< UDutheronomi 2 >

1 Sasesiphenduka, sasuka saya enkangala, indlela yoLwandle oluBomvu, njengokutsho kweNkosi kimi; njalo sayibhoda intaba yeSeyiri insuku ezinengi.
Then we turned around and headed back into the desert on the road that leads to the Red Sea, as the Lord had told me, and we wandered around Mount Seir for a long time.
2 INkosi yasikhuluma kimi isithi:
This is when the Lord told me,
3 Selibhode intaba le okweneleyo; phendukelani lina enyakatho.
“You have been wandering around this mountain long enough. Go back north,
4 Balaye-ke abantu usithi: Lidabula umngcele wabafowenu, abantwana bakaEsawu abahlala eSeyiri. Njalo bazalesaba, ngakho lizinanzelele kakhulu,
and give these orders to the people: ‘You are going to pass through the territory of your relatives, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They will be frightened of you, so you need to be very careful.
5 lingalwi labo; ngoba kangiyikulinika okwelizwe labo, lelingangokunyathela kwangaphansi konyawo, ngoba ngimnikile uEsawu intaba yeSeyiri ibe yilifa.
Don't fight them, for I'm not going to give you any of their land, not even the size of a footprint, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau and it belongs to him.
6 Lizathenga ukudla kubo ngemali ukuze lidle, lithenge kubo lamanzi ngemali ukuze linathe.
Pay them with money for the food you eat and the water you drink.’
7 Ngoba iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho ikubusisile emsebenzini wonke wesandla sakho; iyazi ukuhamba kwakho kulinkangala enkulu. Le iminyaka engamatshumi amane iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho ibilawe, kawuswelanga lutho.
Remember that the Lord your God has blessed you in everything you've done. He has looked after you during your journey through this large desert. The Lord your God has been with you for these forty years, and you haven't lacked anything.”
8 Uba sisedlula sisuka kubafowethu, abantwana bakaEsawu abahlala eSeyiri, ngendlela yegceke sisuke eElathi njalo sisuka eEziyoni-Geberi, saphenduka, sadlula ngendlela yenkangala yakoMowabi.
So we passed by our relatives, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We didn't take the Arabah road from Elath and Ezion-geber. Instead we used the road that goes through the desert of Moab.
9 INkosi yasisithi kimi: Ungahlukuluzi uMowabi, ungalwi labo empini; ngoba kangiyikukunika okwelizwe labo kube yilifa, ngoba ngibanikile abantwana bakaLothi iAri ibe yilifa.
Then the Lord told me, “Don't cause the Moabites any trouble or fight them, for I'm not going to give you any of their land, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot and it belongs to them.”
10 Kwakuhlala khona endulo amaEmi, abantu abakhulu, labanengi, labade, njengamaAnaki;
(A strong and numerous people called the Emim once lived there. They were as tall as the Anakim,
11 babebalwa njengeziqhwaga labo njengamaAnaki, kodwa amaMowabi ababiza ngokuthi ngamaEmi.
and just like the Anakim, they were also considered as Rephaim, but the Moabites called them Emim.
12 LamaHori ayehlala eSeyiri endulo, kodwa abantwana bakaEsawu bawakhupha emfuyweni yabo, bawachitha phambi kwabo, bahlala endaweni yawo, njengokwenza kukaIsrayeli elizweni lelifa lakhe, iNkosi eyabanika lona.
Previously the Horites lived in Seir, but the descendants of Esau took over their land. They killed the Horites and settled there, just like Israel did when they occupied the land that the Lord had given them.)
13 Khathesi, sukumani lina lichaphe isifula iZeredi. Ngakho sachapha isifula iZeredi.
Then the Lord told us, “Go and cross over Zered Brook.” So we crossed over Zered Brook.
14 Lensuku esahamba ngazo sisuka eKadeshi-Bhaneya saze sachapha isifula iZeredi zaziyiminyaka engamatshumi amathathu lesificaminwembili, kwaze kwaphela isizukulwana sonke samadoda empi sisuka phakathi kwenkamba, njengokufunga kweNkosi kuwo.
The time it took for us to travel from Kadesh-barnea to when we crossed over the Brook of Zered was thirty-eight years. By this time the entire generation of warriors had died and were no longer part of the camp, as the Lord had sworn to them would happen.
15 Ngoba isibili isandla seNkosi sasimelene lawo, ukuwachitha esuka phakathi kwenkamba, aze aphela.
In fact the Lord worked against them to remove them from the camp, until they were all dead.
16 Kwasekusithi lapho wonke amadoda empi esephelile esifa esuka phakathi kwabantu,
Once the people's warriors had died,
17 INkosi yasikhuluma kimi isithi:
the Lord told me,
18 Lamuhla uzakwedlula iAri, umngcele wakoMowabi,
“Today you will cross out of Moab at the border near Ar.
19 lapho ususondele maqondana labantwana bakoAmoni, ungabahlukuluzi, ungalwi labo, ngoba kangiyikukunika okwelizwe labantwana bakoAmoni kube yilifa, ngoba ngilinike abantwana bakaLothi libe yilifa.
However, when you get enter Ammonite territory, don't cause them any trouble or fight them for I'm not going to give you any Ammonite land, because I have given it to the descendants of Lot and it belongs to them.”
20 Lalelo labalwa njengelizwe leziqhwaga. Iziqhwaga zahlala kulo endulo, kodwa amaAmoni bazibiza ngokuthi ngamaZamuzumu;
(This land was previously considered as the country of the Rephaim who used to live there. However, the Ammonites called them Zamzummites.
