Hezekiel 16
1 Yehowa ƒe nya va nam be,
Yahweh gave me another message. He said,
2 “Ame vi, ɖe Yerusalem ƒe ŋunyɔnuwɔwɔwo fiae.
“You human, cause the people of Jerusalem to think about their detestable behavior.
3 Eye nàgblɔ nɛ be, ale Aƒetɔ Yehowa gblɔ na Yerusalem nye si; ‘Wò dzɔtsoƒe kple wò dzidzi nɔ Kanaantɔwo ƒe anyigba dzi. Mia fofo nye Amoritɔ, eye mia dada nye Hititɔ.
Say to them, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says to you people of Jerusalem: [It is as though you are a woman who] [MET] was born in the country where the Canaan people-group lived. [It is as though] [MET] your father belonged to the Amor people-group and your mother belonged to the Heth people-group.
4 Gbe si gbe wodzi wò la, wometso wò ƒoƒonika, alo le tsi na wò be wò ŋuti naɖi, alo si dze ɖe ŋuwò alo xatsa avɔ ɖe ŋutiwò o.
[It is as though] [MET] on the day that you were born, your umbilical cord was not cut, and your body was not washed in water, and it was not rubbed with salt or wrapped in strips of cloth, [like Israeli babies always are].
5 Ame aɖeke mekpɔ nublanui na wò, ale be woawɔ nu siawo na wò o; ke boŋ wotsɔ wò ƒu gbe ɖe gbedadaƒo, elabena gbe si gbe wodzi wò la, wodo vlo wò.’
No one pitied you or acted kindly toward you by doing those things for you. Instead, [it was as though] [MET] you were thrown into a field, because on the day that you were born, you were despised {everyone despised you}.
6 “Esi metso eme va yina la, mekpɔ wò nènɔ afɔ dam le wò ʋu me. Esi nènɔ wò ʋu me la, megblɔ na wò be, ‘Tsi agbe.’
Then [it was as though] [MET] I passed by and saw you lying in your own blood and kicking. And while you lay there kicking in your own blood, I said to you, “I want you to remain alive!”
7 Mena nètsi abe ati si le gbedzi ene. Ètsi eye nètrɔ zu kpe xɔasi dzeanitɔ abe ɖetugbi vavã aɖe ene. Ète no, ɖa to mlɔmlɔmlɔ ɖe wò ame si nɔ ƒuƒlu la ŋu.
[It was as though] I caused you to grow up, like plants in the field grow; you grew up and became tall and became like [MET] a very beautiful jewel. [It was as though] [MET] your breasts (formed/became large), and your hair became long, although you were still naked [DOU].
8 “Emegbe la, metso eme va yi, eye esi mekpɔ be ètsi na srɔ̃ɖeɖe la, mekeke nye awu to ɖe dziwò, eye metsyɔ nu wò amama. Meka atam na wò, mebla nu kpli wò, eye nèzu tɔnye. Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe.
When I saw you several years later, [it was as though] [MET] I saw that you were old enough to have sex [EUP]. So [it was as though] [MET] I spread the corner of my robe over [to symbolize that I would marry you], with the result that you were no longer naked. I solemnly promised [that I would marry you] and made a marriage agreement with you, and you became my wife. That is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say.
9 “Mele tsi na wò, klɔ ʋu ɖa le ŋuwò, eye mesi ami na wò.
[And then it was as though] [MET] I bathed you and washed the blood from you and put ointment on your body.
10 Meta avɔ ŋɔŋɔe na wò, eye medo afɔkpa na wò. Medo aklalawu nyuitɔ kple awu xɔasitɔ na wò.
[It was as though] [MET] I put a fine linen robe on you and gave you other expensive clothes. I put an embroidered dress on you and put leather sandals on your feet.
11 Metsɔ kpe xɔasinuwo ɖo atsyɔ̃ na wò. Medo abɔgɛ ɖe abɔ na wò, eye medo kɔga ɖe kɔ na wò;
[It was as though] [MET] I put bracelets on your arms and a necklace around your neck. Those things all had nice jewels fastened to them.
