Psalms 78
1 My friends, listen to what I am going to teach you; pay careful attention [IDM] to what I say.
Asaf ƒe nufiameha. O! Nye dukɔ, mise nye nufiame, eye miɖo to nye numenyawo.
2 I am going to give you some sayings that wise people have said. They will be sayings about things that happened long ago, things that were difficult to understand [MET],
Make nye nu, aƒo nu le lododowo me. Magblɔ nu siwo le ɣaɣla, nu siwo li tso blema ke.
3 things that we have heard and known previously, things that our parents and grandparents told us.
Nu siwo míese, eye míenya, nu siwo mía fofowo tsɔ tu xoe na mí.
4 We will tell these things to our children [LIT], and we will also tell to our grandchildren [about] Yahweh’s power and the glorious/great things that he has done.
Míawo míaɣlae ɖe mía viwo o, ke boŋ míagblɔ Yehowa ƒe dɔwɔwɔ siwo dze na kafukafu, eƒe ŋusẽ kple nukudɔ siwo wòwɔ la na megbeviwo.
5 He gave laws and commandments to the Israeli people, [those who are the descendants of] Jacob [DOU], and he told our ancestors to teach them to their children
Ewɔ ɖoɖowo na Yakob, eye wòɖo se anyi ɖe Israel, se siwo ŋu wòde se na mía fofowo be woafia wo viwo,
6 in order that their children would [also] know them and then they would teach them to their children.
ale be dzidzime megbetɔwo hã nanya wo, eye vi siwo womedzi haɖe o hã nanya wo, ne woawo hã nafia wo viwo.
7 In that way, they also would trust in God, and not forget the things that he has done; instead, they would obey his commandments.
Ekema woatsɔ woƒe mɔkpɔkpɔ ada ɖe Mawu dzi, eye womaŋlɔ eƒe nuwɔwɔwo be o, ke boŋ woalé eƒe sewo me ɖe asi.
8 They would not be like their ancestors, who were very stubborn and kept rebelling [against God]; they did not continue firmly trusting in God, and they did not worship only him.
Ke womanɔ abe wo fofo kɔlialiatɔwo, dzidzime dzeaglã, ame siwo ƒe dzi meku ɖe Mawu ŋu o, eye woƒe gbɔgbɔ meto nyateƒe nɛ o la ene o.
9 [The soldiers of] the tribe of Ephraim had bows [and arrows] but they ran away [from their enemies] on the day that they fought a battle with their enemies.
Togbɔ be aŋutrɔwo le Efraimtɔwo si hã la, wotrɔ megbe si dzo le aʋakpegbe.
10 They did not do what they had agreed with God that they would do; they refused to obey his laws.
Womelé Mawu ƒe nubabla me ɖe asi o, eye wogbe be yewomanɔ agbe ɖe eƒe se la nu o.
11 They forgot what he had done; they forgot about the miracles that they had seen him perform.
Woŋlɔ nu si wòwɔ la be, esiwo nye nukunu siwo wòɖe fia wo.
12 While our ancestors were watching, God performed miracles in the area around Zoan [city] in Egypt.
Ewɔ nukunu le wo fofowo ŋkume le Egiptenyigba dzi, le Zoan nuto me.
13 [Then] he caused the [Red] Sea to divide, causing the water [on each side] to pile up like a wall, with the result that [our ancestors] walked through it [on dry ground].
Ema atsiaƒu, hekplɔ wo to emee, eye wòna tsi la tɔ dzɔ kã abe glikpɔ ene.
14 He led them by a [bright] cloud during the day and by a fiery light during the night.
Etsɔ lilikpo kplɔ woe le ŋkeke me, eye wòtsɔ dzo keklẽ kplɔ woe le zã me.
15 He split rocks open in the desert, giving to our ancestors plenty of water from deep inside the earth.
Efe agakpe me le gbegbe, eye wòna tsi wo wòsɔ gbɔ abe atsiaƒumetsiwo ene.
16 He caused a stream of water to flow from the rock; the water flowed like a river [DOU].
Ena tsi do tso agakpe me eye tsi la si bababa abe tɔsisiwo ene.
17 But [our ancestors] continued to sin against God; in the desert they rebelled against the one who is greater than any other god.
Ke woyi edzi gawɔ nu vɔ̃ ɖe eŋu, eye wodze aglã ɖe Dziƒoʋĩtɔ la ŋu le gbedzi.
18 By demanding that God give them the food that they desired, they tried to find out if he would always do what they requested him to do.
Wotsɔ woƒe lɔlɔ̃nu te Mawu kpɔ, esi wobia nuɖuɖu si le wo dzrom vevie.
