Sefania 1
1 Neno la Bwana lililomjia Sefania mwana wa Kushi, mwana wa Gedalia, mwana wa Amaria, mwana wa Hezekia, wakati wa utawala wa Yosia mwana wa Amoni mfalme wa Yuda:
The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah.
2 Bwana asema, “Nitafagia kila kitu kutoka kwenye uso wa dunia.”
I will take away everything from the face of the earth, says the Lord.
3 “Nitafagilia mbali watu na wanyama; nitafagilia mbali ndege wa angani na samaki wa baharini. Wafanyao maovu watapata tu kokoto, nami nitamkatilia mbali mwanadamu atoke katika dunia,” asema Bwana.
I will take away man and beast; I will take away the birds of the heaven and the fishes of the sea; causing the downfall of the evil-doers, and cutting man off from the face of the earth, says the Lord.
4 “Nitaiadhibu Yuda na wote wakaao Yerusalemu. Kutoka mahali hapa nitakatilia mbali kila mabaki ya Baali, majina ya wapagani na makuhani waabuduo sanamu:
And my hand will be stretched out on Judah and on all the people of Jerusalem, cutting off the name of the Baal from this place, and the name of the false priests,
5 wale ambao husujudu juu ya mapaa kuabudu jeshi la vitu vya angani, wale ambao husujudu na kuapa kwa Bwana na ambao pia huapa kwa Malkamu,
And the worshippers of the army of heaven on the house-tops, and the Lord's worshippers who take oaths by Milcom,
6 wale wanaoacha kumfuata Bwana, wala hawamtafuti Bwana wala kutaka shauri lake.
And those who are turned back from going after the Lord, and those who have not made prayer to the Lord or got directions from him.
7 Nyamazeni mbele za Bwana Mwenyezi, kwa maana siku ya Bwana iko karibu. Bwana ameandaa dhabihu, amewaweka wakfu wale aliowaalika.
Let there be no sound before the Lord God: for the day of the Lord is near: for the Lord has made ready an offering, he has made his guests holy.
8 Katika siku ya dhabihu ya Bwana nitawaadhibu wakuu na wana wa mfalme na wale wote wanaovaa nguo za kigeni.
And it will come about in the day of the Lord's offering, that I will send punishment on the rulers and the king's sons and all who are clothed in robes from strange lands.
9 Katika siku hiyo nitaadhibu wote ambao hukwepa kukanyaga kizingiti, ambao hujaza hekalu la miungu yao kwa dhuluma na udanganyifu.”
And in that day I will send punishment on all those who come jumping over the doorstep and make their master's house full of violent behaviour and deceit.
10 Bwana asema, “Katika siku hiyo kilio kitapanda juu kutoka lango la Samaki, maombolezo kutoka mtaa wa pili, na mshindo mkubwa kutoka vilimani.
And in that day, says the Lord, there will be the sound of a cry from the fish doorway, and an outcry from the new town, and a great thundering from the hills, and cries of grief from the people of the Hollow;
11 Ombolezeni, ninyi mnaoishi katika eneo la sokoni; wafanyabiashara wenu wote wameangamizwa, wote ambao wanafanya biashara ya fedha wataangamizwa.
Because of the downfall of all the people of Canaan: all those who were weighted down with silver have been cut off.
12 Wakati huo nitasaka mji wa Yerusalemu kwa taa, na kuwaadhibu wale ambao wanakaa katika hali ya kuridhika, ambao ni kama divai iliyobaki kwenye machicha, ambao hudhani, ‘Bwana hatafanya lolote, jema au baya.’
And it will come about at that time, that I will go searching through Jerusalem with lights; and I will send punishment on the men who have become like wine stored over-long, who say to themselves, The Lord will not do good and will not do evil.
13 Utajiri wao utatekwa nyara, nyumba zao zitabomolewa. Watajenga nyumba, lakini hawataishi ndani yake; watapanda mizabibu lakini hawatakunywa divai yake.
And their wealth will be violently taken away, and their houses will be made waste: they will go on building houses and never living in them, and planting vine-gardens but not drinking the wine from them.
14 “Siku kubwa ya Bwana iko karibu: iko karibu na inakuja haraka. Sikilizeni! Kilio katika siku ya Bwana kitakuwa kichungu, hata shujaa atapiga kelele.
The great day of the Lord is near, it is near and coming very quickly; the bitter day of the Lord is near, coming on more quickly than a man of war.
15 Siku ile ni siku ya ghadhabu, siku ya fadhaa na dhiki, siku ya uharibifu na ukiwa, siku ya giza na utusitusi, siku ya mawingu na giza nene,
That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and sorrow, a day of wasting and destruction, a day of dark night and deep shade, a day of cloud and thick dark.
16 siku ya tarumbeta na mlio wa vita dhidi ya miji yenye ngome na dhidi ya minara mirefu.
A day of sounding the horn and the war-cry against the walled towns and the high towers.
17 Nitawaletea watu dhiki, nao watatembea kama vipofu, kwa sababu wametenda dhambi dhidi ya Bwana. Damu yao itamwagwa kama vumbi na matumbo yao kama taka.
And I will send trouble on men so that they will go about like the blind, because they have done evil against the Lord: and their blood will be drained out like dust, and their strength like waste.
18 Fedha yao wala dhahabu yao hazitaweza kuwaokoa katika siku hiyo ya ghadhabu ya Bwana. Katika moto wa wivu wake dunia yote itateketezwa, kwa maana ataleta mwisho wa wote wanaoishi katika dunia ghafula.”
Even their silver and their gold will not be able to keep them safe in the day of the Lord's wrath; but all the land will be burned up in the fire of his bitter wrath: for he will put an end, even suddenly, to all who are living in the land.
