Hezekiel 44
1 Azɔ la, ŋutsu la gbugbɔm va kɔkɔeƒe la ƒe agbo si dze ŋgɔ ɣedzeƒe la gbɔ. Wotui.
And he turned me back, toward the way of the gate of the outer sanctuary, which looked toward the east. And it was closed.
2 Yehowa gblɔ nam be, “Ele be agbo sia nanɔ tutu ɣe sia ɣi. Mele be woaʋui o, eye ame aɖeke mato eme age ɖe eme o. Ele be wòanɔ tutu, elabena Yehowa, Israel ƒe Mawu la to eme ge ɖe eme.
And the Lord said to me: “This gate will be closed; it will not be opened. And man shall not cross through it. For the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it, and it shall be closed
3 Fiaviŋutsu la ŋutɔ koe nye ame si anɔ agbo la nu be wòaɖu nu le Yehowa ŋkume. Ele nɛ be wòage ɖe eme to akpata la me, eye wòado go to afi ma ke.”
to the prince. The prince himself will sit at it, so that he may eat bread before the Lord; he will enter by the way of the vestibule of the gate, and he will depart by the same way.”
4 Tete ŋutsu la kplɔm to anyiehegbo la me yi gbedoxɔ la ŋgɔ. Metsa ŋku, eye mekpɔ Yehowa ƒe ŋutikɔkɔe wòyɔ Yehowa ƒe gbedoxɔ la, eye metsyɔ mo anyi.
And he led me in, along the way of the north gate, in the sight of the house. And I saw, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord. And I fell upon my face.
5 Eye Yehowa gblɔ nam be, “Ame vi, lé ŋku ɖe nu ŋu nyuie, ɖo to nyuie, eye nàlé fɔ ɖe nu sia nu si magblɔ na wò tso Yehowa ƒe gbedoxɔ la ƒe ɖoɖowo ŋuti kple afi siwo woato ado go le Kɔkɔeƒe la ŋuti.
And the Lord said to me: “Son of man, set within your heart, and see with your eyes, and hear with your ears all that I am speaking to you about all the ceremonies of the house of the Lord and about all its laws. And set your heart upon the ways of the temple, along all the exits of the sanctuary.
6 Gblɔ na Israel ƒe aƒe dzeaglã la be, ‘Nya si Aƒetɔ Yehowa gblɔe nye esi. Miaƒe ŋukpenanuwɔnawo sɔ gbɔ, O! Israel ƒe aƒe!
And you shall say to the house of Israel, which provokes me: Thus says the Lord God: Let all your wicked deeds be sufficient for you, O house of Israel.
7 Kpe ɖe miaƒe ŋukpenanuwɔna bubuawo ŋu la, miekplɔ amedzro, ame siwo wometso aʋa na le dzi me alo le ŋutilã me o la, va nye kɔkɔeƒe la, eye miegblẽ kɔ ɖo na nye gbedoxɔ la le esime miena nuɖuɖum, lãmi kple ʋu, eye mietu nye nubabla la.
For you bring in foreign sons, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, so that they may be in my sanctuary and may defile my house. And you offer my bread, the fat, and the blood, yet you have broken my covenant by all your wicked deeds.
8 Le esime miawɔ miaƒe dɔdeasiwo le nye nu kɔkɔewo ŋuti la, mietsɔ ame bubuwo be woakpɔ nye kɔkɔeƒe la dzi.’
And you have not observed the precepts of my sanctuary, yet you have stationed observers of my vigil in my sanctuary for yourselves.
9 Nya si Aƒetɔ Yehowa gblɔe nye, ‘Amedzro aɖeke, ame si wometso aʋa na le dzi me kple ŋutilã me o la, mekpɔ mɔ age ɖe nye Kɔkɔeƒe la o, amedzro siwo le Israelviwo dome gɔ̃ hã mekpɔ mɔ o.
Thus says the Lord God: Any foreigner, any foreign son who is in the midst of the sons of Israel, who is uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, shall not enter into my sanctuary.
10 “‘Levitɔ siwo de megbe le ŋunye, esime Israel tra mɔ, eye wòdzo le gbɔnye hedze legbawo yome la, axɔ woƒe nu vɔ̃ ƒe yomedzenu.
