< UDutheronomi 9 >
1 Zwana, Israyeli; uzachapha iJordani lamuhla, ukungenela ukudla ilifa lezizwe ezinkulu lezilamandla kulawe, imizi emikhulu ebiyelwe ngemithangala efika emazulwini.
Hear, O Israel: Today you are about to cross the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than you, with large cities fortified to the heavens.
2 Abantu abakhulu labade, abantwana bamaAnaki wena obaziyo, wena osuzwile ngabo kuthiwa: Ngubani ongema phambi kwabantwana bakaAnaki?
The people are strong and tall, the descendants of the Anakim. You know about them, and you have heard it said, “Who can stand up to the sons of Anak?”
3 Ngakho yazi lamuhla ukuthi yiNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho echapha phambi kwakho, engumlilo oqothulayo; yona izabachitha, njalo yona izabehlisela phansi phambi kwakho; njalo lizabaxotsha basuke elifeni labo, libabhubhise masinyane, njengokutsho kweNkosi kuwe.
But understand that today the LORD your God goes across ahead of you as a consuming fire; He will destroy them and subdue them before you. And you will drive them out and annihilate them swiftly, as the LORD has promised you.
4 Ungakhulumi enhliziyweni yakho, lapho iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho isibaxotshile phambi kwakho, usithi: Ngenxa yokulunga kwami iNkosi ingingenise ukudla ilifa lelizwe leli. Kodwa ngenxa yobubi balezizizwe iNkosi izixotsha zisuke elifeni lazo phambi kwakho.
When the LORD your God has driven them out before you, do not say in your heart, “Because of my righteousness the LORD has brought me in to possess this land.” Rather, the LORD is driving out these nations before you because of their wickedness.
5 Kakungenxa yokulunga kwakho kumbe ngenxa yobuqotho benhliziyo yakho ukuthi ungene ukudla ilifa lelizwe lazo; kodwa ngenxa yobubi balezizizwe iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho izixotsha zisuke elifeni lazo phambi kwakho, lokuthi iqinise ilizwi iNkosi eyalifungela oyihlo, uAbrahama, uIsaka loJakobe.
It is not because of your righteousness or uprightness of heart that you are going in to possess their land, but it is because of their wickedness that the LORD your God is driving out these nations before you, to keep the promise He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
6 Yazi-ke ukuthi kakungenxa yokulunga kwakho ukuthi iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho ikunika lelilizwe elihle ukuthi udle ilifa lalo; ngoba uyisizwe esilentamo elukhuni.
Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people.
7 Khumbula, ungakhohlwa, ukuthi wayithukuthelisa iNkosi uNkulunkulu wakho enkangala; kusukela osukwini owaphuma ngalo elizweni leGibhithe laze lafika kulindawo, beliyivukela iNkosi.
Remember this, and never forget how you provoked the LORD your God in the wilderness. From the day you left the land of Egypt until you reached this place, you have been rebelling against the LORD.
8 LeHorebe layithukuthelisa iNkosi, yaze yalithukuthelela iNkosi ukulichitha.
At Horeb you provoked the LORD, and He was angry enough to destroy you.
9 Sengenyukele entabeni ukwemukela izibhebhe zamatshe, izibhebhe zesivumelwano iNkosi eyasenza lani, ngasengihlala entabeni insuku ezingamatshumi amane lobusuku obungamatshumi amane, angidlanga sinkwa, anginathanga manzi.
When I went up on the mountain to receive the tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant that the LORD made with you, I stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights. I ate no bread and drank no water.
10 INkosi yasinginika lezozibhebhe ezimbili zamatshe zilotshwe ngomunwe kaNkulunkulu, laphezu kwazo kulotshiwe ngokwamazwi wonke iNkosi eyayiwakhulume lani entabeni, iphakathi komlilo ngosuku lokuhlangana.
Then the LORD gave me the two stone tablets, inscribed by the finger of God with the exact words that the LORD spoke to you out of the fire on the mountain on the day of the assembly.
11 Kwasekusithi ekupheleni kwensuku ezingamatshumi amane lobusuku obungamatshumi amane, iNkosi yangipha izibhebhe ezimbili zamatshe, izibhebhe zesivumelwano.
And at the end of forty days and forty nights, the LORD gave me the two stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant.
12 INkosi yasisithi kimi: Sukuma wehle ngokuphangisa usuke lapha, ngoba abantu bakho owabakhupha eGibhithe bonakalisile, baphambukile ngokuphangisa endleleni engabalaya yona, bazenzela isithombe esibunjwe ngokuncibilikisa.
And the LORD said to me, “Get up and go down from here at once, for your people, whom you brought out of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. How quickly they have turned aside from the way that I commanded them! They have made for themselves a molten image.”
13 INkosi yasikhuluma kimi isithi: Ngibabonile lababantu, khangela-ke, bangabantu abantamo zilukhuni.
The LORD also said to me, “I have seen this people, and they are indeed a stiff-necked people.
