Selemaia 3

1 “ʻOku nau pehē, ‘Kapau ʻe tukuange ʻe ha tangata ʻa hono uaifi, pea te ne ʻalu ʻiate ia, pea mali mo e tangata kehe, te ne toe haʻu kiate ia?’ ʻIkai ʻoku ʻuli lahi ai ʻae fonua ko ia? Ka kuo ke fai angahala mo e mamana tokolahi: ka ʻoku kei pehē, ʻe Sihova, Tafoki mai kiate au.

“[Moses wrote that] if a man divorces his wife and then she marries another man, her first husband certainly must not [RHQ] take her back again [to be his wife], because that would certainly [RHQ] cause the whole nation to become unacceptable to me. But you have more [idols than] prostitutes have men whom they have slept with! So, [why should I accept you if] you return to me?” [RHQ] says Yahweh.

2 “Hanga hake ho mata ki he ngaahi potu māʻolunga, pea vakai ha potu naʻe ʻikai te ke angahala ai. Kuo ke tatali kiate kinautolu ʻi he ngaahi hala, ʻo hangē ko e ʻAlepea ʻi he toafa; kuo ke fakaʻuliʻi ʻae fonua ʻi hoʻo angahala, mo hoʻo fai kovi.

“Look up at the barren hilltops. On every hilltop there are [RHQ] [idols that you have worshiped]. [It is as though] they are all lovers with whom you have had sex. [It is as though] you have sat along the roadsides like an Arab, waiting [to attack and steal things from] those who pass by. Because of worshiping idols and all the other wicked things that you have done, you have caused the [entire] land to become unacceptable to me.

3 Ko ia kuo taʻofi ai ʻae ʻuha tuʻu mo tō, pea naʻe ʻikai ai ʻae ʻuha mui; kuo ke maʻu ʻae foʻi laʻē ʻoe fefine angahala, pea ko ia ʻoku ʻikai te ke mā ai.

That is why I have not sent you any rain at the times of the year when you needed it. But you are like prostitutes [MET] who are not at all ashamed [for what they have done].

4 ‌ʻE ʻikai te ke tangi pehē mai kiate au ʻo fai mei he ʻaho ni, ‘Ko ʻeku tamai koe, ko hoku fakahinohino ʻi heʻeku siʻi?’

Now each of you says to me, ‘You are my father! You have loved me ever since I was young!

5 “‘Pea ʻe maʻu ʻa hono houhau ʻo taʻengata?’ Te ne kuku maʻu ia ʻo aʻu ki he ngataʻanga? Vakai, kuo ke lea mo fai ʻae ngaahi meʻa kovi ʻo hangē ko hoʻo faʻa fai.”

So surely you will not [RHQ] be angry with me forever!’ But you will not quit sinning!”

6 Pea naʻe pehē foki ʻe Sihova kiate au ʻi he ngaahi ʻaho ʻo Siosaia ko e tuʻi, “Kuo ke mamata ʻaia kuo fai ʻe ʻIsileli fakaholomui? kuo ne ʻalu hake ki he ngaahi moʻunga māʻolunga kotoa pē, pea fai angahala, ʻi he lolo ʻakau mata kotoa pē.

[One day] when Josiah was the king of Judah, Yahweh said to me, “Have you seen what the people of Israel have done? They have turned away from me, like a woman who has abandoned her husband and sleeps with other men. They have gone up on every hilltop and under every big tree and worshiped idols there [MET].

7 Pea hili ʻene fai ʻae ngaahi meʻa ni kotoa pē, naʻaku pehē, ‘Ke ke tafoki kiate au.’ Ka naʻe ʻikai te ne tafoki. Pea naʻe mamata ki ai ʻa hono tokoua kākā ko Siuta.

I thought that they would return to me, so I said to them, ‘Come back to me!’ But they refused. So I sent them away [to other countries, like a man] writes a note saying that he is divorcing his wife and then sends his wife away because she has committed adultery [MET].

8 Pe ne u mamata, ʻi heʻeku tukuange ʻa ʻIsileli fakaholomui pea u ʻatu kiate ia ʻae tohi fakamavae, ko e meʻa ʻi heʻene ngaahi fai hala, ka naʻe ʻikai ke manavahē ai ʻa hono tokoua kākā ko Siuta, ka naʻa ne toe ʻalu mo ia ʻo fai angahala foki.

