Vatongi 19
1 Mumazuva iwayo Israeri yakanga isina mambo. Zvino mumwe muRevhi akanga achigara munyika iri kure yezvikomo yeEfuremu akatora murongo aibva kuBheterehema muJudha.
At that time the Israeli people had no king. There was a man from the tribe of Levi who lived in a remote place in the hilly area where the tribe of Ephraim lives. He had previously taken as a wife a woman who was a slave. She was from Bethlehem, in the area where the tribe of Judah lives.
2 Asi akanga asina kutendeka kwaari. Akamusiya akadzokerazve kumba kwababa vake kuBheterehema, Judha. Mushure mokunge agarako kwemwedzi mina,
But she started to sleep with other men also. Then she left him and returned to her father’s house in Bethlehem. She stayed there for four months.
3 murume wake akaenda kwaari kundomunyengetedza kuti adzoke. Akanga ane muranda wake nembongoro mbiri. Akamupinza mumba mababa vake, uye baba vake vakati vamuona, vakamugamuchira nomufaro.
Then her husband took his servant and two donkeys and went to Bethlehem. He went to ask her to come back to live with him again. When he arrived at her father’s house, she invited him to come in. Her father was happy to see him.
4 Tezvara vake, ivo baba vomusikana, vakamugombedzera kuti agare; saka akagara naye kwamazuva matatu, vachidya nokunwa uye achivatapo.
The woman’s father asked him to stay. So he stayed there for three days. During that time he ate and drank and slept there.
5 Pazuva rechina vakamuka mangwanani vakagadzirira kuti vaende, asi baba vomusikana vakati kumukuwasha wavo, “Simbisa mwoyo wako nechokudya; ipapo mugoenda henyu.”
On the fourth day, they all got up early in the morning. The man from the tribe of Levi was preparing to leave, but the woman’s father said to him, “Eat something before you go.”
6 Saka vose vari vaviri vakagara pasi kuti vadye nokunwa pamwe chete. Mushure maizvozvo, baba vomusikana vakati, “Ndapota chivata hako usiku uno uye umbofara.”
So the two men sat down to eat and drink together. Then the woman’s father said to him, “Please stay another night. Relax/Rest and have a joyful time.”
7 Uye murume uyu akati asimuka kuti aende, tezvara vake vakamunyengetedza, saka akavatapo usiku uhwo.
The man from the tribe of Levi wanted to leave, but the woman’s father requested him to stay one more night. So he stayed again that night.
8 Mangwanani ezuva reshanu, paakamuka kuti aende, baba vomusikana vakati, “Simbisa mwoyo wako. Gara kusvikira masikati!” Saka vose vari vaviri vakadya pamwe chete.
On the fifth day, the man got up early and prepared to leave. But the woman’s father said to him again, “Have something to eat. Wait until this afternoon, [and then leave].” So the two men ate together.
9 Ipapo murume, murongo wake uye nomuranda wake, vakati vasimuka kuti vaende, tezvara wake, baba vomusikana vakati, “Zvino chiona kwava kudoka. Chivata hako pano usiku huno; kwavira. Gara ufadze mwoyo wako. Mangwana mangwanani, ungamuka ugopinda hako munzira yako.”
In the afternoon, when the man from the tribe of Levi and his slave wife and his servant got up to leave, the woman’s father said, “It will soon be dark. The day is almost over. Stay here tonight and have a good/joyful time. Tomorrow morning you can get up early and leave for your home.”
10 Asi, nokusada kuvatazve humwe usiku, murume uya akabuda akaenda akananga kuJebhusi (ndiro Jerusarema), nembongoro dzake mbiri dzakaiswa zvigaro, nomurongo wake.
But the man from the tribe of Levi did not want to stay for another night. He put saddles on his two donkeys, and started to go with his slave wife [and his servant] toward Jebus [city], which is [now named] Jerusalem.
11 Vakati vava pedyo neJebhusi uye zuva rakanga rovira, muranda akati kuna tenzi wake, “Uyai, titsaukire muguta iri ravaJebhusi tindovatamo.”
Late in the afternoon, they came near to Jebus. The servant said to his master, “We should stop in this city where the Jebus people-group live, and stay here tonight.”
12 Tenzi wake akapindura akati, “Kwete. Hatingapindi muguta ravatorwa, vanhu varo zvavasiri vaIsraeri. Tichapfuurira kuGibhea.”
But his master said, “No, it would not be good for us to stay here where foreign people live. There are no Israeli people here. We will go on to Gibeah [city].”
13 Akaenderera mberi akati, “Uyai, tiedze kusvika kuGibhea kana kuRama tigovata mune imwe yenzvimbo idzi.”
He said to his servant, “Let’s go. It is not far to Gibeah. We can go there, or we can go a bit further to Ramah. We can stay in one of those two cities tonight.”
14 Saka vakapfuurira mberi, uye zuva rakavira pavakanga vasvika muGibhea muBhenjamini.
So they continued walking. When they came near Gibeah, where people from the tribe of Benjamin live, the sun was setting.
15 Imomo, ndimo mavakamira kuti vavate. Vakaenda vakandogara muchivara cheguta, asi hapana munhu akavatora akavapinza mumba make usiku.
They stopped to stay there that night. They went to the public square of that city and sat down. But no one [who passed by] invited them to stay in their house for that night.
16 Madekwana iwayo, imwe harahwa yaibva munyika yezvikomo yeEfuremu, yaigara muGibhea (vanhu venzvimbo vaiva vaBhenjamini), yakasvika ichibva kubasa rayo kumunda.
