< UDutheronomi 7 >
1 Lapho iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho isikungenisa elizweni oya kulo ukudla ilifa lalo, ixotshe izizwe ezinengi phambi kwakho, amaHethi lamaGirigashi lamaAmori lamaKhanani lamaPerizi lamaHivi lamaJebusi, izizwe eziyisikhombisa ezinkulu lezilamandla kulawe,
When Yahweh your God brings you into the land that you go to possess, he will drive out many nations before you—the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites—seven nations greater and mightier than you.
2 lapho iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izinikela phambi kwakho, uzazitshaya, uzitshabalalise lokuzitshabalilisa. Ungenzi isivumelwano lazo, ungabi lasihawu kuzo.
It is Yahweh your God who gives them over to you when you defeat them, and then you must completely destroy them. You will make no covenant with them, and show them no mercy.
3 Ungathathani lazo, unganiki indodakazi yakho kundodana yakhe, njalo indodakazi yakhe ungayithatheli indodana yakho.
Neither will you arrange any marriages with them. You will not give your daughters to their sons, and you will not take their daughters for your sons.
4 Ngoba izaphambula indodana yakho ekungilandeleni, ukuze bakhonze abanye onkulunkulu; ngakho ulaka lweNkosi luzalivuthela, lukubhubhise masinyane.
For they will turn away your sons from following me, so that they may worship other gods. So the anger of Yahweh will be kindled against you, and he will destroy you quickly.
5 Kodwa-ke lizakwenza njalo kuzo; lizadiliza amalathi azo, liphahlaze insika zazo eziyizithombe, ligamule izixuku zabo, litshise ngomlilo izithombe zazo ezibaziweyo.
This is how you will deal with them: You will break down their altars, dash their stone pillars in pieces, cut down their Asherah poles, and burn their cast idols.
6 Ngoba uyisizwe esingcwele eNkosini uNkulunkulu wakho; iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho ikukhethile ukuthi ube yisizwe sayo kanye, kuzo zonke izizwe ezisebusweni bomhlaba.
For you are a nation that is set apart to Yahweh your God. He has chosen you to be a people for him to possess, more than all the other peoples that are on the face of the earth.
7 INkosi kayehliselanga uthando lwayo phezu kwenu, kumbe ilikhethe, ngenxa yokuthi lalibanengi kulaziphi izizwe; ngoba lalibalutshwana kulazo zonke izizwe;
Yahweh did not set his love upon you or choose you because you were more in number than any people—for you were the fewest of all peoples—
8 kodwa kungenxa yokuthi iNkosi yalithanda, langenxa yokuthi yayizagcina isifungo eyasifunga kuboyihlo, iNkosi yalikhupha ngesandla esilamandla, yakuhlenga endlini yobugqili, esandleni sikaFaro inkosi yeGibhithe.
but because he loves you, and he wished to keep the oath that he had sworn to your fathers. This is why Yahweh has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.
9 Ngakho yazi ukuthi iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho inguNkulunkulu, uNkulunkulu othembekileyo, ogcina isivumelwano lomusa kubo abamthandayo labagcina imilayo yakhe, kuze kube sezizukulwaneni eziyinkulungwane,
Therefore know that Yahweh your God—he is God, the faithful God, who keeps covenants and faithfulness for a thousand generations with those who love him and keep his commandments,
10 lophindisela abamzondayo ebusweni babo, ukubabhubhisa. Kayikuphuza komzondayo, uzamphindisela ebusweni bakhe.
but repays those who hate him to their face, to destroy them; he will not be lenient on whoever hates him; he will repay him to his face.
11 Ngakho uzagcina imilayo lezimiso lezahlulelo engikulaya zona lamuhla ukuzenza.
You will therefore keep the commandments, the statutes, and the decrees that I command you today, so that you will do them.
12 Kuzakuthi ngoba lisizwa lezizahlulelo, lizigcine, lizenze, iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izakugcinela isivumelwano lomusa eyakufungela oyihlo.
If you listen to these decrees, and keep and do them, it will happen that Yahweh your God will keep with you the covenant and the faithfulness that he swore to your fathers.
13 Njalo izakuthanda, ikubusise, ikwandise. Futhi izabusisa isithelo sesizalo sakho, lesithelo selizwe lakho, amabele akho, lewayini lakho elitsha, lamafutha akho, umqegu wenkomo zakho, lemihlambi yezimvu zakho, elizweni alifungela oyihlo ukukunika lona.
