Amahubo 78
1 Ihubo ka-Asafu Zwanini imfundiso yami, bantu bami; lilalele amazwi omlomo wami.
AN INSTRUCTION OF ASAPH. Give ear, O my people, to my law, Incline your ear to sayings of my mouth.
2 Ngizavula umlomo wami ngemifanekiso, ngizakutsho izinto ezifihlekileyo, izinto zekadeni,
I open my mouth with an allegory, I bring forth hidden things of old,
3 esakuzwayo lesikwaziyo esakutshelwa ngokhokho bethu.
That we have heard and know, And our fathers have recounted to us.
4 Kasizukuzifihlela abantwana babo; sizasitshela isizukulwane esizayo ngemisebenzi emangalisayo kaThixo, amandla akhe, lemimangaliso aseyenzile.
We do not hide from their sons, Recounting praises of YHWH to a later generation, And His strength, and His wonders that He has done.
5 Wamisela uJakhobe imithetho wabeka umlayo ko-Israyeli, walaya okhokho bethu ukuthi bawufundise abantwababo,
And He raises up a testimony in Jacob, And has placed a law in Israel, That He commanded our fathers, To make them known to their sons.
6 ukuze aziwe yisizukulwane esilandelayo, kanye labantwana abazazalwa, kuthi labo batshele abantwababo.
So that a later generation knows, Sons who are born, rise and recount to their sons,
7 Yikho-ke bazabeka ithemba labo kuNkulunkulu njalo abasoze bakhohlwa izenzo zakhe kodwa bagcine imilayo yakhe.
And place their confidence in God, And do not forget the doings of God, But keep His commands.
8 Kabayikuba njengabokhokho babo ababeyisizukulwana esilobuqholo lesihlamukayo, onhliziyo zabo zazingazinikelanga kuNkulunkulu omoya yabo yayingathembekanga kuye.
And they are not like their fathers, A generation apostatizing and being rebellious, A generation—it has not prepared its heart, Nor [is] its spirit steadfast with God.
9 Amadoda ako-Efrayimi, loba ayehlomile ngemitshoko, afulathela mhla welanga lempi;
Sons of Ephraim—armed bearers of bow, Have turned in a day of conflict.
10 kabasigcinanga isivumelwano sikaNkulunkulu, bala ukuphila ngomthetho wakhe.
They have not kept the covenant of God, And they have refused to walk in His law,
11 Bakhohlwa lokho ayekwenzile, izimanga ayebatshengise zona.
And they forget His doings, And His wonders that He showed them.
12 Wenza imimangaliso oyise bekhangele elizweni laseGibhithe, esigodini saseZowani.
He has done wonders before their fathers, In the land of Egypt—the field of Zoan.
13 Walwahlukanisa ulwandle wabahola bachapha; wenza amanzi ema aqina saka njengomduli.
He cleft a sea, and causes them to pass over, Indeed, He causes waters to stand as a heap.
14 Wabahola ngeyezi emini njalo ngokukhanya komlilo ubusuku bonke.
And leads them with a cloud by day, And with a light of fire all the night.
15 Wawaqhekeza amadwala enkangala wabapha amanzi amanengi njengolwandle;
He cleaves rocks in a wilderness, And gives drink—as the great deep.
16 wantshazisa impophoma emadwaleni amawa wenza amanzi ageleza njengemifula.
And brings out streams from a rock, And causes waters to come down as rivers.
17 Kodwa baqhubeka besona phambi kwakhe, bamhlamukela enkangala yena oPhezukonke.
And they still add to sin against Him, To provoke the Most High in the dry place.
18 Bamlinga uNkulunkulu ngabomo ngokucela ukudla ababekutshisekela.
And they try God in their heart, To ask food for their lust.
19 Bamchothoza uNkulunkulu besithi, “Kambe uNkulunkulu angendlala itafula lokudlela enkangala na?
And they speak against God—they said: “Is God able to array a table in a wilderness?”
20 Wathi lapho etshaya idwala, amanzi antshantshaza, kwageleza amanzi amanengi. Kodwa angasipha njalo lokudla na? Angabalethela inyama abantu bakhe na?”
Behold, He has struck a rock, And waters flow, indeed, streams overflow. “Also, [is] He able to give bread? Does He prepare flesh for His people?”
21 UThixo wathi ebezwa wathukuthela kakhulu; umlilo wakhe wavuthela kuJakhobe, ulaka lwakhe lwaqina ku-Israyeli,
Therefore YHWH has heard, And He shows Himself angry, And fire has been kindled against Jacob, And anger has also gone up against Israel,
22 ngoba kabamkholwanga uNkulunkulu njalo kabawathembanga amandla okuhlenga kwakhe.
For they have not believed in God, Nor have they trusted in His salvation.
23 Loba kunjalo walaya umkhathi ngaphezulu wavula iminyango yamazulu;
And He commands clouds from above, Indeed, He has opened doors of the heavens.
