Deotoronomia 18
1 Ny Levita mpisorona, dia ny firenen’ i Levy rehetra, tsy mba hanana anjara na lova eo amin’ ny Isiraely; ny fanatitra atao amin’ ny afo ho an’ i Jehovah sy ny anjaran’ i Jehovah no ho fihinany.
“The priests, who are all from the tribe of Levi, will not receive any land in Israel. Instead, they will receive some of the food that other people offer to be burned [on the altar to be sacrificed] to Yahweh and some of the other sacrifices that will be offered to Yahweh.
2 Fa tsy hanan-dova eo amin’ ny rahalahiny izy; Jehovah no lovany, araka izay nolazainy taminy.
They will not be allotted any land like the other tribes will be. What they will receive is the work/privilege of being Yahweh’s [priests], which is what he said that they should have.
3 Ary izao no ho anjaran’ ny mpisorona avy amin’ ny olona, dia avy amin’ izay mamono zavatra hatao fanatitra, na omby, na ondry, na osy: dia homeny ho an’ ny mpisorona ny sorony sy ny takolany roa ary ny vavoniny;
“When the people bring an ox or a sheep to be sacrificed, they must give to the priests the shoulder, the cheeks/jaws, and the stomach of those animals.
4 ary ny voaloham-bokatry ny varinao koa sy ny ranom-boalobokao sy ny diloilonao ary ny voalohan’ ny volon’ ondrinao no homenao azy.
You must also give to them the first part of the grain that you [harvest], and the first part of the wine [that you make], and the first part of the [olive] oil [that you make], and the first part of the wool that you shear from your sheep.
5 Fa izy sy ny taranany no nofidin’ i Jehovah Andriamanitrao tamin’ ny firenenao rehetra hitsangana hanao fanompoam-pivavahana mandrakizay amin’ ny anaran’ i Jehovah.
You must do this because Yahweh our God has chosen the tribe of Levi from all of your tribes, in order that men [from that tribe] would always be the priests who would serve him.
6 Ary raha misy Levita miala amin’ ny tanànanao anankiray, izay nivahiniany, amin’ ny Isiraely rehetra, ka mandeha araka ny fanirian’ ny fony ho any amin’ ny tany izay hofidin’ i Jehovah,
“If any man from the tribe of Levi [who has been living] in one of the towns in Israel wants to come from there to the place of worship that Yahweh has chosen, [and start living there],
7 ka manao fanompoam-pivavahana amin’ ny anaran’ i Jehovah Andriamaniny, tahaka ny Levita rahalahiny rehetra, izay mitsangana eo anatrehan’ i Jehovah,
he is permitted to serve Yahweh there as a priest, just like the other men from the tribe of Levi who have been serving there.
8 dia anjara mitovy amin’ ny an’ ireo ihany no ho fihinany, na dia misy aza izay vidin’ ny azony tamin-drainy.
He must be given the same amount of food [that the other priests receive]. He is permitted to keep the money [that his relatives give him] for selling some of their possessions.
9 REHEFA tonga any amin’ ny tany izay omen’ i Jehovah Andriamanitrao anao ianao, dia aza mianatra hanao araka ny fahavetavetana ataon’ ireo firenena ireo.
When you enter the land that Yahweh our God is giving you, you must not imitate the disgusting things that the people-groups who are there now do.
10 Aoka tsy hisy eo aminao izay mampandeha ny zananilahy na ny zananivavy hamaky ny afo, na mpanao fankatovana, na mpanandro, na mpanao sikidy, na mpanana ody,
You must not sacrifice any of your children by burning them [on your altars]. Do not practice (divination/using supernatural power to reveal [what will happen in] the future). Do not do/practice (soothsaying/magic to find out what will happen in the future). Do not (interpret omens/say that because of something that you have seen you know what will happen). Do not practice sorcery/witchcraft. Do not practice (putting spells on people/saying things to cause bad things to happen to others).
