UDutheronomi 9
1 “Zwana, We Israyeli. Khathesi ususiyachapha iJodani ukuze ungene uyethathela izizwe ezinkulu ezilamandla kulawe, ezilamadolobho amakhulu alemiduli etshaya emkhathini.
“You people of Israel, listen to me! You will soon [HYP] cross the Jordan [River]. In the land that you will enter, there are large cities that have very high walls [around them] that [seem to] [HYP] extend up to the sky. There are people-groups in that land that are more numerous and more powerful than you are.
2 Abantu bakhona balamandla njalo bade, ngama-Anakhi. Liyakwazi konke ngabo njalo selike layizwa indumela yabo yokuthi: ‘Ngubani ongamelana lama-Anakhi?’
Those people are very tall and strong. [Some of them] are giants who are descendants of Anak. You know about them, and you have heard people say that no one [RHQ] can defeat the descendants of Anak.
3 Kodwa qinisekani lamuhla ngoba uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu nguye ozachapha phambi kwenu njengomlilo otshisa ubhuqe. UThixo uzababhubhisa; uzabanyathela phambi kwenu. Lizabaxotsha libabhubhise masinyane, njengokuthembisa kukaThixo.
But I want you to know that Yahweh our God will go ahead of you. He will be like a raging/roaring fire. While you advance, he will defeat and destroy them. As a result, you will quickly be able to expel some of them and kill the others, which is what Yahweh promised that you would do.
4 Ngemva kokuba uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu esebanqobile phambi kwenu, lingabozikhohlisa lisithi, ‘UThixo ungilethe lapha ukuba ngilithathe libe ngelami lelilizwe ngenxa yokulunga kwami.’ Akunjalo, kungenxa yezono zalezizizwe okuzakwenza ukuthi uThixo azisuse phambi kwakho.
“After Yahweh our God has expelled them for you, do not say to yourselves, ‘It is because we are righteous that Yahweh has enabled us to capture this land.’ The truth is that it is because the people in that land are wicked that Yahweh will expel them as you advance.
5 Akusikho ukuthi kungenxa yokulunga kwakho loba ukuziphatha ngobuntu bakho okuzakwenza ungene kulelolizwe ulithathe; kodwa kungenxa yezono zalezozizwe, uThixo uNkulunkulu wakho uzazixotsha phambi kwakho lezizizwe ukuze kugcwaliseke isifungo uThixo wakho asenza kuboyihlo, u-Abhrahama, u-Isaka kanye loJakhobe.
[I say again that] it is not because you are righteous or because you do things that are righteous that you will enter and capture that land. It is because those people-groups are very wicked that Yahweh our God will expel them as you advance, and because he intends to do what he vowed to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that he would do.
6 Zwisisa manje, ukuthi akungenxa yokulunga kwakho ukuthi uThixo uNkulunkulu wakho ukunika lelilizwe ukuba libe ngelakho, ngoba lina simo senu lingontamozilukhuni.”
I want you to know that it is not because you are righteous that Yahweh our God is giving you this good/fertile land. I say that because [you are not righteous]; you are a very stubborn [IDM] people.”
7 “Khumbulani lokhu njalo lingakhohlwa ukuthi lamthukuthelisa njani uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu enkangala waze wazonda. Kusukela ngosuku elasuka ngalo eGibhithe lize lizofika lapha, belilokhu lihlamukela uThixo.
“Never forget what your ancestors did in the desert that caused Yahweh our God to become angry. From the day that we left Egypt until the day that we arrived here, you and your ancestors have continually rebelled against him.
8 EHorebhi lavusa ulaka lukaThixo ngalokho wazonda okokuthi wayezalibhubhisa.
Even at Sinai [Mountain] your ancestors caused Yahweh to become angry. Because he was very angry, he was ready to get rid of [all of] them.
9 Kwathi ekukhweleni kwami intaba ngisiyakwamukela izibhebhedu zamatshe, izibhebhedu zesivumelwano uThixo asenza lani, ngahlala entabeni okwensuku ezingamatshumi amane lobusuku obungamatshumi amane; angidlanga sinkwa njalo angizange nginathe amanzi.