19 They insulted God by saying, “We don’t think he can supply food for us [here] in this desert!
Woƒo nu tsi tsitre ɖe Mawu ŋu be, “Ɖe Mawu ate ŋu aɖo kplɔ̃ na mí le gbedzia?
20 [It is true that] he struck the rock, with the result that water gushed/flowed out, [but] (can he also provide bread and meat for [us], his people?/we doubt that he can also provide bread and meat for us, his people.)” [RHQ]
Esi wòtsɔ nu ƒo agakpe la, tsi do bababa, eye tɔʋuwo si kplakplakpla. Gake ɖe wòate ŋu ana nuɖuɖu mía? Ate ŋu ana lã eƒe dukɔa?”
21 So, when Yahweh heard that, he became very angry, and he sent a fire to burn up [some of] his Israeli [people]. [MTY, DOU]
Esi Yehowa se wo ŋkɔ la, dzi kui vevie; eƒe dzo bi ɖe Yakob ŋu, eye eƒe dɔmedzoe de dzi ɖe Israel ŋu,
22 [He did that] because they did not trust in him, and they did not believe that he would rescue them.
elabena womexɔ Mawu dzi se, alo ka ɖe eƒe xɔname dzi o.
23 But God spoke to the sky above them; he commanded it to open [like] a door,
Ke hã la, eɖe gbe na lilikpowo le dzi, eye wòʋu dziƒo ƒe ʋɔtruwo,
24 and [then food] fell down like rain, [food which they named] ‘manna’; God gave them grain from (heaven/the sky).
ena mana dza tso dziƒo na dukɔ la be woaɖu, eye wòna bli wo tso dziƒo.
25 [So] the people ate the food that angels eat, [and] God gave to them all the manna that they wanted.
Amegbetɔ ɖu mawudɔlawo ƒe nuɖuɖu, eye wòɖo nuɖuɖu si sinu wohiã la ɖe wo.
26 [Later], he caused the wind to blow from the east, and by his power he also sent wind from the south,
Etu ka ɣedzeƒeya tso dziƒo, eye wòkplɔ dzigbeya kple eƒe ŋusẽ.
27 and the wind brought birds which were as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore.
Ena lã dza ɖe wo dzi abe ʋuʋudedi ene, eye xe dzodzoewo abe ƒutake ene.
28 God caused those birds to fall [dead] in the middle of (their camp)/the area where the people had put up their tents. [There were dead birds] all around their tents.
Ena woge dze woƒe asaɖa me, eye woƒo xlã woƒe agbadɔwo.
29 [So] the people [cooked the birds and] ate the meat and their stomachs were full, because God had given them what they wanted.
Ale woɖui ʋuu heɖi ƒo taŋ, elabena ewɔ nu si dzrom wole la dzi na wo.
30 But before they had eaten all that they wanted, and while they were still eating it,
Ke hafi nuɖuɖu si wodzro la navɔ, eye esi wògale nu me na wo ko la,
31 God was [still] very angry with them, and he caused their strongest men to die; he got rid of [many of] the finest [young] Israeli men.
Mawu ƒe dɔmedzoe bi ɖe wo ŋu; ewu ame sesẽwo le wo dome, eye wòlã Israel ɖekakpuiwo ƒu anyi.
32 In spite of all that, the people continued to sin; in spite of all the miracles that God had performed, they still did not trust that he [would take care of them].
To nu siawo katã gbɔ hã la, wogayi nu vɔ̃ wɔwɔ dzi, eye togbɔ be ewɔ nukunuwo hã la, womexɔe se o.
33 So, he caused their lives to end as quickly as a puff of wind ends; they died when disasters suddenly struck them.
Ale wòna woƒe ŋkekewo wu nu nanekemakpɔkpɔe, eye woƒe ƒewo wu nu le ŋɔdzi me.
34 When God caused [some of] them to die, [the others] turned to God; they repented and earnestly asked God [to save them].
Ɣe sia ɣi si ke Mawu wu wo ko la, wodinɛ, eye wogatrɔna ɖe eŋu kple vevidodo.
35 They remembered that God is [like] a huge rock ledge [under which they would be safe] [MET], and that he, who was greater than any other god, is the one who protected/rescued them.
Woɖoa ŋku edzi be Mawue nye woƒe Agakpe, eye Mawu Dziƒoʋĩtɔ lae nye woƒe Ɖela.
36 But they [tried to] deceive God by what they said [MTY]; their words [MTY] were [all] lies.
Ke emegbe la, wotsɔa woƒe nu flunɛ, eye wotsɔa woƒe aɖe daa alakpa nɛ.
