Nahimiyaa 6
1 Ani hamma yeroo sanaatti cuftuu balbalaa itti galchuu baadhu illee Sanbalaax, Xoobbiyaan, Gesheem namicha Arabaa sanaa fi diinonni keenya biraan akka ani dallaa sana deebisee ijaaree iddoon hin ijaaramin tokko iyyuu hin hafin dhageenyaan
Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem, and our other enemies heard [a report] that we had finished rebuilding the wall, and that now there were no more (gaps/places where the wall was not finished) (although we had not yet put the doors in the gates).
2 Sanbalaaxii fi Gesheem, “Kottu mee gandoota dirree Oonoo irra jiran keessaa isa tokko keessatti wal arginaa” jedhanii ergaa kana natti ergan. Isaan garuu na miidhuuf malachaa turan;
So Sanballat and Geshem sent [a message] to me, in which they said “Come and talk with us at a place in Ono Plain [north of Jerusalem].” But [I knew that] really they wanted to harm me [if I went there].
3 kanaafuu ani akkana jedhee ergamoota isaanittin erge; “Ani waan hojii guddaa hojjechaa jiruuf gad buʼuu hin dandaʼu. Yeroo ani hojii dhiisee gara keessanitti gad buʼuutti hojiin maaliif dhaabata?”
So I sent messengers to them, to tell them, “I am doing an important work, and I cannot go down [there]. (Why should I stop doing this work just to go down to [talk with] you?/I do not want to stop doing this work just to go down to [talk with] you.)” [RHQ]
4 Isaan ergaadhuma tokko siʼa afur natti ergan; anis siʼa afranuu deebiidhuma tokkon kenneef.
They sent me the same message four times, and each time when I replied to them I said the same thing.
5 Sanbalaaxis ergaadhuma sana garbicha isaa tokkoon yeroo shanaffaa natti erge; garbichi sunis xalayaa hin cufamin tokko harkaa qaba ture.
Then Sanballat sent one of his servants to me, bringing a fifth message. This one was written, but it was not sealed. [He did that in order that others would read the message that the servant was carrying] in his hand.
6 Xalayichis akkana jedha: “Akka atii fi Yihuudoonni finciluu barbaaddan uummata keessatti odeeffameera; Gesheemis kanuma mirkaneessa. Wanni isin dallaa ijaartaniifis kanuma; akka oduu kanaatti ati mootii isaanii taʼuu barbaadda;
This is what was written in the message: “Some people in the nearby countries have heard a report that you and the other Jews are rebuilding the wall [in order to be able to resist attacks], because you are planning to revolt [against the king of Babylon]. And the report also says that you are planning to become the king [of the Israelis]. Geshem says that what they have reported is true.
7 ati akka isaan, ‘Yihuudaa keessa mootii tokkotu jira!’ jedhanii waaʼee kee Yerusaalem keessatti labsaniif raajota muudatteerta. Oduun kun gara mootichaatti ni deebiʼa; kanaafuu kottu wajjin ni mariʼannaa.”
[People are also saying that] you have appointed some prophets to proclaim in Jerusalem that you, [Nehemiah, ] are now the king in Judea. King [Artaxerxes] will certainly hear these reports, [and then you will be in big trouble]. So I suggest that we should meet together to talk about this matter.”
8 Kana irratti ani, “Wanni akka waan ati dubbattu kanaa tokko illee hin hojjetamne; ati matuma kee keessaa fuutee dubbattaa” jedheen deebiseef.
[When I read that message, ] I sent [the messenger] back to Sanballat to say, “None of what you are saying is true. You have (made this up/concocted this) in your own head/mind.”
9 Isaan hundi, “Harki jara kanaa hojii hojjechuu ni dadhaba; hojiin kunis hin dhumu” jedhanii yaaduudhaan nu sodaachisuu yaalaa turan. Ani garuu, “Amma harka koo naa jajjabeessi” jedheen Waaqa kadhadhe.
[I said that because I knew that] they were trying to cause us to be afraid, with the result that we would stop working [on the wall]. So I actually became more determined (OR, I prayed to God to help me) [to continue the work].