14 Ngiyekela ukuze ngibabhubhise, ngesule ibizo labo lisuke ngaphansi kwamazulu; njalo ngizakwenza ube yisizwe esilamandla lesikhulu kulabo.
Leave Me alone, so that I may destroy them and blot out their name from under heaven. Then I will make you into a nation mightier and greater than they are.”
15 Ngasengiphenduka ngisehla entabeni, lentaba yayivutha umlilo; lezibhebhe zombili zesivumelwano zazisezandleni zami zombili.
So I went back down the mountain while it was blazing with fire, with the two tablets of the covenant in my hands.
16 Ngasengibona, khangelani-ke, lalonile eNkosini uNkulunkulu wenu, lalizenzele ithole elibunjwe ngokuncibilikisa, laliphambukile ngokuphangisa endleleni iNkosi eyayililayile.
And I saw how you had sinned against the LORD your God; you had made for yourselves a molten calf. You had turned aside quickly from the way that the LORD had commanded you.
17 Ngasengibamba izibhebhe zombili, ngazilahla ezandleni zami zombili, ngazibulala phambi kwamehlo enu.
So I took the two tablets and threw them out of my hands, shattering them before your eyes.
18 Ngasengiziwisela phansi phambi kweNkosi njengakuqala, insuku ezingamatshumi amane lobusuku obungamatshumi amane, ngingadli sinkwa, nginganathi manzi, ngenxa yaso sonke isono senu elisonileyo, lisenza okubi emehlweni eNkosi, liyithukuthelisa.
Then I fell down before the LORD for forty days and forty nights, as I had done the first time. I did not eat bread or drink water because of all the sin you had committed in doing what was evil in the sight of the LORD and provoking Him to anger.
19 Ngoba ngangisesaba ukuthukuthela lolaka iNkosi eyayilithukuthelela ngakho ukulibhubhisa; kodwa iNkosi yangizwa langalesosikhathi.
For I was afraid of the anger and wrath that the LORD had directed against you, enough to destroy you. But the LORD listened to me this time as well.
20 INkosi yasimthukuthelela kakhulu uAroni ukuze imbhubhise; kodwa ngamkhulekela loAroni ngalesosikhathi.
The LORD was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him, but at that time I also prayed for Aaron.
21 Ngasengithatha isono senu, ithole elalilenzile, ngalitshisa ngomlilo, ngalichoboza, ngalicholisisa laze laba lincinyane njengothuli; ngaphosa uthuli lwalo esifuleni esasisehla entabeni.
And I took that sinful thing, the calf you had made, and burned it in the fire. Then I crushed it and ground it to powder as fine as dust, and I cast it into the stream that came down from the mountain.
22 LeTabera, leMasa, leKiribothi-Hathava laliyithukuthelisa iNkosi.
You continued to provoke the LORD at Taberah, at Massah, and at Kibroth-hattaavah.
23 Lalapho iNkosi yalithuma lisuka eKadeshi-Bhaneya isithi: Yenyukani, lidle ilifa lelizwe engilinike lona, laselihlamukela umlayo weNkosi uNkulunkulu wenu, kaliyikholwanga, kalilalelanga ilizwi layo.
And when the LORD sent you out from Kadesh-barnea, He said, “Go up and possess the land that I have given you.” But you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God. You neither believed Him nor obeyed Him.
24 Lalivele liyivukele iNkosi kusukela osukwini engalazi ngalo.
You have been rebelling against the LORD since the day I came to know you.
25 Ngasengiziwisela phansi phambi kweNkosi insuku ezingamatshumi amane lobusuku obungamatshumi amane, engaziwisela phansi ngazo, ngoba iNkosi yayithe izalichitha.
So I fell down before the LORD for forty days and forty nights, because the LORD had said He would destroy you.
26 Ngasengikhuleka eNkosini ngathi: Nkosi Jehova, ungabachithi abantu bakho lelifa lakho, obahlenge ngobukhulu bakho, owabakhupha eGibhithe ngesandla esilamandla.
And I prayed to the LORD and said, “O Lord GOD, do not destroy Your people, Your inheritance, whom You redeemed through Your greatness and brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand.
27 Khumbula inceku zakho, uAbrahama, uIsaka, loJakobe; ungakhangeli inkani yalababantu lobubi babo lesono sabo,
Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Overlook the stubbornness of this people and the wickedness of their sin.
28 hlezi ilizwe owasikhupha kilo lithi: Ngenxa yokuthi iNkosi yayingelamandla okubangenisa elizweni eyabathembisa lona, langenxa yokuthi ibazonda, yabakhupha ukuze ibabulalele enkangala.
Otherwise, those in the land from which You brought us out will say, ‘Because the LORD was not able to bring them into the land He had promised them, and because He hated them, He has brought them out to kill them in the wilderness.’
29 Kube kanti bangabantu bakho lelifa lakho, owabakhupha ngamandla akho amakhulu langengalo yakho eyeluliweyo.
But they are Your people, Your inheritance, whom You brought out by Your great power and outstretched arm.”