ULevi 26
1 Lingazenzeli izithombe, lingazimiseli isifanekiso esibaziweyo lensika eyisithombe, lingabeki elizweni lakini ilitshe elilemifanekiso ukulikhothamela; ngoba ngiyiNkosi uNkulunkulu wenu.
[Yahweh also said this to Moses/me on Sinai Mountain]: “Do not make idols or set up statues of false gods or sacred stones [to worship other gods]. And do not put on your property a stone that has been shaped [to resemble a false god] and bow down to [worship] it. [You must worship only] me, Yahweh, your God.
2 Gcinani amasabatha ami, lihloniphe indlu yami engcwele. NgiyiNkosi.
“Honor the Sabbath days and revere my Sacred Tent, because I, Yahweh, [live there].
3 Uba lihamba ngezimiso zami, ligcine imilayo yami, liyenze,
“If you carefully obey all my commands [DOU],
4 khona ngizanika izulu lenu ngesikhathi salo, lelizwe lizaveza isivuno salo, lezihlahla zeganga zithele isithelo sazo.
I will send rain for you at the proper/right times, in order that crops will grow on your land and there will be plenty of fruit on your trees.
5 Lesikhathi sokubhula kwenu sizafinyelela esikhathini sokuvuna amavini, lesikhathi sokuvuna amavini sizafinyelela esikhathini sokuhlanyela; njalo lizakudla ukudla kwenu lize lisuthe, lihlale livikelekile elizweni lakini.
You will continue [harvesting and] threshing [grain] until it is time to harvest grapes, and you will continue to harvest grapes until it is time to start planting [things in the following year]. And you will have all the food that you want to eat, and you will live safely in your land.
6 Njalo ngizanika ukuthula elizweni, lilale futhi kungelamuntu owethusayo, njalo ngisuse inyamazana ezimbi elizweni, lenkemba kayiyikudabula elizweni lakini.
“[If you obey all my laws], there will be peace in your country, and when you lie down [to sleep], nothing will cause you to be afraid. I will get rid of the dangerous animals in your country, and there will no wars [MTY] in your country.
7 Njalo lizaxotsha izitha zenu, zizakuwa-ke phambi kwenu ngenkemba.
You will pursue your enemies and kill them with your swords:
8 Labahlanu benu bazaxotsha ikhulu, labalikhulu benu bazaxotsha inkulungwane ezilitshumi; lezitha zenu zizakuwa phambi kwenu ngenkemba.
Five of you will pursue 100 of them, and 100 of you will pursue 1,000 of them and kill them with your swords.
9 Njalo ngizaphendukela kini, ngilenze ukuthi lizale, ngilandise, ngimise isivumelwano sami lani.
“[If you obey all my laws], I will bless you and cause you to have many children [DOU]. And I will do what I said that I would do in the agreement that I made with you.
10 Lizakudla-ke okudala okugciniweyo, likhuphe okudala ngenxa yokutsha.
When you are still eating food from the harvest from the previous year, it will be necessary for you to throw away some of it to make space for the new harvest.
11 Njalo ngizamisa ithabhanekele lami phakathi kwenu, lomphefumulo wami kawuyikunengwa yini.
I will live among you in my Sacred Tent, and I will never reject you.
12 Ngizahambahamba-ke phakathi kwenu, ngibe nguNkulunkulu wenu, lina libe ngabantu bami.
I will walk among you and continue to be your God, and you will continue to be my people.
13 NgiyiNkosi uNkulunkulu wenu owalikhupha elizweni leGibhithe ukuze lingabi yizigqili zabo; ngephule izikeyi zejogwe lenu, ngenze ukuthi lihambe leluleme.
I am Yahweh your God, the one who brought you out of Egypt in order that you would no longer be slaves of the people of Egypt. [When you were there, you were treated as though you were animals that worked for the people of Egypt, but] [MET] I broke the bars of the (yokes/frames that were put around your necks) and enabled you to walk with your heads up.”
14 Kodwa uba lingangilaleli, lingayenzi yonke le imilayo,
“But if you will not heed me and obey all these commands,
15 njalo uba lidelela izimiso zami, njalo uba umphefumulo wenu unengwa yizahlulelo zami, ukuze lingenzi yonke imilayo yami, ukwephula isivumelwano sami,
and if you reject [DOU] my decrees and laws, and do not do [DOU] what I commanded you to do in the agreement that I made with you,
16 lami ngizakwenza lokhu kini: Ngizamisa phezu kwenu ukwesaba okukhulu, isifo esicakisayo, lomkhuhlane, okuqeda amehlo, okwenza impilo iphele. Njalo inhlanyelo yenu lizayihlanyelela ize, ngoba izitha zenu zizayidla.
these are the things that I will do to you: I will suddenly cause there to be disasters that will ruin you. You will have diseases that cannot be cured, and fevers that will cause you to become blind and will slowly kill you. It will be useless for you to plant seeds, because your enemies will eat the crops that grow.
