Genesis 49
1 Jacob summoned all his sons, and said to them,
Yakob yɔ via ŋutsuwo katã ƒo ƒu, eye wògblɔ na wo be, “Miƒo ƒu ɖe ŋunye, eye magblɔ nu siwo ava adzɔ ɖe mia dzi le ɣeyiɣi si gbɔna me la na mi.
2 “Gather around me in order that I can tell you what will happen in the future. My sons, come and listen to me. I am your father, [Jacob, whom God named] Israel.
Miɖo tom, Yakob ƒe viwo, miɖo to Israel, mia fofo.
3 Reuben, you are my oldest son. You were born when I was young and energetic/strong. You are prouder and stronger than all the rest of my sons.
“Ruben, wòe nye nye viŋutsu tsitsitɔ, nye ɖekakpuimevi. Wòe nye ta le tsitsi kple bubu nu.
4 But you were as uncontrollable as a flood [SIM]. So now you will not be my most important son, because you climbed up onto my bed, and had sex with [MTY] my (concubine/slave who had become one of my wives). Your doing that caused me, your father, to have great shame.
Ke mèdzea akɔ anyi o; èle abe ƒutsotsoe nyanyra ene; màgadze gbãtɔ azɔ o. Maɖiɖi wò, elabena ède asi srɔ̃nyewo dometɔ ɖeka ŋu, eye nèto esia me ɖi gbɔ̃m.
5 Simeon and Levi, you have both acted like criminals. You use your swords to act violently.
“Simeon kple Levi ƒe nɔnɔme sɔ. Wonye ame siwo wɔa sesẽnu kple nu madzɔmadzɔ.
6 I do not want to be with you when you make evil plans [DOU]. I do not want to join you in your meetings, because you killed people when you became very angry, and you (hamstrung/cut the tendons in the legs of) oxen just to (have fun/see them suffer).
O, nye luʋɔ, ɖe ɖa le ame siawo ŋu. Nyematɔ ɖe woƒe nu vɔ̃ɖiwo dzi gbeɖe o. Elabena wowu ame aɖe le woƒe dɔmedzoe me, eye wode abi nyiwo ŋu dzodzro abe fefenu ene.
7 God says, ‘I will (curse/cause bad things to happen to) them for being very angry, for acting very cruelly when they were very furious. I will scatter their descendants [MTY] throughout Israel land.’
Woaƒo fi ade woƒe dɔmedzoe, elabena enu sesẽ, eye wòvɔ̃ɖi. Mama wo ɖe Yakob ƒe viwo dome, eye makaka woƒe dzidzimeviwo le Israel.
8 Judah, your [older and younger] brothers will praise you. They will bow down before you, because you will thoroughly defeat [MTY] your enemies.
“Yuda, nɔviwòwo akafu wò; àtsrɔ̃ wò futɔwo. Fofowòviwo ade ta agu na wò.
9 Judah is like a young lion [SIM] that has returned to its den satisfied after eating the animals that it has killed. He is like a lion that lies down and stretches out after eating; no one would dare to disturb it [RHQ].
Yuda nye dzatavi; si wu nu si wòlé la ɖuɖu nu. Etsyɔ akɔ anyi abe dzatatsu ene; eye abe dzatanɔ ene–ame kae ake atse anyɔe?
10 There will always be a ruler [MTY] from the descendants of Judah [MTY]. Each one will hold a scepter/staff to show that he has authority as a king. He will do that until the one to whom the scepter belongs comes, the one to whom the nations will bring tribute and show that they will obey him.
Atamkayi maɖe ɖa le Yuda o va se ɖe esime ame si tututu tɔ wònye la nava, ame si amewo katã abu.
11 The grapevines of Judah’s descendants will produce grapes very abundantly. As a result, they will not object to tying their young donkeys to the grapevines in order that the donkeys can eat the leaves of the grapevines. [Wine will be very plentiful, with the result that] they could wash their cloaks in wine that is as red as blood [MET].
Ede ka eƒe tedzivi ɖe wainti nyuitɔ ŋu, eye wònya eƒe awuwo le wain me.
12 Their eyes will be red because of [drinking too much] wine, but their teeth will be very white because of drinking much milk [from the cows].
Eƒe ŋkuwo biã wu wain, eye eƒe aɖuwo fu wu notsi.
13 Zebulun, your descendants will live by the seashore where there will be a safe harbor for ships. Their land will extend north as far as Sidon [city].
“Zebulon anɔ ƒuta, eye wòanye tɔdziʋuwo dzeƒe. Eƒe anyigba akeke ade keke Sidon.
14 Issachar, your descendants will be like strong donkeys that are lying down on the ground between their loads, [so tired that they cannot get up]!
“Isaka nye tedzi agbatsɔlã sesẽ aɖe si le dzudzɔm le lãkpowo dome.
15 They will see that their resting place is good, and that the land pleases them very much. But they will bend their backs to carry heavy loads and be forced to work for others.
Esi wòkpɔ ale si teƒea nya kpɔna kple ale si anyigba la nyoe la, elɔ̃ dze dɔ la dzi, eye wòsubɔ eƒe aƒetɔ kple ŋusẽ.
16 Dan, although your tribe will be small, their leaders will rule their people just like the leaders of other tribes of Israel will rule their people.
“Dan aɖu eƒe amewo dzi abe Israel ƒe to bubu ɖe sia ɖe ene.
17 Your descendants will be like snakes at the side of a road, like poisonous snakes lying beside a path. They will strike the heels of horses that pass by, causing the riders to fall backwards [as the horses rear up on their hind legs].”