And as for the Levites, they have withdrawn far away from me, in the errors of the sons of Israel, and they have gone astray from me after their idols, and they have borne their iniquity.
11 Woate ŋu asubɔ le nye kɔkɔeƒe la, adzɔ gbedoxɔ la ƒe agbowo ŋu, eye woasubɔ le afi ma; woate ŋu awu numevɔsawo ƒe lãwo kple ameawo tɔwo, woatsi tsitre ɖe ameawo ŋkume, eye woasubɔ wo.
They will be caretakers in my sanctuary, and doorkeepers at the gates of the house, and ministers to the house. They will slay the holocausts and the victims of the people. And they will stand before them, so that they may minister to them.
12 Ke, le esime wosubɔ ameawo le woƒe legbawo ŋkume, eye wona Israel ƒe aƒe la dze nu vɔ̃ me ta la, meka atam le esime mekɔ asi dzi be woaxɔ woƒe nu vɔ̃ ƒe yomedzenuwo. Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe.
But because they ministered to them in the sight their idols, and they became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel, for this reason, I have lifted up my hand against them, says the Lord God, and they will bear their iniquity.
13 Mele be woate ɖe ŋunye be yewoasubɔm abe nunɔlawo ene alo ate ɖe nye nu kɔkɔewo alo nye vɔsa kɔkɔewo ŋu o. Ele na wo be woatsɔ woƒe ŋukpenanuwɔnawo ƒe ŋukpe.
And they shall not draw near to me, so as to exercise the priesthood for me, and they shall not approach to any of my holy things, which are near the Holy of Holies. Instead, they will bear their shame and their wicked deeds, which they committed.
14 Ke matsɔ wo ada ɖe gbedoxɔ la ƒe dɔdeasiwo kple dɔ sia dɔ si woawɔ le eme la nu.
And I will make them doorkeepers of the house, for all its ministries and for all that will be done within it.
15 “‘Ke nunɔlaawo, ame siwo nye Levitɔwo kple Zadok ƒe dzidzimeviwo, eye wowɔ woƒe dɔdeasiwo le nye kɔkɔeƒe la kple nuteƒewɔwɔ esime Israelviwo tra mɔ tso gbɔnye la, ate va, eye woasubɔ le nye ŋkume. Woatsi tsitre ɖe nye ŋkume be woasa vɔ kple lãmi kple ʋu. Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe.
But the priests and the Levites who are the sons of Zadok, who observed the ceremonies of my sanctuary when the sons of Israel went astray from me, these shall draw near to me, so that they may minister for me. And they shall stand in my sight, so that they may offer to me the fat and the blood, says the Lord God.
16 Woawo koe age ɖe nye Kɔkɔeƒe la. Woawo koe ate ɖe nye kplɔ̃ la ŋu be woasubɔ le nye ŋkume, eye woawɔ nye dɔdeasi.’
They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall draw near to my table, so that they may minister for me, and so that they may observe my ceremonies.
17 “‘Ne woge ɖe xɔxɔnu emetɔ ƒe agbowo me la, woado aklalawuwo, womado lãfuwu aɖeke esime wole subɔsubɔdɔ wɔm le xɔxɔnu emetɔ me alo le gbedoxɔ la me o.
And when they enter the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments. Neither shall anything woolen be placed over them, when they minister within the gates of the inner and the outer court.
18 Woabla ta kple tablanu aklalatɔwo, eye woado aklalawutewuiwo ɖe ali. Womado naneke si ana woate fifia o.
They shall have linen bands on their heads, and linen undergarments over their loins, and they shall not be girded so as to sweat.
19 Ne woyi xɔxɔnu egodotɔ, afi si amewo le la, woaɖe awu siwo wodo hesubɔ la da ɖe xɔ kɔkɔeawo me, eye woado woawo ŋutɔ ƒe awuwo ale be womakɔ ameawo ŋu kple woƒe awuwo o.
And when they go forth to the outer court to the people, they shall strip off their vestments, in which they ministered, and they shall place them in the storeroom of the sanctuary, and they shall clothe themselves with other garments. And they shall not sanctify the people in their vestments.