When I climbed the mountain to receive from him the stone tablets on which he had written the Ten Commandments that he was giving to them, I stayed there 40 days and nights, and [during that time] I did not eat or drink anything.
10 UThixo wanginika izibhebhedu zamatshe ezimbili okwakulotshwe kuzo ngomunwe kaNkulunkulu. Kulezizibhebhedu kwakulotshwe yonke imilayo eyayethulwe nguThixo kini phezu kwentaba ephakathi komlilo, ngosuku lombuthano.
Yahweh gave me the two stone tablets on which he had written [the commandments] with his own fingers. They were the words/commandments that he had spoken to your ancestors from the fire on that mountain, when they were gathered together [at the bottom of the mountain].
11 Ekupheleni kwensuku ezingamatshumi amane njalo lobusuku obungamatshumi amane, uThixo wangipha izibhebhedu zamatshe ezimbili, izibhebhedu zesivumelwano.
“At the end of those 40 days and nights, Yahweh gave me those two stone tablets on which he had written those commandments.
12 UThixo wangitshela wathi, ‘Suka lapha wehle ngokuphangisa, ngoba abantu bakho owabakhupha eGibhithe sebexhwalile. Sebephambukile masinyane kulokho engangibalaye ngakho njalo sebezibumbele isithombe.’
But then he said to me, ‘Go down the mountain immediately, because [the people whom you are leading], the people whom you led out of Egypt, have committed a terrible sin! They have very quickly done what I commanded them not to do. They have made for themselves a metal statue [of a calf to worship].’
13 UThixo wathi kimi, ‘Sengibabonile lababantu, njalo bangontamozilukhuni ngeqiniso!
Then Yahweh said to me, ‘I have been watching these people, and I see that they are very stubborn.
14 Ngiyekela ukuze ngibabhubhise njalo ngesule amabizo abo ngaphansi kwamazulu. Njalo ngizakwenza ube yisizwe esilamandla futhi esikhulu kulesabo.’
So do not try to stop me. I am going to destroy all of them, with the result that no one anywhere will remember (their names [MTY]/that they ever existed). Then I will enable you to become [the ancestor of] a nation that will be more numerous and more powerful than they are.’
15 Ngasengiphenduka ngehla entabeni yona ivutha ilangabi lomlilo. Kanti njalo izibhebhedu zombili zesivumelwano zazisezandleni zami.
So I turned and went down the mountain, carrying in my hands the two stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments were [written]. Fire was burning all over the mountain.
16 Ngathi ngiyakhangela ngabona ukuthi lonile phambi kukaThixo uNkulunkulu wenu; laselizibumbele isithombe esibunjwe ngesimo sethole. Laseliphambukile masinyane lasuka endleleni uThixo ayelilaye ngayo.
I looked, and I was shocked to see that your ancestors had committed a [great] sin against Yahweh. They very quickly had begun to do what Yahweh our God had commanded them not to do. They had [requested Aaron to] make for them [a metal image of] a calf [to worship].
17 Ngalokho ngathatha izibhebhedu zombili ezazisezandleni zami ngazisakazela phansi, zaphahlazeka zaba yizicucu phambi kwenu.
So while they were watching, I lifted up those two stone tablets and threw them [on the ground], and they broke into pieces.
18 Kanti-ke njalo ngazilahla ngawa phambi kukaThixo okwensuku ezingamatshumi amane njalo lobusuku obungamatshumi amane; angidlanga sinkwa njalo angizange nginathe amanzi, ngenxa yezono zonke elaselizidalile, lisenza okubi emehlweni kaThixo njalo lamthukuthelisa waze wazonda.
Then I (prostrated myself/lay) on the ground in Yahweh’s presence as I had done before, and I did not eat or drink anything for 40 days and nights. I did that because your ancestors had sinned against Yahweh and caused him to become very angry.
