< Neemi 2 >
1 Lè sa a, wa Atagzèsès te gen ventan depi li t'ap gouvènen, nou te nan mitan mwa Nisan. Jou sa a, se te tou pa m' pou m' te pote diven bay wa a. Mwen pran diven an, mwen pote l' ba li. Li pa t' janm konn wè m' parèt devan l' kagou.
In the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, when wine was before him, I picked up the wine, and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad before in his presence.
2 Epi li di m' konsa: -Ki jan figi ou fè rale konsa? Se pa malad ou malad? Kisa k'ap fè ou lapenn konsa? Lè sa a m'ap mande nan kè m' sa ki pral rive m'.
The king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing else but sorrow of heart.” Then I was very much afraid.
3 Mwen reponn li: -Mwen swete pou monwa viv lontan! Men, ki jan pou m' fè pa kagou lè lavil kote zansèt mwen yo antere a ap fin kraze, lè dife fin boule tout pòtay li yo?
I said to the king, “Let the king live forever! Why should not my face be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates have been consumed with fire?”
4 Wa a di m' konsa: -Kisa ou ta renmen m' fè pou ou? Mwen lapriyè Bondye ki nan syèl la nan kè m'.
Then the king said to me, “What is your request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven.
5 Epi mwen reponn li: -Si sa fè monwa plezi, si ou kontan jan m'ap sèvi ou la, tanpri, kite m' ale nan peyi Jida, nan lavil kote zansèt mwen yo antere a, pou m' ka rebati l'.
I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you would send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may build it.”
6 Wa a te chita avèk larenn li bò kote l', li mande m': -Konbe tan vwayaj la pral pran ou? Kilè w'a tounen? Mwen di l' konbe tan sa ka pran m'. Epi li dakò pou l' kite m' ale.
The king said to me (the queen was also sitting by him), “How long will your journey be? When will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me, and I set a time for him.
7 Lè sa a, mwen di wa a: -Si sa fè monwa plezi, li ta fè ekri kèk lèt pou mwen pou gouvènè ki nan pwovens lòt bò larivyè Lefrat yo, pou yo ka kite m' pase jouk mwen rive nan peyi Jida.
Moreover I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah;
8 Li ta ban m' yon lèt tou pou Azaf, chèf ki reskonsab rakbwa leta yo, pou l' ka ban mwen bwa pou gwo pòtay fò k'ap pwoteje tanp lan, bwa pou ranpa lavil la ak bwa pou kay kote pou m' rete a. Wa a ban mwen tou sa mwen te mande l' paske Bondye te avèk mwen.
and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house that I will occupy.” The king granted my requests, because of the good hand of my God on me.
9 Wa a te voye kèk ofisye nan lame a ak kèk kavalye pou ale avè m'. Se konsa, mwen pati pou pwovens ki lòt bò larivyè Lefrat la, mwen pase lakay tout gouvènè yo, mwen renmèt yo lèt wa a te ban mwen pou yo.
Then I came to the governors beyond the River, and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me.
10 Men, lè Sanbala, moun lavil Bèt-Owon, ak Tobija, yon moun peyi Amon ki t'ap travay nan gouvènman an, vin konnen te gen yon nonm ki te vin travay pou byen pèp Izrayèl la, sa te gate san yo anpil.
When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly, because a man had come to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.
11 Lè m' rive lavil Jerizalèm, mwen kite twa jou pase anvan m' fè anyen.
So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days.
12 Apre sa, mwen leve nan mitan lannwit, mwen pran kèk moun pa m' avè m'. Mwen pati san m' pa di pesonn sa Bondye te ban m' lide fè pou lavil Jerizalèm. Sèl bèt nou te pran ak nou, se te bèt pou m' moute a.
I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. I did not tell anyone what my God put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There was not any animal with me except the animal that I rode on.
13 Li te fè nwa. Nou soti nan pòtay Ti Fon an ki sou bò lwès, nou vire desann nan direksyon sid, nou pase devan Fontenn Dragon an, ak devan pòtay Depotwa a. Sou tout wout la, mwen t'ap egzaminen eta ranpa lavil Jerizalèm lan, kote ki te gen twou ak pòtay dife te boule yo.
I went out by night by the valley gate toward the jackal’s well, then to the dung gate; and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and its gates were consumed with fire.
14 Mwen vanse pi devan, mwen vire sou bò nò. Mwen pase devan pòtay Fontenn lan ak Rezèvwa Wa a. Lè m' rive la, bèt mwen te moute a pa t' ka jwenn kote pou l' pase.
Then I went on to the spring gate and to the king’s pool, but there was no place for the animal that was under me to pass.
15 Nan fènwa a, mwen pase nan ravin lan, mwen moute nan direksyon nò. Mwen t'ap egzaminen eta miray la byen. Apre sa, mwen kase tèt tounen sou menm chemen m' te pase a, mwen antre nan lavil la, nan pòtay Ti-Fon an.
Then I went up in the night by the brook and inspected the wall; and I turned back, and entered by the valley gate, and so returned.
16 Pesonn nan chèf lavil yo pa t' konnen kote m' te ale ni sa m' te al fè. Lè sa a, mwen pa t' ankò di jwif yo anyen, ni prèt yo, ni chèf yo, ni majistra yo, ni ankenn lòt moun ki te reskonsab travay reparasyon yo.
The rulers did not know where I went, or what I did. I had not as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest who did the work.
17 Men lè sa a, mwen di yo: -Nou wè nan ki traka nou ye avèk lavil Jerizalèm k'ap fin kraze nan men nou avèk pòtay boule li yo. Vini non! Ann al rebati miray ranpa lavil la! Moun va sispann fè nou wont.
Then I said to them, “You see the bad situation that we are in, how Jerusalem lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire. Come, let’s build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we will not be disgraced.”
18 Lè sa a, mwen fè yo konnen ki jan Bondye te la avè m' pou pwoteje m' ak tou sa wa a te di m'. Yo reponn: -Bon. Annavan! Ann al rebati! Epi yo ranje kò yo pou mete men nan travay la.
I told them about the hand of my God which was good on me, and also about the king’s words that he had spoken to me. They said, “Let’s rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work.
19 Men, lè Sanbala, moun lavil Bèt-Owon an, Tobija, moun Amon ki t'ap travay nan gouvènman an, ak Gechèm, arab la, vin pran nouvèl la, yo ri nou kont kò yo, epi yo pase nou nan kont betiz yo. Yo di nou: -Sa n'ap fè la a, mesye? Apa n'ap dezobeyi lòd wa a!
But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite servant, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they ridiculed us and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?”
20 Mwen reponn, mwen di yo: -Se Bondye nan syèl la k'ap fè nou reyisi nan sa nou vle fè a. Nou menm ki sèvitè Bondye, nou pral konmanse rebati l'. Men nou menm, moun lòt nasyon, nou pa gen ankenn dwa sou lavil Jerizalèm. Nou pa gen anyen pou nou wè nan sa. Pesonn pa janm nonmen non nou nan koze lavil Jerizalèm.
Then I answered them, and said to them, “The God of heaven will prosper us. Therefore we, his servants, will arise and build; but you have no portion, nor right, nor memorial in Jerusalem.”