UDutheronomi 26

1 “Nxa usungenile elizweni uThixo uNkulunkulu wakho akunika lona njengelifa njalo usulithethe wahlala kulo

“After you occupy the land that Yahweh our God is giving to you, and you (have settled/are living) there,

2 thatha ezinye zezithelo zakuqala zazo, zonke izilimo zomhlabathi welizwe uThixo uNkulunkulu wakho akunika lona uzifake esitsheni. Uhambe uye endaweni leyo uThixo uNkulunkulu wakho azayikhetha njengendawo yokuhlala yeBizo lakhe

[each of] you must take some of the first crops that you harvest, put them in a basket, and take them to the place that Yahweh will have chosen for you to worship [MTY] there.

3 uthi kumphristi osesikhundleni ngalesosikhathi, ‘Ngiyamemezela lamuhla kuThixo uNkulunkulu wakho ukuthi sengifikile elizweni uThixo afunga kubokhokho bethu ukuthi uzasinika lona.’

Go to the Supreme Priest who is serving at that time and say to him, ‘[By giving you this first part of my harvest] today, I am declaring to Yahweh our God that I have [picked it in] the land that he vowed to our ancestors to give to us.’

4 Umphristi uzakwamukela isitsha esisezandleni zakho asibeke phansi phambi kwe-alithari likaThixo uNkulunkulu wakho.

Then the priest must take the basket of food from your hand and put it on the altar where sacrifices are offered to Yahweh our God.

5 Ngakho uzakutsho phambi kukaThixo uNkulunkulu wakho uthi: ‘Ubaba wayeluzulani lomʼAramu, wehla waya eGibhithe elabantu abalutshwana bafika bahlala khona baze baba yisizwe esikhulu kakhulu, esilamandla njalo esilabantu abanengi kakhulu.

Then in Yahweh’s presence you must say this: ‘My ancestor [Jacob] was a man from Aram/Syria who was continually wandering [from one place to another]. He took his family to Egypt. They were a small group [when they went there], but they lived there and their descendants became a very large/populous [DOU] and powerful nation.

6 Kodwa amaGibhithe asiphatha ngochuku, asihlupha, asisebenzisa nzima.

Then the people of Egypt treated them very harshly [DOU], and they forced them to become their slaves and to work very hard.

7 Ngakho sakhala kuThixo, uNkulunkulu wabokhokho bethu, uThixo walizwa ilizwi lethu njalo wabona lokuhlupheka kwethu, ukutshikatshika kwethu kanye lokuncindezelwa kwethu.

Then our ancestors cried out to you, Yahweh our God, and you heard them. You saw that they were suffering, and that they were forced to work very hard, and were being oppressed.

8 Ngenxa yalokho uThixo wasikhupha elizweni laseGibhithe ngesandla esilamandla langengalo eyeluliweyo, ngezenzo ezesabekayo langezibonakaliso kanye lezimangaliso.

Then by your great power [MTY] and by performing many kinds of miracles [DOU], and other terrifying things, you brought them out of Egypt.

9 Wasiletha kulindawo njalo wasinika lelilizwe, ilizwe eligeleza uchago loluju;

You brought us to this land and gave it to us, a land that is very fertile [IDM].

10 khathesi sengiletha izithelo zakuqala zomhlabathi lowo, Oh Thixo, onginike wona.’ Uzabeka isitsha phambi kukaThixo uNkulunkulu wakho umkhothamele.

So now, Yahweh, I have brought to you the first part of the harvest from the land that I received.’ Then you must set the basket down in Yahweh’s presence and worship him there.

11 Ngakho wena labaLevi kanye labezizweni abahlala phakathi kwenu lizathokoza ezintweni zonke ezinhle uThixo uNkulunkulu wakho akunike zona wena kanye labendlu yakho.

