Jij 19
1 Nan tan sa a pa t' gen wa nan peyi Izrayèl la. Yon jou, yon moun Levi ki te rete nan fon mòn Efrayim yo leve, l' al pran yon fanm, moun lavil Betleyèm nan peyi Jida, pou fanm kay li.
At that time the Israeli people had no king. There was a man from the tribe of Levi who lived in a remote place in the hilly area where the tribe of Ephraim lives. He had previously taken as a wife a woman who was a slave. She was from Bethlehem, in the area where the tribe of Judah lives.
2 Men, fanm lan vin tonbe nan dezòd sou li, epi li kite l', li tounen lakay papa l', lavil Betleyèm nan peyi Jida. Li pase kat mwa la.
But she started to sleep with other men also. Then she left him and returned to her father’s house in Bethlehem. She stayed there for four months.
3 Lè sa a, mari a leve, l' al dèyè l' pou l' wè si li te ka tounen avè l' ankò. Li te pati ansanm ak yon domestik ak de bourik. Madanm lan te byen resevwa l' lakay papa l'. Lè papa madanm lan wè l', li te byen kontan resevwa l' tou.
Then her husband took his servant and two donkeys and went to Bethlehem. He went to ask her to come back to live with him again. When he arrived at her father’s house, she invited him to come in. Her father was happy to see him.
4 Bòpè a pran tèt moun Levi a, li fè l' rete pase twa jou avè l'. Mesyedam yo manje, yo bwè, yo pase nwit nan kay la.
The woman’s father asked him to stay. So he stayed there for three days. During that time he ate and drank and slept there.
5 Sou katriyèm jou a, yo leve granmaten, yo pare zafè yo pou yo pati. Men, papa madanm lan di moun Levi a konsa: -Mete yon bagay nan vant ou anvan. W'a santi ou anfòm. Aprè sa, w'a pati.
On the fourth day, they all got up early in the morning. The man from the tribe of Levi was preparing to leave, but the woman’s father said to him, “Eat something before you go.”
6 Mesyedam yo chita, yo manje, epi yo bwè. Apre sa, papa madanm lan di moun Levi a konsa: -Tanpri, pase nwit la ankò isit la. Pran plezi ou non!
So the two men sat down to eat and drink together. Then the woman’s father said to him, “Please stay another night. Relax/Rest and have a joyful time.”
7 Nonm lan te leve pou l' pati, men bòpè a sitèlman kenbe la avè l', li tounen pase nwit la la ankò.
The man from the tribe of Levi wanted to leave, but the woman’s father requested him to stay one more night. So he stayed again that night.
8 Sou senkyèm jou a, nan granmaten, li leve pou l' ale. Bòpè a di l' konsa: -Mete kichòy nan vant ou non, monchè. W'a pati pita. Se konsa de mesye yo chita, yo manje.
On the fifth day, the man got up early and prepared to leave. But the woman’s father said to him again, “Have something to eat. Wait until this afternoon, [and then leave].” So the two men ate together.
9 Aprè sa, nonm lan leve pou l' ale ansanm ak fanm kay li ak domestik li a, men bòpè a di l': -Gade solèy pral kouche, tou rete pase nwit lan non. Talè fènwa pral tonbe. Rete non, monchè. Pran plezi ou! Denmen, w'a leve byen bonè pou vwayaj la, w'aprale lakay ou.
In the afternoon, when the man from the tribe of Levi and his slave wife and his servant got up to leave, the woman’s father said, “It will soon be dark. The day is almost over. Stay here tonight and have a good/joyful time. Tomorrow morning you can get up early and leave for your home.”
10 Men, fwa sa a nonm lan pa t' vle rete pase yon lòt nwit ankò. Li leve, l' ale ansanm ak fanm kay li ak de bourik yo tou sele. Yo rive toupre lavil Jebis ki vle di lavil Jerizalèm.