12 medo ŋɔtigɛ ɖe ŋɔti na wò, medo togɛwo ɖe to na wò, eye meɖɔ fiakuku dzeani aɖe na wò.
I put a gold ring in your nose and fastened earrings to your ears and put a beautiful crown on your head.
13 Ale wotsɔ sika kple klosalo ɖo atsyɔ̃e na wò. Wò avɔwo nye aklala biɖibiɖi, seda kple avɔ ŋɔŋɔe. Wò nuɖuɖu nye wɔ memee, anyitsi kple amitime. Èva dze tugbe ŋutɔ, eye nèyi dzi va zu fianyɔnu.
So [it was as though] you wore gold and silver ornaments. You had clothes made from fine (linen/white cloth) and other expensive embroidered material/cloth. You ate [bread made from] fine flour, honey, and olive oil. You became very beautiful, like [MET] a queen.
14 Wò ŋkɔ de dzi kaka ɖe dukɔwo dome le wò tugbedzedze ta, elabena atsyɔ̃ si meɖo na wò la na wò tugbedzedze de blibo. Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe.
You were very beautiful, with the result that people in other nations heard about you, because they knew that I, Yahweh the Lord, am the one who had caused you to become very beautiful.
15 “Ke èɖo ŋu ɖe wò tugbedzedze ŋu, eye nèwɔ wò ŋkɔxɔxɔ ŋu dɔ hezu gbolo. Ènyoa dɔ me na ame sia ame si tsoa eme va yina, eye wò tugbedzedze zua etɔ.
But [it was as though] [MET] you realized that because people knew that you were very beautiful, you could [earn a lot of money by] becoming a prostitute. [It was as though] you had sex with [EUP] every man who came along, and they all enjoyed your beauty.
16 Ètsɔ wò avɔ aɖewo wɔ nuxeƒewo, eye nèwɔa gbolo le afi ma. Nu siawo madzɔ, eye womava eme hafi o.
[It was as though] you took some of your clothes to make beautifully decorated shrines, and that is where you had sex with those men. Those things should certainly never occur!
17 Ètsɔ nu dzeani siwo mena wò, nu siwo wotsɔ nye sika kple klosalo wɔe la wɔ ŋutsulegbawo na ɖokuiwò, eye nèwɔ gbolo kpli wo.
You took the fine gold and silver jewelry that I gave you, and you made male idols for yourself, in order to have sex with them.
18 Ètsɔ wò avɔ ŋɔŋɔewo tsyɔ na wo, eye nètsɔ nye ami kple dzudzɔʋeʋĩdonuwo ɖo woƒe ŋkume.
You took some of your embroidered clothes to put on those idols, and you burned oil and incense in front of them [to honor them].
19 Kpe ɖe esiawo ŋu la, nuɖuɖu siwo mena wò, siwo nye wɔ memee, ami kple notsi abe wò nuɖuɖu ene la, ètsɔ wo ɖo woƒe ŋkume abe vɔsa ʋeʋĩ lilili ene. Esiae va eme. Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe.
And the [bread that was made from] fine flour and the olive oil and honey that I gave to you to eat, you offered to be a fragrant sacrifice to those idols. I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that is what happened.
20 “Eye nètsɔ viŋutsu kple vinyɔnu siwo nèdzi nam la sa nuɖuvɔ na legbawo. Wò gbolowɔwɔ ɖeɖe mesɔ gbɔ oa?
And you even took your sons and daughters who were [as though they were] [MET] my children, and sacrificed them to be food for the idols. That was much worse [RHQ] than your becoming a prostitute.
21 Èwu vinyewo, eye nètsɔ wo sa vɔe na legbawo.
You slaughtered [those who were like] [MET] my children, and offered them to be sacrifices to the gods!
22 Le wò ŋunyɔnuwo katã kple gbolowɔwɔ me la, mèɖo ŋku wò ɖetugbimeŋkekewo dzi, esime nènɔ amama kple ƒuƒlu, eye nènɔ afɔ dam le wò ʋu me la dzi o.
