Nehemia 2
1 Mweri-inĩ wa Nisani, mwaka wa mĩrongo ĩĩrĩ wa Mũthamaki Aritashashita, rĩrĩa aareheirwo ndibei, ngĩoya ndibei ĩyo ngĩmĩnengera mũthamaki. Mbere ya hĩndĩ ĩyo ndiatukĩtie gĩthiithi ndĩ harĩ we;
After King Artaxerxes [had been ruling the Persian Empire] for almost 20 years, (during the spring/before the hot season) of that year, when it was time to serve wine to him [during a feast], I took the wine and gave it to him. I had never looked sad when I was in front of him before, [but on that day he saw that I looked very sad].
2 nĩ ũndũ ũcio mũthamaki akĩnjũũria atĩrĩ, “Nĩ kĩĩ gĩtũmĩte ũtukie gĩthiithi ũguo na ndũrĩ mũrũaru? Ũndũ ũcio no uumanire na kĩeha kĩa ngoro.” Na niĩ ngĩĩtigĩra mũno,
So he asked me, “Why are you sad? [I know that] you are not sick. It must be that you are troubled about something.” Then I was very afraid, [because it was not proper to be sad when I came to the king] (OR, [because I was worried what the king would do to me if he refused to do what I was about to request him to do]).
3 no ngĩĩra mũthamaki atĩrĩ, “Mũthamaki arotũũra nginya tene! Gĩthiithi gĩakwa kĩngĩaga gũtuka atĩa hĩndĩ ĩrĩa itũũra inene rĩrĩa maithe makwa mathikĩtwo rĩkirĩte ihooru, na ihingo ciarĩo igacinwo ikaniinwo na mwaki?”
I replied, “Your majesty, I hope you will live a very long time! But (how can I prevent myself from being sad, because the city where my ancestors are buried [has been destroyed] and is in ruins?/I cannot keep myself from looking sad, because the city where my ancestors are buried [has been destroyed and] is in ruins.) [RHQ] [Even] the city gates have been completely burned.”
4 Mũthamaki akĩnjũũria atĩrĩ, “Ũkwenda atĩa?” Hĩndĩ ĩyo ngĩhooya Ngai wa Igũrũ,
The king replied, “What do you want me to do [for you]?” I prayed [silently] to our God [who is/rules] in heaven.
5 na ngĩcookeria mũthamaki atĩrĩ, “Mũthamaki, angĩona kwagĩrĩire, na ndungata yaku ĩtĩkĩrĩke maitho-inĩ make, nĩakĩndũme itũũra rĩu inene rĩa Juda, kũrĩa maithe makwa mathikĩtwo, nĩguo ngarĩake rĩngĩ.”
Then I replied, “If you are willing [to do it], and if I have pleased you, send me to the city [of Jerusalem] in Judah [province] where my ancestors are buried, in order that I may [help people to] rebuild the city.”
6 Hĩndĩ ĩyo mũthamaki, aikaranĩtie na mũtumia wake, akĩnjũũria atĩrĩ, “Rũgendo rwaku nĩ rwa matukũ maigana na ũgaacooka rĩ?” Mũthamaki akĩona arĩ wega andũme; nĩ ũndũ ũcio ngĩtua ihinda rĩa gũthiĩ.
While the queen was sitting beside the king, he asked, [“If I allow you to go, ] how long will you be gone? When will you return?” [I told the king how long I would be gone, and] the king gave me permission to go, and I told him what day [I wanted to leave].
7 Ningĩ ngĩmwĩra atĩrĩ, “Mũthamaki angĩona kwagĩrĩire, reke heo marũa ndwarĩre abarũthi a Mũrĩmo-wa-Farati, nĩgeetha manjĩtĩkĩrie hĩtũkĩre kuo kinya nginye Juda.
I also said to the king, “If you are willing to do it, write letters for me to take to the governors of the province west of the [Euphrates] River. Tell them to allow me to travel safely [through their province] until I arrive in Judah.
8 O na no heo marũa ndwarĩre Asafu, mũmenyereri wa mũtitũ wa mũthamaki, nĩgeetha akaahe mbaũ cia gũthondeka mĩgamba ya ihingo cia nyũmba ya ũthamaki ĩrĩa ĩriganĩtie na hekarũ, na cia gwaka rũthingo rwa itũũra inene o na cia gwaka nyũmba ĩrĩa ndĩrĩikaraga?” Na tondũ ũtugi wa guoko kwa Ngai wakwa warĩ hamwe na niĩ, mũthamaki agĩĩtĩkĩra kũũhingĩria maũndũ marĩa mothe ndaamũũrĩtie.
Also, [please write] a letter to Asaph, the man who takes care of your forest [in that area], telling him to give me timber to make the beams to support the gates of the fortress that is near the temple, and timber for making the walls of the city, and for building the house in which I [will live].” The king did what I requested him to do, because my God was graciously/kindly (helping/acting for) me.
9 Nĩ ũndũ ũcio ngĩthiĩ kũrĩ abarũthi a Mũrĩmo-wa-Farati, ngĩmanengera marũa ma mũthamaki. Ningĩ mũthamaki nĩatũmĩte anene a mbũtũ cia ita hamwe na thigari iria ithiiaga na mbarathi tũthiĩ hamwe nao.
[After I got ready, I left to travel to Judah]. The king sent some army officers and soldiers riding on horses to accompany me, [to protect me]. When I came to where the governors of the provinces west of the [Euphrates] River lived, I gave them the letters that the king had written.
