2 Amakhosi 19
1 Kwasekusithi lapho inkosi uHezekhiya isizwile, yadabula izigqoko zayo, yazembesa ngesaka, yangena endlini yeNkosi.
It came about that when King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of Yahweh.
2 Yasithuma uEliyakhimi owayephezu kwendlu, loShebina umabhalane, labadala babapristi, bembeswe ngamasaka kuIsaya umprofethi indodana kaAmozi.
He sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, all covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah son of Amoz, the prophet.
3 Basebesithi kuye: Utsho njalo uHezekhiya: Lolusuku lusuku lohlupho lolokusolwa lolokweyiswa; ngoba abantwana sebefikile emlonyeni wesizalo, kanti kakulamandla okubeletha.
They said to him, “Hezekiah says, 'This day is a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace, for the children have come to the time of birth, but there is no strength for them to be born.
4 Mhlawumbe iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izakuzwa wonke amazwi kaRabi-Shake, inkosi yeAsiriya inkosi yakhe eyamthumayo, ukuthi aklolodele uNkulunkulu ophilayo; njalo izasola amazwi iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho ewezwileyo: Ngakho phakamiselani insali etholakeleyo umkhuleko.
It may be that Yahweh your God will hear all the words of the chief commander, whom the king of Assyria his master has sent to defy the living God, and will rebuke the words which Yahweh your God has heard. Now lift up your prayer for the remnant that is still here.'”
5 Izinceku zenkosi uHezekhiya zasezifika kuIsaya.
So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah,
6 UIsaya wasesithi kuzo: Lizakutsho njalo enkosini yenu: Utsho njalo uJehova: Ungesabi amazwi owezwileyo inceku zenkosi yeAsiriya ezingithuke ngawo.
and Isaiah said to them, “Say to your master: 'Yahweh says, “Do not be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.
7 Khangela, ngizafaka umoya kuyo, njalo izakuzwa ihungahunga, ibuyele elizweni layo; ngizayenza ukuthi iwe ngenkemba elizweni layo.
Look, I will put a spirit in him, and he will hear a certain report and go back to his own land. I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.”'”
8 URabi-Shake wasebuyela, wafica inkosi yeAsiriya isilwa imelene leLibhina; ngoba wayezwile ukuthi isisukile eLakishi.
Then the chief commander returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he had heard that the king had gone away from Lachish.
9 Kwathi isizwa ngoTirihaka inkosi yeEthiyophiya kuthiwa: Khangela, uphumile ukuyakulwa emelene lawe, yabuya yathuma izithunywa kuHezekhiya, isithi:
Then Sennacherib heard that Tirhakah king of Cush and Egypt had mobilized to fight against him, so he sent messengers again to Hezekiah with a message:
10 Lizakhuluma kanje kuHezekhiya inkosi yakoJuda, lithi: UNkulunkulu wakho omthembileyo kangakukhohlisi esithi: IJerusalema kayiyikunikelwa esandleni senkosi yeAsiriya.
“Say to Hezekiah king of Judah, 'Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem will not be given over into the hand of the king of Assyria.”
11 Khangela, wena usuzwile ukuthi amakhosi eAsiriya enzeni kuwo wonke amazwe, ngokuwatshabalalisa. Wena-ke uzakhululwa yini?
See, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by destroying them completely. So will you be rescued?
12 Onkulunkulu bezizwe bazikhululile yini, obaba abazichithayo, iGozani leHarani leRezefi labantwana bakaEdeni ababeseTelasari?
Have the gods of the nations rescued them, the nations that my fathers destroyed: Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Tel Assar?
13 Ingaphi inkosi yeHamathi, lenkosi yeArpadi, lenkosi yomuzi weSefavayimi, iHena, leIva?
Where are the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the cities of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah?'”
14 UHezekhiya waseyemukela incwadi esandleni sezithunywa, wayibala, wasesenyukela endlini yeNkosi, uHezekhiya wayichaya phambi kweNkosi.