All during the time when you were acting like a prostitute and doing other detestable things, you did not think about the time when [it was as though] you were very young, naked [DOU], lying in your own blood and kicking.
23 “Babaa! Babaa na wò! Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe. Kpe ɖe wò ŋutasẽnu bubuwo katã ŋuti la,
So I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that terrible things will happen to you. In addition to all the other wicked things that you did,
24 ètu trɔ̃xɔ gãwo ɖe ablɔ gãwo me na ɖokuiwò kple nuxeƒe ɖe ƒuƒoƒe ɖe sia ɖe.
you built a shrine to worship idols in every [city] square/plaza.
25 Ètu wò nuxeƒewo ɖe ablɔ ɖe sia ɖe ƒe seƒe, èɖi gbɔ̃ wò tugbedzedze to wò ŋutilãtsɔtsɔ na ame sia ame si va yina to gbolowɔwɔ vivivo me.
At the beginning of every street you built a shrine, and showed people your beautiful body, offering it to have sex with every man who walked by, becoming a better known prostitute every day.
26 Èwɔ gbolo kple Egiptetɔwo, wò aƒelika gbegblẽwo, eye nèdo dɔmedzoe nam kple wò gbolowɔwɔ si le edzi yim wu tsã.
[It was as though] [MET] you had sex with men from Egypt who were eager to have sex with you, men who lived near to Israel. You caused me to become very angry because you became more eager to have sex with more and more of them.
27 Ale mekɔ nye alɔ dzi ɖe ŋuwò, eye meɖe wò anyigba ƒe lolome dzi kpɔtɔ. Metsɔ wò de asi na wò futɔwo ƒe ŋukeklẽ, Filistitɔwo ƒe nyɔnuviwo, ame siwo wò ŋukpenanuwɔnawo wɔ nuku na.
So I punished [IDM] you and caused your enemies to capture some of your country. I enabled your greedy enemies from Philistia to defeat you; and even they were shocked because of your disgraceful behavior.
28 Èwɔ gbolo kple Asiriatɔwo hã, elabena dzodzro mevɔ le mewò o, eye le esia megbe gɔ̃ hã la, meɖi kɔ na wò o.
[It was as though] you had sex with soldiers from Assyria, too, because you always wanted more sex. And after that, you still were not satisfied.
29 Ale nèyi gbolowɔwɔ dzi wu, eye wòlɔ asitsalawo ƒe anyigba, Babilonia ɖe eme. Ke esia gɔ̃ hã meɖi kɔ na wò o.”
So you also had sex [with soldiers from] Babylonia, a country full of merchants/businessmen, but even that did not satisfy you.
30 Aƒetɔ Yehowa gblɔ be, “Aleke ɖokuidzimaɖumaɖu xɔ mewò ale, esime nèwɔ esiawo katã abe gbolo dzimesesẽtɔ ene!
I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that when you did all those things, acting like [MET] a bold prostitute, you were showing that you were ready to do anything that you wanted to [IDM].
31 Esi nètu wo trɔ̃xɔwo ɖe ablɔ ɖe sia ɖe nu, eye nèɖo wò nuxeƒe kɔkɔwo ɖe ƒuƒoƒe ɖe sia ɖe la, mèɖi gbolo aɖeke o, elabena èdo vlo gbologaxɔxɔ.
When you built shrines to worship idols on every street corner and in every city square/plaza, you were not like a prostitute: Prostitutes charge money, but you refused to take money for what you did.
32 “Wò, srɔ̃nyɔnu, ahasitɔ! Amedzrowo dzea ŋuwò wu srɔ̃wò!
You are like [MET] a woman who commits adultery: You prefer to [have sex with] strangers rather than with your husband.
33 Gbolo ɖe sia ɖe xɔa ga, gake wò ya ènaa nu ŋutsu siwo nèwɔa gbolo kplii la katã, ènaa zãnu wo ale be woatso afi sia afi ava wɔ ahasi kpli wò.
