UHezekheli 19
1 “Qhinqani isililo ngamakhosana ako-Israyeli
“And as for you, take up a lament over the leaders of Israel,
2 lithi: ‘Yeka isilwanekazi esasingunyoko phakathi kwezilwane! Salala phansi phakathi kwezilwane ezisakhulayo sondla imidlwane yaso.
and you shall say: Why did your mother, the lioness, recline among the male lions, and raise her little ones in the midst of young lions?
3 Sakhulisa omunye wemidlwane yaso waba yisilwane esilamandla wafunda ukudabula okubanjelwe ukudliwa, wadla labantu.
And she led away one of her little ones, and he became a lion. And he learned to seize prey and to consume men.
4 Izizwe zezwa ngawo wasuthiywa egodini lazo. Zawuhola ngezingwegwe zawusa elizweni laseGibhithe.
And the Gentiles heard about him, and they seized him, but not without receiving wounds. And they led him away in chains to the land of Egypt.
5 Kwathi sibona ithemba laso lingagcwalisekanga, ithemba laso lingasekho, sathatha omunye wemidlwane yaso sawenza waba yisilwane esilamandla.
Then, when she had seen that she was weakened, and that her hope had perished, she took one of her little ones, and appointed him as a lion.
6 Wanyonyoba phakathi kwezilwane ngoba wawuyisilwane esilamandla. Wafunda ukudabula okubanjelwe ukudliwa, wadla labantu.
And he advanced among the lions, and he became a lion. And he learned to seize prey and to devour men.
7 Wadiliza izinqaba zabo wachitha lamadolobho abo. Ilizwe kanye labo bonke ababekulo bathuthumeliswa yikubhonga kwawo.
He learned to make widows, and to lead their citizens into the desert. And the land, with its plenitude, was made desolate by the voice of his roaring.
8 Izizwe zawuvukela, zivela ezindaweni eziwuzingelezileyo. Zendlala amambule azo phezu kwawo wawela egodini labo.
And the Gentiles came together against him, on every side, from the provinces, and they spread their net over him; by their wounds, he was captured.
9 Bawudonsela ekhejini ngezingwegwe bawusa enkosini yaseBhabhiloni. Bawufaka entolongweni, ngakho ukubhonga kwawo akuzwakalanga futhi ezintabeni zako-Israyeli.
And they put him into a cage; they led him in chains to the king of Babylon. And they cast him into a prison, so that his voice would no longer be heard upon the mountains of Israel.
10 Unyoko wayenjengevini elihlanyelwe ngasemanzini esivinini sakho; sasithela izithelo njalo silezingatsha ezinengi ngenxa yamanzi amanengi.
Your mother is like a vine, in your blood, planted by the water; her fruit and her branches have increased because of many waters.
11 Ingatsha zaso zaziqinile zifanele intonga yombusi. Sasiphakeme siphezulu le ngaphezu kwamahlamvu aminyeneyo, sibonakala ngobude baso langezingatsha zaso ezinengi.
And her strong branches were made into scepters for the rulers, and her stature was exalted among the branches. And she saw her own loftiness among the multitude of her branches.
12 Kodwa sasitshunwa ngokuthukuthela saphoselwa phansi. Umoya wasempumalanga wasomisa, izithelo zaso zaqhululwa; ingatsha zaso eziqinileyo zabuna umlilo wazitshisa.
But she was uprooted in wrath, and cast upon the ground. And the burning wind dried up her fruit. Her robust branches withered and were dried up. A fire consumed her.
13 Khathesi sesihlanyelwe enkangala, elizweni elitshisayo lelomileyo.
And now she has been transplanted into the desert, into a land impassable and dry.
14 Umlilo umemetheke usuka kolunye lwezingatsha ezinkulu, watshisa izithelo zaso. Akulagatsha oluqinileyo oluseleyo kuso olufanele intonga yombusi.’ Lesi yisililo njalo sizasetshenziswa njengesililo.”
And a fire has gone forth from a rod of her branches, which has consumed her fruit. And there is no strong branch in her to become a scepter for the rulers. This is a lamentation, and it shall be a lamentation.”