He will love you, bless you, and multiply you; he will also bless the fruit of your body and the fruit of your ground, your grain, your new wine, and your oil, the multiplication of your cattle and the young of your flocks, in the land that he swore to your fathers to give you.
14 Uzabusiswa kulazo zonke izizwe; kakuyikuba khona phakathi kwakho owesilisa ongazaliyo lowesifazana oyinyumba, loba phakathi kwezifuyo zakho.
You will be blessed more than all other peoples; there will not be a childless male or a barren female among you or among your cattle.
15 LeNkosi izasusa kuwe wonke umkhuhlane; kayiyikukwehlisela lasinye sezifo ezimbi zeGibhithe ozaziyo, kodwa izazehlisela phezu kwabo bonke abakuzondayo.
Yahweh will take away from you all sickness; none of the evil diseases of Egypt that you have known will he put on you, but he will put them on all those who hate you.
16 Njalo uzabaqothula bonke abantu ezabanikela kuwe iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho; ilihlo lakho lingabazweli, ungakhonzi onkulunkulu babo, ngoba lokhu kuzakuba ngumjibila kuwe.
You will consume all the peoples whom Yahweh your God will give over to you, and your eye will not pity them. You will not worship their gods, for that will be a trap for you.
17 Nxa uzakuthi enhliziyweni yakho: Izizwe lezi zinengi kulami; ngingazixotsha njani elifeni lazo?
If you say in your heart, 'These nations are more numerous than I; how can I dispossess them?'—
18 Ungazesabi, khumbula kuhle lokho iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho eyakwenza kuFaro lakuGibhithe lonke,
do not be afraid of them; you will call to mind what Yahweh your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt;
19 izilingo ezinkulu ilihlo lakho elazibonayo, lezibonakaliso, lezimangaliso, lesandla esilamandla, lengalo eyeluliweyo, iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho eyakukhupha ngakho. INkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izakwenza njalo kuzo zonke izizwe ozesabayo.
the great sufferings that your eyes saw, the signs, the wonders, the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm by which Yahweh your God brought you out. Yahweh your God will do the same to all the peoples whom you fear.
20 Futhi-ke iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izathumela olonyovu phakathi kwazo, zize zibhujiswe eziseleyo lezicatshele ubuso bakho.
Moreover, Yahweh your God will send the hornet among them, until those who are left and who hide themselves from you perish from your presence.
21 Kaliyikutshaywa luvalo ngazo, ngoba iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho iphakathi kwakho, uNkulunkulu omkhulu lowesabekayo.
You will not be frightened at them, for Yahweh your God is among you, a great and fearsome God.
22 INkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izazingcothula lezizizwe phambi kwakho kancinyane kancinyane; ungeziqede masinyane, hlezi izilo zeganga zikwandele.
Yahweh your God will drive out those nations before you little by little. You will not defeat them all at once, or the wild animals would become very many around you.
23 Kodwa iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izazinikela phambi kwakho, iziphazamise ngokuphazamiseka okukhulu, zize zichithwe.
But Yahweh your God will give you victory over them when you meet them in battle; he will greatly confuse them until they are destroyed.
24 Izanikela ezandleni zakho amakhosi azo, njalo uzacitsha ibizo lawo lisuke ngaphansi kwamazulu; kakulamuntu ozakuma phambi kwakho uze uzibhubhise.
He will put their kings under your power, and you will make their name perish from under heaven. No one will be able to stand before you, until you have destroyed them.
25 Izithombe ezibaziweyo zabonkulunkulu bazo lizazitshisa ngomlilo. Ungafisi isiliva legolide elikuzo, ungazithatheli lona, hlezi ubanjwe emjibileni ngalo, ngoba liyisinengiso eNkosini uNkulunkulu wakho.
You will burn the carved figures of their gods—do not covet the silver or the gold that covers them and take it for yourself, because if you do, you will become trapped by it—for it is an abomination to Yahweh your God.
26 Njalo ungasingenisi isinengiso endlini yakho, hlezi ube yinto eqalekisiweyo njengaso; usenyanye lokusenyanya, unengwe lokunengwa yiso, ngoba siyinto eqalekisiweyo.
You will not bring any abomination into your house and start to worship it. You will utterly detest and abhor it, for it is set apart for destruction.