2 Imilando 31
1 Kwathi konke lokho sekuphelile, wonke amaIsrayeli atholakalayo aphuma aya emizini yakoJuda, adiliza izinsika eziyizithombe, agamulela phansi izixuku, aphosela phansi indawo eziphakemeyo lamalathi, akukhupha kuye wonke uJuda loBhenjamini lakoEfrayimi loManase, aze aqeda. Bonke abantwana bakoIsrayeli basebebuyela, ngulowo lalowo emfuyweni yakhe, emizini yabo.
After the festival ended, the Israelis who were there went to all the towns in Judah and smashed the stones/pillars [for worshiping idols], and cut down the poles [for worshiping the goddess] Asherah. They destroyed the shrines on the hilltops and the altars [of Baal] throughout the areas where the tribes of Judah and Benjamin lived, and also in the areas of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. After destroying all of them, they returned to their own towns.
2 UHezekhiya wasemisa izigaba zabapristi lamaLevi ngokwezigaba zabo, ngulowo lalowo ngokomsebenzi wakhe, abapristi lamaLevi emnikelweni wokutshiswa leminikelweni yokuthula, ukukhonza lokubonga lokudumisa emasangweni ezinkamba zeNkosi.
Hezekiah divided the priests and [other] descendants of Levi into groups. He appointed some of the groups to offer sacrifices that would be completely burned [on the altar] and offerings to maintain fellowship [with Yahweh]. He appointed some groups to do other work at the temple: some to lead the people in their worship, some to thank Yahweh, and some to sing songs to praise to Yahweh at the gates of the temple.
3 Lesabelo senkosi esivela emfuyweni yayo seminikelo yokutshiswa, seminikelo yokutshiswa yekuseni leyantambama, leminikelo yokutshiswa yamasabatha, leyekuthwaseni kwezinyanga, leyemikhosi emisiweyo, njengokubhaliweyo emlayweni kaJehova.
The king contributed some of his own funds to buy animals that would be sacrificed in the morning and in the evening of each day, and on the Sabbath days, to celebrate the new moons, and during the other feasts, according to what was written in the laws [that Yahweh gave to Moses].
4 Wasesithi ebantwini, kubahlali beJerusalema, banike isabelo sabapristi lamaLevi, ukuze baqiniswe emlayweni weNkosi.
Hezekiah told the people living in Jerusalem to give to the priests and the other descendants of Levi the portions [of meat] that should be given to them, in order that they could devote all their time to obeying the laws of Yahweh.
5 Lekusatshalalisweni kwelizwi abantwana bakoIsrayeli bengeza izithelo zokuqala zamabele, iwayini elitsha, lamafutha, loluju, lakuzo zonke izithelo zensimu; lokwetshumi kwakho konke bakuletha ngobunengi.
As soon as he told that to the people, they generously gave the first part of their harvest of grain, and the first part of the new wine [that they produced], and [olive] oil and honey, and of the crops that grew in their fields. They brought [to the temple] a tenth of all their crops.
6 Abantwana bakoIsrayeli loJuda ababehlala emizini yakoJuda labo basebeletha okwetshumi kwenkomo lokwezimvu lokwetshumi kwezinto ezingcwele ezazehlukaniselwe iNkosi uNkulunkulu wabo, babeka izinqumbinqumbi.
The men of Israel and Judah who were living in various towns in Judah also brought a tenth of their cattle and sheep and goats, and a tenth of other things that they had dedicated to Yahweh their God, and they piled all those things in heaps.
7 Ngenyanga yesithathu baqalisa ukubeka isisekelo sezinqumbi, langenyanga yesikhombisa baqeda.
They started to do that in May and finished doing it in September.
8 UHezekhiya leziphathamandla sebefika bebona izinqumbi, bayibusisa iNkosi labantu bayo uIsrayeli.
When Hezekiah and his officials saw the heaps, they praised Yahweh and [requested God to] bless the people.
9 UHezekhiya wasebuza abapristi lamaLevi ngalezinqumbi.
But Hezekiah asked the priests and other descendants of Levi, “Why are these heaps of things here?”
10 UAzariya umpristi oyinhloko yendlu kaZadoki wakhuluma laye wathi: Kusukela ekuqaleni kokulethwa kweminikelo endlini yeNkosi, kwakulokokudla lokokusutha lokokutshiya okunenginengi; ngoba iNkosi ibabusisile abantu bayo kuze kusale lokhu okunengi.
Then Azariah the [Supreme] Priest, a descendant of Zadok, replied, “Since the time that the people started to bring their offerings to the temple, we have had even more food than we need. This has happened because Yahweh has greatly blessed our fellow Israelis, with the result that all this is left over [after we priests and other descendants of Levi took all that we need]!”