10 Rĩrĩa Sanibalati ũrĩa Mũhoroni, na Tobia mũnene ũrĩa Mũamoni, maaiguire ũhoro ũcio, magĩtangĩka mũno makĩria nĩkũigua atĩ kwarĩ mũndũ wokĩte gũcaria maũndũ ma kũguna andũ a Isiraeli.
But when [two government officials, ] Sanballat from [a village near] Horon and Tobiah from the Ammon [people-group], heard that I had arrived, they were very angry that someone had come to help the Israeli people.
11 Nĩndathiire Jerusalemu, na thuutha wa gũikara kuo mĩthenya ĩtatũ-rĩ,
When I arrived in Jerusalem, I did not tell anyone what thoughts God had given to me about what I should do there. Three days after I arrived in Jerusalem, I went out of the city in the evening, taking a few other men with me. I was riding a donkey; we had no other animals with us.
12 ngiumagara ũtukũ ndĩ na andũ matarĩ aingĩ. Ndierĩte mũndũ o na ũmwe ũndũ ũrĩa Ngai wakwa eekĩrĩte ngoro-inĩ yakwa njĩke nĩ ũndũ wa Jerusalemu. Gũtiarĩ na mbarathi ingĩ tiga ĩrĩa yanguuĩte.
13 Nĩndathiire ũtukũ ngereire Kĩhingo gĩa Kĩanda, njerekeire Gĩthima kĩa Ndamathia na Kĩhingo gĩa Kĩara-inĩ, ngĩroraga thingo cia Jerusalemu iria ciamomoretwo, na ihingo ciarĩo iria ciacinĩtwo ikaniinwo nĩ mwaki.
We left the city, going out through the Valley Gate, then past the well called the Jackal (OR, Dragon’s) Well, and then past the gate called the Rubbish/Garbage Gate. We inspected all the walls that had been broken down and all the gates that had been burned down.
14 Ningĩ ngĩthiĩ o na mbere njerekeire Kĩhingo gĩa Gĩthima na Karia-inĩ ka Mũthamaki, no hatiarĩ handũ haiganu ha kũhĩtũkĩrwo nĩ mbarathi yakwa;
Then we went to the Fountain Gate and to the pool called the King’s Pool, but my donkey could not get through [the narrow opening] (OR, [the rubble]).
15 nĩ ũndũ ũcio ngĩambata na mũkuru ũtukũ ngĩroraga ũrĩa rũthingo rwatariĩ. Ndakinya mũthia, ngĩhũndũka ngĩingĩrĩra Kĩhingo gĩa Kĩanda rĩngĩ.
So we turned back and went along the [Kidron] Valley. We inspected the wall there before we turned back/around and entered the city again at the Valley Gate.
16 Anene a kũu matiamenyire kũrĩa ndathiĩte kana ũrĩa ndekaga tondũ ndiamenyithĩtie Ayahudi, kana athĩnjĩri-Ngai, kana arĩa maarĩ igweta, kana anene, o na kana arĩa angĩ mangĩarutire wĩra.
The [city] officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, because I had not told anyone about what I planned to do. I had not said anything about it to the Jewish leaders or the officials or the priests or any of the others who would be helping me in the work [that I wanted to do].
17 Ningĩ ngĩmeera atĩrĩ, “Nĩmũrona thĩĩna ũrĩa tũrĩ naguo: itũũra rĩa Jerusalemu nĩrĩanangĩku, na ihingo ciarĩo igacinwo na mwaki. Ũkai twake rũthingo rwa Jerusalemu rĩngĩ, na tũtigacooka kũnyararwo o na rĩ.”
But now I said to them, “You all know very well the terrible things [that have happened to] our city. The city is ruined; even the gates are burned down. So we should rebuild the city wall. If we do that, we will no longer feel humiliated/disgraced.”
18 O na ningĩ ngĩmeera ũrĩa guoko kwa ũtugi kwa Ngai wakwa kwarĩ hamwe na niĩ, na ũrĩa mũthamaki anjĩĩrĩte. Nao magĩcookia atĩrĩ, “Nĩtwambĩrĩriei gwaka rĩngĩ.” Nĩ ũndũ ũcio makĩambĩrĩria wĩra ũcio mwega.
Then I told them about how God had kindly/graciously helped me [when I talked to the king], and what the king had said to me. They immediately replied, “Let’s start rebuilding!” So they started to do this good work.
19 No rĩrĩa Sanibalati ũrĩa Mũhoroni na Tobia mũnene ũrĩa Mũamoni na Geshemu ũrĩa Mũarabu maiguire ũhoro ũcio, magĩtũnyũrũria na magĩtũthekerera, makĩũria atĩrĩ, “Nĩ atĩa ũũ mũreka? Kaĩ mũkũremera mũthamaki?”
But when Sanballat, Tobiah, and Gershom the Arab [king of the Kedar region] heard about what we planned to do, they made fun of us and ridiculed us. They said, “What is this work that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king [again]?” [RHQ]
20 Ngĩmacookeria atĩrĩ, “Ngai wa Igũrũ nĩwe ũgũtũma tũgaacĩre. Ithuĩ ndungata ciake nĩtũkwambĩrĩria gwaka rĩngĩ, no ha ũhoro wanyu-rĩ, mũtirĩ na igai gũkũ Jerusalemu, kana kĩhooto, kana ũndũ wa tene wa kũmũnyiitithania narĩo.”
But I replied, “Our God [who is/rules] in heaven will help our plans to succeed. But as for you, you have no right to decide anything about this city, because you have not participated in what has happened in this city in previous years.”