Prostitutes are paid, but [it is as though] you give gifts to all your lovers; you bribe them to come to you from everywhere to have sex with you.
34 Ale le wò gbolowɔwɔ me la, mèle abe ame bubuawo ene o: ŋutsu aɖeke metia yowòme o. Mèle abe gbolo bubuawo ene o, elabena wò ya èxea fe na ŋutsuawo, eye ŋutsuawo menaa naneke wò o.
So although you act like [MET] a prostitute, you are not like other prostitutes: No one needs to request you to have sex [EUP] with them. You are the opposite of other prostitutes; instead of them giving any money to you, you give men money to have sex with you.
35 “Eya ta wò gbolo, se Yehowa ƒe nya.
Therefore, [you people of] Jerusalem, who are like a prostitute [MET], listen to what I, Yahweh the Lord, am saying about you!
36 Nya si Aƒetɔ Yehowa gblɔe nye, ‘Esi nètsɔ wò kesinɔnuwo na la, èna ŋutsuwo kpɔ wò amame le wò gbolowɔwɔ me, eye le wò ŋukpenalegbawo katã ta kple esi nètsɔ viwòwo ƒe ʋu na wo ta la,
I say that [what you have done is as though] [MET] you took off your clothes and acted like a prostitute and had sex with men who are not your husband. [What I mean is that you have been worshiping] detestable idols, and you have murdered [MTY] your own children to be sacrifices to them.
37 mele ƒu ƒo ge wò ahiãviwo katã, ame siwo mia kpli wo mieɖu vivi kple esiwo nèlé fui siaa, maƒo ƒu wo ɖe ŋuwò tso teƒe siwo katã ƒo xlã wò. Maɖe amama wò le woƒe ŋkume, eye woakpɔ wò amama blibo la.
So [what I am going to do is as though] I will gather those who you think have loved you and those whom you hated. I will gather them around you [to attack you], and [what I will do is as though] I will strip your clothes off you, and they will see you when you are completely naked.
38 Mana nyɔnu ahasitɔwo kple esiwo kɔa ʋu ɖi la ƒe tohehe nava dziwò. Mana nye dziku ƒe hlɔ̃biabia ɖe ʋu ta kple nye ŋuʋaʋã ƒe dɔmedzoe nava dziwò.
I will punish you like women who commit adultery and who murder people [MTY] are punished. I will get revenge on you and get rid of you because I am extremely angry with you.
39 Ekema matsɔ wò ade asi na wò ahiãviawo, eye woagbã wò trɔ̃xɔwo kple nuxeƒe kɔkɔwo. Woaɖe wò awuwo le ŋuwò, woaxɔ wò sikanu dzeaniwo, eye woagblẽ wò ɖi nànɔ amama, anɔ ƒuƒlu.
I will allow [your enemies who you thought] loved you [IRO] to defeat you, and they will tear down your shrines. [It will be as though] they will strip off your fancy clothes and take away your fine jewelry and cause you to be completely naked [DOU].
40 Woana ame aɖewo natso ɖe ŋuwò. Ame siawo aƒu kpe wò, eye woafli wò kple woƒe yiwo.
They will bring a mob to attack you, and that mob will throw stones at you and cut you to pieces with their swords.
41 Woatɔ dzo wò aƒewo, eye woahe to na wò le nyɔnu geɖewo ŋkume. Matsi wò gbolowɔwɔ nu, eye màgaxe fe na wò ahiãviwo o.
They will burn down your houses and punish you while many women are watching. I will cause your acting like a prostitute and paying your lovers to have sex with you to end.
42 Ekema nye dziku ɖe ŋuwò nu abɔbɔ, eye nye ŋuʋaʋã ƒe dɔmedzoe aɖe ɖa le ŋuwò. Manɔ anyi bɔkɔɔ: nyemagado dɔmedzoe o.’
Then I will no longer be angry [DOU] with you. I will stop being jealous [because of your worshiping gods other than me only].
