Romatɔwo 9
1 Nyateƒe gblɔm mele le Kristo me, nyemele alakpa dam o, eye nye dzitsinya le ɖase ɖim kpe ɖe ŋunye le Gbɔgbɔ Kɔkɔe la me,
I am in Christ, and what I say is true. I'm not lying! My conscience and the Holy Spirit confirm
2 be mele nu xam ŋutɔ, eye nye dzi le veve sem ɣe sia ɣi.
how terribly sad I am, how I have never-ending pain in my heart,
3 Elabena anyo nam wu be woabu fɔm, eye woaɖem ɖa tso Kristo gbɔ ne esia ana be nye amewo, Israeltɔwo, nakpɔ ɖeɖe.
for my own people, my brothers and sisters. I would rather be cursed myself, separated from Christ, if that would help them.
4 Woawo tɔe nye vinyenye la; woawo tɔe nye Mawu me ŋutikɔkɔe la, nubablawo, se la xɔxɔ, gbedoxɔmesubɔsubɔ la kple ŋugbedodoawo.
They are my fellow-Israelites, God's chosen people. God revealed to them his glory and made agreements with them, giving them the law, true worship, and his promises.
5 Wonye fofoawo ƒe dzidzimeviwo, dzidzime siwo me Kristo dzɔ tso le ŋutilã nu, ame si nye Mawu ɖe nuwo katã dzi, ame si wokafuna tegbee la! Amen. (aiōn g165)
They are our forefathers—ancestors of Christ, humanly-speaking, the one who rules over everything, the eternally-blessed God. Amen. (aiōn g165)
6 Ke mele eme be Mawu ƒe ŋugbedodowo zu dzodzro o. Elabena menye ame siwo katã tso Israel lae nye Israeltɔwo o.
It's not that God's promise has failed. For not every Israelite is a true Israelite,
7 Alo ame siwo katã tso Abraham ƒomea me lae nye Abraham ƒe viwo o, ke boŋ Ŋɔŋlɔ Kɔkɔe la gblɔ be, “woanya wò ƒome la to Isak kple eƒe dzidzimeviwo dzi.”
and all those who are descended from Abraham are not his true children. For Scripture says, “Your descendants will be counted through Isaac,”
8 Esia le fiafiam be menye Abraham ƒe viwo katãe nye Mawu viwo o, ke boŋ ame siwo xɔ ɖeɖekpɔkpɔ ƒe ŋugbe si wodo na Abraham dzi se la koe.
so it's not Abraham's actual children who are counted as God's children, but only those children of God's promise who are considered his true descendants.
9 Elabena ŋugbedodo lae nye esi be, “Matrɔ ava gbɔwò le ƒe si gbɔna la me, eye Sara adzi ŋutsuvi.”
This is what the promise was: “I will return next year and Sarah will have a son.”
10 Menye esia ɖeɖe ko o; Rebeka hã fɔ viawo ƒe fu na mía tɔgbui Isak le ɣe ma ɣi tututu.
In addition Rebecca's twin sons had the same father, our forefather Isaac.
11 Ke esi mekpɔ dzi evenɔviawo o, eye womewɔ nyui alo vɔ̃ o hã, bena Mawu ƒe tameɖoɖo ɖi nanɔ eteƒe le tatia la nu,
But even before the children were born, and before they'd done anything right or wrong, (so that God's purpose could continue, proving God's calling of people is not based on human performance),
12 menye le dɔwɔwɔ aɖeke nu o, ke boŋ tso ame si yɔa ame gbɔ, wogblɔ na Rebeka be, “Tsitsitɔ la azu subɔla na ɖevitɔ la”;
she was told, “The older brother will serve the younger one.”
13 abe ale si woŋlɔe ɖi ene be, “Melɔ̃ Yakob, ke Esau la, melé fui.”
As Scripture says, “I chose Jacob, but rejected Esau.”
14 Azɔ nya ka gblɔ ge míala? Ɖe Mawu tɔ medzɔ oa? Gbeɖe!
So what should we conclude? That God was unjust? Certainly not!
15 Elabena egblɔ na Mose be, “Makpɔ nublanui na ame si makpɔ nublanui na la, eye nye dɔ me atrɔ ɖe ame si ŋu nye dɔ me atrɔ ɖo la.”
As he said to Moses, “I will be merciful to whoever I should show mercy, and I will have compassion on whoever I should show compassion.”
16 Eya ta esia metso amegbetɔ ƒe didi alo dɔwɔwɔ gbɔ o, ke boŋ Mawu ƒe nublanuikpɔkpɔ gbɔ wòtso.
So it does not depend on what we want, or our own efforts, but the merciful nature of God.
17 Elabena Ŋɔŋlɔ Kɔkɔe la gblɔ na Farao be, “Esia ta mefɔ wò ɖe tsitre, be maɖe nye ŋusẽ ɖe go afia le mewò, be woaɖe gbeƒã nye ŋkɔ le anyigbawo katã dzi.”
Scripture records God saying to Pharaoh: “I put you here for a reason—so that through you I could demonstrate my power, and so that my name could be made known throughout the earth.”
18 Eya ta Mawu kpɔa nublanui na ame siwo wòlɔ̃na be yeakpɔ nublanui na la, eye wòsẽa dzi me na ame siwo wòlɔ̃na be yeasẽ dzi me na la.
So God is merciful to those he wishes to be, and hardens the attitude of those he wants to.