Anye da si ɖua afɔkpodzi na sɔ le mɔ dzi, eye sɔdola dzea anyi la.
18 Then Jacob prayed, “Yahweh, I am waiting for you to rescue me [from my enemies].”
Yehowa, wò ɖeɖe la ko mele mɔ kpɔm na.
19 [Then Jacob continued telling his sons what would happen in the future. He said], “Gad, your tribe/descendants will be attacked by a group of bandits, but your tribe/descendants will pursue and attack them [MTY].
“Adzoblasuwo ƒe ha adze Gad dzi, ke eya anya wo ɖe du nu.
20 Asher, your descendants will eat good-tasting food; they will produce food that is delicious enough for kings to eat.
“Aser la, nuɖuɖu siwo nyo na fiawo la aʋã nɛ fũu.
21 Naphtali, your descendants will be like deer [MET] that are (free to/not tied down and can) run wherever they wish. They will give birth to children who are good-looking like (fawns/baby deer) [MET].
“Naftali nye zinɔ si ɖea abla, eye wògblɔa nya viviwo la.
22 Joseph, you will have many descendants [MET]. Their children will be as many as the fruit on a vine near a spring of water, whose branches extend over a wall.
“Yosef nye kutsetseti aɖe si le tsi dzidzi to, eɖe alɔwo, eye wòɖo vɔvɔli ɖe gliwo dzi.
23 Their enemies will attack them fiercely, and shoot at them with bows and arrows and pursue them.
Ame siwo da aŋutrɔe, eye woti eyome la wɔ nuvevii.
24 But they will hold their bows steady and their arms will remain strong, because of the power [MTY] of my mighty God, because of Yahweh who guides and provides for me [MET] like a shepherd guides and provides for his sheep. The people of Israel will [ask Yahweh to protect them], [like people hide under] a huge [overhanging] to be protected.
Gake eƒe asi li ɖe eƒe dati ŋu goŋgoŋ eye eƒe asi le tsɔtsɔm elabena Yakob ƒe Mawu Ŋusẽkatãtɔ, alẽkplɔla la kple Israel ƒe Agakpe
25 God, the one whom I worship, will help your descendants. God Almighty will bless them by sending them rain from the sky and by giving them water from deep/far below the ground. He will give them many cattle and children [MET] (OR, and their cattle will have many offspring).
Mia fofowo ƒe Mawu, Ŋusẽkatãtɔ la nakɔ dziƒoyayrawo kple anyigbadziyayrawo ɖe dziwò duu, wòana nàdzi asɔ gbɔ,
26 The blessings that I want God to give you are great ones. They are greater than the blessings that come from the eternal mountains, greater than the ones that come from the everlasting hills. Joseph, I pray that these blessings will (be given to you/come upon your head), because you are the leader of your [older] brothers [and younger brother].
wòana nuɖuɖu kple seƒoƒowo nawɔ na wò fũu, eye wòatsɔ yayra siwo ade kekeke togbɛ siwo anɔ anyi tegbee ƒe liƒowo dzi la na wò. Yayra siawoe ava Yosef, ame si woɖe aboyoe le nɔviawo dome la dzi.
27 Benjamin, your descendants will be like [MET] vicious/fierce wolves: In the morning they will kill their enemies like a wolf devours (its prey/the animals that it has killed), and in the evening they will divide among their warriors the spoils that they seized from their enemies.”
“Benyamin nye amegaxi si léa nu. Evuvua eƒe futɔwo le ŋdi, eye wòmaa nu si wòlé la le fiẽ.”
28 Those twelve sons are the ancestors of the twelve tribes of Israel. That is what their father said to them as he blessed them, telling to each one words that were appropriate for him.
Esiawoe nye yayra siwo wo fofo Israel kɔ ɖe via wuieveawo dzi.
29 Then Jacob said to his sons, “I will soon die. Bury my body where some of my ancestors are buried, in the cave that is in the field that was bought from Ephron, who belonged to the Heth people-group.
Eye wòɖo nu siawo na wo: “Esusɔ vie mayi tɔgbuinyewo gbɔ. Miɖim ɖe fofonyewo gbɔ ɖe kpeto la me le Efrɔn, Hititɔ la ƒe anyigba dzi,
30 That field is in the Machpelah area, east of Mamre [town], in Canaan. My grandfather Abraham bought it from Ephron to use as a burial place.
ɖe kpeto si le Makpela ƒe anyigba si te ɖe Mamre ŋu le Kanaanyigba dzi la. Abraham ƒle teƒe sia abe ameɖiƒe ene le Efrɔn, Hititɔ la gbɔ kpe ɖe anyigba la ŋu.
31 That is where they buried him and his wife Sarah. That is where they buried my father Isaac and his wife Rebekah. And that is where I buried my wife Leah.
Afi ma woɖi Abraham kple srɔ̃a Sara ɖo. Afi ma woɖi Isak kple srɔ̃a Rebeka ɖo, eye afi ma ke meɖi Lea hã ɖo.
32 That field and the cave in it were bought from the Heth people-group; so that is where I want you to bury me.”
Enye kpeto si tɔgbuinye Abraham ƒle le Het ƒe viŋutsuwo si.”
33 When Jacob finished giving those instructions to his sons, he lay down on his bed again. Then he died [IDM].
Esi Yakob wu eƒe nyagblɔɖiawo na viawo nu la, emlɔ anyi azɔ ɖe eƒe abati dzi, eye wòku.