43 “Esi mèɖo ŋku wò ɖetugbimeŋkekewo dzi o, ke boŋ nètsɔ nu siawo do dziku nam ta la, mahe nu siwo nèwɔ la va wò ta dzi kokoko. Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe. Ɖe mètsɔ ŋukpenanuwɔwɔ kpe ɖe wò ŋunyɔnuwɔwɔwo ŋu oa?
You have forgotten [the wonderful things that I did for you] in previous years [MET]. You have caused me to become extremely angry because of all the [evil things] that you have done. In addition to all the other detestable things that you did, you committed many sexual sins. So I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that I will punish you [IDM] for doing those things.
44 “Ame sia ame si doa lo la, ado lo sia tso ŋuwò, ‘Ale si vinɔ le la, nenemae via nyɔnu hã nɔna.’
People who [like to] quote proverbs will quote this proverb about you: “[behave] like their mothers [behave].”
45 Vavã ènye dawò, ame si do vlo srɔ̃a kple viawo la ƒe vinyɔnu, eye vavã, ènye nɔvinyɔnu na nɔviwò nyɔnuwo, ame siwo do vlo wo srɔ̃ŋutsuwo kple wo viwo. Dawò nye Hititɔ, eye fofowò nye Amoritɔ.
You are like your mother; [it was as though] she detested her husband and her children. You are like your sisters, who also despised their husbands and their children. [It was as though] [MET] your father belonged to the Amor people-group and your mother belonged to the Heth people-group.
46 Nɔviwò nyɔnu tsitsitɔe nye Samaria, ame si nɔ wò anyiehe gome kple via nyɔnuwo. Nɔviwò nyɔnu ɖevitɔ, ame si nɔ miaƒe dziehe lɔƒo kple via nyɔnuwo la nye Sodom.
And [it was as though] [MET] your older sister was Samaria, and she and her daughters lived to the north of you, and [it was as though] your younger sister was Sodom, and she and her daughters lived to the south of you.
47 Mienɔ agbe abe woawo ene ɖeɖe ko o, eye miewɔ woƒe ŋukpenanuwo hã ko o, ke boŋ le miaƒe wɔnawo katã me la, èwɔ nu vlowo wu woawo gɔ̃ hã.
You not only imitated all [DOU] their detestable behavior, but you quickly became more sinful than they were.
48 Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔ be, ‘Zi ale si mele agbe la, nɔviwò nyɔnu Sodom kple via nyɔnuwo mewɔ nu si wò kple viwò nyɔnuwo miewɔ o.’
I, Yahweh the Lord, solemnly declare that as surely as I am alive, [the people who lived in] [MTY] Sodom and other nearby cities never did the detestable things that you [people in Jerusalem and other places in Judah] have done.
49 “Kpɔ ɖa, nɔviwò nyɔnu, Sodom ƒe nu vɔ̃e nye, eya kple via nyɔnuwo dana, ɖua nutsu, naneke mekaa wo o. Womekpena ɖe ame dahewo kple hiãtɔwo ŋu o.
These are the sins [the people who lived in] Sodom, who were like your sister [MET]: The people who lived there and in nearby cities were arrogant. In spite of having more food to eat than they needed, they refused to help the poor and needy [DOU] people among them.
50 Ale wodo wo ɖokuiwo ɖe dzi, eye wowɔ ŋukpenanuwo le nye ŋkume. Eya ta meɖe wo ɖa abe ale si miekpɔe ene.
The people of Sodom and nearby cities [MET] were proud and did detestable things in my presence, so I got rid of them when I saw what they had been doing.
51 Samaria mewɔ nu vɔ̃ siwo nèwɔ la ƒe afã o. Èwɔ ŋukpenanuwo wu woawo, eye miena mia nɔvinyɔnuwo dze ame dzɔdzɔewo to nu siwo katã nèwɔ la me.
Also, [the people of] Samaria did not commit half as many sins as you have committed. You have done more disgusting things than they have done. You cause the people of Samaria to appear to be good, compared to you.