11 na manao ho masim-bava, na mpanadina amin’ ny manao azy ho tsindrian-javatra, na mpanao hatsarana, na mpanontany amin’ ny maty.
Do not try to talk with spirits of dead people. Do not do/practice magic.
12 Fa fahavetavetana eo imason’ i Jehovah izay rehetra manao izany zavatra izany, ary izany fahavetavetana izany no androahan’ i Jehovah Andriamanitrao azy eo anoloanao.
Yahweh hates people who do any of those disgusting things. And as you advance through that land, he is going to expel the people-groups because they do/practice those disgusting things.
13 Aoka ho tanteraka amin’ i Jehovah Andriamanitrao ianao.
But you must always avoid doing any of those things.
14 Fa ireo firenena izay efa horoahinao ireo dia mihaino ny mpanandro sy ny mpanao fankatovana; fa ianao kosa tsy navelan’ i Jehovah Andriamanitrao hanao izany.
The people-groups that you are about to expel [from the land that you will occupy] (consult/seek advice from) soothsayers and those who practice divination. But as for you, Yahweh our God does not allow you to do that.
15 Mpaminany avy eo aminao, dia avy amin’ ny rahalahinao, tahaka ahy, no hatsangan’ i Jehovah Andriamanitrao ho anao; izy no hohenoinareo;
[Some day] he will send from among you a prophet like me. [He is the one who will tell you what will happen in the future], and he is the one whom you must heed.
16 araka izay rehetra nangatahinao tamin’ i Jehovah Andriamanitrao tao Horeba tamin’ ny andro nivoriana hoe: Aoka tsy hihaino ny feon’ i Jehovah Andriamanitro intsony aho, ary aoka tsy hahita izany afo lehibe izany intsony aho, fandrao maty.
On the day that your ancestors were gathered at the bottom of Sinai Mountain, they pleaded with me saying, ‘We do not want Yahweh to speak [MTY] to us again, and we do not want to see this huge fire [that is burning on the mountain]!’ [Your ancestors said that because they were afraid] that they would die [if Yahweh spoke to them again].
17 Dia hoy Jehovah tamiko: Tsara ny teny izay nolazainy.
Then Yahweh said to me, ‘What they have said is true/wise.
18 Mpaminany no hatsangako ho azy avy amin’ ny rahalahiny, tahaka anao, ka hataoko ao am-bavany ny teniko, ary holazainy aminy izay rehetra handidiako azy.
So I will send from among them a prophet who will be like you. I will tell him what to say, and then he will tell people everything that I tell him to say.
19 Ary izay rehetra tsy mihaino ny teniko, izay holazainy amin’ ny anarako, dia Izaho no hitsara azy.
He will speak for me. And I will punish anyone who does not heed what he says.
20 Fa ny mpaminany izay sahy hilaza teny amin’ ny anarako, nefa tsy nasaiko nolazainy, na izay miteny amin’ ny anaran’ andriamani-kafa, dia hatao maty.
But if any other [person says that he is a] prophet [and] dares to speak a message which he falsely says comes from me but which I did not tell him to speak, or if anyone who speaks a message that he says other gods [MTY] have revealed to him, he must be executed [for doing that].’
21 Ary raha hoy ianao anakampo: Hataontsika ahoana no fahafantatra ny teny izay tsy nolazain’ i Jehovah?
But if you say to yourself, ‘How can we know if a message [that someone tells us] does not come from Yahweh?’
22 Raha miteny amin’ ny anaran’ i Jehovah ny mpaminany, ka tsy efa ny zavatra, na tsy tanteraka, dia teny izay tsy nolazain’ i Jehovah izany: tamin’ ny fahasahisahiana no nilazan’ ny mpaminany izany, koa aza matahotra azy.
[The answer is that] when someone speaks a message [about what will happen in the future], a message that he says was revealed by Yahweh, if what he says does not happen, [you will know that] the message did not come from Yahweh. That person has wrongly claimed that it was revealed to him by Yahweh. So you do not need to be afraid of [anything that] he [says].”
