Joeli 1
1 Hili ni neno la Bwana lililomjia Yoeli mwana wa Pethueli.
The word of the Lord that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel.
2 Sikieni haya, ninyi wazee, na sikieni, ninyi wenyeji wa nchi. Je! Hii imewahi kuwa kabla ya siku zenu au katika siku za baba zenu?
Listen to this, elders, and pay close attention, all inhabitants of the land. Did this ever happen in your days or in the days of your fathers?
3 Waambie watoto wako kuhusu hilo, na waache watoto wako kuwaambie watoto wao, na watoto wao kizazi kijacho.
Talk this over with your sons, and your sons with their sons, and their sons with another generation.
4 Yale yaliyosazwa na tunutu yameliwa na nzige wakubwa; yale yaliyosazwa na nzige panzi wameyala; na yaliyosazwa na panzi yameliwa na madumadu
The locust has eaten what the caterpillar has left, and the beetle has eaten what the locust has left, and the mildew has eaten what the beetle has left.
5 Amkeni, enyi walevi, lieni! Omboleza, ninyi nyote mnywao divai, kwa sababu divai nzuri imekatwa kutoka kwenu.
Rouse yourselves, you drunkards, and weep and wail, all you who delight in drinking wine; for it has been cut off from your mouth.
6 Kwa maana taifa limekuja juu ya nchi yangu, imara na bila idadi. Meno yake ni meno ya simba, neye ana meno ya simba.
For a nation has ascended over my land: strong and without number. His teeth are like the teeth of a lion, and his molars are like that of a lion’s young.
7 Amelifanya shamba langu la mizabibu kuwa mahali pa kutisha, amechukua mtini wangu. Amechukua gome lake na kulitupa mbali; matawi yake yamekuwa meupe.
He has put my vineyard into desolation, and he has pulled off the bark of my fig tree. He has stripped it bare and cast it away; its branches have become white.
8 Omboleza kama bikira aliyevaa magunia kwa kifo cha mumewe mdogo.
Lament like a betrothed virgin, wrapped in sackcloth at the loss of the husband of her youth.
9 Sadaka ya unga na sadaka ya kinywaji zimekatiliwa mbali na nyumba ya Bwana. Makuhani, watumishi wa Bwana, huomboleza.
Sacrifice and libation have perished from the house of the Lord; the priests who are ministers of the Lord have mourned.
10 Mashamba yameharibiwa, na nchi imekuwa dhaifu. Kwa maana nafaka imeharibiwa, divai mpya imekauka, na mafuta yameharibiwa.
The region has been depopulated, the soil has mourned. For the wheat has been devastated, the wine has been disfigured, the oil has languished.
11 Oneni aibu, enyi wakulima, lieni, wakulima wa mzabibu, kwa ngano na shayiri. Kwa mavuno ya mashamba yameharibika.
The farmers have been confounded, the vineyard workers have wailed over the crop and the barley, because the harvest of the field has perished.
12 Mizabibu imeharibika na miti ya mtini imekauka, miti ya mkomamanga, pia mitende, na miti ya epo - miti yote ya shambani imeharibika. Kwa furaha imeharibika kutoka kwa wana wa wanadamu.
The vineyard is in ruin, and the fig tree has languished. The pomegranate tree, and the palm tree, and the fruit tree, and all the trees of the field have withered. For joy has been thrown into disorder before the sons of men.
13 Panda magunia na omboleza, enyi makuhani! Mwalia, enyi watumishi wa madhabahu. Njoo, ulala usiku wote kwenye magunia, enyi watumishi wa Mungu wangu. Maana sadaka ya unga na sadaka ya kinywaji zimezuiliwa nyumbani mwa Mungu wenu.
Priests, gird yourselves and lament. Ministers of the altars, wail. Enter, ministers of my God, lie in sackcloth. For sacrifice and libation have passed away from the house of your God.
14 Iteni kwa funga takatifu, na iteni kusanyiko takatifu. Mkusanyieni wazee na wenyeji wote wa nchi wafike nyumbani kwa Bwana Mungu wenu, na kumlilia Bwana.
Sanctify a fast, call an assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of your God. And cry out to the Lord:
15 Ole kwa siku! Kwa maana siku ya Bwana imekaribia. Nayo itakuja uharibifu kutoka kwa Mwenyezi.
“Ah, ah, ah, the day!” For the day of the Lord is near, and it will arrive, like a devastation, before the powerful.
16 Je, chakula hakikukatiliwa mbali mbele ya macho yetu, na furaha na kicheko kutoka nyumbani mwa Mungu wetu?
Has not your nourishment perished from before your eyes, joy and gladness from the house of our God?
17 Mbegu zinaoza chini ya udongo wake, ghala zimekuwa ukiwa, na mabanda yamevunjika, kwa maana nafaka imeharibika.
The mules have rotted in their own manure, the barns have been demolished, the wine cellars have been destroyed, because the grain has been ruined.
18 Jinsi wanyama hulia! Ng'ombe wa ngome wanateseka kwa sababu hawana malisho. Pia, makundi ya kondoo yanateseka.
Why have the animals groaned, the herds of cattle bellowed? because there is no pasture for them. Yes, and even the flocks of sheep have been lost.
19 Bwana, nakulilia wewe. Kwa maana moto umekula malisho ya jangwani, na moto umeteketeza miti yote ya mashamba.
To you, O Lord, I will cry out, because fire has devoured the beauty of the wilderness, and the flame has burned all the trees of the countryside.
20 Hata wanyama wa mashambani wanapanda kwa ajili yako, kwa maana mito ya maji imekauka, na moto umekula malisho ya jangwani.
Yes, and even the beasts of the field have gazed up at you, like the dry ground thirsting for rain, because the fountains of waters have dried up, and fire has devoured the beauty of the wilderness.