10 Anis gaaf tokko mana Shemaaʼiyaa ilma Delaayaa, ilma Maheexabiʼeel kan manuma ofii isaa keessatti itti cufame sanaa nan dhaqe. Innis akkana jedhe; “Sababii namoonni si ajjeesuuf dhufaa jiraniif, sababii isaan si ajjeesuuf halkaniin dhufaa jiraniif kottu mana Waaqaatti, mana qulqullummaa keessatti wal arginee balbalawwan mana qulqullummaa haa cufannu.”
[One day] I went to talk with Shemaiah, son of Delaiah and grandson of Mehetabel. I went to talk with him in his house, because he was not able (OR, allowed) to leave his house. He said to me, “You and I must enter the very sacred place in the temple and lock the doors, because people are going to come to kill you at night.”
11 Ani immoo, “Namni akka kootii kun baqachuu qabaa? Yookaan namni na fakkaatu tokko lubbuu ofii isaa oolfachuudhaaf jedhee mana qulqullummaa seenuu qabaa? Ani hin deemu!” jedheen.
I replied, “I (am not that kind of person/do not do things like that) [RHQ]! I would not run and hide in the temple to save my life! No, I will not do that!”
12 Ani akka Waaqni isa natti hin ergin beekkadheera; inni garuu sababii Xoobbiyaa fi Sanbalaaxi isa bitataniif waaʼee koo waan hamaa raaje.
When I thought [about what he had said], I realized that God had not told Shemaiah to say that to me. I realized that Tobiah and Sanballat had bribed him [to say that to me].
13 Inni na sodaachisee akka ani waan kana hojjechuudhaan cubbuu hojjedhuuf, akka isaanis akkasiin maqaa hamaa naa kennanii maqaa na balleessaniif bitame.
They had bribed him to cause me to be afraid. They wanted me to [disobey God’s commands and] sin [by hiding in the temple]. If I did that, they would be able to ruin my reputation [MTY] and discredit me.
14 Yaa Waaqa ko, sababii waan isaan hojjetan sanaaf jedhiitii Xoobbiyaa fi Sanbalaaxin yaadadhu; raajjuu Nooʼadiyaa jedhamtuu fi raajota na sodaachisuu yaalan kaanis yaadadhu.
[So I prayed, ] “My God, do not forget what Tobiah and Sanballat have done. Punish them. And do not forget that the female prophet Noadiah and some of the other prophets have also tried to cause me to be afraid.”
15 Akkasiinis dallaan sun bultii shantamii lamatti, jiʼa Eeluuli jedhamu keessa bultii digdamii shanaffaatti ijaaramee dhume.
On October 2 we finished rebuilding the wall. We did it all in 52 days.
16 Yommuu diinonni keenya hundi oduu kana dhagaʼanitti, saboonni naannoo keenyaa hundi sodaatanii abdii kutatan; isaan akka hojiin kun gargaarsa Waaqa keenyaan hojjetame hubataniiruutii.
When our enemies in the nearby countries heard about that, they realized that they had been humiliated, because everyone knew that it was because God helped us that we had been able to do this work [and that they had not been able to force us to quit].
17 Bara sana keessa namoonni Yihuudaa bebeekamoon xalayoota hedduu gara Xoobbiyaatti ergaa turan; Xoobbiyaanis deebii isaaniif ni erga ture.
During this time, the Jewish leaders had been sending many messages/letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah had been sending messages back to them.
18 Sababii inni soddaa Shekaaniyaa ilma Aaraa tureef namoonni Yihuudaa keessa jiraatan hedduun isaaf kakatan; akkasumas ilmi isaa Yehohaanaan intala Meshulaam ilma Berekiyaa fuudhee ture.
Many people in Judea were closely associated with Tobiah, because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah the son of Arah. Furthermore, Tobiah’s son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berekiah.
19 Kana malees isaan hojii isaa gaarii natti odeessaa, waan ani jedhe illee isatti himaa turan. Xoobbiyaan immoo na sodaachisuuf jedhee xalayoota natti ergaa ture.
People often talked in my presence about all the good things that Tobiah had done, and then they would tell him everything that I said. So Tobiah sent many letters to me to try to cause me to become afraid.