37 They were not loyal to him; they disregarded/ignored the agreement that he had made with them.
Woƒe dziwo meku ɖe eŋu vavã o, eye womewɔ eƒe nubabla dzi le nyateƒe me o.
38 But God was merciful to his people. He forgave them for having sinned and did not get rid of them. Many times he refrained from becoming angry [with them] and restrained from furiously/severely [punishing them] [MTY].
Gake ekpɔ nublanui na wo; etsɔ woƒe vodadawo ke wo, eye metsrɔ̃ wo o. Zi geɖe la, eɖoa asi eƒe dziku dzi, eye menaa eƒe dɔmedzoe katã bina o.
39 He remembered/considered that they were only humans who die; they [disappear quickly] [SIM], like a wind that blows by and then is gone.
Eɖo ŋku edzi be ŋutilã ko wonye, eye wonye ya si ƒona yina gake megatrɔna gbɔna o.
40 Many times our ancestors rebelled against God in the desert and caused him to become very sad.
Zi nenie womedze aglã ɖe eŋu le gbedzi, eye womedo vevesese nɛ le kuɖiɖinyigba dzi o!
41 Many times they did evil things, to find out [if they could do those things without God punishing them]. They frequently caused the holy God of Israel to become disgusted/sad.
Enuenu wotea Mawu kpɔna, eye wodoa dziku na Israel ƒe Kɔkɔetɔ la.
42 They forgot about his [great] power, and they (forgot/did not think) about the time when he rescued them from their enemies.
Womeɖo ŋku eƒe ŋusẽ dzi, gbe si gbe wòɖe wo tso ŋutasẽla ƒe asi me,
43 They forgot about when he performed many miracles in the area near Zoan [city] in Egypt.
gbe si gbe wòɖe eƒe nukudzesiwo fia le Egipte kple eƒe nukudɔwo fia le Zoan nuto me o.
44 He caused the [Nile] River (OR, their sources of water) to become [red like] blood, with the result that the people of Egypt had no water to drink.
Etrɔ woƒe tɔsisiwo wozu ʋu, eye womete ŋu no woƒe tɔʋumetsi o.
45 He sent among the people of Egypt swarms of flies that bit them, and he sent frogs that ate up everything.
Eɖo togbato ƒe ha gã aɖe ɖe wo dome, woɖu wo kple akpɔkplɔwo wogblẽ woƒe nuwo.
46 He sent locusts to eat their crops and the other things that grew in their fields.
Etsɔ woƒe nukuwo na ʋetrawo kple woƒe kutsetsewo na ʋetsuviwo.
47 He sent hail that destroyed the grapevines, and sent frost that ruined the figs.
Egblẽ woƒe waingblewo kple kpetsi, eye woƒe gbotiwo kple tsidzadza sesẽ.
48 He sent hail that killed their cattle and sent lightning that killed their sheep and cows.
Etsɔ woƒe nyihawo na kpetsi, eye wòtsɔ woƒe lãhawo na dzikedzo.
49 Because God was fiercely angry with the people of Egypt, he caused them to be very distressed. The disasters that struck them were like a group of angels that destroyed [everything].
Eɖo eƒe dɔmedzoe nyanyra, dziku helĩhelĩ, xaxa kple fuwɔame, siwo nye mawudɔla siwo gblẽa nu la ɖe wo.
50 He did not lessen his being angry [with them], and he did not (spare their lives/prevent them from dying); he sent a (plague/serious illness) that killed [many of] them.
Eɖe mɔ ɖi na eƒe dɔmedzoe; meɖe woƒe agbe tso ku me o, ke boŋ etsɔ wo de asi na dɔvɔ̃.
51 He also caused all the firstborn sons of the people of Egypt to die.
Ewu Egiptetɔwo ƒe ŋgɔgbevi siwo nye woƒe ŋutsunyenye ƒe kutsetse gbãtɔwo le Ham gbadɔwo te.
52 Then he led his people out [of Egypt] like [a shepherd leads] his sheep [SIM], and he guided them [while they walked] through the desert.
Gake ekplɔ eƒe dukɔ la abe lãhawo ene, eye wòkplɔ wo abe alẽwo ene to gbedzi.
53 He led them safely, and they were not afraid, but their enemies were drowned in the sea.
Ekplɔ wo le dedinɔnɔ me, ale be womevɔ̃ o, gake ƒu la tsyɔ woƒe futɔwo dzi.
54 [Later] he brought them to [Canaan], his sacred land, to [Zion] Hill (OR, the hilly area) and by his power [MTY] he enabled them to conquer [the people who were living there].
Ale wòkplɔ wo va eƒe anyigba kɔkɔe la ƒe liƒo dzi, va tonyigba si eƒe nuɖusi xɔ la gbɔ.
