Abahluleli 2
1 Ingilosi yeNkosi yasisenyuka isuka eGiligali isiya eBokimi, yathi: Ngalenyusa lisuka eGibhithe, ngaliletha elizweni engalifungela oyihlo, njalo ngathi: Kangiyikwephula isivumelwano sami lani kuze kube sephakadeni.
Yahweh [appeared in the form of] an angel [and] went up from Gilgal to [a place that was later called] Bokim. He said [to the Israeli people], “I brought your [ancestors] up here from Egypt. I led them into this land that I solemnly promised to give to your ancestors. I said to them, ‘The agreement that I made with you, as for me, I will never (break it/say that it is ended).
2 Lani-ke kaliyikwenza isivumelwano labahlali balelilizwe, lizadiliza amalathi abo. Kodwa kalililalelanga ilizwi lami. Kuyini lokhu elikwenzileyo?
But as for you, you must never make a peace agreement with the people who live in this land. You must tear down the altars [where they make sacrifices to idols].’ But you have not obeyed me.
3 Ngakho lami ngathi: Kangiyikuzixotsha elifeni phambi kwenu, kodwa zizakuba njengameva enhlangothini zenu, labonkulunkulu bazo babe ngumjibila kini.
So now, I am telling you that I will not expel [your enemies] as you advance. They will be like thorns in your sides. And [they] will try to trap you [by making you worship] their idols.”
4 Kwasekusithi lapho ingilosi yeNkosi isikhulume lamazwi kubo bonke abantwana bakoIsrayeli, abantu baphakamisa ilizwi labo bakhala inyembezi.
After he told that to all the Israelis, the people cried loudly.
5 Basebebiza ibizo laleyondawo ngokuthi yiBokimi, bayihlabela iNkosi lapho.
They called that place Bokim, [which means ‘weeping’]. There they offered sacrifices to Yahweh.
6 Kwathi uJoshuwa esebayekele abantu bahamba, abantwana bakoIsrayeli bahamba, ngulowo lalowo waya elifeni lakhe ukudla ilifa lelizwe.
After Joshua sent the Israeli people away, each group went to possess the land that had been allotted to them.
7 Abantu basebeyikhonza iNkosi kuzo zonke izinsuku zikaJoshuwa, lazo zonke izinsuku zabadala abasala bephila emva kukaJoshuwa, ababewubonile wonke umsebenzi omkhulu weNkosi eyayiwenzele uIsrayeli.
They served Yahweh as long as Joshua was alive, and as long as the elders, those who had seen all the great things that Yahweh had done for Israel, were alive.
8 UJoshuwa indodana kaNuni, inceku yeNkosi, wafa-ke, eleminyaka elikhulu letshumi.
Then Yahweh’s servant Joshua died. He was 110 years old when he died.
9 Basebemngcwabela emngceleni welifa lakhe eThiminathi-Heresi entabeni yakoEfrayimi, enyakatho kwentaba iGahashi.
They buried his body in the area he had received [from Moses], at Timnath-Serah, in the area where the descendants of Ephraim lived, north of Gaash Mountain.
10 Njalo lalesosizukulwana sabuthelwa kuboyise. Kwasekusukuma esinye isizukulwana emva kwabo esasingayazi iNkosi njalo lomsebenzi eyayiwenzele uIsrayeli.
After all the people died who lived at the same time as Joshua [EUP], a group of people grew up who did not know Yahweh, and did not know what great things he had done for the Israeli people.
11 Abantwana bakoIsrayeli basebesenza okubi emehlweni eNkosi, bakhonza oBhali.
They did things that Yahweh said were very evil. They worshiped [idols that represented the god] Baal and the goddess Astarte. They worshiped [DOU] the various gods that the people-groups around them worshiped. They stopped worshiping Yahweh, the God their ancestors worshiped, the one who had brought their ancestors out of Egypt. That caused Yahweh to be very angry.
