1 Hamuera 6
1 A e whitu nga marama o te aaka a Ihowa ki te whenua o nga Pirihitini.
When the ark of the LORD had been in the land of the Philistines seven months,
2 Na ka karanga nga Pirihitini ki nga tohunga karakia ratou ko nga tohunga tuahu, ka mea, Me aha e matou te aaka a Ihowa? whakaaturia mai ki a matou hei te aha he mea ma matou ina kawea atu taua mea ki tona wahi.
the Philistines summoned the priests and diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how to send it back to its place.”
3 Na ka mea ratou, Ki te tukua atu e koutou te aaka a te Atua o Iharaira, kaua e tukua tahangatia; engari me hoatu ano he whakahere mo te he hei whakahokinga atu ki a ia: ko reria koutou ora ai, a ka mohio na te aha tona ringa te neke atu ai i a ko utou.
They replied, “If you return the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it away empty, but by all means return it to Him with a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and you will understand why His hand has not been lifted from you.”
4 Ano ra ko era, He aha te whakahere mo te he hei whakahokinga atu ki a ia? Na ka mea ratou, Kia rima nga puku koura, kia rite ki te tokomaha o nga rangatira o nga Pirihitini, kia rima hoki nga kiore koura; kotahi tonu nei hoki te mate o koutou kat oa, o o koutou rangatira ano hoki.
“What guilt offering should we send back to Him?” asked the Philistines. “Five gold tumors and five gold rats,” they said, “according to the number of rulers of the Philistines, since the same plague has struck both you and your rulers.
5 Na me hanga he ahua no o koutou puku, he ahua ano no a koutou kiore i ngaro ai te whenua; a ka hoatu kororia ano ki te Atua o Iharaira; tera pea e mama iho tona ringa ki a koutou, ki o koutou atua, ki to koutou whenua.
Make images of your tumors and of the rats that are ravaging the land. Give glory to the God of Israel, and perhaps He will lift His hand from you and your gods and your land.
6 He aha koutou i whakapakeke ai i o koutou ngakau, i pera ai me nga Ihipiana ratou ko Parao i whakapakeke nei i o ratou ngakau? i tana mahinga i nga mea nunui i roto i a ratou, kihai ianei ratou i tuku i te iwi, a haere ana ratou?
Why harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened theirs? When He afflicted them, did they not send the people on their way as they departed?
7 Na reira tangohia ka hanga he kaata hou, tikina hoki kia rua nga kau kutete kahore ano i mau ioka, ka here ai i nga kau ki te kaata, a ko a raua kuao me tango mai i a raua ki te whare:
Now, therefore, prepare one new cart with two milk cows that have never been yoked. Hitch the cows to the cart, but take their calves away and pen them up.
8 Na ka tiki i te aaka a Ihowa, ka whakatakoto ki runga ki te kaata; a ka hoatu ki tona taha, ki roto i tetahi pouaka, nga mea koura, ta koutou whakahere mo te he hei whakahokinga ki a ia; a ka tuku ai kia haere.
Take the ark of the LORD, set it on the cart, and in a chest beside it put the gold objects you are sending Him as a guilt offering. Then send the ark on its way,
9 Ko reira tirohia atu ai e koutou; ki te haere na te aro o tona rohe ki runga, ki Petehemehe, nana tenei kino nui i mea ki a tatou: ki te kahore ia, katahi tatou ki mohio, ehara i a ia te ringa i patua ai tatou; he mea tupono noa mai taua mea i pa mai nei ki a tatou.
but keep watching it. If it goes up the road to its homeland, toward Beth-shemesh, it is the LORD who has brought on us this great disaster. But if it does not, then we will know that it was not His hand that punished us and that it happened by chance.”
10 Na pera ana aua tangata. Tikina ana e ratou nga kau kutete e rua, a herea ana ki te kaata, ko a raua kuao ia i tutakina ki te whare.
So the men did as instructed. They took two milk cows, hitched them to the cart, and penned up their calves.
