2 Wafalme 3
1 Basi katika mwaka wa kumi na nane wa Yehoshefati mfalme wa Yuda, Yoramu mwana wa Ahabu alianza kutawala juu ta Israeli katika Samaria; alitawala miaka kumi na miwili.
After Jehoshaphat had been ruling Judah for almost 18 years, Ahab’s son Joram became the king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria [city] for twelve years.
2 Alifanya yaliyo maovo usoni kwa Yahwe, lakini si kama baba yake na mama yake; kwa kuwa aliiondoa ile nguzo ya mungu wa Baali ambayo baba yake aliitengeneza.
He did things that Yahweh considered to be evil, but he did not do as much evil as his father and mother had done, and he got rid of the pillar [for worshiping] Baal which his father had made.
3 Hata hivyo alishikilia dhambi za Yeroboamu mwana wa Nebati, ambaye alisababisha Israeli kufanya dhambi; wala hakuziacha mbali nao.
But he committed the sins that [King] Jeroboam had committed and which led the Israeli people to sin, and he did not stop committing those sins.
4 Basi Mesha mfalme wa Moabu alifuga kondoo. Alikuwa akimpatia mfalme wa Israeli kondoo 100, 000 na manyoya ya kondoo dume 100, 000.
Mesha, the king of Moab, raised sheep. [Every year] he was forced to give 100,000 lambs and the wool from 100,000 rams to the king of Israel, [because his kingdom was controlled by the king of Israel].
5 Ila baada ya Ahabu kufa, yule mfalme wa Moabu aliasi dhidi ya mfalme wa Israeli.
But after King Ahab died, Mesha rebelled against the king of Israel.
6 Hivyo Mfalme Joramu alikaondoka Samaria katika muda huo kuwahamasisha Waisraeli wote kwa ajili ya vita.
So King Joram left Samaria and gathered together all his soldiers.
7 Akatuma mjumbe kwa Yehoshafati mfalme wa Yuda, akisema, “Mfalme wa Moabu ameasi dhidi yangu. Je mtakwenda pamoja nami kupigana dhidi ya Moabu?” Yehoshafati akajibu, “Nitaenda. Mimi ni kama wewe, watu wangu ni kama watu wako, farasi wangu ni kama farasi wako.”
Then he sent this message to Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah: “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. So will your army join my army and fight against the army of Moab?” Jehoshaphat replied, “Yes, we will help you. We are ready to do whatever you want us to. My soldiers and my horses are ready to help you.”
8 Ndipo akasema, “Tutawashambulia kwa njia gani?” Yehoshafati akajibu, “Kwa njia ya jangwa la Edemu.
He asked, “On which road shall we march to attack them?” Joram replied, “We will go [south to Jerusalem, where your army will join us. Then we will all go south of the Dead Sea, and then turn north] through the Edom Desert.”
9 Hivyo huyo mfalme wa Israeli, Yuda, na Edomu wakazunguka kwa mda wa siku saba. Hapakuwa na maji kwa ajili ya jeshi lao, wala kwa farasi au wanyama.
So the king of Israel [and his army] went with the kings of Judah and Edom [and their armies]. They marched for seven days. Then there was no water left for their soldiers or for their animals that carried supplies.
10 Basi mfalme wa Israeli akasema, “Hii ni nini? Yahwe amewaita wafalme watatu ili kutekwa mikononi mwa Moabu?”
The king of Israel exclaimed, “This is a terrible situation! [It seems that] Yahweh will allow the three of us to be captured by [the army of] [MTY] Moab!”
11 Lakini Yehoshafati akasema, “je hakuna nabii wa Yahwe, ambaye tunaweza kufanya shauri kuhusu Yahwe kupitia yeye?” Mtumishi mmoja wa wafalme wa Israeli akajibu na kusema, “Elisha mwana wa Shafati yuko hapa, ambaye alikuwa akimimina maji kwenye mikono ya Eliya.”
Jehoshaphat said, “Is there a prophet here who can ask Yahweh for us [what we should do]?” One of Joram’s army officers said, “Elisha, the son of Shaphat, is here. He was Elijah’s assistant.” [IDM]
12 Yehoshafati akasema, “Neno la Yahwe liko pamoja nami.” Hivyo mfalme wa Israeli, Yehoshaphati, na mfalme wa Edomu wakashuka chini kwenda kwake.
Jehoshaphat said, “[It will be good to ask him, because] he speaks what Yahweh tells him to say.” So those three kings went to Elisha.
13 Elisha akamwambia mfalme wa Israeli, “Nifanye nini kwa ajili yako? Nenda kwa manabii wa baba na mama yako.” Ndipo mfalme wa Israeli akamwambia, “Hapana, kwa sababu Yahwe amewaita hawa wafalme watatu pamoja ili kuruhusu jeshi la Moabu liwateke.”
Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Why do you come to me [RHQ]? Go and ask those prophets that your father and mother consulted!” But Joram replied, “No, [we want you to ask Yahweh, because it seems that] Yahweh is going to allow us three kings to be captured by the army of Moab.”
14 Elisha akajibu, “Kama Yawhe wa majeshi aishivo, ambaye nimesimama mbele zake, hakika kama nisingemheshimu uwepo wa Yehoshafati mfalme wa Yeda, Nisingevuta usikivu kwako, au hata kukutazama.