Hezekiah received this letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the house of Yahweh and spread it before him.
15 UHezekhiya wasekhuleka phambi kweNkosi, wathi: Nkosi, Nkulunkulu kaIsrayeli, ohlala phakathi kwamakherubhi, wena unguNkulunkulu, wena wedwa, wayo yonke imibuso yomhlaba; wena wenze amazulu lomhlaba.
Then Hezekiah prayed before Yahweh and said, “Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, you who sit above the cherubim, you are God alone over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth.
16 Nkosi, thoba indlebe yakho, uzwe, Nkosi, vula amehlo akho, ubone; uzwe amazwi kaSenakheribi amthume ngawo ukuklolodela uNkulunkulu ophilayo.
Turn your ear, Yahweh, and listen. Open your eyes, Yahweh, and see, and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God.
17 Qiniso, Nkosi, amakhosi eAsiriya azichithile izizwe lelizwe lazo,
Truly, Yahweh, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands.
18 aphosela onkulunkulu bazo emlilweni; ngoba babengeyisibo onkulunkulu, kodwa umsebenzi wezandla zabantu, izigodo lamatshe; ngakho bababhubhisa.
They have put their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men's hands, just wood and stone. So the Assyrians have destroyed them.
19 Ngakho-ke, Nkosi Nkulunkulu wethu, ngicela usisindise esandleni sakhe, ukuze yonke imibuso yomhlaba yazi ukuthi wena uyiNkosi uNkulunkulu, wena wedwa.
Now then, Yahweh our God, save us, I implore you, from his power, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Yahweh, are God alone.”
20 UIsaya indodana kaAmozi wasethumela kuHezekhiya esithi: Itsho njalo iNkosi, uNkulunkulu wakoIsrayeli: Lokho okukhuleke kimi mayelana loSenakheribi inkosi yeAsiriya ngikuzwile.
Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah, saying, “Yahweh, the God of Israel says, 'Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria, I have heard you.
21 Yileli ilizwi iNkosi elikhulume mayelana laye: Intombi emsulwa, indodakazi yeZiyoni, iyakudelela, iyakuklolodela; indodakazi yeJerusalema inikina ikhanda ngemva kwakho.
This is the word that Yahweh has spoken about him: “The virgin daughter of Zion despises you and laughs you to scorn. The daughter of Jerusalem shakes her head at you.
22 Ngubani omeyisileyo wamhlambaza? Njalo uphakamisele bani ilizwi, waphakamisela amehlo akho phezulu? Umelene loNgcwele kaIsrayeli.
Whom have you defied and insulted? Against whom have you exalted your voice and lifted up your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel!
23 Ngesandla sezithunywa zakho uyeyisile iNkosi, wathi: Ngobunengi bezinqola zami ngenyuke indawo ephezulu yezintaba, inhlangothi zeLebhanoni. Ngizagamula imisedari yayo emide, lamafiri ayo akhethekileyo. Ngizangena endaweni yokuhlala yamaphethelo ayo, igusu eliminyeneyo.
By your messengers you have defied the Lord, and have said, 'With the multitude of my chariots I have gone up to the heights of the mountains, to the highest elevations of Lebanon. I will cut down the tall cedars and the choice cypress trees there. I will enter into its farthest parts, its most fruitful forest.
24 Mina ngagebha nganatha amanzi angaziwayo, langengaphansi yenyawo zami ngomisa yonke imifula yezindawo ezivinjelweyo.
I have dug wells and have drunk foreign waters. I dried up all the rivers of Egypt under the soles of my feet.'
25 Kawuzwanga yini ukuthi ngakwenza endulo, ngakubumba ensukwini zendulo. Khathesi ngikufikisile, ukuthi ube ngowokudiliza imizi evikelweyo ibe zinqumbi zamanxiwa.
Have you not heard how I determined it long ago, and worked it out in ancient times? Now I am bringing it to pass. You are here to reduce impregnable cities into heaps of ruins.
