< Waamuzi 15 >
1 Baada ya siku kadhaa, wakati wa mavuno ya ngano, Samsoni akachukua mbuzi mdogo akaenda kumtembelea mkewe. Akajiambia mwenyewe, “Nitaenda kwenye chumba cha mke wangu.” Lakini baba yake hakumruhusu aingie.
After some days, during the time of wheat harvest, Samson took a young goat and went to visit his wife. He said to himself, “I will go to my wife's room.” But her father would not allow him to go in.
2 Baba yake akasema, “Nilidhani umemchukia, hivyo nikampatia rafiki yako. Dada yake mdogo ni mzuri kuliko yeye, Mchukue badala yake.”
Her father said, “I really thought you hated her, so I gave her to your friend. Her younger sister is more beautiful than she is, is she not? Take her instead.”
3 Samsoni akawaambia, 'Wakati huu sitakuwa na hatia juu ya Wafilisti wakati nikiwaumiza.'
Samson said to them, “This time I will be innocent in regard to the Philistines when I hurt them.”
4 Samsoni akaenda na kukamata mbweha mia tatu akawafunga pamoja kila jozi, mkia hadi mkia. Kisha akachukua taa na kuzifunga katikati ya kila mkia.
Samson went and caught three hundred foxes and he tied together each pair, tail to tail. Then he took torches and tied them in the middle of each pair of tails.
5 Alipokwisha kuviwasha moto vienge, akawaachia mbweha katika nafaka za Wafilisti zilizosimama, nao wakawasha moto nafaka zote zilizopandwa, na nafaka iliyosimama shambani, pamoja na mashamba ya mizabibu na mizeituni.
When he had set the torches on fire, he let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and they set fire to both the stacked grain and the grain standing in the field, along with the vineyards and the olive orchards.
6 Wafilisti waliuliza, “Ni nani aliyefanya hili?” Wakaambiwa, “Samsoni, mkwe wa Mtimna alifanya hivyo kwa sababu Mtimna alimchukua mke wa Samsoni akampa rafiki yake.” Basi Wafilisti wakamwendea wakamchoma kwa moto yeye na baba yake.
The Philistines asked, “Who did this?” They were told, “Samson, the Timnite's son-in-law, did this because the Timnite took Samson's wife and gave her to his friend.” Then the Philistines went and burned up her and her father.
7 Samsoni akawaambia, “Ikiwa ndivyo mnavyofanya, nitalipiza kisasi juu yenu, na baada ya hayo, nitaacha.”
Samson said to them, “If this is what you do, I will get my revenge against you, and after that is done, I will stop.”
8 Kisha akawakata vipande vipande, paja na mguu, kwa kuwauwa sana. Kisha akashuka chini akaishi katika pango katika mwamba wa Etamu.
Then he cut them to pieces, hip and thigh, with a great slaughter. Then he went down and lived in a cave in the cliff of Etam.
9 Ndipo Wafilisti wakaja, wakajitahidi kupigana vita huko Yuda, wakaanzisha jeshi lao huko Lehi.
Then the Philistines came up and they prepared for battle in Judah and set up their army in Lehi.
10 Watu wa Yuda wakasema, “Kwa nini mmekuja kutupiga?” Wakasema, “Tunashambulia ili tuweze kumkamata Samsoni, na tumtendee kama alivyotutendea.”
The men of Judah said, “Why have you come up to attack us?” They said, “We are attacking so we may capture Samson, and do to him as he has done to us.”
11 Kisha watu elfu tatu wa Yuda wakashuka hata kwenye pango la Eatamu, wakamwambia Samsoni, “Je, hujui kwamba Wafilisti hutawala juu yetu? Je! umetutendea nini?” Samsoni akawaambia, “Kwa kadili walivyonitendea mimi, vivyo hivyo nimewatendea wao.”
Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cave in the cliff of Etam, and they said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines are rulers over us? What is this you have done to us?” Samson said to them, “They did to me, and so I have done to them.”
12 Wakamwambia Samsoni, “Tumeshuka kukufunga na kukutia mikononi mwa Wafilisti.” Samsoni akawaambia, “Niapieni kwamba hamtaniua ninyi wenyewe.”
They said to Samson, “We have come down to tie you up and give you into the hands of the Philistines.” Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you will not kill me yourselves.”
13 Wakamwambia, “La, tutakufunga tu kwa kamba na kukupeleka kwao. Tunakuahidi sisi hatutakuua.” Kisha wakamfunga na kamba mbili mpya na kumleta kutoka kwenye mwamba.
They said to him, “No, we will only tie you with ropes and hand you over to them. We promise we will not kill you.” Then they tied him up with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock.
14 Alipofika Lehi, Wafilisti walipiga kelele walipokutana naye. Kisha Roho wa Bwana akaja juu yake kwa nguvu. Kamba zilizokuwa juu ya mikono yake zikawa kama kitambaa cha kuteketezwa, na zikaanguka mikononi mwake.
When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting as they met him. Then Yahweh's Spirit came on him with power. The ropes on his arms became like burnt flax, and they fell off his hands.
15 Samsoni alipata mfupa mbichi wa taya ya punda, naye akaichukua na kuua watu elfu kwa mfupa huo.
Samson found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and he picked it up and killed a thousand men with it.
16 Samsoni akasema, “Kwa taya ya punda, chungu juu ya chungu, na njaa ya punda nimewaua watu elfu.”
Samson said, “With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps upon heaps, with the jawbone of a donkey I have killed a thousand men.”
17 Samsoni alipomaliza kuzungumza, akatupa taya, na akaita mahali pale Ramath Lehi.
When Samson finished speaking, he threw away the jawbone, and he called the place Ramath Lehi.
18 Samsoni alikuwa na kiu sana akamwita Bwana na kusema, “Umempa mtumishi wako ushindi mkubwa. Lakini sasa nitakufa kwa kiu na kuanguka mikononi mwa wale wasiootahiriwa?”
Samson was very thirsty and called on Yahweh and said, “You have given this great victory to your servant. But now will I die of thirst and fall into the hands of those who are uncircumcised?”
19 Na Mungu akapafungua mahali pa shimo palipo katika Lehi, na maji yakatoka. Alipokunywa, nguvu zake zikarejea na akahuishwa. Kwa hiyo aliita jina la mahali hapo Enhakore, na ni huko Lehi hadi leo.
God split open the hollow place that is at Lehi and water came out. When he drank, his strength returned and he revived. So he called the name of that place En Hakkore, and it is at Lehi to this day.
20 Samsoni alikuwa mwamuzi wa Israeli katika siku za Wafilisti kwa miaka ishirini.
Samson judged Israel in the days of the Philistines for twenty years.