< 2 Samuel 21 >
1 Ụnwụ dara afọ atọ nʼoge Devid na-achị, afọ kwa afọ. Devid chọrọ ihu Onyenwe anyị. Mgbe ahụ, Onyenwe anyị sịrị, “Ọ bụ maka Sọl na ọbara ụlọ ya kwafuru, nʼihi na o gburu ndị Gibiọn.”
During the time that David [ruled], there was a famine [in Israel] for three years. David prayed to Yahweh about it. And Yahweh said, “[In order for the famine to end], Saul’s family needs to be punished [MTY] because Saul killed many people from Gibeon [city].”
2 Eze kpọrọ ndị Gibiọn, gwa ha okwu. (Ndị Gibiọn abụghị ndị Izrel, kama ha bụ ndị fọdụrụ nʼime ndị Amọrait, ndị bi nʼala Kenan mgbe ụmụ Izrel batara. Mgbe ahụ ha batara, ndị Izrel ṅụrụ iyi nye ndị Gibiọn na ha agaghị egbu ha, ma Sọl sitere nʼịnụ ọkụ nke obi nʼihi Izrel na Juda chọọ ikpochapụ ha.)
The people of Gibeon were not Israelis; they were a small group of the Amor people-group whom the Israelis had solemnly promised to protect. But Saul had tried to kill all of them because he (was very zealous/wanted very much) to enable the people of Judah and Israel [to be the only ones living in that land]. So the king summoned the leaders of Gibeon
3 Devid jụrụ ndị Gibiọn ajụjụ sị, “Gịnị ka m ga-emere unu? Gịnị ka m ga-eji kpuchie mmehie a e mere megide unu, ime ka unu gọzie ihe nketa Onyenwe anyị?”
and said to them, “What shall I do for you? How can I make amends/up for what was done to your people, in order that you will bless us who belong to Yahweh?”
4 Ndị Gibiọn zara ya sị, “Nsogbu anyị na Sọl na ndị ụlọ ya abụghị ihe a ga-eji ọlaọcha maọbụ ọlaedo mezie. Anyị achọkwaghị ka onye ọbụla nʼIzrel nwụọ nʼihi anyị.” Devid sịrị ha, “Gịnị ka unu chọrọ ka m meere unu?”
They replied, “You cannot settle our quarrel with Saul and his family by giving us silver or gold. And we do not have the right to kill any Israelis.” So David asked, “Then/So what do you say that I should do for you?”
5 Ha zara eze sị, “Kwere ka anyị wezuga nwoke ahụ wetaara anyị mbibi na ịla nʼiyi, onye ahụ mere ka anyị ghara inwe ebe obibi ọbụla nʼala Izrel.
They replied, “Saul [wanted to] get rid of us. He wanted to annihilate/kill all of us, in order that none of us would live anywhere in Israel.
6 Ka akpọnye anyị ndị ikom asaa site nʼụmụ ya, ka anyị kwụgbuo ha nye Onyenwe anyị na Gibea Sọl, onye Onyenwe anyị họpụtara.” Eze zara sị, “Aga m akpọnye unu ha.”
Hand over to us seven of Saul’s descendants. We will hang them where Yahweh is worshiped in Gibeon, our town, the town where Saul, whom Yahweh previously chose to be king, lived.” The king replied, “Okay, I will hand them over to you.”
7 Ma eze nwere ọmịiko nʼahụ Mefiboshet nwa Jonatan, nwa Sọl, nʼihi ịgba ndụ dị nʼetiti ya na Jonatan nʼihu Onyenwe anyị.
The king did not hand over to them Saul’s grandson Mephibosheth, because of what he and [Mephibosheth’s father] Jonathan had solemnly promised to each other.
8 Ma eze kpọọrọ Amoni na Mefiboshet, ụmụ ndị ikom abụọ nke Rizpa, nwa nwanyị Aịa, bụ ndị ọ mụtaara Sọl. Nakwa ụmụ ndị ikom ise nke Merab nwa Sọl mụtara mgbe ọ bụ nwunye Adriel, nwa Bazilai onye Mehola.
Instead, he took Armoni and another man named Mephibosheth, the two sons that Saul’s slave wife Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, had given birth to, and the five sons that Saul’s daughter Merab had given birth to. Merab’s husband was Adriel, the son of a man named Barzillai from Meholah [town].
9 O nyefere ha niile nʼaka ndị Gibiọn; ndị Gibiọn kwụbakwara ha nʼugwu nʼihu Onyenwe anyị. Ha asaa nwụrụ nʼotu ụbọchị na mmalite owuwe ihe ubi nke ọka balị.
David handed those men over to the men from Gibeon. Then they hanged those seven men on a hill where they worshiped Yahweh. They were all killed during the time of the year that the people started to harvest the barley.
10 Ma Rizpa, nwa nwanyị Aịa were akwa mkpe gbasara onwe ya nʼelu nkume. O kweghịkwa ka anụ ufe bekwasị ha nʼehihie, maọbụ anụ ọhịa nʼabalị. Ọ nọgidere nʼebe ahụ site nʼoge mmalite owuwe ihe ubi tutu ruo mgbe mmiri bidoro izokwasị anụ ahụ ha.
Then Rizpah took coarse cloth made from goats’ hair, and spread it on the rock [where the corpses lay]. She stayed there from the time that people started to harvest the barley until the rains started. She did not allow any birds to come near the corpses during the day, and she did not allow any animals to come near during the night.