17 Njalo ngizamisa ubuso bami bumelane lani, njalo litshaywe phambi kwezitha zenu. Labalizondayo bazalibusa, libaleke kungelamuntu olixotshayo.
I will reject/abandon you [IDM], with the result that you will be defeated by your enemies. Then those who hate you will rule you, and [you will be so terrified that] you will run away even when no one is pursuing you.
18 Kodwa uba ngalezizinto lingangilaleli, ngizakwengeza ngilijezise kasikhombisa ngenxa yezono zenu,
“If you still will not heed me after all those things happen to you, I will continue to punish you again and again for the sins that you have committed.
19 ngephule ukuziphakamisa kwamandla enu, ngenze isibhakabhaka senu sibe njengensimbi, lomhlabathi wenu njengethusi;
I will cause you to no longer be stubborn and proud; I will cause [no rain to fall; it will be as though] [MET] the sky is made of iron; and the ground will be [as hard as] brass [MET].
20 lamandla enu azachithelwa ize, ngoba ilizwe lenu kaliyikuveza isivuno salo, lezihlahla zelizwe kaziyikuthela isithelo sazo.
You will uselessly work very hard [to plant seeds], because crops will not grow in the hard soil in your fields, and fruit will not grow on your trees.
21 Uba-ke lihamba ngokuphambene lami, lingafuni ukungilalela, ngizakwengezelela kini inhlupheko kasikhombisa ngokwezono zenu.
“If you continue to oppose me and refuse to heed me, I will cause you to experience disasters again and again, like you deserve to experience because of your sins.
22 Ngizathumela phakathi kwenu izilo zeganga ezizalemuka abantwana benu, zichithe izifuyo zenu, zilenze libe balutshwana, lezindlela zenu zibe yinkangala.
I will send wild animals to attack you, and they will kill your little children and destroy your cattle. There will be very few of you who will remain alive, with the result that there will be very few [HYP] people walking on the roads in your country.
23 Njalo uba lingavumi ukuxwayiswa yimi ngalezizinto, kodwa lihamba ngokuphambene lami,
“When you experience those things that I do to punish you, if you still do not pay attention to me, and if you continue to oppose me,
24 lami ngizahamba ngokuphambene lani, lami ngilitshaye kasikhombisa ngenxa yezono zenu.
I myself will oppose you, and I will punish you for your sins again and again.
25 Ngizakwehlisela inkemba phezu kwenu ezaphindisela impindiselo yesivumelwano. Uba libuthana emizini yenu, ngizathumela umatshayabhuqe wesifo phakathi kwenu, njalo linikelwe esandleni sesitha.
I will send [foreign] [MTY] to punish you for not doing the things that I commanded you to do in the agreement that I made with you. If you [try to escape from your enemies by] shutting yourselves in your cities [that have walls around them], I will cause you to experience plagues, and I will allow your enemies to capture [IDM] you.
26 Lapho ngilephulela udondolo lwesinkwa, abesifazana abalitshumi bazabhaka isinkwa senu eziko elilodwa, babuyise isinkwa senu ngesisindo; njalo lizakudla, kodwa lingasuthi.
When I cut off your food supply, there will be very little flour with which to make bread. As a result, ten women will be able to bake all their bread in [only] one oven. [When the bread is baked], each woman will divide it [among the members of her family, but there will be very little for each one], and when they have eaten all of it, they will still be hungry.
27 Kodwa uba lingangilaleli kulokhu, lihambe ngokuphambene lami,
“After all those things happen, if you still do not heed me, if you still oppose me,
28 lami ngizahamba ngokuphambene lani ngilentukuthelo, lami ngilijezise kasikhombisa ngenxa yezono zenu.
I will be very angry with you, and I will oppose you, and I myself will punish you for your sins again and again.
29 Njalo lizakudla inyama yamadodana enu lenyama yamadodakazi enu lizayidla.
[You will be extremely hungry, with the result that] you will [kill] your sons and daughters and eat their flesh.
30 Njalo ngizachitha indawo zenu eziphakemeyo, ngidilize amalathi enu elanga, ngiphosele izidumbu zenu phezu kwezidumbu zezithombe zenu, lomphefumulo wami unengwe yini.
I will cause the shrines [where you worship idols] on hilltops to be destroyed. I will smash the altars where you burn incense [to worship your gods], and I will cause your corpses to be piled on the lifeless statues of your gods. And I will detest you.
31 Ngizakwenza-ke imizi yenu ibe lunxiwa, ngidilize izindlu zenu ezingcwele; kangiyikunuka uqhatshi lwenu olumnandi.
I will cause your cities to become heaps of ruins, and I will cause the buildings that are dedicated to the worship of your gods to be smashed. And I will not be pleased at all with the aroma of your offerings [that are burned on the altar].
32 Mina-ke ngizachitha ilizwe ukuze izitha zenu ezihlala kulo zikhakhamale ngalo.
I will completely ruin your country, with the result that even your enemies who capture it will be shocked/appalled [when they see it].