19 Ngesaba intukuthelo lolaka lukaThixo, ngoba wayezonde kangangokuba wayengalibhubhisa. Kodwa-ke futhi uThixo wangilalela.
I was afraid/worried that because Yahweh was very angry with them, he would get rid of all of them. [But again I prayed that he would not do that], and again he listened to me [and answered my prayer].
20 UThixo wamthukuthelela u-Aroni kangangokuba wayengamtshabalalisa, kodwa-ke ngalesosikhathi laye u-Aroni ngamkhulekela.
Yahweh was also very angry with Aaron [for making that golden calf] and was ready to kill Aaron. But at the same time I prayed for Aaron also, [and Yahweh answered my prayer].
21 Ngabuye ngathatha into yokona kwenu, ithole leli elalilibumbile, ngalitshisa emlilweni. Ngasengilichoboza njalo ngalichola laba yimpuphu ecoleke njengothuli ngaluhaza esifuleni esigeleza entabeni.
Your ancestors had sinned by [requesting Aaron to] make [a metal statue of] a calf. So I took that statue and [I melted it] in a fire and crushed it and ground it into very tiny pieces [HYP]. Then I threw those tiny pieces into the stream that flowed down the mountain.
22 Laphinda njalo lamthukuthelisa uThixo eThabhera, laseMasa kanye laseKhibhrothi Hathava.
Your ancestors also caused Yahweh to become very angry [by what they did] at [places which they named] Taberah, Massah, and Kibroth-Hattaavah.
23 Kanti uThixo wathi elisusa eKhadeshi Bhaneya, wathi, ‘Qhubekani njalo liyethatha ilizwe engilinike lona.’ Kodwa lahlamukela umlayo kaThixo uNkulunkulu wenu. Alizange limethembe loba ukumlalela.
And when we were at Kadesh-Barnea, Yahweh said to your ancestors, ‘Go up and capture the land that I am about to give to you!’ But they rebelled against him. They did not trust him, and they did not obey what he told [MTY] them to do.
24 Belivele limhlamukela uThixo kusukela ngiqalisa ukulazi.
Your ancestors rebelled against Yahweh from the first day that I knew them, [in Egypt].
25 Ngazilahla ngawa phambi kukaThixo okwensuku ezingamatshumi amane kanye lobusuku obungamatshumi amane ngoba uThixo wayethe uzalibhubhisa.
So, [as I said], I lay on the ground in Yahweh’s presence for 40 days and nights, because Yahweh had said that he would get rid of your ancestors.
26 Ngakhuleka njalo kuThixo ngathi, ‘Oh! Thixo Wobukhosi, ungabhubhisi abantu bakho, ilifa lakho owalihlenga ngamandla akho amakhulu wabakhipha eGibhithe ngesandla sakho esilamandla.
And I prayed to Yahweh, saying, ‘Lord God, these people belong to you; do not destroy them. They are people whom you rescued and brought out of Egypt by your very great power. [DOU, MTY]
27 Khumbula izinceku zakho u-Abhrahama, u-Isaka kanye loJakhobe. Xola ebuqholweni balababantu, ebubini lasezonweni zabo.
Do not forget [what you promised to] Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Please ignore these stubborn and wicked people and the sin that they have committed.
28 Nxa kungenjalo ilizwe owasisusa kilo lizakuthi, “Ngoba uThixo wehluleka ukubangenisa elizweni ayebathembise lona, njalo langenxa yokuthi wayebazonda, wabakhupha ukuze bayefela enkangala.”
If you do not do that, [and if you get rid of them], the people of Egypt will [hear about it and] say that you were not able to bring them into the land that you promised to give to them. They will say that you took them into the desert only to kill them there because you hated them.
29 Kodwa ngabantu bakho, abayilifa lakho owalikhupha ngamandla akho amakhulu langengalo yakho eyeluliweyo.’”
[Do not forget that] they are your people. [You chose them to] belong to you. You brought them out [from Egypt] by your very great power [DOU, MTY].’”
