UGenesisi 26
1 Kwasekusiba lendlala elizweni, ngaphandle kwendlala yakuqala eyayikhona ngesikhathi sika-Abhrahama, u-Isaka waya ku-Abhimelekhi inkosi yamaFilistiya eGerari.
Some time later there was a severe (famine/scarcity of food) there. That was different from the famine that occurred when Abraham was alive. So Isaac went [southeast] to Gerar [town, to talk] to Abimelech, the king of the Philistine people-group. [What happened was this: Isaac considered going to Egypt],
2 UThixo wabonakala ku-Isaka wathi, “Ungehleli eGibhithe; hlala elizweni engithi hlala khona.
but Yahweh appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt! Live in the land where I will tell you to go!
3 Ake uhlale kulelilizwe okwesikhatshana, mina ngizakuba lawe ngikubusise. Ngoba wena lezizukulwane zakho ngizalinika wonke amazwe la njalo ngiqinise isifungo engasifunga kuyihlo u-Abhrahama.
Stay in this land for a while, and I will help you and bless you, because it is to you and your descendants that I will give all these lands, and I will do what I solemnly promised to your father.
4 Ngizakwenza izizukulwane zakho zibe zinengi njengezinkanyezi emkhathini, ngizinike wonke lamazwe, njalo kuthi ngenzalo yakho zonke izizwe emhlabeni zizabusiswa,
I will cause your descendants to be as numerous as the stars in the sky. I will give to your descendants all these lands, and I will cause your descendants to be a blessing to the people of [MTY] all nations on the earth.
5 ngoba u-Abhrahama wangilalela, wagcina izimiso zami, lemilayo yami, kanye lemithetho yami.”
I will do that because your father Abraham obeyed me. He obeyed everything that I told him to do, everything that I declared and all the laws that I gave him.” So Isaac [went and asked King Abimelech if he would permit him to live in the Gerar area. The king said, “Okay,”]
6 Ngakho u-Isaka wahlala eGerari.
[so Isaac] stayed there [along with his wife and sons].
7 Kwathi lapho abantu baleyondawo bembuza ngomkakhe wathi, “Ngudadewethu,” ngoba wayesesaba ukuthi, “Ngumkami.” Wacabanga wathi, “Amadoda alapha angangibulala ngenxa kaRabheka, ngoba muhle kakhulu.”
When the men in Gerar [town] asked who Rebekah was, Isaac said, “She is my sister.” He said that because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife.” He thought, “Rebekah is very beautiful, so they will want her. [If I say that she is my sister, they know they will have to negotiate about a bride price because I am her older brother; but if I say that she is my wife, no negotiation will be possible]. They will just kill me to get her.”
8 Kwathi u-Isaka esehlale khona okwesikhathi eside, u-Abhimelekhi inkosi yamaFilistiya wakhangela ngefasitela wabona u-Isaka egone umkakhe uRabheka.
When Isaac had been there a long time, one day Abimelech, the king of the Philistine people-group, looked down from a window [in his palace] and was surprised to see Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah.
9 Ngakho wasebiza u-Isaka wathi, “Kanti ngumkakho ngeqiniso! Kungani uthe ungudadewenu?” U-Isaka wamphendula wathi, “Ngoba ngakhumbula ukuthi ngingalahlekelwa yimpilo yami ngenxa yakhe.”
So Abimelech summoned Isaac and said to him, “Now I realize that she is really your wife! So why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac replied to him, “I said that because I thought that someone here might kill me to get her.”
10 U-Abhimelekhi wasesithi, “Kuyini lokhu okwenzileyo kithi? Omunye wamadoda ubezaqabuka elala laye umkakho, ubususibangela icala.”
Abimelech said, “(You should not have done this to us!/Why did you do this?) [RHQ] One of our people might have (had sex with/slept with) [EUP] your wife, and you would have caused us to be guilty of a great sin!”
11 Ngakho u-Abhimelekhi wasekhupha umlayo ebantwini bonke wathi, “Lowo ozake ayithinte indoda le loba umkayo ngempela uzabulawa.”
Then Abimelech commanded all his people, saying, “Do not harm/molest this man or his wife! Anyone who does that will surely be executed!”
12 U-Isaka walima amabele kulelolizwe, ngalowomnyaka wavuna okuphindwe ngekhulu, ngoba uThixo wambusisa.
Isaac planted grain in that land that year, and he harvested a very large crop, because Yahweh blessed him.
13 Umuntu lo wanotha kakhulu, lemfuyo yakhe yanda kakhulukazi.
Isaac continued to acquire more and more possessions, until finally he became very wealthy.
14 Waba lemihlambi yezimvu lenkomo emikhulu kakhulu, kanye lezisebenzi ezinengi, amaFilistiya aze aba lomona ngaye.
He had large herds of sheep and goats and cattle, and many slaves. Because of that, the Philistine people envied him.
15 Kwasekusithi yonke imithombo eyayigejwe yizisebenzi ngesikhathi sikayise u-Abhrahama, amaFilistiya ayivala ngokuyigqibela ngenhlabathi.
So all the wells that the servants of his father Abraham had dug during the time when he was alive, the people filled up with dirt.
16 U-Abhimelekhi wasesithi ku-Isaka, “Suka kithi; ususuke waba lamandla kakhulu kulathi.”
Then Abimelech said to Isaac, “You people have become more numerous than we are, so I want you to get out of our area.”
17 Ngakho u-Isaka wasuka lapho wayakuma eSigodini saseGerari, wahle wakha khona.
So Isaac [and his family] moved from there. They set up their tents in Gerar Valley [and started to live there].
