Nehemia 6
1 Shoko rakati rasvika kuna Sanibharati, Tobhia naGeshemu muArabhu uye noruzhinji rwavavengi vedu kuti ndakanga ndavakazve rusvingo uye pakanga pasina chakanga chasara parwuri, kunyange panguva iyoyo ndakanga ndisati ndamisa makonhi pamasuo,
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 Sanibharati naGeshemu vakatuma shoko kwandiri vachiti, “Uya tisangane pano mumwe wemisha iri mubani reOno.” Asi vakanga vachironga kundiitira zvakaipa.
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 Saka ndakatuma nhume kwavari nemhinduro ndichiti, “Ndine basa guru kwazvo randiri kuita, saka handigoni kuburukira kwamuri ikoko. Basa ringamirireiko ini ndichirisiya ndichimbouya kwamuri?”
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 Vakatuma shoko rimwe chetero kwandiri runa rwose, asi ndakavapindura zvimwe chetezvo nguva dzose.
They sent me the same message four times, and each time when I replied to them I said the same thing.
5 Zvino, Sanibharati akatumazve muranda wake kwandiri kechishanu, neshoko rimwe chetero netsamba mumaoko ake yakanga isina kunamwa.
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 Yakanga yakanyorwa zvinoti: “Pakati pamarudzi zvinotaurwa kuti, uye Geshemu anotiwo ichokwadi, iwe navaJudha muri kurangana kumukira mambo, ndokusaka muri kuvaka rusvingo. Pamusoro pezvo, iwe wava kuda kuva mambo wavo sokutaurwa kwazvo.
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 Uye wakatogadza vaprofita kuti vataure pamusoro pako muJerusarema vachiti: ‘MuJudha mava namambo!’ Zvino nyaya iyi ichasvika kuna mambo, saka uya titaurirane.”
[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 Ndakatumira mhinduro kwaari ndikati, “Hapana chinhu chakaita sechauri kutaura chiri kuitika; ndiwe uri kungozvifunga mumusoro mako.”
[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 Vose vaingoedza kutivhundutsira vachiti mumwoyo yavo, “Maoko avo achaneta nebasa, uye harizoperi.” Asi ndakanyengetera ndikati, “Simbisai maoko angu zvino.”
[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 Rimwe zuva ndakaenda kumba kwaShemaya mwanakomana waDheraya, mwanakomana waMehetabheri, uyo akanga azvipfigira mumba make, iye akati, “Ngatisangane mumba yaMwari mukati metemberi tigopfiga mikova yetemberi, nokuti kuna varume vari kuuya kuzokuuraya, panguva dzousiku vari kuuya kuzokuuraya.”
[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 Asi ini ndakati kwaari, “Murume akaita seni angatiza here? Uye munhu akaita seni angatizira mutemberi kuti aponese upenyu hwake here? Handidi kuenda ini!”
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 Ndakaona kuti Mwari akanga asina kumutuma asi kuti aiprofita zvakaipa pamusoro pangu nokuti akanga atengwa naTobhia naSanibharati.
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 Akanga atengwa kuti azondivhundutsira kuitira kuti ndiite chivi nokuita izvi, uye ipapo vagondipa zita rakaipa kuti vandisvibise.
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 Haiwa Mwari wangu, rangarirai henyu Tobhia naSanibharati, nokuda kwezvavaita; rangariraiwo muprofitakadzi Noadhia uye noruzhinji rwavaprofita avo vanga vachiedza kundivhundutsira.
[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 Naizvozvo rusvingo rwakapera nezuva ramakumi maviri namashanu romwedzi waEruri, mumazuva makumi mashanu namaviri.
On October 2 we finished rebuilding the wall. We did it all in 52 days.
16 Vavengi vedu vose vakati vanzwa izvi, marudzi ose akatipoteredza akatya uye vakaora mwoyo, nokuti vakaona kuti basa iri rakanga raitwa norubatsiro rwaMwari wedu.
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 Uyezve, mumazuva iwayo vakuru veJudha vaitumira matsamba akawanda kuna Tobhia, uye mhinduro dzaibva kuna Tobhia dzairamba dzichiuya kwavari.
During this time, the Jewish leaders had been sending many messages/letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah had been sending messages back to them.
18 Nokuti vazhinji muJudha vakanga vaita mhiko pasi pake, sezvo akanga ari mukuwasha kuna Shekania mwanakomana waAra, uye mwanakomana wake Jehohanani akanga akawana mwanasikana waMeshurami mwanakomana waBherekia.
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 Pamusoro paizvozvo, vairamba vachingondiudza mabasa ake akanaka uye ivo vachizomuudzawo zvandinenge ndataura. Uye Tobhia akatumira matsamba okundivhundutsira.
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.
