< Balam 15 >

1 Awo ebbanga bwe lyayitawo, ng’ebiro eby’okukungula eŋŋaano bituuse, Samusooni n’agenda okukyalira mukazi we ng’amutwalidde akabuzi akato. N’ayogera nti, “Nnaagenda eri mukazi wange mu kisenge.” Naye kitaawe w’omukazi n’atamukkiriza kugenda yo.
After some days, during the time of wheat harvest, Samson took a young goat and went to visit his wife. He said to himself, “I will go to my wife's room.” But her father would not allow him to go in.
2 Kitaawe w’omukazi n’agamba Samusooni nti, “Nze nalowooza nti wamukyayira ddala, kyennava mugabira mukwano gwo. Muganda we omuto amusinga okulabika obulungi. Kaakano gw’oba otwala mu kifo ky’oli.”
Her father said, “I really thought you hated her, so I gave her to your friend. Her younger sister is more beautiful than she is, is she not? Take her instead.”
3 Samusooni n’abagamba nti, “Ku mulundi guno sirina musango, Abafirisuuti bwe nnaabakola akabi.”
Samson said to them, “This time I will be innocent in regard to the Philistines when I hurt them.”
4 Awo Samusooni n’agenda n’akwata ebibe ebikumi bisatu, n’asiba bibiri bibiri emikira, n’akwataganya emikira, n’addira ebitawuliro n’ateeka ekitawuliro wakati w’emikira kinneebirye.
Samson went and caught three hundred foxes and he tied together each pair, tail to tail. Then he took torches and tied them in the middle of each pair of tails.
5 N’akoleeza ebitawuliro, n’ata ebibe okugenda mu nnimiro z’Abafirisuuti. N’ayokya ebinywa n’eŋŋaano eyali tennakungulwa, n’ennimiro z’emizeeyituuni n’ennimiro z’emizabbibu.
When he had set the torches on fire, he let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and they set fire to both the stacked grain and the grain standing in the field, along with the vineyards and the olive orchards.
6 Awo Abafirisuuti bwe baabuuza akoze bwe kityo, ne boogera nti, “Ye Samusooni mukoddomi w’Omutimuna, kubanga Omutimuna yaddira mukazi wa Samusooni, n’amuwa mukwano gwa Samusooni.” Abafirisuuti ne bagenda ne bookya omukazi ne kitaawe omuliro.
The Philistines asked, “Who did this?” They were told, “Samson, the Timnite's son-in-law, did this because the Timnite took Samson's wife and gave her to his friend.” Then the Philistines went and burned up her and her father.
7 Samusooni n’abagamba nti, “Olw’okuba nga mweyisizza bwe mutyo, sirirekayo okuggyako nga mbawalanyeeko eggwanga.”
Samson said to them, “If this is what you do, I will get my revenge against you, and after that is done, I will stop.”
8 N’abalumba n’atta bangi nnyo ku bo, n’agenda n’abeera mu mpuku ey’omu lwazi lw’e Etamu.
Then he cut them to pieces, hip and thigh, with a great slaughter. Then he went down and lived in a cave in the cliff of Etam.
9 Abafirisuuti ne bayambuka ne basiisira mu Yuda, ne basaasaana okumpi ne Leki.
Then the Philistines came up and they prepared for battle in Judah and set up their army in Lehi.
10 Abantu ba Yuda ne bababuuza nti, “Lwaki mutulumbye?” Abafirisuuti ne babaddamu nti, “Tuzze okuwamba Samusooni tumutwale nga musibe, tumwesasuze nga bwe yatukola.”
The men of Judah said, “Why have you come up to attack us?” They said, “We are attacking so we may capture Samson, and do to him as he has done to us.”
11 Awo abasajja enkumi ssatu okuva mu Yuda ne bagenda ku mpuku y’olwazi lw’e Etamu ne bagamba Samusooni nti, “Tewamanya ng’Abafirisuuti be batufuga? Kaakano kiki kino ky’otukoze?” N’abaddamu nti, “Nneesasuzza kye bankola.”
Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cave in the cliff of Etam, and they said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines are rulers over us? What is this you have done to us?” Samson said to them, “They did to me, and so I have done to them.”
12 Ne bamuddamu nti, “Tuzze okukusiba tukuweeyo mu mukono gw’Abafirisuuti.” Samusooni n’abagamba nti, “Mundayirire nga temunzitte mmwe mwennyini.”
They said to Samson, “We have come down to tie you up and give you into the hands of the Philistines.” Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you will not kill me yourselves.”
13 Ne bamuddamu nti, “Tukkiriziganyizza. Tujja kukusiba busibi, tukuweeyo mu mukono gwabwe, naye tetujja kukutta.” Ne bamusiba emiguwa ebiri emiggya ne bamuggyayo mu mpuku.
They said to him, “No, we will only tie you with ropes and hand you over to them. We promise we will not kill you.” Then they tied him up with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock.
14 Bwe yali asemberera Leki Abafirisuuti ne bajja gy’ali nga baleekaana. Awo Omwoyo wa Mukama Katonda n’amukkako, emiguwa egyali gimusibye emikono ne giba ng’obugoogwa obwokeddwa omuliro, ne gisumulukuka okuva ku mikono gye.
When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting as they met him. Then Yahweh's Spirit came on him with power. The ropes on his arms became like burnt flax, and they fell off his hands.
15 N’alaba oluba lw’endogoyi olutannavunda, n’alukwata, n’akuba abasajja lukumi.
Samson found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and he picked it up and killed a thousand men with it.
16 Samusooni n’alyoka ayogera nti, “Nkozesezza oluba lw’endogoyi okukola entuumu bbiri; nkozesezza oluba lw’endogoyi okutta abasajja lukumi.”
Samson said, “With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps upon heaps, with the jawbone of a donkey I have killed a thousand men.”
17 Bwe yamala okwogera ekyo, n’akanyuga oluba n’alusuula, ekifo ekyo n’akituuma Lamasuleki.
When Samson finished speaking, he threw away the jawbone, and he called the place Ramath Lehi.
18 N’alumwa nnyo ennyonta, n’akabira Mukama Katonda ng’agamba nti, “Omuddu wo omuwadde obuwanguzi olw’amaanyi; ne kaakano nfe, ngwe mu mukono gw’abatali bakomole?”
Samson was very thirsty and called on Yahweh and said, “You have given this great victory to your servant. But now will I die of thirst and fall into the hands of those who are uncircumcised?”
19 Katonda n’akola ekinnya mu Leki, ne muvaamu amazzi, kwe yanywa n’addamu amaanyi, n’aba mulamu. Ekifo ekyo kyeyava akituuma Enkakkole, era kikyaliyo mu Leki n’okutuusa leero.
God split open the hollow place that is at Lehi and water came out. When he drank, his strength returned and he revived. So he called the name of that place En Hakkore, and it is at Lehi to this day.
20 Samusooni n’akulembera Isirayiri mu biro by’Abafirisuuti, okumala emyaka amakumi abiri.
Samson judged Israel in the days of the Philistines for twenty years.

< Balam 15 >