18 U-Isaka wayiphanda imithombo eyayigejwe ngesikhathi sikayise u-Abhrahama, eyayigqitshelwe ngamaFilistiya ngemva kokuba u-Abhrahama esefile, wayibiza ngalawo mabizo uyise ayeyibiza ngawo.
There were several wells in that area that had been dug when Isaac’s father Abraham was living, but Philistine people had filled them up [with dirt] after Abraham died. Now Isaac and his servants removed the dirt, and Isaac gave the wells the same names that his father had given to them.
19 Izisebenzi zika-Isaka zagebha esigodini zafumana umthombo olamanzi amahle khonapho.
Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water.
20 Kodwa abelusi baseGerari baxabana labelusi baka-Isaka bathi, “Amanzi la ngawethu!” Ngakho umthombo lowo wawuthi yi-Eseki, ngoba bawubanga laye.
But other men who lived in Gerar [Valley] who took care of their animals argued/quarreled with the men who took care of Isaac’s animals, and said, “The water in this well is ours!” So Isaac named the well Esek, which means ‘dispute’, because they disputed about who owned it.
21 Ngakho basebesimba omunye umthombo, kodwa lawo bawubanga njalo; wasewubiza ngokuthi yiSithina.
Then Isaac’s servants dug another well, but they quarreled about who owned that one also. So Isaac named it Sitnah, [which means ‘opposition]’.
22 Wasuka lapho wayagebha omunye umthombo, akwabe kusaba khona owubangayo. Wawuthi yiRehobhothi, esithi, “Manje uThixo usesiphile indawo, sesizaphumelela kuleli ilizwe.”
They moved on from there and dug another well, but this time no one quarreled about who owned it. So Isaac named it Rehoboth, [which means ‘uninhabited place’], saying, “Yahweh has given us an uninhabited place to live in, a place that is not wanted by other people, and we will become very prosperous here.”
23 Esuka lapho waya eBherishebha.
From there Isaac went up to Beersheba.
24 Ngalobobusuku uThixo wabonakala kuye wathi, “NginguNkulunkulu kayihlo u-Abhrahama. Ungesabi, ngoba ngilawe; ngizakubusisa ngandise ubunengi bezizukulwane zakho ngenxa yenceku yami u-Abhrahama.”
The first night that he was there, Yahweh appeared to him and said, “I am God, whom your father Abraham worshiped. Do not be afraid of anything. I will help you and bless you, and because of what I promised my servant Abraham, I will greatly increase the number of your descendants.”
25 U-Isaka wakha i-Alithari khonapho wamemeza ibizo likaThixo. Wamisa ithente lakhe khonapho, izisebenzi zakhe zemba umthombo khonapho.
So Isaac built a stone altar there [and offered a sacrifice] to worship Yahweh. He [and his servants] set up their tents there, and his servants started to dig a well.
26 Ngalesosikhathi u-Abhimelekhi weza kuye evela eGerari, elo-Ahuzathi umeluleki wakhe loFikholi umlawuli wamabutho akhe.
[While they were digging the well], King Abimelech came to Isaac from Gerar, along with Ahuzzath, his advisor, and Phicol, the commander of his army.
27 U-Isaka wababuza wathi, “Lilandeni kimi, njengoba lalingizonda laze langixotsha?”
Isaac asked them, “You (acted in a hostile way toward me/treated me like an enemy) before, and sent me away. So why have you come to me now?”
28 Bamphendula bathi, “Sabona kamhlophe ukuthi uThixo wayelawe; yikho sasesicabanga ukuthi kumele kube lesivumelwano esibotshiweyo phakathi kwethu lawe. Kasenze isibopho lawe
One of them answered, “We have seen that Yahweh helps you. So we said to each other, ‘We should have an agreement between us and you. We should make a peace treaty with you,
29 esokuthi kawusoze usihlukuluze, njengoba lathi singazange sikulimaze ngalutho kodwa sakuvalelisa ngokuthula. Khathesi usubusisiwe nguThixo.”
stating that you will not harm us, in the same way that we did not molest [EUP] you.’ We always treated you well and sent you away peacefully. And now Yahweh is blessing you.”
30 U-Isaka wasebenzela idili, badla banatha.
So Isaac made a feast for them, and they all ate and drank.
31 Ekuseni kakhulu ngelanga elilandelayo amadoda wonke enza isifungo omunye komunye. U-Isaka wasebavulela indlela bahamba ngokuthula.
Early the next morning they all (swore/solemnly promised) each other that they would do what they had promised. Then Isaac sent them home peacefully.
32 Ngalolosuku izisebenzi zika-Isaka zabuya zamtshela ngomthombo ezaziwugebhile. Zathi, “Sesiwatholile amanzi!”
That day Isaac’s servants came to him and told him about the well that they had finished digging. They said, “We found water in the well!”
33 Wawuthi yiShibha, osekuze kube namuhla idolobho kuthiwa yiBherishebha.
Isaac named the well Shibah, [which sounds like the Hebrew word that means ‘oath’]. To the present time the town there has the name Beersheba [which means ‘Friendship Agreement Well’].
34 Kwathi u-Esawu eseleminyaka yobudala engamatshumi amane, wathatha uJudithi indodakazi kaBheri umHithi njalo loBhasemathi indodakazi ka-Eloni umHithi.
When Esau was 40 years old, he married Judith, the daughter of Beeri, and Basemath, the daughter of Elon. Both of those women were descendants of Heth, [not from Isaac’s clan].
35 Baletha ukukhathazeka kakhulu ku-Isaka loRabheka.
Esau’s two wives made life miserable for Isaac and Rebekah.