24 wanisa imana ukuthi badle abantu, wabapha amabele asezulwini.
And He rains manna on them to eat, Indeed, He has given grain of the heavens to them.
25 Abantu badla isinkwa sezingilosi; wabathumela konke ukudla ababengakudla.
Each has eaten food of the mighty, He sent provision to them to satiety.
26 Wawukhulula umoya wempumalanga uvela emazulwini, wawukhulula umoya weningizimu ngamandla akhe.
He causes an east wind to journey in the heavens, And leads a south wind by His strength,
27 Wanisela inyama kubo njengothuli, izinyoni eziphaphayo zaba njengetshebetshebe ogwini lolwandle.
And He rains on them flesh as dust, And as sand of the seas—winged bird,
28 Wazenza zehlela phakathi kwezihonqo zabo, indawana yonke emathenteni abo.
And causes [it] to fall in the midst of His camp, Around His dwelling places.
29 Bazitika baze bakhangela, ngoba wayebaphe ababekade bekukhalela.
And they eat, and are greatly satisfied, And He brings their desire to them.
30 Kodwa bengakakutshiyi lokho kudla ababekukhalela belokhu besakunambitha emilonyeni yabo,
They have not been estranged from their desire, Their food [is] yet in their mouth,
31 ulaka lukaNkulunkulu lwavutha kubo; wabulala zona iziqwabalanda zabo, wawahemula amajaha ako-Israyeli.
And the anger of God has gone up against them, And He slays among their fat ones, And He caused youths of Israel to bend.
32 Phezu kwakho konke lokhu baqhubeka besona; phezu kwezimanga zakhe, kabazange bakholwe.
With all this they have sinned again, And have not believed in His wonders.
33 Ngakho wenza insuku zabo zaphelela ezeni njalo leminyaka yabo yagcwala ukwesaba.
And He consumes their days in vanity, And their years in trouble.
34 Kwakusithi uNkulunkulu angababulala, bamdinge; baphendukele kuye njalo ngokutshiseka.
If He slew them, then they sought Him, And turned back, and earnestly sought God,
35 Bakhumbula ukuthi uNkulunkulu wayelidwala labo, ukuthi uNkulunkulu oPhezukonke wayenguMhlengi wabo.
And they remember that God [is] their rock, And God Most High their redeemer.
36 Kodwa-ke kwakuyikumyenga ngemilomo yabo, beqamba amanga kuye ngendimi zabo;
And they deceive Him with their mouth, And lie to Him with their tongue,
37 inhliziyo zabo zazingabambelelanga kuye, babengathembekanga esivumelwaneni sakhe.
And their heart has not been right with Him, And they have not been steadfast in His covenant.
38 Kodwa wayelesihawu; wazithethelela izono zabo kaze ababhubhisa. Isikhathi ngesikhathi waluthoba ulaka lwakhe akaze akuqubula konke ukuthukuthela kwakhe.
And He, the Merciful One, pardons iniquity, and does not destroy, And has often turned back His anger, And does not awaken all His fury.
39 Wakhumbula ukuthi babeyinyama nje intshongolo eyedlulayo nje ingabe isabuya.
And He remembers that they [are] flesh, A wind going on—and it does not return.
40 Kodwa ukuthi bamhlamukela kanengi njani enkangala, bamdabukisa egwaduleni!
How often do they provoke Him in the wilderness, Grieve Him in the desolate place?
41 Baphindaphinda ukulinga uNkulunkulu; bamthukuthelisa oNgcwele ka-Israyeli.
Indeed, they turn back, and try God, And have limited the Holy One of Israel.
42 Kabawakhumbulanga amandla akhe usuku abakhulula ngalo kumncindezeli,
They have not remembered His hand The day He ransomed them from the adversary.
43 usuku lapho aveza khona izibonakaliso zakhe ezimangalisayo eGibhithe, izimanga zakhe esigodini saseZowani.
When He set His signs in Egypt, And His wonders in the field of Zoan,
44 Waguqula imifula yabo yaba ligazi; behluleka ukunatha ezifuleni zabo.
And He turns their streams to blood, And they do not drink their floods.
45 Wathumela imihlambi yezibawu zabantinya, lamaxoxo ababhuqayo.
He sends among them the beetle, and it consumes them, And the frog, and it destroys them,
46 Amabele abo wawathela izintethe, izithelo zabo isikhongwane.
And gives their increase to the caterpillar, And their labor to the locust.
47 Wathintitha amavini abo ngesiqhotho lemikhiwa yabo yesikhamore wayitshazisa ngongqwaqwane.
He destroys their vine with hail, And their sycamores with frost,
48 Inkomo zabo wazithela ngesiqhotho, izifuyo zabo zadliwa yizikhatha zombane.
And delivers their beasts up to the hail, And their livestock to the burning flames.