And you must celebrate [by eating a meal together to thank] Yahweh our God for all the good things that he has given to you and to your family. And you must invite the descendants of Levi and the foreigners who are living among you to also rejoice [and eat] with you.

12 Kuzakuthi lapho usuqedile ukwahlukanisa okwetshumi kwaso sonke isivuno sakho ngomnyaka wesithathu, okungumnyaka wokwetshumi, wena uzakunika umLevi, owezizweni, intandane kanye lomfelokazi, ukuze badle basuthe emadolobheni akho.

Every third year, you must bring to the descendants of Levi and to the foreigners [who are living among you] and the orphans and the widows (a tithe/10 percent) of your crops, in order that in every town they will have plenty to eat.

13 Tshono futhi kuThixo uNkulunkulu wakho uthi: ‘Sengikhuphile isabelo esingcwele endlini yami ngasinika umLevi, owezizweni, intandane lomfelokazi, njengokulaya kwakho. Kangeqanga imilayo yakho kumbe ukukhohlwa eminye yayo.

Then you must say to Yahweh, ‘I have brought to you, from my house, all of the sacred tithe [from my harvest this year]. I am giving it to the descendants of Levi, to the foreigners, the orphans, and the widows, as you commanded us to do. I have not disobeyed any of your commands [about the tithes], and I have not forgotten any of your commands [about tithes].

14 Angizange ngidle lutho lwesabelo esingcwele ngesikhathi sokulila, kumbe ukususa okunye kwakho ngesikhathi ngingongcolileyo, loba ukunikela ingxenye yakho kwabafileyo. Ngikulalele Thixo Nkulunkulu wami; ngenzile konke ongilaye khona.

[I declare that] I have not eaten any food from the tithe while I was mourning [for someone who died]. And I have not touched any of it while I was unacceptable to you; I have not offered any of it to [spirits of] dead people. Yahweh, I have obeyed you and done everything that you have commanded us [concerning the tithe].

15 Khangela phansi usezulwini, indawo yakho yokuhlala engcwele, ubusise abantu bakho bako-Israyeli kanye lelizwe osinike lona njengesithembiso owasenza ngesifungo kubokhokho bethu, ilizwe eligeleza uchago loluju.’”

So [please] look down from your holy place in heaven, and bless us, your Israeli people. Also bless this very fertile [IDM] land which you have given to us, which is what you promised our ancestors that you would do.’

16 “UThixo uNkulunkulu wakho uyakulaya lamuhla ukuba ulandele izimiso kanye lemithetho le; uyigcine ngonanzelelo olukhulu ngenhliziyo yakho yonke kanye langomphefumulo wakho wonke.

Today Yahweh our God is commanding you to obey all these rules and regulations. So obey them faithfully, with your entire inner being [DOU].

17 Lamuhla usuvume obala ukuthi uThixo unguNkulunkulu wakho lokuthi uzahamba ezindleleni zakhe, ukuthi uzagcina izimiso zakhe, imilayo, lemithetho yakhe, lokuthi uzamlalela.

Today you have declared that Yahweh is your God, and that you will conduct your lives as he wants you to do, and that you will obey all his commands and rules and regulations, and that you will do all that he tells you to do.

18 Futhi uThixo ukuvumile lamuhla ukuthi lina lingabantu bakhe, liyisabelo sakhe esiligugu njengokuthembisa kwakhe njalo kumele ligcine yonke imilayo yakhe.

And today Yahweh has declared that you are his people, which is what he promised that you would be, and he commands you to obey all his commands.

19 Umemezele ukuthi uzaliphakamisa ngodumo, ngokwaziwa langenhlonipho phezu kwezizwe zonke azidalayo lokuthi lizakuba ngabantu abangcwele kuThixo uNkulunkulu wenu njengokuthembisa kwakhe.”

If you do that, he will cause you to become greater than any other nation that he has established, and he will enable you to praise him and honor him [DOU]. You will truly belong to Yahweh our God, which is what he has promised.”