But the man from the tribe of Levi did not want to stay for another night. He put saddles on his two donkeys, and started to go with his slave wife [and his servant] toward Jebus [city], which is [now named] Jerusalem.
11 Lè sa a, te konmanse ap fè nwa anpil, domestik la di l' konsa: -Ann fè yon antre nan lavil moun Jebis yo non. N'a pase nwit la la.
Late in the afternoon, they came near to Jebus. The servant said to his master, “We should stop in this city where the Jebus people-group live, and stay here tonight.”
12 Men, mèt la di l' konsa: -Non! Nou pa pral antre nan lavil moun lòt nasyon yo, kote pa gen yon moun pèp Izrayèl la menm. N'ap fè wout nou jouk nou rive lavil Gibeya.
But his master said, “No, it would not be good for us to stay here where foreign people live. There are no Israeli people here. We will go on to Gibeah [city].”
13 Ann al pi devan. N'a pase nwit lan lavil Gibeya osinon lavil Rama.
He said to his servant, “Let’s go. It is not far to Gibeah. We can go there, or we can go a bit further to Ramah. We can stay in one of those two cities tonight.”
14 Se konsa yo pa rete, y' al fè wout yo. Solèy t'ap fin kouche lè yo rive bò lavil Gibeya, ki nan teritwa moun branch fanmi Benjamen yo.
So they continued walking. When they came near Gibeah, where people from the tribe of Benjamin live, the sun was setting.
15 Yo chankre sou wout la, yo vin pase nwit lan lavil Gibeya. Moun Levi a antre nan lavil la, l' al chita sou plas la, men pesonn pa t' envite yo vin pase nwit lan lakay yo.
They stopped to stay there that night. They went to the public square of that city and sat down. But no one [who passed by] invited them to stay in their house for that night.
16 Nan aswè, yon granmoun gason ki t'ap sot nan jaden vin ap antre lakay li. Se te yon moun mòn Efrayim yo li te ye. Li te rete lavil Gibeya. Men, tout moun lavil yo se moun fanmi Benjamen yo te ye.
Finally, in the evening, an old man came by. He had been working in the fields. He was from the hilly area of the tribe of Ephraim, but at that time he was living in Gibeah.
17 Je granmoun lan al tonbe sou vwayajè yo ki te sou plas la. Li di moun Levi a konsa: -Kote ou prale? Kote ou soti?
He realized that the man from the tribe of Levi was only traveling and did not have a home in that city. So he asked the man, “Where have you come from? And where are you going?”
18 Moun Levi a reponn li: -Nou soti lavil Betleyèm nan peyi Jida, n'ap vwayaje, nou pral byen lwen nan fon mòn Efrayim yo. Se la mwen rete. Mwen te desann ale Betleyèm, men koulye a m'ap tounen lakay mwen. Pesonn pa envite nou vin pase nwit lan lakay yo.
He replied, “We are traveling from Bethlehem to my home in the hilly area where people of the tribe of Ephraim live. I went from there to Bethlehem, but now we are going to [Shiloh] where Yahweh’s Sacred tent (OR, my house) is. No one here has invited us to stay in their house tonight.
19 Nou gen manje ak zèb pou bourik nou, nou gen pen ak diven pou mwen, pou fanm kay mwen, ak pou domestik ki ak nou an. Nou pa manke anyen.
We have straw and food for our donkeys, and bread and wine for me and the young woman and my servant. We do not need anything else.”
20 Lè sa a granmoun lan di: -Pòt kay mwen louvri pou nou! Se mwen menm k'ap ba ou tou sa ou bezwen. Sèlman pa rete pase nwit lan la sou plas la.
The old man said, “I wish that things will go well for you, but I would like to provide what you need. Do not stay here in the square tonight.”
21 Se konsa li mennen yo lakay li, li bay bèt yo zèb. Mesyedam yo menm lave pye yo, epi yo manje, yo bwè.
Then the old man took them to his house. He gave food to the donkeys. He [gave water to the man and the woman and the servant to] wash their feet. And he gave them something to eat and drink.