20 “‘Womaƒlɔ ta o, eye womana woƒe ɖa nato ʋutuu hã o, ke woafɔ woƒe taɖa dzi.
Now they shall not shave their heads, and they shall not grow long hair. Instead, they shall trim the hair of their heads.
21 Nunɔla aɖeke mano wain ne wòge ɖe xɔxɔnu emetɔ o.
And no priest shall drink wine, when he will be entering into the inner court.
22 Womaɖe ahosiwo alo nyɔnu siwo ƒe srɔ̃ɖeɖe me gblẽ o. Ame siwo woate ŋu aɖe ko la woe nye Israel ɖetugbiwo alo nunɔlawo ƒe ahosiwo.
And they shall not take as wife a widow or one who has been divorced. Instead, they shall take virgins from the offspring of the house of Israel. But they may also take a widow, if she is the widow of a priest.
23 Ele na wo be woafia nye amewo vovototo si le nu kɔkɔe kple nu makɔmakɔ dome, eye woafia ameawo be woanya vovototo si le nu kɔkɔewo kple nu makɔmakɔwo dome.
And they shall teach my people the difference between holy and defiled, and they shall distinguish for them between clean and unclean.
24 “‘Ne dzrenya aɖe dzɔ la, nunɔlaawo awɔ dɔ abe ʋɔnudrɔ̃lawo ene, eye woatso nya me le nye sewo nu. Woalé nye sewo kple ɖoɖowo na ŋkekenyui ɖoɖiwo me ɖe asi, eye woawɔ nye Dzudzɔgbe la kɔkɔe.
And when there has been a controversy, they shall stand in my judgments, and they shall judge. They shall observe my laws and my precepts, in all my solemnities, and they shall sanctify my Sabbaths.
25 “‘Nunɔla aɖeke magblẽ kɔ ɖo na eɖokui to tete ɖe ame kuku aɖeke ŋu me o, ke ne ame kuku la nye fofoa alo dadaa, Via ŋutsu alo via nyɔnu, nɔviŋutsu alo nɔvinyɔnu srɔ̃manɔsitɔ la, ekema ate ŋu agblẽ kɔ ɖo na eɖokui.
And they shall not enter to a dead person, lest they be defiled, except to father or mother, or son or daughter, or brother, or to a sister who does not have another man. By these, they may become unclean.
26 Ne wokɔ eŋuti la, alala ŋkeke adre.
And after he will have been cleansed, they shall number for him seven days.
27 Gbe si gbe wòaɖo afɔ kɔkɔeƒe la ƒe xɔxɔnu emetɔ be wòasubɔ le kɔkɔeƒe la la, ele be wòana nu hena nuvɔ̃ŋutivɔsa ɖe eɖokui ta. Aƒetɔ Yehowae gblɔe.
And on the day when he enters into the sanctuary, to the inner court, so that he may minister to me in the sanctuary, he shall make an offering because of his offense, says the Lord God.
28 “‘Nye koe anye domenyinu si anɔ nunɔlawo si. Mele be miana nunɔamesi aɖeke wo le Israel o. Nyee anye woƒe nunɔamesi.
And there shall be no inheritance for them. I am their inheritance. And you shall not give them any possession in Israel. For I am their possession.
29 Woaɖu nuɖuvɔsawo, nu vɔ̃ ŋuti vɔsawo kple fɔɖivɔsawo, eye nu sia nu si le Israel si wotsɔ na Yehowa la, anye wo tɔ.
They shall eat the victim both for sin and for offenses. And every vowed offering in Israel shall be theirs.
30 Kutsetse gbãtɔwo ƒe nyuitɔwo kple miaƒe nunana tɔxɛwo katã anye nunɔlawo tɔ. Ele be miatsɔ miaƒe agblemenuku gbãtɔwo ana wo, ale be yayra nanɔ wò aƒemetɔwo dzi.
And the first-fruits of all the firstborn, and all the libations out of all that is offered, shall belong to the priests. And you shall give the first-fruits of your foods to the priest, so that he may return a blessing to your house.
31 Nunɔlawo maɖu xevi alo lã aɖe si ku loo alo lã si lã wɔadã aɖe vuvu la o.
The priests shall not consume anything which has died on its own, or which was seized by a beast, whether from the fowl or the cattle.”