55 He expelled the people-groups while his people were advancing; he allotted part of the land for [each tribe] to possess, and he gave to the Israeli people the houses of those people who had been expelled.
Enya dukɔwo le wo ŋgɔ, eye wòma woƒe anyigba na wo be wòanye woƒe domenyinu, eye wòna Israel ƒe toawo nɔ woƒe aƒewo me.
56 However, the Israeli people rebelled against God, who is greater than any other god, and they did many evil things to see if they could do those things without God punishing them, and they did not obey his commandments.
Ke wote Mawu kpɔ, wodze aglã ɖe Dziƒoʋĩtɔ la ŋu, eye womelé eƒe sewo me ɖe asi o.
57 Instead, like their ancestors did, they rebelled against God and (were not loyal to/did not faithfully [obey]) him; they were as [unreliable as] a crooked arrow [that does not go straight] [SIM].
Abe wo fofowo ene la, womeɖo to o, wowɔ nu dzimaxɔsetɔe, eye wole abe dati doagblɔ ene, elabena womate ŋu aka ɖe wo dzi o.
58 Because they [worshiped] carved images of their gods on the tops of hills, they caused God to become angry [DOU].
Wotsɔ woƒe nuxeƒewo do dɔmedzoe nɛ, eye woƒe legbawo na ŋuʋaʋã tso le eya amea me.
59 He saw what they were doing and became very angry, so he rejected the Israeli people.
Esi Mawu se wo ŋkɔ la, dzi kui vevie ŋutɔ, eye wògbe Israel keŋkeŋ.
60 He no longer appeared to them at Shiloh in the tent where he had lived among them.
Ale wògblẽ agbadɔ si le Silo la ɖi, agbadɔ si wòtu ɖe amegbetɔwo dome.
61 He allowed their enemies to capture [the sacred chest], [which was the symbol of] his power and his glory.
Eɖo nubablaɖaka si nye eƒe ŋusẽ la ɖe aboyome, eye wòtsɔ eƒe atsyɔ̃nu de asi na futɔ la.
62 Because he was angry with his people, he allowed them to be killed [MTY] [by their enemies].
Etsɔ eƒe dukɔ de asi na yi, eye wòdo dɔmedzoe vevie ɖe eƒe domenyinu la ŋu.
63 Young men were killed in battles, with the result that the young women had no one to marry.
Ena dzo fia eƒe ɖekakpuiwo, eye womedzi srɔ̃ɖeha na eƒe ɖetugbiwo o.
64 [Many] priests were killed by [their enemies’] swords, and (the people did not allow the priests’ widows/the priests’ widows were not allowed) to mourn.
Wotsɔ woƒe nunɔlawo de asi na yi, eye avi bu ɖe woƒe ahosiwo.
65 Later, [it was as though] the Lord awoke from sleeping; he was like a strong man who (became stimulated/felt that he was strong) by (OR, became sober after) [drinking] a lot of wine [SIM].
Tete Aƒetɔ la nyɔ tso alɔ̃ me abe ale si aha kɔna le mo na ame si no wain mu la ene.
66 He pushed their enemies back and caused them to be [very] ashamed for a long time [HYP] [because they had been defeated].
Enya eƒe futɔwo do ɖe megbe, eye wòdo ŋukpe mavɔ wo.
67 [But] he did not set up his tent where [the people of] the tribe of Ephraim lived; he did not choose their area [to do that].
Emegbe la, wògbe nu le Yosef ƒe agbadɔwo gbɔ, eye metia Efraim ƒe to la o.
68 Instead he chose [the area where] the tribe of Judah [lived]; he chose Zion Hill, which he loves.
Ke boŋ etia Yuda ƒe to la, esi nye Zion to si wòlɔ̃na vevie.
69 He [decided to have] his temple built [there], high up, like [his home in] heaven; he caused it to be firm, [and intended that] his temple would last forever, like the earth.
Etu eƒe kɔkɔeƒe la abe kɔkɔƒe ene, eye abe anyigba si wòli kee tegbetegbe ene.
70 He chose David, who served him [faithfully], and took him from the pastures
Etia David dɔla, eye wòɖee le alẽkpo me;
71 where he was taking care of his [father’s] sheep, and appointed him to be the leader [MET] of the Israeli people, the people who belong to God.
tso alẽkplɔdɔ me, eye wòkplɔe vɛ be wòakplɔ eƒe dukɔ, Yakob kple eƒe domenyinu, Israel.
72 David took care of the Israeli people sincerely and wholeheartedly, and guided them skillfully/wisely.
David kpɔ wo dzi le dzi dzɔdzɔe me, eye wòkplɔ wo le aɖaŋu me.