52 Eya ta de ta wò ŋukpe te, elabena ètso afia na nɔviwò nyɔnuawo. Esi wò nu vɔ̃wo vɔ̃ɖi wu woawo tɔ ta la, wodze ame dzɔdzɔewo wu wò.
Your sins are worse than their sins, so they seem to be less wicked than you are. So I will punish you more than I punished them. As a result, you will be ashamed and disgraced [DOU].
53 “‘Ke magaɖo Sodom kple via nyɔnu ƒe dzɔgbenyui te, kpe ɖe Samaria kple via nyɔnuwo tɔ kple wò ŋutɔ tɔ hã ŋu,
However, [some day] I will [the people of] Sodom and Samaria and the cities near to them [MET] to prosper again. And I will cause you to prosper again, too.
54 ale be nàtsɔ wo vlodoame, eye ŋu nakpe wò le nu siwo katã nèwɔ hena akɔfafa na wo ta.
You will be very ashamed [DOU] of the wicked things that you have done, and that will cause the people of those cities to be encouraged.
55 Eye nɔviwò nyɔnuwo, Sodom kple via nyɔnuwo kple Samaria kple via nyɔnuwo woagatrɔ azu nu siwo wonye tsã, eye wò kple viwòwo hã miagatrɔ azu nu siwo mienye kpɔ.
[The people of] Sodom and Samaria will prosper again, and you and the people in nearby cities will prosper also.
56 Màyɔ nɔviwò nyɔnu Sodom ƒe ŋkɔ le wò dadaɣi,
You (sneered at/despised) [the people of] Sodom when you were proud,
57 hafi woava klo nu le wò vɔ̃ɖivɔ̃ɖi ŋu o. Azɔ la, èzu Edom ƒe vinyɔnuwo kple ame siwo ƒo xlã wo kple Filistitɔwo ƒe vinyɔnuwo ƒe vlodonu, ame siwo katã ƒo xlã wò, eye wodo vlo wò.
before it was revealed that you were very wicked. And now [the people of] Edom and [the people of] Philistia all insult you and despise you.
58 Àde ta wò ŋukpenanuwɔnawo kple wò ŋunyɔnuwo ƒe yomedzenu te.’” Yehowae gblɔe.
And you are being punished for all your immoral behavior and other detestable things that you do.
59 “Ale Aƒetɔ Yehowa gblɔe nye si, ‘Matu nu kple wò abe ale si dze wò ene, elabena èdo vlo nye atam to nye nubabla tutu me.
This is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say: I will continue to punish you like you deserve to be punished, because by rejecting the agreement that I made with you, you have despised that solemn agreement that you promised to obey.
60 Ke maɖo ŋku nubabla si mewɔ kpli wò le wò ɖetugbimeŋkekewo me la dzi, eye mawɔ nubabla mavɔ kple wò.
But I will not forget the agreement that I made with you long ago [MET], and I will make an agreement with you that will endure forever.
61 Ekema àɖo ŋku wò mɔwo dzi, eye ŋu akpe wò ne èkpɔ nɔviwò nyɔnu siwo tsi wu wò kple esiwo nètsi wu hã. Matsɔ wo ana wò abe viwò nyɔnuwo ene, gake menye ɖe nubabla si mewɔ kple wò la dzi o.
Then you will think about what you have done, and you will be ashamed about those things when you welcome [the people of] Sodom and Samaria, cities which are like [MET] older and younger sisters to you people of Jerusalem. I will [put them under your control by] causing them to become like [MET] your daughters, but they will not have the same agreement that I will make with you.
62 Ale mabla nu kple wò, eye nànya be nyee nye Yehowa.
I will establish my agreement with you, and you will know that I, Yahweh, [have the power to do what I say that I will do].
63 Ekema ne metsɔ nu vɔ̃ siwo katã nèwɔ ke wò la, àɖo ŋku edzi, eye ŋu akpe wò, màgake nu azɔ o le wò ŋukpe ta.’ Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe.”
Then when I have forgiven you for all your sins, you will think about all the sins that you committed and you will be ashamed, and you will never again [boast about them], because you will be humiliated.’”