33 Njalo ngizalihlakazela ezizweni, ngihwatshe inkemba emva kwenu; lelizwe lakini lizakuba yincithakalo, lemizi yenu ibe lunxiwa.
I will enable [your enemies to kill you with] their swords, and I will cause the rest of you to be scattered among other nations. Your country will be ruined and your cities will become ruins.
34 Khona ilizwe lizathokoza ngamasabatha alo zonke izinsuku zencithakalo, liselizweni lezitha zenu; khona ilizwe lizaphumula, lithokoze ngamasabatha alo.
After that happens, as long as you are living in your enemies’ countries, your land will be allowed to rest, like you should have allowed it to rest every seven years.
35 Zonke insuku zencithakalo lizaphumula, ngoba kaliphumulanga ngamasabatha enu lisahlala kilo.
All the time that your land is desolate, it will be able to rest, like you did not enable it to rest during all the years that you lived there.
36 Mayelana lalabo abaseleyo phakathi kwenu, ngizathuma ubuthakathaka enhliziyweni zabo emazweni ezitha zabo; lomsindo wehlamvu eliphephukayo uzabaxotsha, bazabaleka njengomuntu obalekela inkemba, bawe kungelamuntu obaxotshayo.
“As for you people who will remain alive in the countries to which your enemies [will have taken you], I will cause you to become so afraid that when you hear the sound of leaves being blown by the wind, you will run away. You will run like [SIM] you are running from [a man carrying] a sword, and you will fall down, even though no one is pursuing you.
37 Bazakhubeka omunye phezu komunye kungathi kuphambi kwenkemba, kungelamuntu obaxotshayo. Kaliyikuba lakho ukuma phambi kwezitha zenu.
You will stumble over each other. So you will not be able to stand and fight your enemies.
38 Njalo lizabhubha phakathi kwezizwe, lelizwe lezitha zenu lizakulidla.
Many of you will die in the countries that belong to your enemies [DOU].
39 Labaseleyo phakathi kwenu bazacikizeka ebubini babo emazweni ezitha zabo, yebo lebubini baboyise bazacikizeka kanye labo.
And those of you who remain alive will slowly die and rot in the countries of your enemies because of your sins and because of the sins of your ancestors.
40 Uba bezavuma ububi babo lobubi baboyise, lesiphambeko sabo abaphambeka ngaso kimi, yebo futhi ukuthi bahambe ngokuphambene lami,
“But your descendants must confess their sins and the sins that their ancestors committed. Their ancestors acted unfaithfully toward me and were hostile to me, with the result that I forced them to go to the countries that belonged to their enemies. But when your descendants humble themselves [SYN] and stop being very stubborn [IDM] and accept being punished for their sins,
41 lami ngihambe ngokuphambene labo, ngibase elizweni lezitha zabo. Uba ngalesosikhathi inhliziyo yabo engasokanga izathotshiswa, langalesosikhathi bemukele ngokuthokoza ukutshaywa ngenxa yobubi babo,
42 khona ngizakhumbula isivumelwano sami loJakobe, yebo lesivumelwano sami loIsaka, yebo lesivumelwano sami loAbrahama ngisikhumbule, lelizwe ngilikhumbule.
I will remember the agreement that I made with [your ancestors] Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, and [what I promised them about] this land.
43 Lelizwe lizatshiywa yibo, lithokoze ngamasabatha alo lisachithekile lingelabo. Bona bazakwemukela ngokuthokoza ukutshaywa ngenxa yobubi babo, ngoba, yebo ngoba badelela izahlulelo zami, lomphefumulo wabo wanengwa yizimiso zami.
But [before that happens], you will be forced to leave your land, with the result that the land will be able to rest while it is desolate and while the people are being punished for rejecting my laws and hating my decrees [DOU].
44 Kanti-ke lalokhu, lapho beselizweni lezitha zabo, kangiyikubadelela, futhi kangiyikunengwa yibo ukuze ngibaqothule, ngephule isivumelwano sami labo, ngoba ngiyiNkosi uNkulunkulu wabo.
But when that happens, I will still not reject them or hate them and destroy them completely. I will not cancel the agreement that I made with them; for I am still Yahweh their God.
45 Kodwa ngizabakhumbulela isivumelwano sabokhokho babo engabakhupha elizweni leGibhithe phambi kwamehlo ezizwe, ukuze ngibe nguNkulunkulu wabo. NgiyiNkosi.
I will (remember/never forget) the agreement that I made with your ancestors when I brought them out of Egypt, in order that the people of all nations will know that I, Yahweh, [will continue to] be your God.”
46 Lezi yizimiso lezahlulelo lemilayo iNkosi ekunikileyo phakathi kwayo labantwana bakoIsrayeli entabeni yeSinayi ngesandla sikaMozisi.
Those are the decrees, the laws, and the regulations [DOU] that Yahweh established on Sinai Mountain between himself and the Israeli people by [giving them to] Moses/me [to tell to them].