49 Wabathululela ulaka lwakhe oluvuthayo, intukuthelo yakhe, ukucunuka lenzondo ixuku lezingilosi ezibhubhisayo.
He sends on them the fury of His anger, Wrath, and indignation, and distress—A discharge of evil messengers.
50 Wayilungisa indlela yolaka lwakhe; kabaphephisanga ekufeni kodwa wabanikela emikhuhlaneni.
He ponders a path for His anger, He did not keep back their soul from death, Indeed, He delivered up their life to the pestilence.
51 Wawabulala wonke amazibulo aseGibhithe, izithelo zabo zokuqala zokuba ngamadoda emathenteni kaHamu.
And He strikes every firstborn in Egypt, The first-fruit of the strong in tents of Ham.
52 Kodwa wabakhupha abantu bakhe njengomhlambi wezimvu; wabahola njengezimvu bedabula inkangala.
And causes His people to journey as a flock, And guides them as a drove in a wilderness,
53 Wabakhokhela ngonanzelelo, ngakho babengesabi; kodwa ulwandle lwazigubuzela izitha zabo.
And He leads them confidently, And they have not been afraid, And the sea has covered their enemies.
54 Kanjalo wabaletha emngceleni welizwe lakhe elingcwele, elizweni lamaqaqa ayelithethe ngesandla sakhe sokunene.
And He brings them to the border of His sanctuary, This mountain His right hand had acquired,
55 Wazixotsha izizwe phambi kwabo wabahlukanisela ilizwe lazo laba yilifa; wahlalisa izizwana zako-Israyeli emizini yazo.
And casts out nations from before them, And causes them to fall in the line of inheritance, And causes the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents,
56 Kodwa bamlinga uNkulunkulu, bamhlamukela oPhezukonke; kabayigcinanga imilayo yakhe.
And they tempt and provoke God Most High, And have not kept His testimonies.
57 Njengabokhokho babo babengathembekanga bengakholwa, ungeke wathemba njengedandili elenziwe kubi.
And they turn back, And deal treacherously like their fathers, They have been turned like a deceitful bow,
58 Bamvusa ulaka ngezindawo zabo eziphezulu; baqubula ubukhwele bakhe ngezithombe zabo.
And make Him angry with their high places, And make Him zealous with their carved images,
59 Wathi uNkulunkulu ngokukuzwa lokho, wathukuthela kakhulu; wamlahla qobo lokumlahla u-Israyeli.
God has heard, and shows Himself angry. And kicks exceedingly against Israel.
60 Walidela ithabanikeli lakhe eShilo, ithente ayelakhile phakathi kwabantu.
And He leaves the Dwelling Place of Shiloh, The tent He had placed among men,
61 Umphongolo wakhe wamandla wawusa ekuthunjweni, inkazimulo yakhe ezandleni zesitha.
And He gives His strength to captivity, And His beauty into the hand of an adversary,
62 Abantu bakhe wabanikela ukudliwa yinkemba; wayethukuthele kakhulu ngelifa lakhe.
And delivers His people up to the sword, And showed Himself angry with His inheritance.
63 Umlilo waziqeda izinsizwa zabo, izintombi zabo zaswela izingoma zomtshado;
Fire has consumed His young men, And His virgins have not been praised.
64 abaphristi babo babulawa ngenkemba, abafelokazi babo behluleka ukulila.
His priests have fallen by the sword, And their widows do not weep.
65 INkosi yasivuka njengokade esebuthongweni, njengomuntu ephaphama ekudakweni yiwayini.
And the Lord wakes as a sleeper, As a mighty one crying aloud from wine.
66 Wazitshaya zahlehla izitha zakhe; waziyangisa okungapheliyo.
And He strikes His adversaries backward, He has put a continuous reproach on them,
67 Khonapho-ke wawakhalala amathente kaJosefa, akaze asikhetha isizwana sika-Efrayimi;
And He kicks against the tent of Joseph, And has not fixed on the tribe of Ephraim.
68 kodwa wakhetha isizwana sikaJuda, iNtaba iZiyoni ayeyithanda.
And He chooses the tribe of Judah, With Mount Zion that He loved,
69 Wakha indlu yakhe engcwele njengeziqongo, njengomhlaba awumisela ingunaphakade.
And builds His sanctuary as a high place, Like the earth, He founded it for all time.
70 Wakhetha uDavida inceku yakhe wamthatha ezilugwini zezimvu;
And He fixes on His servant David, And takes him from the folds of a flock,
71 wamsusa ekweluseni izimvu wamletha ukuba ngumelusi wabantu bakhe uJakhobe, baka-Israyeli ilifa lakhe.
He has brought him in from behind suckling ones, To rule over Jacob His people, And over Israel His inheritance.
72 Njalo uDavida wabelusa ngobuqotho benhliziyo; wabakhokhela ngesandla sobungcitshi.
And he rules them according to the integrity of his heart, And leads them by the skillfulness of his hands!
