Ʋɔnudrɔ̃lawo 11
1 Yefta nye aʋawɔla sesẽ aɖe tso Gileadnyigba dzi. Dadaa nye gbolo eye fofoa ŋkɔe nye Gilead.
At that time, there was a Gileadite, Jephthah, a very strong man and a fighter, the son of a kept woman, and he was born of Gilead.
2 Vi bubuwo nɔ Gilead si siwo srɔ̃a ŋutɔ dzi nɛ. Esi Gilead ƒe vi bubu siawo tsi la, wonya Yefta le anyigba la dzi, gblɔ nɛ be, “Nyɔnu bubu ƒe vi nènye! Màkpɔ domenyinu aɖeke tso mía fofo gbɔ o.”
Now Gilead had a wife, from whom he received sons. And they, after growing up, cast out Jephthah, saying, “You cannot inherit in the house of our father, because you were born of another mother.”
3 Ale Yefta si tso fofoa ƒe aƒe me yi Tobnyigba dzi. Eƒo gbevu aɖewo nu ƒu ɖe eɖokui ŋu eye wokplɔnɛ ɖo ɣe sia ɣi.
And so, fleeing and avoiding them, he lived in the land of Tob. And men who were indigent and robbers joined with him, and they followed him as their leader.
4 Ɣeyiɣi sia mee Amonitɔwo ho aʋa ɖe Israelviwo ŋu.
In those days, the sons of Ammon fought against Israel.
5 Gilead ƒe kplɔlawo ɖo du ɖe Yefta
And being steadfastly attacked, the elders of Gilead traveled so that they might obtain for their assistance Jephthah, from the land of Tob.
6 kple kukuɖeɖe be wòava kplɔ yewoƒe aʋakɔ la le aʋawɔwɔ kple Amonitɔwo me.
And they said to him, “Come and be our leader, and fight against the sons of Ammon.”
7 Yefta bia wo be, “Nu ka ta mieva yɔm le esime mielé fum eye mienyam le fofonye ƒe aƒe me? Nu ka tae mieɖo du ɖem azɔ esi miele xaxa me?”
But he answered them: “Are you not the ones who hated me, and who cast me out of my father’s house? And yet now you come to me, compelled by necessity?”
8 Woɖo eŋu be, “Míeɖo du ɖe wò elabena míehiã wò kpekpeɖeŋu. Ne ànye míaƒe aʋafia le míaƒe aʋawɔwɔ me kple Amonitɔwo la, ekema miatsɔ wò aɖo fiae le Gilead.”
And the leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “But it is due to this necessity that we have approached you now, so that you may set out with us, and fight against the sons of Ammon, and be commander over all who live in Gilead.”
9 Yefta do ɣli be, “Nyateƒea? Ɖe miebu be maxɔ nya sia sea?”
Jephthah also said to them: “If you have come to me so that I may fight for you against the sons of Ammon, and if the Lord will deliver them into my hands, will I truly be your leader?”
10 Woɖo eŋu be, “Míedo ŋugbe na wò eye míeka atam ɖe ŋugbedodo dzi.”
They answered him, “The Lord who hears these things is himself the Mediator and the Witness that we shall do what we have promised.”
11 Ale Yefta lɔ̃ eye wòzu aʋafia kple Gilead fia. Woɖo kpe nya sia dzi le Yehowa kple ameawo katã ŋkume le Mizpa.
And so Jephthah went with the leaders of Gilead, and all the people made him their leader. And Jephthah spoke all his words, in the sight of the Lord, at Mizpah.
12 Yefta ɖo du ɖe Amon fia be yedi be yeanya nu si ta wòle aʋa hom ɖe Israelviwo ŋu.
And he sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, who said on his behalf, “What is there between you and me, that you would approach against me, so that you might lay waste to my land?”
13 Amon fia ɖo eŋu be anyigba la nye Amɔnitɔwo tɔ eye Israelviwo va fii esime wotso Egipte va ɖo. Eyi edzi be anyigba blibo la tso Arnon tɔsisi la ŋu yi Yabok tɔsisi la ŋu heyi Yɔdan tɔsisi la ŋu, eye wònye ye tɔ, eya ta Israelviwo naɖe asi le yeƒe anyigba ŋuti na ye tomefafatɔe.
And he responded to them, “It is because Israel took my land, when he ascended from Egypt, from the parts of Arnon, as far as the Jabbok and the Jordan. Now therefore, restore these to me with peace.”
14 Yefta gaɖo amewo ɖe Amonitɔwo ƒe fia
And Jephthah again commissioned them, and he ordered them to say to the king of Ammon:
15 be, “Nya si Yefta gblɔ lae nye esi, ‘Israel mexɔ Moabtɔwo alo Amonitɔwo ƒe anyigba o. Nyateƒe lae nye be,
“Jephthah says this: Israel did not take the land of Moab, nor the land of the sons of Ammon.