11 A whakanohoia ana e ratou te aaka a Ihowa ki runga ki te kaata, me te pouaka, me nga kiore koura, me nga ahua o o ratou puku.
Then they put the ark of the LORD on the cart, along with the chest containing the gold rats and the images of the tumors.
12 A tika tonu nga kau i te ara ki te huarahi ki Petehemehe; i haere raua ra te huanui, me te tangi haere, kihai hoki i peka ki matau, ki maui; a i aru nga rangatira o nga Pirihitini i a raua, a tae noa ki te rohe ki Petehemehe.
And the cows headed straight up the road toward Beth-shemesh, staying on that one highway and lowing as they went, never straying to the right or to the left. The rulers of the Philistines followed behind them to the border of Beth-shemesh.
13 Na i te kokoti witi nga tangata o Petehemehe i te raorao, a, ko te marangatanga ake o o ratou kanohi, ka kite i te aaka, na koa ana ratou i te kitenga atu.
Now the people of Beth-shemesh were harvesting wheat in the valley, and when they looked up and saw the ark, they were overjoyed at the sight.
14 Na haere tonu tera te kaata ki te mara a Hohua, a tetahi Petehemehi, a tu ana i reira, kei reira ano tetahi kohatu nui: na tatangia ana e ratou te rakau o te kaata, a whakaekea ana nga kau hei tahunga tinana ki a Ihowa.
The cart came to the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh and stopped there near a large rock. The people chopped up the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the LORD.
15 I tangohia iho ano e nga Riwaiti te aaka a Ihowa, me te pouaka i te taha, i reira ra nga mea koura, a whakatakotoria ana ki runga ki te kohatu nui: i whakaeke tahunga tinana ano hoki, i patu patunga tapu nga tangata o Petehemehe i taua ra ki a I howa.
And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD and the chest containing the gold objects, and they placed them on the large rock. That day the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings and made sacrifices to the LORD.
16 A, no te kitenga o nga rangatira e rima o nga Pirihitini, hoki ana ki Ekerono i taua rangi ano.
And when the five rulers of the Philistines saw this, they returned to Ekron that same day.
17 A ko nga puku koura enei i whakahokia atu nei e nga Pirihitini hei whakahere mo te he ki a Ihowa; mo Aharoro kotahi, mo Kaha kotahi, mo Ahakerono kotahi, mo Kata kotahi, mo Ekerono kotahi;
As a guilt offering to the LORD, the Philistines had sent back one gold tumor for each city: Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron.
18 Me nga kiore koura, rite tonu ki te maha o nga pa katoa o nga Pirihitini, no aua rangatira tokorima nei, o nga pa taiepa me nga pa koraha; tae noa atu ki te kohatu nui, ki Apere, i whakatakotoria ra te aaka a Ihowa ki reira; kei te mara a Hohua Petehemehi taua kohatu a taea noatia tenei ra.
The number of gold rats also corresponded to the number of Philistine cities belonging to the five rulers—the fortified cities and their outlying villages. And the large rock on which they placed the ark of the LORD stands to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh.
19 Na ka patua nga tangata o Petehemehe mo ratou i titiro ki roto ki te aaka a Ihowa; koia i patua ai e ia nga tangata o te iwi, e rima tekau mano e whitu tekau. Na ka tangi te iwi mo te patunga nui i patua ai te iwi e Ihowa.
But God struck down some of the people of Beth-shemesh because they looked inside the ark of the LORD. He struck down seventy men, and the people mourned because the LORD had struck them with a great slaughter.
20 Na ka mea nga tangata o Petehemehe, Ko wai hei tu ki te aroaro o Ihowa, o tenei Atua tapu? me haere atu ano hoki ia i roto i a tatou ki a wai?
The men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who can stand in the presence of the LORD, this holy God? To whom should the ark go up from here?”
21 Katahi ratou ka tono tangata ki nga tangata o Kiriata Tearimi, hei mea, Kua whakahokia mai te aaka a Ihowa e nga Pirihitini; haere mai, mauria atu ki a koutou.
So they sent messengers to the people of Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the LORD. Come down and take it up with you.”