12 Batshiya iNkosi, uNkulunkulu waboyise, eyabakhupha elizweni leGibhithe, balandela abanye onkulunkulu, kubonkulunkulu bezizwe ezazibazingelezele, bakhothama kibo, bayithukuthelisa iNkosi.
13 Bayidela iNkosi, bakhonza uBhali laboAshitarothi.
14 Ngakho ulaka lweNkosi lwavutha kuIsrayeli, yabanikela esandleni sabaphangi ababaphangayo; yabathengisa esandleni sezitha zabo inhlangothi zonke, ukuze bangabe besaba lakho ukuma phambi kwazo.
So he allowed people from other groups to raid them and steal their crops and animals. They were no longer able to resist their enemies, and Yahweh allowed all their enemies around them to defeat them.
15 Loba bephuma besiya ngaphi, isandla seNkosi samelana labo ngokubi, njengokutsho kweNkosi lanjengokufunga kweNkosi kibo, njalo bacindezeleka kakhulu.
Whenever the Israelis went to fight [their enemies], Yahweh [MTY] was opposing them, and allowed their enemies to defeat them, just as he had promised he would do. So the Israelis were greatly distressed.
16 INkosi yasimisa abahluleli ababophula esandleni salabo ababaphangayo.
Then Yahweh gave leaders to them. These leaders rescued the Israelis from the people who were raiding them.
17 Kanti kababalalelanga labahluleli babo, kodwa baphinga ngokulandela abanye onkulunkulu, bakhothama kibo; baphambuka masinyane endleleni oyise ababehamba kuyo, belalela imilayo yeNkosi. Bona kabenzanga njalo.
But the Israelis still would not pay attention to their leaders. Instead, they went to the idols, [acting like] prostitutes [who gave themselves to men who were not their husbands] [MET], and they worshiped those idols. They were not like their ancestors. Their ancestors obeyed what Yahweh commanded, but their descendants quickly stopped behaving as their ancestors had behaved.
18 Lalapho iNkosi ibamisela abahluleli, iNkosi yayilomahluleli, yabophula esandleni sezitha zabo zonke izinsuku zikamahluleli; ngoba iNkosi yazisola ngenxa yokububula kwabo ngenxa yalabo ababacindezelayo lababahlukuluzayo.
Whenever Yahweh gave a leader to them, he helped that leader and enabled him to rescue the people from their enemies. He helped them like that as long as that leader was alive. Yahweh pitied them as they groaned because they were being oppressed and caused to suffer.
19 Kwasekusithi ekufeni kukamahluleli, babuyela emuva baxhwala okwedlula oyise, ngokulandela abanye onkulunkulu, ngokubakhonza langokubakhothamela; kabalahlanga okwemisebenzi yabo lokwendlela yabo yenkani.
But after that leader died, the people went back to behaving in ways even more evil than their ancestors had behaved. They worshiped other gods and bowed down to them and did all [LIT] the things that they thought those gods wanted them to do.
20 Ngakho ulaka lweNkosi lwavutha kuIsrayeli, yathi: Ngoba lesisizwe seqe isivumelwano sami engasilaya oyise, kasilalelanga ilizwi lami,
So Yahweh was very angry with the Israeli people. He said, “These people have disobeyed the agreement I made with their ancestors. They have not done what I told them to do.
21 lami kangisayikuxotsha loba ngubani elifeni phambi kwabo ezizweni uJoshuwa azitshiya ekufeni kwakhe,
So I will no longer expel the people-groups that Joshua left in this land when he died.
22 ukuze ngihlole ngazo uIsrayeli ukuthi bazagcina yini indlela yeNkosi ukuhamba kuyo njengaboyise bayigcina, kumbe hatshi.
I will use them to test the Israeli people to see whether they will do what I want them to do, as their ancestors did.”
23 Ngakho iNkosi yaziyekela lezozizwe, ukuze ingazixotshi elifeni masinyane, njalo kayizinikelanga esandleni sikaJoshuwa.
Yahweh had allowed those people-groups to stay in that land. He did not expel them by allowing Joshua [and his men] to defeat them.