16 esi Israelviwo tso Egipte, tso Ƒu Dzĩe la eye wova ɖo Kades la,
But when they ascended together from Egypt, he walked through the desert as far as the Red Sea, and he went into Kadesh.
17 woɖo du ɖe Edom fia nɔ mɔ biam be, yewoato eƒe anyigba dzi gake Edom fia meɖe mɔ na wo o. Wobia mɔ ma ke Moab fia hã eye eya hã gbe eya ta Israelviwo nɔ Kades.
And he sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Permit me to pass through your land.’ But he was not willing to agree to his petition. Likewise, he sent to the king of Moab, who also refused to offer him passage. And so he delayed in Kadesh,
18 “‘Mlɔeba la, woƒo xlã Edom kple Moab to gbedadaƒo, woto woƒe ɣedzeƒeliƒowo dzi va se ɖe esime woɖo Moab ƒe liƒo la godo le Arnon tɔsisi la ŋu.
and he circled around the side of the land of Edom and the land of Moab. And he arrived opposite the eastern region of the land of Moab. And he made camp across the Arnon. But he was not willing to enter the borders of Moab. (Of course, Arnon is the border of the land of Moab.)
19 Israel ɖo du ɖe Fia Sixɔn, Amoritɔwo ƒe fia, le Hesbon eye wòbia be wòaɖe mɔ yewoato eƒe anyigba dzi ayi afi si yewoyina.
And so Israel sent messengers to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who was living at Heshbon. And they said to him, “Permit me to cross through your land as far as the river.”
20 Fia Sixɔn mexɔ Israelviwo dzi se o eya ta wòna eƒe aʋakɔ wɔ aʋa kple Israelviwo le Yaza.
But he, too, despising the words of Israel, would not permit him to cross through his borders. Instead, gathering an innumerable multitude, he went out against him at Jahaz, and he resisted strongly.
21 Yehowa, míaƒe Mawu la kpe ɖe Israelviwo ŋu woɖu Fia Sixɔn dzi. Ale Israelviwo xɔ anyigba si dzi Amoritɔwo nɔ la katã.
But the Lord delivered him, with his entire army, into the hands of Israel. And he struck him down, and he possessed all the land of the Amorite, the inhabitant of that region,
22 Israelviwo nɔ anyigba la katã dzi tso Arnon tɔsisi la ŋu le anyigbeme yi Yabok tɔsisi la ŋu le dzigbeme kple tso gbegbe la ŋu le ɣedzeƒe yi Yɔdan tɔsisi la ŋu le ɣetoɖoƒe.
with all its parts, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok, and from the wilderness even to the Jordan.
23 “‘Ale Yehowa, Israel ƒe Mawu lae xɔ anyigba la le Amoritɔwo si na Israelviwo. Ekema nu ka ta míagbugbɔe na wò?
Therefore, it was the Lord, the God of Israel, who overthrew the Amorites, by means of his people Israel fighting against them. And now you wish to possess his land?
24 Na nu sia nu si wò mawu Kemos na wò la nanye tɔwò eye nu sia nu si Yehowa, míaƒe Mawu la na míawo hã la, nanye mía tɔ!
Are not the things that your god Chemosh possesses owed to you by right? And so, what the Lord our God has obtained by victory falls to us as a possession.
25 Ke wò ɖe, ame ka gɔ̃e nèbu be yenye? Ɖe nènyo wu Fia Balak, Moab fia? Ɖe wòdi be yeagbugbɔ yeƒe anyigba axɔ le Israelviwo si, esime Israel ɖu edzia? Kpao!
Or are you, perhaps, better than Balak, the son of Zippor, the king of Moab? Or are you able to explain what his argument was against Israel, and why he fought against him?
26 Ke wò ya nèle didim be yeaho nya sia ɖe dzi azɔ le ƒe alafa etɔ̃ megbe! Israel nɔ anyigba sia dzi ɣeyiɣi sia katã tso Hesbon va yi Aroer, yi ɖatɔ keke Arnon tɔsisi la. Nu ka ta mèdze agbagba aɖeke kpɔ do ŋgɔ na fifia be yeagbugbɔ anyigba la axɔ o?
And though he has lived in Heshbon, and its villages, and in Aroer, and its villages, and in all the cities near the Jordan for three hundred years, why have you, for such long a time, put forward nothing about this claim?
27 Kpɔ ɖa, nyemewɔ nu vɔ̃ aɖeke ɖe ŋuwò o: wò boŋue wɔ nu vɔ̃ ɖe ŋunye be nèho aʋa ɖe ŋunye. Ke eteƒe madidi o, Yehowa, Ʋɔnudrɔ̃la la, adrɔ̃ ʋɔnu le mí Israelviwo kple mi Amonitɔwo dome.’”