19 Ame aɖe abiam be, “Ekema nu ka ta Mawu bua fɔ mí ɖo? Elabena ame kae ate ŋu atsi tsitre ɖe eƒe lɔlɔ̃nu ŋu mahã?”
Now you'll argue with me and ask, “So why does he still blame us then? Who can resist the will of God?”
20 Ke wò, amegbetɔ, ame ka nènye be nàhe nya kple Mawu? Ɖe ame aɖe ƒe nuwɔwɔ abia nuwɔla la be, “Nu ka ta nèwɔm alea ɖo mahã?”
That's no way to speak, for who are you—a mere mortal—to contradict God? Can something that is created say to its creator, “Why did you make me like this?”
21 Ɖe mɔɖeɖe meli be zemela natsɔ anyi ame ze si ŋu bubu le, eye wòagatsɔ eƒe ɖe ame ze si ŋu bubu mele o la mahã?
Doesn't a potter have the right to use the same batch of clay to make both a decorative bowl and an everyday pot?
22 Nu kae adzɔ nenye be Mawu, ame si lɔ̃ ɖe eƒe dɔmedzoe kple ŋusẽ fia la gbɔ dzi ɖi na ame siwo dze na eƒe dɔmedzoe ƒe tohehe?
It's as if God, wanting to demonstrate his opposition to sin and to reveal his power, bears patiently with these “pots destined for destruction,”
23 Eye nu kae adzɔ ne ewɔ esia be yeaɖe yeƒe ŋutikɔkɔe ƒe kesinɔnuwo afia ame siwo le mɔ kpɔm na eƒe nublanuikpɔkpɔ, ame siwo wòdzra ɖo do ŋgɔ na eƒe ŋutikɔkɔe la,
so that he might reveal the greatness of his glory through these “pots of mercy” which he has prepared in advance for glory.
24 mí ame siwo hã wòyɔ, menye tso Yudatɔwo dome ɖeɖe ko o, ke boŋ tso ame siwo menye Yudatɔwo o la hã dome?
This is who we are—people he has called, not just from among the Jews, but from among the foreigners too...
25 Egblɔ le Hosea ƒe agbalẽ me be, “Mayɔ ame siwo menye nye amewo o la be ‘nye amewo’; eye mayɔ ame siwo menye nye lɔlɔ̃tɔwo o la be ‘nye lɔlɔ̃tɔwo.’
As God said in the book of Hosea, “Those who are not my people I will call my people, and those who are not loved I will call the ones I love,”
26 Wogblɔ le ame siwo menye Yudatɔwo o la ŋu tsã be, “Menye nye amewo mienye o.” Azɔ la, woayɔ wo be, “Mawu gbagbe la ƒe viwo.”
and, “It will happen that at the place where they were told, ‘You're not my people,’ there they will be called the children of the living God.”
27 Ke Yesaya gblɔ tso Israeltɔwo ŋu be, “Togbɔ be wole abe ƒutake ene hã la, wo dometɔ ʋɛ aɖewo koe akpɔ ɖeɖe.
Isaiah cries out regarding Israel: “Even if the children of Israel have become as numerous as the sands of the sea, only a small number will be saved.
28 Elabena Aƒetɔ la atso nya me le anyigba la ŋuti, eye wòawu eƒe wɔnawo nu kaba le dzɔdzɔenyenye me.”
For the Lord is going to quickly and completely finish his work of judgment on the earth.”
29 Yesaya gagblɔ be: “Ne menye Yehowa, Dziƒoʋakɔwo ƒe Aƒetɔ ye susɔ dzidzime ʋɛ aɖewo ɖi o la, ne míetsrɔ̃ abe Sodom kple Gomora ene.”
As Isaiah previously said, “If the Lord Almighty had not left us some descendants, we would have become just like Sodom and Gomorrah.”
30 Azɔ nya ka gblɔ ge míala? Mawu na mɔnukpɔkpɔ ame siwo menye Yudatɔwo o la be woakpɔ ɖeɖe to xɔse me, togbɔ be wometi dzɔdzɔenyenye yome o hã.
What shall we conclude, then? That even though the foreigners were not even looking to do right, they did grasp what is right, and through their trust in God did what was morally right.
31 Ke Israeltɔ siwo dze agbagba vevie be yewoadze Mawu ŋu to seawo dzi wɔwɔ me la mete ŋu dze Mawu ŋu o.
But the people of Israel, who looked to the law to make them right with God, never succeeded.
32 Nu ka ta? Elabena wonɔ agbagba dzem be yewoakpɔ ɖeɖe to seawo dzi wɔwɔ me, eye yewoanɔ agbe nyui esime wòle be woanya be xɔse me ko yewoato akpɔ ɖeɖe hafi; wokli nukikli ƒe kpe la.
Why not? Because they relied on what they did rather than trusting in God. They tripped on the stumbling-block,
33 Mawu gbe nya na wo tso nu sia ŋu le Ŋɔŋlɔ Kɔkɔe la me esi wògblɔ be, “Metsɔ Agakpe aɖe da ɖe mɔ me na Zion. Ame geɖewo akli Agakpe sia, si nye Yesu, eye woadze anyi. Ame siwo axɔ edzi ase la, ŋu makpe wo gbeɖe o.”
just as Scripture predicted: “Look, I'm placing in Zion a stumbling-block, a rock that will offend people. But those who trust in him won't be disappointed.”