22 Yo t'ap koze yonn ak lòt lè kèk mesye lavil la, yon bann vòryen, vin sènen kay la. Yo pran frape nan pòt la. Yo pale ak granmoun ki te mèt kay la, yo di l' konsa: -Fè nonm ki lakay ou a soti vin jwenn nou pou nou ka kouche avè l'.
While they were having a good/joyful time together, some wicked men from that city surrounded the house and started to bang on the door. They shouted to the old man, “Bring out to us the man who has come to your house. We want to have sex with him.”
23 Mèt kay la soti al jwenn yo, li di yo konsa: -Non, mezanmi! Tanpri, pa fè vye bagay lèd sa a. Nonm lan se lakay mwen li ye. Pa vin fè bagay sal sa a.
The old man went outside and said to them, “Friends, I will not do that. That would be a very evil thing. This man is a guest in my house. You should not do such a terrible/disgraceful/shameful thing!
24 Bon, gade! Mwen gen yon jenn pitit fi, li menm li gen yon fanm kay. Mwen pral fè yo soti vin jwenn nou. Nou mèt kouche ak yo. Nou mèt fè sa nou vle ak yo. Men, pa vin fè ankenn vye bagay derespektan ak nonm lan.
Look, my daughter is here. She is [still] a virgin. And this man’s slave wife is here. I will bring them out to you now. You may do to them whatever you wish, but do not do such a terrible/disgraceful/shameful thing to this young man!”
25 Men, mesye yo pa t' vle koute l'. Lè sa a, moun Levi a pran fanm kay li a, li fè l' soti al jwenn yo deyò a. Tout mesye yo kouche avè l', yo fè tout kalite bagay avè l' pandan tout nwit lan. Solèy t'apral leve lè yo kite l'.
But the men did not pay attention to what he said. So the man from the tribe of Levi took his slave wife and sent her to them, outside the house. They raped [EUP] her and abused her all night. Then at dawn, they allowed her to go.
26 Lè bajou kase, fanm lan trennen jouk li rive devan papòt kay kote mari l' te ye a. Li rete atè a jouk solèy fin leve.
She returned to the old man’s house, where her husband was staying, but she fell down at the doorway and lay there all night.
27 Nan maten, mari a leve, li louvri pòt pou l' soti. Li fè sa pou l' al fè wout li, li wè fanm kay li a blayi atè a devan kay la, ak de men l' yo lonje sou papòt la.
In the morning, when the man from the tribe of Levi got up, he went outside of the house to continue his journey. He saw his slave wife lying there at the doorway of the house. Her hands were on the doorsill.
28 Li di: -Leve non! Ann ale! Men, fanm lan pa reponn li. Li pran kadav la, li mete l' detravè sou bourik li, epi li pati, l' al lakay li.
He said to her, “Get up! Let’s go!” But she did not answer, [because she had died]. He put her body on the donkey and traveled to his home.
29 Lè l' rive lakay li, li pran yon kouto, li koupe kadav fanm kay li a fè douz moso, epi li voye yon moso nan chak branch fanmi peyi Izrayèl la.
When he arrived home, he took a knife and cut the body of the slave woman into twelve pieces. Then he sent one piece to each area of Israel, [along with a message telling what had happened].
30 Chak moun ki te wè sa di konsa: -Nou pa janm wè bagay konsa! Bagay konsa pa janm rive nan mitan nou depi lè pèp Izrayèl la kite peyi Lejip rive jounen jòdi a. Annou kalkile byen kisa nou pral fè pou sa. Sa nou di nan sa?
Everyone who saw a piece of the body and the message said, “Nothing like this has ever happened before. Not since our ancestors left Egypt [have we heard of such a terrible thing]. We need to think carefully about it. Someone should decide what we should do.”
