick and put it in front of you. Then on the [engrave/draw] on it lines that represent Jerusalem.
“Na afei, onipa ba, fa ntayaa bi to wʼanim na kurukyerɛw Yerusalem kuropɔn mfoni wɔ so.
2 [draw figures around it to represent enemy soldiers who will] surround the city. Make mounds around it and a dirt ramp up against the [around the city]. [figures around it that represent] (battering rams/heavy logs that will break though the walls).
Afei tua nʼano: Di ntuano dwuma ahorow tia no, yɛ pie tia no, yɛ mpampim ne nsraban wɔ ho, na sisi mpuran twa ne ho dantaban.
3 Then take an iron pan, and place it [to be] like an iron wall between you [the drawing of] the city. Then turn your face toward the drawing. It will symbolize [enemy troops will] surround the city to attack it. That will be a warning to the Israeli people [MTY].
Afei, fa dade kyɛmfɛre to ɔfasu wɔ wo ne kuropɔn no ntam na dan wʼani kyerɛ no. Wobetua kuropɔn no ano na wo na wubetua nʼano. Eyi bɛyɛ nsɛnkyerɛnne ama Israelfi.
4 Then lie on your left side, and stay like that for 390 days. That [symbolize that the Israeli people will be punished for] their sins; you must lie like that one day for each year during which they will be punished.
“Afei da wo benkum so na fa Israel bɔne to wo ho so. Wobɛsoa wɔn bɔne nna dodow a wode da wo fa so no.
Mede wɔn bɔne mfe no ayɛ nna dodow ama wo. Enti nnafua ahaasa ne aduɔkron na wode bɛsoa Israelfi bɔne.
6 After that, lie down again. This time, lie on your right side for 40 days. That [symbolize that the Israeli people will be punished more] for their sins, one day for each [during which they will be punished].
“Ɛno akyi no, da bio wɔ wo nifa so na soa Yudafo bɔne adaduanan a da koro biara bɛyɛ afe baako.
7 Turn your face [the drawing of] Jerusalem and bare your [like a soldier does who prepares to go into a battle] [MTY], and prophesy [what will happen to] the city.
Dan wʼani kyerɛ Yerusalem ntuano no na fa nsa pan hyɛ nkɔm tia no.
8 [You will not be able to move; it will be as though] I have tied you with ropes in order that you cannot turn from one side to the other until you have [symbolizing how many years the city] will be (besieged/surrounded by enemy soldiers).
Mede ntampehama bɛkyekyere wo sɛnea worentumi nnan wo ho kosi sɛ nna a wɔde tua mo ano no bɛba nʼawie.
9 [Before you do that, ] take some wheat and barley, beans, lentils, spelt and millet, and put them in a [storage] jar, and use that to bake [for yourself]. That is what you will eat during the 390 days while you lie on your [left] side.
“Fa atoko ne awi, asɛ ne asedua, kɔkɔte ne aburow; fa ne nyinaa gu adekora kuruwa mu na fa to brodo a wubedi. Eyi na wubedi wɔ nnafua ahaasa ne aduɔkron a woda wo fa so no.
10 You will eat (8 ounces/a small loaf) of bread each day.
Kari aduan gram ahannu ne aduasa aduonu a wubedi no da koro biara wɔ bere ano, bere ano.
11 [Also] measure out (1.5 pints/0.6 liter) of water to drink each day.
Afei susuw nsu sukuruwa baako na nom no bere ano bere ano.
12 Eat that bread like you would eat a loaf of barley bread. But use your own dried dung for fuel to bake the bread while people are watching.
Di aduan no sɛnea anka wubedi atoko ɔfam; to ma nnipa nhu na fa onipa agyanan yɛ ogya.”
13 That will symbolize that the Israeli people will be forced to eat food that is unacceptable to me when they are living in the nations to which I will force them to go.”
Awurade kae se: “Saa ara na Israelfo bedi aduan a wɔagu ho fi wɔ amanaman a mɛpam wɔn akɔ so no.”
14 Then I said, “No, Yahweh God![Do not force me to do that]! I have never caused myself to become unacceptable to you [by doing anything like that]. From the time when I was young, I have never eaten meat of any [animal] that was found dead or that had been killed by wild animals. And I have never eaten any meat that is unacceptable to you.”
Na mekae se, “Ɛnte saa, Otumfo Awurade! Minguu me ho fi da. Efi me mmofraase besi saa bere yi, minnii aboa funu anaa nea nkekaboa bi akum no atetew ne mu da. Nam a ɛho agu fi nkaa mʼano da.”
15 Yahweh replied, “Okay, I will allow you to bake your bread using dried cow manure instead of human [for fuel].”
Awurade kae se, “eye, mɛma wode nantwi agyanan asi onipa de anan mu, na woato wo brodo wɔ so.”
16 Then he said to me, “You human, I will cause the supply of food to Jerusalem to be cut off. [Then] the people will eat the small amounts of food and drink the small amounts of [that the government permits them to have], and they will be [very] distressed and anxious as they do that,
Afei ɔka kyerɛɛ me se, “Onipa ba, metwa aduan a wɔde ba Yerusalem so. Nnipa no de ahoyeraw bedi aduan a wɔkyekyɛ mu na wɔde abasamtu anom nsu a wɔkyekyɛ,
17 because water and food will be very scarce. They will see each other becoming extremely thin, and they will be appalled; [but this will happen] because they are being punished [for the sins that they have committed].”
efisɛ aduan ne nsu ho bɛyɛ na. Wɔn ho bedwiriw wɔn sɛ wohu wɔn ho wɔn ho, na wɔn bɔne nti wɔbɛfonfɔn.”