26 Ngakho abahlali bayo babelesandla esifitshane, besaba babe lenhloni, baba njengotshani beganga lemibhida eluhlaza, utshani bempahla, lamabele ahanguliweyo engakami.
Their inhabitants, of little strength, are shattered and ashamed. They are plants in the field, green grass, the grass on the roof or in the field, burned before it has grown up.
27 Kodwa ngiyakwazi ukuhlala kwakho lokuphuma kwakho lokungena kwakho lokungithukuthelela kwakho.
But I know your sitting down, your going out, your coming in, and your raging against me.
28 Ngenxa yokungithukuthelela kwakho, lokuthi umsindo wakho wenyukele endlebeni zami, ngizafaka umkhala wami emakhaleni akho, letomu lami endebeni zakho, ngikwenze ubuyele ngendlela oweza ngayo.
Because of your raging against me, and because your arrogance has reached my ears, I will put my hook in your nose, and my bit in your mouth; I will turn you back the way you came.”
29 Lokhu-ke kuzakuba yisibonakaliso kuwe; lonyaka uzakudla okuzikhulelayo, langomnyaka wesibili umkhukhuzela, kuthi ngomnyaka wesithathu lihlanyele livune, lihlanyele izivini lidle izithelo zazo.
This will be the sign for you: This year you will eat what grows wild, and in the second year what grows from that. But in the third year you must plant and harvest, plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
30 Lokuphephileyo kwendlu yakoJuda okuseleyo kuzaphinda kugxumeke impande phansi, kuthele izithelo ngaphezulu.
The remnant of the house of Judah that survives will again take root and bear fruit.
31 Ngoba kuzaphuma eJerusalema insali, lokuphephileyo entabeni yeZiyoni. Ukutshiseka kweNkosi yamabandla kuzakwenza lokhu.
For from Jerusalem a remnant will come out, from Mount Zion survivors will come. The zeal of Yahweh of hosts will do this.
32 Ngakho utsho njalo uJehova ngenkosi yeAsiriya: Kayiyikungena kulumuzi, kayiyikutshoka umtshoko khona, kayiyikuza phambi kwawo ilesihlangu, kayiyikubuthelela idundulu maqondana lawo.
Therefore Yahweh says this about the king of Assyria: “He will not come into this city nor shoot an arrow here. Neither will he come before it with shield or build up a siege ramp against it.
33 Ngendlela eyeza ngayo, ngayo izabuyela, kayiyikungena kulo umuzi, itsho iNkosi.
The way by which he came will be the same way he will leave; he will not enter this city— this is Yahweh's declaration.”
34 Ngoba ngizawuvikela lumuzi ukuwusindisa, ngenxa yami, langenxa kaDavida inceku yami.
For I will defend this city and rescue it, for my own sake and for my servant David's sake.'”
35 Kwasekusithi ngalobobusuku ingilosi yeNkosi yaphuma yatshaya enkambeni yamaAsiriya izinkulungwane ezilikhulu lamatshumi ayisificaminwembili lanhlanu. Lapho bevuka ekuseni kakhulu, khangela, bonke babeyizidumbu ezifileyo.
It came about that night that the angel of Yahweh went out and attacked the camp of the Assyrians, putting to death 185,000 soldiers. When the men arose early in the morning, dead bodies lay everywhere.
36 Ngakho uSenakheribi inkosi yeAsiriya wasuka wahamba wabuyela, wahlala eNineve.
So Sennacherib king of Assyria left Israel and went home and stayed in Nineveh.
37 Kwasekusithi ekhonza endlini kaNisiroki unkulunkulu wakhe, oAdrameleki loSharezeri amadodana akhe bamtshaya ngenkemba, bona baphephela elizweni leArarathi. UEsarihadoni indodana yakhe wasebusa esikhundleni sakhe.
Later, as he was worshiping in the house of Nisrok his god, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword. Then they escaped into the land of Ararat. Then Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.