11 UHezekhiya wasesithi kulungiswe amakamelo endlini yeNkosi; basebewalungisa.
Then Hezekiah ordered that they should prepare storerooms in the temple. So they did that.
12 Basebengenisa iminikelo lezingxenye zetshumi lezinto ezingcwelisiweyo ngobuqotho. Laphezu kwalokhu uKonaniya umLevi wayeyinduna, loShimeyi umfowabo engowesibili.
Then they brought into the storerooms all the tithes and offerings and the things dedicated to Yahweh [which the people had brought]. One of the descendants of Levi whose name was Conaniah was in charge of those things, and his [younger] brother Shimei was his assistant.
13 LoJehiyeli loAzaziya loNahathi loAsaheli loJerimothi loJozabadi loEliyeli loIsimakhiya loMahathi loBhenaya babengababonisi ngaphansi kwesandla sikaKonaniya loShimeyi umfowabo, ngomlayo kaHezekhiya inkosi loAzariya umbusi wendlu kaNkulunkulu.
Those two men supervised Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismakiah, Mahath and Benaiah while they did the work. They were appointed by King Hezekiah; Azariah was in charge of [everything that was done in] the temple.
14 Njalo uKore indodana kaImna umLevi, umgcini wesango ngasempumalanga, wayephezu kweminikelo yesihle kaNkulunkulu ukupha iminikelo yeNkosi lezinto ezingcwelengcwele.
Kore the son of Imnah, another descendant of Levi, who guarded the east gate of the temple, was in charge of the offerings to God that were made voluntarily. He distributed to the priests and [other] descendants of Levi the offerings and other things that were dedicated to Yahweh.
15 Langasesandleni sakhe kwakuloEdeni, loMiniyamini, loJeshuwa, loShemaya, uAmariya, loShekaniya emizini yabapristi ukupha abafowabo ngokuthembeka ezigabeni zabo, njengakwabakhulu kwaba njalo kwabancane.
Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah and Shecaniah faithfully assisted him in the towns where the priests lived. They distributed those things to the groups of their fellow priests; they distributed them to everyone, from the youngest to the oldest.
16 Ngaphandle kwababalwe ngezizukulwana zabesilisa, kusukela koleminyaka emithathu kusiya phezulu, wonke ongena endlini yeNkosi, ngomsebenzi wosuku ngosuku lwawo, enkonzweni yabo, kumfanelo zabo, ngezigaba zabo.
They also distributed things to the males who were at least 30 years old, those whose names were written on the scrolls where lists of family names were written. They were males who [were allowed to] enter the temple to perform their tasks/work each day, the tasks that each group had been assigned to do.
17 Lalabo ababalwa ngezizukulwana zabapristi ngendlu yaboyise, lamaLevi, kusukela koleminyaka engamatshumi amabili kusiya phezulu, kumfanelo zabo, ngezigaba zabo.
The names of the priests were on the scrolls where their clans’ names were written. They also distributed things to groups of [other] descendants of Levi, those who were at least 20 years old.
18 Lekubalweni ngezizukulwana, labo bonke abancinyane babo, omkabo, lamadodana abo, lamadodakazi abo, ebandleni lonke, ngoba ekuthembekeni kwabo bazingcwelisa ngobungcwele.
They included all their little children and wives and other sons and daughters whose names were on the scrolls where their clans’ names were written, because they also faithfully had dedicated themselves to Yahweh.
19 Lemadodaneni kaAroni, abapristi, emasimini amadlelo emizi yabo, kuwo wonke umuzi ngomuzi, amadoda ayebizwe ngamabizo, ukunika izabelo kubo bonke abesilisa phakathi kwabapristi, labo bonke ababalwe ngezizukulwana phakathi kwamaLevi.
[Hezekiah] also appointed other men to distribute portions of those offerings to the priests and other descendants of Levi who were living in the pasturelands around the towns in Judah. But they gave things only to those who were descendants of Aaron [the first Supreme Priest], whose names were on the scrolls containing the names of their clans.
20 Wasesenza njalo uHezekhiya kuJuda wonke; wenza okuhle lokulungileyo lokuqotho phambi kweNkosi uNkulunkulu wakhe.
That is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah. He always faithfully did things that Yahweh his God considered to be right and good.
21 Emsebenzini wonke-ke awuqalisayo enkonzweni yendlu kaNkulunkulu, lemlayweni lemthethweni, ukudinga uNkulunkulu wakhe, wakwenza ngenhliziyo yakhe yonke, waphumelela.
In everything that he did for the worship in the temple, and as he obeyed God’s laws and commands, he tried to find out what his God wanted, and he worked energetically. So he was successful.