Finally, in the evening, an old man came by. He had been working in the fields. He was from the hilly area of the tribe of Ephraim, but at that time he was living in Gibeah.
17 Yakati yatarira ikaona mufambi ari muchivara cheguta, harahwa yakabvunza ikati, “Uri kuendepiko? Wabvepiko?”
He realized that the man from the tribe of Levi was only traveling and did not have a home in that city. So he asked the man, “Where have you come from? And where are you going?”
18 Akapindura akati, “Tiri kubva kuBheterehema muJudha; tiri kuenda kure kunyika yezvikomo yeEfuremu, ndiko kwandinogara. Ndakanga ndiri kuBheterehema muJudha, asi iye zvino ndiri kuenda kumba kwaJehovha. Hapana munhu anditora akandipinza mumba make.
He replied, “We are traveling from Bethlehem to my home in the hilly area where people of the tribe of Ephraim live. I went from there to Bethlehem, but now we are going to [Shiloh] where Yahweh’s Sacred tent (OR, my house) is. No one here has invited us to stay in their house tonight.
19 Tine zvose mashanga nouswa hwembongoro dzedu uye chingwa chedu newaini yedu, isu varanda venyu, ini, murandakadzi wenyu, nejaya ratinaro. Hatina chinhu chatingada hedu.”
We have straw and food for our donkeys, and bread and wine for me and the young woman and my servant. We do not need anything else.”
20 Harahwa yakati, “Munogona kuuya kumba kwangu. Ndichakupai zvose zvamunoshayiwa. Asi bedzi usavata pachivara.”
The old man said, “I wish that things will go well for you, but I would like to provide what you need. Do not stay here in the square tonight.”
21 Saka akamutora akamupinza mumba make uye akapa mbongoro dzake zvokudya. Vakati vashamba tsoka dzavo, vakadya zvokudya uye vakanwa.
Then the old man took them to his house. He gave food to the donkeys. He [gave water to the man and the woman and the servant to] wash their feet. And he gave them something to eat and drink.
22 Vachiri pakufara havo, vamwe vanhu vakaipa vomuguta vakakomba imba. Vachigogodza pamukova, vakadanidzira kuharahwa yakanga iri iyo muridzi weimba vachiti, “Budisa murume uyo apinda mumba mako kuti tivate naye.”
While they were having a good/joyful time together, some wicked men from that city surrounded the house and started to bang on the door. They shouted to the old man, “Bring out to us the man who has come to your house. We want to have sex with him.”
23 Muridzi wemba akabuda panze akati kwavari, “Kwete, shamwari dzangu, regai kuita zvakaipa kudai. Sezvo murume uyu ari mueni wangu, regai kuita chinhu ichi chinonyadzisa kudai.
The old man went outside and said to them, “Friends, I will not do that. That would be a very evil thing. This man is a guest in my house. You should not do such a terrible/disgraceful/shameful thing!
24 Tarirai, heyi mhandara mwanasikana wangu uyu, nemurongo wake. Ndichavabudisa kwamuri izvozvi, uye munogona kuvabata mugoita kwavari zvose zvamunoda. Asi kumurume uyu, regai kuita chinhu chinonyadzisa zvakadaro.”
Look, my daughter is here. She is [still] a virgin. And this man’s slave wife is here. I will bring them out to you now. You may do to them whatever you wish, but do not do such a terrible/disgraceful/shameful thing to this young man!”
25 Asi varume ava havana kuda kumuteerera. Saka murume uyu akatora murongo wake akamuendesa kunze kwavari, uye vakamubata chibharo vakamuchinya usiku hwose, uye panguva dzamambakwedza vakamuregedza kuti aende.
But the men did not pay attention to what he said. So the man from the tribe of Levi took his slave wife and sent her to them, outside the house. They raped [EUP] her and abused her all night. Then at dawn, they allowed her to go.
26 Kwaedza, mukadzi akadzokera kumba kwaigara tenzi wake, akawira pasi pamukova wemba uye akavatapo kusvikira kwaedza.
She returned to the old man’s house, where her husband was staying, but she fell down at the doorway and lay there all night.
27 Tenzi wake akati achimuka mangwanani akazarura mukova wemba akabuda panze kuti afambire mberi norwendo rwake, onei hoyo murongo wake avete akawira pasi pamukova wemba, maoko ake ari pachikumbaridzo.
In the morning, when the man from the tribe of Levi got up, he went outside of the house to continue his journey. He saw his slave wife lying there at the doorway of the house. Her hands were on the doorsill.
28 Iye akati kwaari, “Muka; handei.” Asi pakanga pasina mhinduro. Ipapo murume uya akamuisa pambongoro akasimuka akaenda kumusha.
He said to her, “Get up! Let’s go!” But she did not answer, [because she had died]. He put her body on the donkey and traveled to his home.
29 Akati achisvika kumusha, akatora banga akagura-gura murongo wake, mutezo muzvidimbu gumi nezviviri akazvitumira munzvimbo dzose dzeIsraeri.
When he arrived home, he took a knife and cut the body of the slave woman into twelve pieces. Then he sent one piece to each area of Israel, [along with a message telling what had happened].
30 Mumwe nomumwe akazviona akati, “Chinhu chakadai hachina kutongoonekwa kana kuitwa, kubva pazuva rakabuda vaIsraeri muIjipiti. Fungai pamusoro pazvo! Zvicherechedzei! Tiudzei zvokuita!”
Everyone who saw a piece of the body and the message said, “Nothing like this has ever happened before. Not since our ancestors left Egypt [have we heard of such a terrible thing]. We need to think carefully about it. Someone should decide what we should do.”
