UHoseya 2
1 “Tshono kubafowenu uthi, ‘Bantu bami,’ ngabodadewenu uthi, ‘Bathandekayo bami.’”
“Say to your brothers, ‘You are my people,’ and to your sister, ‘You have obtained mercy.’
2 “Mkhuze unyoko, mkhuze, ngoba engasuye mkami, lami kangisuye mkakhe. Kasuse ukukhangeleka kobufebe ebusweni bakhe kanye lokungathembeki phakathi kwamabele akhe.
Judge your mother, judge: for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband. Let her remove her fornications from before her face and her adulteries from between her breasts.
3 Funa ngimhlubule abe nqunu, ngimenze abeze njengamhla ezalwa; ngizamenza abe njengenkangala, ngimenze abe yilizwe elomileyo ngimbulale ngokomela amanzi.
Otherwise, I may expose her nakedness and set her as on the day of her birth, and I may establish her as a wilderness and set her as an impassable land, and I may execute her with thirst.
4 Kangiyikubonakalisa uthando lwami ebantwaneni bakhe, ngoba bangabantwana bobufebe.
And I will not have mercy on her sons, for they are the sons of fornications.
5 Unina ubeyisifebe, njalo ubemule ngehlazo. Wathi, ‘Ngizazilandela izithandwa zami, ezingipha ukudla kwami lamanzi ami, iwulu yami lamalembu ami, amafutha ami lokunathwayo kwami.’
For their mother has been fornicating; she who conceived them has been brought to ruin. For she said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.’
6 Ngakho-ke indlela yakhe ngizayivala ngamahlahla ameva; ngizamhonqolozela ngomduli ukuze indlela yakhe angayifumani.
Because of this, behold, I will fence in your way with thorns, and I will surround it with a wall, and she will not find her paths.
7 Uzaxotshana lezithandwa zakhe kodwa angazifici, uzazidinga kodwa angazitholi. Ngakho uzakuthi, ‘Ngizabuyela endodeni yami yakuqala, ngoba ngalesosikhathi ngangingcono kulakhathesi.’
And she will pursue her lovers, but she will not obtain them, and she will seek them, but she will not find them, and she will say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, because it was to some extent better for me then, than it is now.’
8 Kavumanga ukuthi yimi engamnika amabele, lewayini elitsha lamafutha ngamnika isiliva esinengi legolide abakusebenzisela uBhali.
And she did not know that I gave her grain and wine and oil, and that I increased her silver and gold, which they made into Baal.
9 Ngakho-ke ngizawathatha amabele ami lapho esevuthiwe, lewayini lami elitsha lapho selilungile. Ngizayithatha lewulu yami kanye lelineni lami, okwakumiselwe ukuvala ubunqunu bakhe.
For this reason, I will turn back, and I will take away my grain in its time and my wine in its time, and I will set free my wool and my flax, which had covered her disgrace.
10 Ngakho khathesi ngizahlazulula ukuxhwala bakhe emehlweni ezithandwa zakhe; kakho ozamsusa ezandleni zami.
And now, I will reveal her foolishness by the eyes of her lovers, and no man will rescue her from my hand.
11 Ngizayiqeda yonke imikhosi yakhe yokuthokoza: imikhosi yakhe yeminyaka yonke, ukuThwasa kweziNyanga, insuku zakhe zamaSabatha, yonke imikhosi yakhe emisiweyo.
And I will cause all her joy to cease: her solemnities, her new moons, her Sabbaths, and all her feast dates.
12 Ngizatshabalalisa izivini zakhe lezihlahla zakhe zemikhiwa, lokhu athi yinhlawulo yakhe evela kuzithandwa zakhe; ngizazenza zibe liguswanyana zidliwe yizinyamazana zeganga.
And I will corrupt her vines and her fig trees, about which she said, ‘These rewards, they are mine, my lovers have given them to me.’ And I will place her in a narrow forest, and the beasts of the field will devour her.
13 Ngizamjezisela insuku atshisela ngazo oBhali impepha; wazicecisa ngamasongo langamangqongqo, walandela izithandwa zakhe, kodwa mina wangikhohlwa,” kutsho uThixo.
And I will inflict on her the days of the Baals, for whom she burned incense, and ornamented herself with earrings and necklace, and went after her lovers, and forgot about me,” says the Lord.
14 “Ngakho sengizamhuga; ngizamholela enkangala ngikhulume laye kakuhle.
“Because of this, behold, I will attract her, and I will lead her into the wilderness, and I will speak to her heart.
15 Lapho-ke ngizambuyisela izivini zakhe, ngenze iSigodi sase-Akhori sibe ngumnyango wethemba. Khonapho uzahlabelela njengasezinsukwini zobutsha bakhe, njengamhla ephuma eGibhithe.
And I will give to her, from the same place, her vinedressers, and the valley of Achor as a passage of hope. And she will sing there as in the days of her youth, and as in the days of her ascension from the land of Egypt.
16 Ngalolosuku,” kutsho uThixo, “lizangibiza ngokuthi ‘ndoda yami’; kalisayikungibiza ngokuthi ‘nkosi yami.’
And it will be in that day,” says the Lord, “that she will call me, ‘My Husband,’ and she will no longer call me, ‘My Baal.’
17 Ngizawasusa amabizo aboBhali ezindebeni zakhe; amabizo abo akusayikukhulekwa ngawo futhi.
And I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and she will no longer remember their name.
18 Ngalolosuku ngizabenzela isivumelwano lezinyamazana zeganga lezinyoni zasemoyeni kanye lezidalwa ezihuquzela emhlabathini. Idandili lenkemba kanye lempi ngizakuqeda elizweni ukuze konke kulale phansi kuvikelekile.
And in that day, I will strike a deal with them, with the beasts of the field, and with the birds of the sky, and with the creatures of the earth. And I will crush the bow and the sword, and I will wipe away war from the earth. And I will let them sleep securely.
19 Ngizakwendisela kimi kuze kube nininini; ngizakwendisa ngokulunga langemfanelo, ngothando langesihawu.
And I will betroth you to me forever, and I will betroth you to me in justice and judgment, and in mercy and compassion.
20 Ngizakwendisa ngokuthembeka, njalo uzamamukela uThixo.
And I will wed you to me in faith, and you will know that I am the Lord.
21 Ngalolosuku ngizasabela,” kutsho uThixo, “Ngizasabela emikhathini, layo izasabela emhlabeni,
And this will happen in that day: I will listen closely,” says the Lord. “I will hear the heavens, and they will hear the earth.
22 lomhlaba uzasabela emabeleni lasewayinini elitsha kanye lasemafutheni, lokhu kuzasabela kuJezerili.
And the land will pay attention to the grain, and the wine, and the oil; and these will hear Jezreel.
23 Ngizazihlanyelela yena elizweni; ngizabonakalisa uthando lwami kulowo engambiza ngokuthi, ‘Akasi sithandwa sami.’ Ngizakuthi kulabo ababizwa ngokuthi, ‘Abangasibantu bami,’ ‘Lingabantu bami’; bona bazakuthi, ‘UnguNkulunkulu wethu.’”
And I will plant her for me in the land, and I will have mercy on her, though she had been called Without Mercy. And I will say to Not My People, ‘You are my people,’ and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”