Elisha replied, “I serve Yahweh, the commander of the armies of angels in heaven. As surely as he lives, if I did not respect Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not even think about doing anything to help you.
15 Lakini sasa niletee mwanamuziki.” Ndipo alipokuja mpiga muziki alipocheza, mkono wa Yahwe ukaja juu ya Elisha.
But, bring a musician to me.” [So they did that]. And when the musician played [on his harp], the power of Yahweh came on Elisha.
16 Akasema, “'Yahwe asema hivi, 'Fanya hili bonde la mto mkavu lijae mahandaki.'
He said, “Yahweh says that he will cause this dry stream-bed to be full of water.
17 Kwa kuwa Yahwe asema hivi, 'Hutaona upepo, wala hamtaona mvua, bali hili bonde la mto litajaa maji, na mtakunywa, ninyi na mifugo yenu na wanyama wenu wote.'
The result will be that your soldiers and your animals that carry supplies and your livestock will have plenty of water to drink.
18 Hiki ni kitu rahisi usoni mwa Yahwe. Pia atawapa ushindi juu ya hao Wamoabu.
That is not difficult for Yahweh to do. [But he will do more than that]. He will also enable you to defeat [the army of] Moab.
19 Mtaiteka kila ngome ya mji na kila mji mzuri, kukata kila mti mzuri, kusimamisha chemichemi zote za maji, na kuharibu kila sehemu nzuri ya nchi na miamba.”
You will conquer all their beautiful cities, cities that have high walls around them. You must cut down all their fruit trees, stop water from flowing from their springs, and ruin their fertile fields by covering them with rocks.”
20 Hivyo asubuhi karibia na mda wa kutoa sadaka ya kuteketeza, yakaja maji kutoka uelekeo wa Edomu; nchi ikajaa maji.
The next morning, at the time when they offered the sacrifices [of grain], they were surprised to see water flowing from Edom and covering the ground.
21 Ndipo wakati Wamoabu wote waliposikia kwamba wafalme wamekuja kupigana dhidi yao, walikusanyika pamoja, wote waliotakiwa kubeba silaha, na wakasimama mpakani.
When the people of Moab heard that the three kings had come [with their armies] to fight against them, all the men who were able to fight in battles, from the youngest men to the oldest ones, were summoned, and they (took their positions/prepared to fight) at the [southern] border of their land.
22 Walitembea asubuhi na mapema na jua likang'aa kwenye maji. Wakati Wamoabu walipoyaona yale maji yaliyowaelekea, yanaonekana mekundu kama damu.
But when they rose early the next morning, they saw that the water across from them appeared to be as red as blood.
23 Wakatamka kwa hasira, “Hii ni damu! Yamkini hao wafalme wameharibiwa, na wameuna wao kwa wao! Sasa basi, Moabu, ngoja tuende tukawateke nyara!”
They exclaimed, “It is blood! The three enemy armies must have fought and killed each other! So let’s go and take everything that they have left!”
24 Wakati walipokuja kwenye kambi ya Israeli, Waisraeli wakawashtukiza na kuwashambulia Wamoabi, ambao walikimbia mbele yao. Hilo jeshi la Israeli waliwakimbiza hao Wamoabu hadi kwao wakiwaua.
But when they reached the area where the Israeli soldiers had set up their tents, the Israelis attacked the soldiers from Moab and forced them to retreat. The Israeli soldiers pursued the soldiers from Moab and killed many of them.
25 Waliiharibu miji, na kila aina ya amani ya nchi kila mtu alirusha jiwe mpaka ulipojaa. Walizuia kila chemichemi ya maji na kukata chini miti mizuri yote. Kir-haresethi tu ndiyo ilichwa na mawe yake. Lakini hao maaskari wakawashambulia na makombeo wakiwazunguka na kuishambulia.
The Israelis also destroyed their cities. And whenever they passed fertile fields, they threw rocks on those fields, until the fields were covered with rocks. They stopped water from flowing from the springs and cut down the fruit trees. Finally, only [the capital city, ] Kir-Hareseth, remained. The Israeli soldiers who threw stones with slings surrounded the city and attacked it.
26 Ndipo Mfalme Mesha wa Moabu alipoona kwamba ameshindwa, alichukua watu hodari wa upanga mia saba pamoja naye kwenda kwa mfalme wa Edomu, lakini walishindwa.
When the king of Moab realized that his army was being defeated, he took with him 700 men who fought with swords, and they tried to force a way through the Israeli lines of soldiers to escape to [get help from] the king of Syria, but they were unable to escape.
27 Ndipo akamchukua mtoto wake wa kwanza, ambaye angetawala baada ya yeye, na akamuudhi kwa kumtoa kama sadaka ya kuteketezwa juu ya ukuta. Hivyo, kulikuwa na hasira kubwa dhidi ya Israeli, na hao Waisraeli, na Jeshi la Israeli likamuacha mfalme Mesha na kurudi kwenye nchi yao.
Then the king of Moab took his oldest son, who would have become the next king, and killed him and offered him for a sacrifice [to their god Chemosh], burning him on top of the city wall. The Israeli soldiers were horrified, with the result that they left that city and returned to their own country.