21 abantu abakhulu, labanengi, labade, njengamaAnaki; kodwa iNkosi yabachitha phambi kwabo, babakhupha emfuyweni yabo, bahlala endaweni yabo,
They were a strong and numerous people, as tall as the Anakim. But the Lord destroyed them when the Ammonites invaded and drove them out and settled there,
22 njengalokho eyakwenzela abantwana bakaEsawu, ababehlala eSeyiri, lapho yawachitha amaHori esuka phambi kwabo, bawakhupha emfuyweni yabo, bahlala endaweni yawo kuze kube lamuhla.
just as he'd done for the descendants of Esau who lived in Seir when he destroyed the Horites. They drove them out and settled where they used to live, and are still there to this day.
23 LamaAvi, ayehlala eHazerimi kuze kube seGaza; amaKafitori, aphuma eKafitori, awachitha, ahlala endaweni yawo.
The Avvim, living in villages as far away as Gaza, were destroyed by the Philistines, who came from Crete, and settled where they used to live.)
24 Sukumani, lisuke lichaphe isifula iArinoni. Bona, nginikele esandleni sakho uSihoni, inkosi yeHeshiboni, umAmori, lelizwe lakhe; qala ukudla ilifa lalo, ulwe laye empini.
Then the Lord told us, “Get up, go and cross the Arnon Valley. Look, I have handed over to you Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, as well as his land. Go and start taking it over, and fight him in battle.
25 Lamuhla ngizaqalisa ukufaka uvalo ngawe lokwesabeka kwakho phezu kobuso bezizwe, ngaphansi kwamazulu wonke, ezizakuzwa umbiko ngawe, zithuthumele, ziqhaqhazele ngenxa yakho.
From this day on, I'm going to make all nations on earth dread you—they will be terrified of you. Because of the news they hear about you they will tremble in terror when you appear.”
26 Ngasengithuma izithunywa zisuka enkangala yeKedemothi kuSihoni inkosi yeHeshiboni, zilamazwi okuthula, zisithi:
Moses told the Israelites, “From the Kedemoth Desert I sent messengers with an offer of peace to Sihon, king of Heshbon, telling him,
27 Ake ngidabule elizweni lakho; ngizahamba ngomgwaqo kuphela, ngingaphambukeli ngakwesokunene loba ngakwesokhohlo.
‘Let us pass through your land. We'll stay on the main road and won't turn off either to the right or to the left.
28 Uzangithengisela ukudla ngemali ukuze ngidle, ungiphe amanzi ngemali ukuze nginathe; kuphela ngizadabula ngenyawo zami,
Sell us food to eat and water to drink for money. Just let us pass through on foot,
29 njengalokhu abantwana bakaEsawu abahlala eSeyiri lamaMowabi ahlala eAri benza kimi, ngize ngichaphe iJordani, ngingene elizweni iNkosi uNkulunkulu wethu esinika lona.
just like the descendants of Esau living in Seir and the Moabites living in Ar allowed us, until we cross over the Jordan into the country that the Lord our God is giving to us.”
30 Kodwa uSihoni inkosi yeHeshiboni kasivumelanga ukuthi sidlule kuye; ngoba iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho yenza umoya wakhe waba lukhuni, yenza lenhliziyo yakhe yaba lenkani, ukuze imnikele esandleni sakho, njengalamuhla.
But Sihon king of Heshbon refused to let us pass through, for the Lord your God gave him a stubborn spirit and an obstinate attitude, so the Lord could hand him over to you, as he has now done.
31 INkosi yathi kimi: Bona, sengiqalisile ukunikela phambi kwakho uSihoni lelizwe lakhe; qalisa ukudla ilifa, ukuze udle ilifa lelizwe lakhe.
Then the Lord told me, “Look, I have started handing Sihon and his land over to you. Now you can begin to conquer and take over his land.”
32 Kwasekuphuma uSihoni ukumelana lathi, yena labantu bakhe bonke, ukulwa eJahazi.
Sihon and his whole army came out to fight us at Jahaz.
33 INkosi uNkulunkulu wethu yasimnikela phambi kwethu; sasesimtshaya lamadodana akhe labantu bakhe bonke.
The Lord our God handed him over to us, and we killed him, his sons, and all his army.
34 Ngalesosikhathi sasesithumba yonke imizi yakhe, satshabalalisa wonke umuzi, abesilisa labesifazana labantwanyana; kasitshiyanga insali;
We also captured all his towns, and set apart for destruction the people of every town: men, women, and children. We didn't leave any survivors.
35 sazithumbela izifuyo kuphela, lempango yemizi esayithumbayo.
All we took for ourselves was the livestock and plunder from the towns we'd captured.
36 Kusukela eAroweri esekhunjini lwesifula iArinoni, lomuzi osesifuleni, kuze kube seGileyadi kwakungekho muzi owawuphakeme kakhulu kithi. INkosi uNkulunkulu wethu yayinikela yonke phambi kwethu.
No town had walls too high for us to conquer—from Aroer on the edge of the Arnon Valley, the town in the valley, all the way to Gilead. The Lord our God handed them all over to us.
37 Kuphela kawusondelanga elizweni labantwana bakoAmoni, endaweni yonke yesifula iJaboki, lemizini esezintabeni, lakukuphi iNkosi uNkulunkulu wethu esenqabela khona.
But you didn't go anywhere near the country of the Ammonites—the area that borders the Jabbok River or the towns of the hill country, or any other place that the Lord our God had placed off limits.

< UDutheronomi 2 >