UDutheronomi 18
1 Abapristi, amaLevi, isizwe sonke sakoLevi, kasiyikuba lesabelo lelifa kanye loIsrayeli; bazakudla iminikelo yeNkosi eyenziwe ngomlilo, lelifa layo.
“The priests, who are all from the tribe of Levi, will not receive any land in Israel. Instead, they will receive some of the food that other people offer to be burned [on the altar to be sacrificed] to Yahweh and some of the other sacrifices that will be offered to Yahweh.
2 Ngakho kabayikuba lelifa phakathi kwabafowabo; iNkosi iyilifa labo, njengokukhuluma kwayo kibo.
They will not be allotted any land like the other tribes will be. What they will receive is the work/privilege of being Yahweh’s [priests], which is what he said that they should have.
3 Lalokhu kuzakuba lilungelo labapristi elivela ebantwini, kulabo abahlaba umhlatshelo, loba inkabi loba imvu; njalo bazanika umpristi umkhono lemihlathi yomibili lolusu.
“When the people bring an ox or a sheep to be sacrificed, they must give to the priests the shoulder, the cheeks/jaws, and the stomach of those animals.
4 Okokuqala kwamabele akho, yewayini lakho elitsha, leyamafutha akho, lengqabutho yoboya bezimvu zakho, uzamupha yona.
You must also give to them the first part of the grain that you [harvest], and the first part of the wine [that you make], and the first part of the [olive] oil [that you make], and the first part of the wool that you shear from your sheep.
5 Ngoba iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho imkhethile kuzo zonke izizwe zakho, ukuthi eme akhonze ebizweni leNkosi, yena lamadodana akhe, zonke izinsuku.
You must do this because Yahweh our God has chosen the tribe of Levi from all of your tribes, in order that men [from that tribe] would always be the priests who would serve him.
6 Uba-ke umLevi esiza evela loba kukuliphi lamasango akho kuIsrayeli wonke lapho ahlala khona njengowezizwe, eze ngesifiso sonke somphefumulo wakhe endaweni iNkosi ezayikhetha,
“If any man from the tribe of Levi [who has been living] in one of the towns in Israel wants to come from there to the place of worship that Yahweh has chosen, [and start living there],
7 khona ezakhonza ebizweni leNkosi uNkulunkulu wakhe njengabo bonke abafowabo amaLevi, emiyo khona phambi kweNkosi.
he is permitted to serve Yahweh there as a priest, just like the other men from the tribe of Levi who have been serving there.
8 Azakudla izabelo ezilinganayo, ngaphandle kwezinto zakhe ezathengiswayo zaboyise.
He must be given the same amount of food [that the other priests receive]. He is permitted to keep the money [that his relatives give him] for selling some of their possessions.
9 Lapho usufikile elizweni iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho ekunika lona, ungafundi ukwenza ngokwezinengiso zalezozizwe.
When you enter the land that Yahweh our God is giving you, you must not imitate the disgusting things that the people-groups who are there now do.
10 Kakuyikutholakala phakathi kwakho owenza indodana yakhe lendodakazi yakhe idabule emlilweni, owenza ukuvumisa, ochasisa ngemibono, lowenza imilingo, lomthakathi,
You must not sacrifice any of your children by burning them [on your altars]. Do not practice (divination/using supernatural power to reveal [what will happen in] the future). Do not do/practice (soothsaying/magic to find out what will happen in the future). Do not (interpret omens/say that because of something that you have seen you know what will happen). Do not practice sorcery/witchcraft. Do not practice (putting spells on people/saying things to cause bad things to happen to others).
11 lophosayo, lolamadlozi, lolumbayo, lobuza kwabafileyo.
Do not try to talk with spirits of dead people. Do not do/practice magic.
12 Ngoba wonke owenza lezizinto uyisinengiso eNkosini. Langenxa yalezizinengiso iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho iyabaxotsha elifeni phambi kwakho.
Yahweh hates people who do any of those disgusting things. And as you advance through that land, he is going to expel the people-groups because they do/practice those disgusting things.
13 Uzakuba ngopheleleyo eNkosini uNkulunkulu wakho.
But you must always avoid doing any of those things.
14 Ngoba izizwe lezi, ozakudla ilifa lazo, zalalela abachasisa ngemibono labavumisi; kodwa wena, iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho kayikuvumelanga okunjalo.
The people-groups that you are about to expel [from the land that you will occupy] (consult/seek advice from) soothsayers and those who practice divination. But as for you, Yahweh our God does not allow you to do that.
15 INkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izakuvusela uMprofethi ophuma phakathi kwakho kubafowenu onjengami; yena limlalele.
[Some day] he will send from among you a prophet like me. [He is the one who will tell you what will happen in the future], and he is the one whom you must heed.
16 Njengakho konke owakucelayo eNkosini uNkulunkulu wakho eHorebe ngosuku lokuhlangana, usithi: Kangingaphindi ngilizwe ilizwi leNkosi uNkulunkulu wami, ngingabe ngisawubona lumlilo omkhulu, ukuze ngingafi.
On the day that your ancestors were gathered at the bottom of Sinai Mountain, they pleaded with me saying, ‘We do not want Yahweh to speak [MTY] to us again, and we do not want to see this huge fire [that is burning on the mountain]!’ [Your ancestors said that because they were afraid] that they would die [if Yahweh spoke to them again].
17 INkosi yasisithi kimi: Benze kuhle kwabakukhulumileyo.
Then Yahweh said to me, ‘What they have said is true/wise.
18 Ngizabavusela uMprofethi ophuma phakathi kwabafowabo onjengawe; ngizabeka amazwi ami emlonyeni wakhe, njalo akhulume kibo konke engizamlaya khona.
So I will send from among them a prophet who will be like you. I will tell him what to say, and then he will tell people everything that I tell him to say.
19 Kuzakuthi-ke loba ngubani ongayikulalela amazwi ami azawakhuluma ebizweni lami, ngizakubuza kuye.
He will speak for me. And I will punish anyone who does not heed what he says.
20 Kodwa umprofethi oziqhenya ekhuluma ilizwi ebizweni lami engingamlayanga ukulikhuluma, loba ekhuluma ebizweni labanye onkulunkulu, lowomprofethi uzakufa.
But if any other [person says that he is a] prophet [and] dares to speak a message which he falsely says comes from me but which I did not tell him to speak, or if anyone who speaks a message that he says other gods [MTY] have revealed to him, he must be executed [for doing that].’
21 Njalo uba usithi enhliziyweni yakho: Sizakwazi njani ilizwi iNkosi engalikhulumanga?
But if you say to yourself, ‘How can we know if a message [that someone tells us] does not come from Yahweh?’
22 Lapho umprofethi ekhuluma ebizweni leNkosi, uba leyonto ingenzeki kumbe ingafiki, lelo yilizwi iNkosi engalikhulumanga; umprofethi ulikhulume ngokuziqhenya; ungamesabi.
[The answer is that] when someone speaks a message [about what will happen in the future], a message that he says was revealed by Yahweh, if what he says does not happen, [you will know that] the message did not come from Yahweh. That person has wrongly claimed that it was revealed to him by Yahweh. So you do not need to be afraid of [anything that] he [says].”