11 Mgbe a gwara Devid ihe Rizpa, nwa nwanyị Aịa, iko nwanyị Sọl mere,
When someone told David what Rizpah had done,
12 ọ gara chịkọtaa ọkpụkpụ Sọl na nke nwa ya Jonatan site nʼaka ndị nwe obodo Jebesh Gilead. Ha gara na nzuzo zuru ozu Sọl na Jonatan site nʼama dị na Bet-Shan, ebe ndị Filistia kwụbara ha, oge ha gburu Sọl na Gilboa.
he went with some of his servants to Jabesh in [the] Gilead [region] and got the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan. The people of Jabesh had stolen their bones from the (plaza/public square) in Beth-Shan [city], where the men from Philistia had hanged them previously, on the day that they had killed Saul and Jonathan on Gilboa [Mountain].
13 Devid sitere nʼebe ahụ chịkọtaa ọkpụkpụ Sọl na nke nwa ya nwoke Jonatan, chịkọtaakwa ọkpụkpụ ndị ahụ akwụgburu.
David and his men took the bones of Saul and Jonathan, and they also took the bones of the seven men [from Gibeon] whom the men from Philistia had hanged.
14 Ha liri ọkpụkpụ Sọl na nke nwa ya nwoke Jonatan nʼobodo Zela nʼala Benjamin, nʼime ili Kish nna Sọl, meekwa ihe ndị ọzọ niile eze nyere nʼiwu. Mgbe nke a gasịrị, Chineke zara ekpere nʼihi ala ahụ.
They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan in Zela [town] in the land of [the tribe of] Benjamin. Doing all that the king commanded, they buried their bones in the tomb where Saul’s father Kish [was buried]. After that, [because] God [saw that Saul’s family had been punished to pay for Saul’s murder of many people from Gibeon, he] answered the Israelis’ prayers for their land, and caused the famine to end.
15 Emesịa, ndị Filistia busokwara Izrel agha ọzọ. Devid na ndị agha ya pụkwara ịlụso ha ọgụ. Nʼoge ha na-alụ ọgụ a, ike gwụrụ Devid nke ukwuu.
The army of Philistia again started to fight against the army of Israel. And David and his soldiers went to fight the Philistines. During the battle, David became weary.
16 Mgbe ahụ, Ishibi-Benob, otu onye agbụrụ Rafa, onye ịdị arọ nke bronz dị nʼọnụ ùbe ya ruru kilogram atọ na ọkara, onye jikwa mma agha ọhụrụ, bịaruru Devid nso chọọ igbu ya.
One of the Philistia men thought that he could kill David. His name was Ishbi-Benob. He was a descendant of [a group of] giants. He carried a bronze spear that weighed about (7-1/2 pounds/3-1/2 kg.), and he also had a new sword.
17 Ma Abishai nwa Zeruaya bịara nyere Devid aka, tigbuo onye Filistia ahụ. Site nʼoge ahụ, ndị ikom Devid ṅụrụ iyi sị ya, “Ị gaghị esokwa anyị gaa ibu agha ọzọ! Ka a ghara imenyụ oriọna Izrel.”
But Abishai came to help David, and attacked the giant and killed him. Then David’s soldiers forced him to promise that he would not go with them into a battle again. They said to him, “[If you die, and none of your descendants become king, that would be like] [MET] extinguishing the last light in Israel.”
18 Mgbe oge gaturu, ha na ndị Filistia lụrụ agha ọzọ na Gob. Nʼoge a, Sibekai, onye Husha, gburu Saf, otu nʼime ndị agbụrụ Rafa.
Some time after that, there was a battle with the army of Philistia near Gob [village]. During the battle, Sibbecai, from [the] Hushah [clan], killed Saph, one of the descendants of the Rapha giants.
19 Nʼagha ọzọ ha na ndị Filistia lụrụ na Gob, Elhanan nwa Jaịa onye Betlehem gburu nwanne Golaịat onye Gat, onye ùbe ya nwere osisi dị ogologo dịka nke onye na-ekwe akwa ji ekwe akwa.
[Later] there was another battle with the army of Philistia at Gob. During that battle, Elhanan, the son of Jaare-Oregim from Bethlehem, killed [the brother of] Goliath from Gath [city]; Goliath’s spear shaft/handle was (very thick, like the bar on a weaver’s loom/over two inches thick).
20 Nʼagha ọzọkwa, bụ nke a lụrụ na Gat, e nwere otu nwoke gbara oke dimkpa, nke nwere mkpịsịaka isii nʼaka ya ọbụla, nweekwa mkpịsịụkwụ isii nʼụkwụ ya ọbụla, ya bụ, a gụkọtaa ha niile, iri mkpịsịaka na mkpịsịụkwụ abụọ na anọ. Ọ bụkwa onye amụrụ nʼagbụrụ Rafa.
Later there was another battle near Gath. There was a (huge man/giant) there who liked to fight [in battles]. He had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. He was descended from [the] Rapha [giants].
21 Mgbe ọ kọchara Izrel, Jonatan nwa Shimei, nwanne nwoke Devid, gburu ya.
But when he (made fun of/ridiculed) the men in the Israeli [army], Jonathan, the son of David’s [older] brother Shimeah, killed him.
22 Mmadụ anọ ndị a bụ ndị agbụrụ Rafa dị na Gat. Devid na ndị agha ya gburu ha niile.
Those four men were some of the descendants of the Rapha giants who had lived in Gath, who were killed [MTY] by David and his soldiers.