Therefore, I am not sinning against you, but you are doing evil against me, by declaring an unjust war against me. May the Lord be the Judge and the Arbiter this day, between Israel and the sons of Ammon.”
28 Amon fia meɖo to Yefta ƒe nya la o.
But the king of the sons of Ammon was not willing to agree to the words of Jephthah that he commissioned by the messengers.
29 Le ɣeyiɣi ma me la, Yehowa ƒe Gbɔgbɔ va Yefta dzi eye wòkplɔ eƒe aʋakɔ to Gileadnyigba kple Manase ƒe anyigba dzi, dze le Mizpa le Gilead ŋu eye wòkpe aʋa kple Amonitɔwo ƒe aʋakɔ.
Therefore, the Spirit of the Lord rested upon Jephthah, and circling around Gilead, and Manasseh, and also Mizpah of Gilead, and crossing from there to the sons of Ammon,
30 Yefta ɖe adzɔgbe na Yehowa be, “Ne ètsɔ Amonitɔwo de asi nam la,
he made a vow to the Lord, saying, “If you will deliver the sons of Ammon into my hands,
31 nu sia nu si ado to nye aƒe ƒe agbo me ava kpem ne meɖu Amonitɔwo dzi hetrɔ gbɔ la, anye Yehowa tɔ eye matsɔe asa numevɔe nɛ.”
whoever will be the first to depart from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, the same will I offer as a holocaust to the Lord.”
32 Yefta kplɔ eƒe aʋakɔ wowɔ aʋa kple Amonitɔwo. Yehowa na Israel ɖu dzi
And Jephthah crossed to the sons of Ammon, so that he might fight against them. And the Lord delivered them into his hands.
33 eye wowu Amonitɔwo tso keke Aroer va se ɖe Minit. Woxɔ du blaeve va keke Abel Keramin. Ale Israel ɖu Amonitɔwo dzi.
And he struck them down from Aroer, as far as the entrance to Minnith, twenty cities, and as far as Abel, which is covered with vineyards, in an exceedingly great slaughter. And the sons of Ammon were humbled by the sons of Israel.
34 Esi Yefta trɔ va eƒe aƒe me le Mizpa la, ame aɖeke medo va kpee o, negbe via nyɔnu si nɔ ɣe ɖum ɖe asiʋui ŋu! Eya koe nye vi ɖeka si nɔ esi. Viŋutsu loo alo vinyɔnu aɖeke meganɔ esi wu eya o.
But when Jephthah returned to Mizpah, to his own house, his only daughter met him with timbrels and dances. For he had no other children.
35 Esi wòkpɔe la, edze eƒe awuwo henɔ ɣli dom be, “O, vinyenyɔnu! Ètsɔm do nublanuitɔ kple ame ɖigbɔ̃e elabena meɖe adzɔgbe na Yehowa esi dzi nyemate ŋu ada le o.”
And upon seeing her, he tore his garments, and he said: “Alas, my daughter! You have cheated me, and you yourself have been cheated. For I opened my mouth to the Lord, and I can do nothing else.”
36 Eɖo eŋu nɛ be “Fofonye, èɖe adzɔgbe na Yehowa; wɔm abe ale si nèdo ŋugbee ene elabena Yehowa bia hlɔ̃ wò futɔ siwo nye Amonitɔwo.
And she answered him, “My father, if you have opened your mouth to the Lord, do to me whatever you have promised, since victory has been granted to you, as well as vengeance against your enemies.”
37 Gake wɔ nye didi sia ko dzi nam. Na ɣleti evem matsa le togbɛawo dzi afa konyi kple xɔ̃nyewo elabena nyemaɖe srɔ̃ akpɔakpɔ o.”
And she said to her father: “Grant to me this one thing, which I request. Permit me, that I may wander the hillsides for two months, and that I may mourn my virginity with my companions.”
38 Yefta ɖe mɔ nɛ eye wòyi toawo dzi; eya kple xɔlɔ̃awo nɔ afi ma kple konyifafa ɣleti eve.
And he answered her, “Go.” And he released her for two months. And when she had departed with her friends and companions, she wept over her virginity in the hillsides.
39 Le esia megbe la, etrɔ va aƒe eye Yefta wɔ eƒe adzɔgbeɖeɖe dzi, ale ɖetugbi la meɖe srɔ̃ o. Tso gbe ma gbe dzi la, ezu kɔnu le Israelviwo dome
And when the two months expired, she returned to her father, and he did to her just as he had vowed, though she knew no man. From this, the custom grew up in Israel, and the practice has been preserved,
40 be ɖetugbiwo nayi aɖanɔ toawo dzi ŋkeke ene ƒe sia ƒe afa konyi le Yefta, Gileadtɔ la ƒe vinyɔnuvi ta.
such that, after each year passes, the daughters of Israel convene as one, and they lament the daughter of Jephthah, the Gileadite, for four days.