The people of Judah saw what I did to them. But they are just like the people of Israel. They are not afraid [of what I will do to them]. They also [have turned away from me and are worshiping idols like] women who abandon their husbands and go to other men [MET].

9 Pea ko e meʻa ʻi he ongoongo ʻo ʻene feʻauaki naʻe ʻuliʻi ai ʻae fonua, ʻo ne fai angahala mo e ngaahi maka, pea mo e ngaahi ʻakau.

They thought that worshiping idols did not matter to me, so they have made the [entire] land unacceptable to me by worshiping idols of wood and stone.

10 Ka ʻoku pehē ʻe Sihova, naʻe ʻikai ʻaupito tafoki kiate au ʻaki hono loto kotoa ʻa hono tokoua kākā ko Siuta, ka naʻa ne kākā ai pe.”

The people of Judah have pretended to return to me, but they have not really done that. [This is true because I], Yahweh, have said it.”

11 Pea naʻe pehē ʻe Sihova kiate au, “Ko ʻIsileli fakaholomui kuo ne fakatonuhia ʻe ia ia ʻo lahi hake ʻia Siuta kākā.”

Then Yahweh said to me, “The people of Israel have turned away from me, but what the people of Judah have done is worse.

12 ʻAlu ʻo fakahā ʻae ngaahi lea ni ki he potu tokelau, ʻo pehē, ʻoku pehē ʻe Sihova, ‘Tafoki mai, ʻa koe ko ʻIsileli fakaholomui; pea te u fakaafe ʻeku houhau meiate kimoutolu:’ he, ʻoku pehē ʻe Sihova, ‘ʻOku ou ʻaloʻofa, pea ʻe ʻikai te u fakatolonga taʻengata hoku houhau.

So go and tell this to the people of Israel: ‘Yahweh says this to you Israeli people who have turned away from him: I am merciful. I will not continue to be angry with you forever. So return to me.

13 Ke vete pe hoʻo hia, ʻaia kuo ke fai kia Sihova ko ho ʻOtua, pea mo e fakaʻuli ʻa hoʻo ʻulungāanga mo e kau muli ʻi he lolo ʻakau mata kotoa pē,’ pea ʻoku pehē ʻe Sihova, naʻe ʻikai te mou talangofua ki hoku leʻo.”

But you must admit/say that you are guilty, and that you have rebelled against me, Yahweh, your God, that you have worshiped idols under big trees everywhere, and you have not obeyed me. You have turned away from me.

14 ‌ʻOku pehē ʻe Sihova, “ʻE fānau fakaholomui tafoki mai; he kuo u fakamaau mo kimoutolu: pea te u toʻo ʻakimoutolu ko e taki tokotaha ʻi ha kolo, pea mo e toko ua ʻi ha faʻahinga, pea te u ʻomi ʻakimoutolu ki Saione.

But you belong to me. So I will take you, one from [each] city and two from [each] clan, and bring you [back] to Jerusalem [from the countries to which you were exiled].

15 Pea te u foaki kiate kimoutolu ʻae kau tauhi ʻo hangē ko hoku loto, pea te nau fafanga ʻaki ʻakimoutolu ʻae poto mo e ʻilo.

[If you do that], I will appoint for you leaders with whom I am pleased, leaders who will guide you [well] because they will know and understand [what pleases me].

16 Pea ʻe hoko ʻi he ngaahi ʻaho ko ia, ʻoka mou ka tupu ʻo tokolahi ʻi he fonua,” ʻoku pehē ʻe Sihova, “ʻE ʻikai te nau toe pehē, ‘Ko e puha ʻoe fuakava ʻo Sihova;’ pea ʻe ʻikai hoko ia ki honau loto: pea ʻe ʻikai te nau manatu ki ai pe ʻaʻahi ki ai; pea ʻe ʻikai toe ngaohi ia.

And when you become very numerous [DOU] in your land, you will not need to talk about the Sacred Chest that contained the Ten Commandments. You will not think about it, and you will not want to make a new one.

17 Pea ʻi he ngaahi ʻaho ko ia te nau ui ʻa Selūsalema ‘Ko e ʻafioʻanga ʻo Sihova;’ pea ʻe fakataha ʻae kakai kotoa pē ki ai, ki Selūsalema, ki he huafa ʻo Sihova: pea ʻe ʻikai te nau toe muimui ki he fakakaukau kovi ʻa honau loto.

At that time people will say, “Jerusalem is [the place where] Yahweh’s throne is.” [People from] all nations will come there to worship me. And they will no longer stubbornly do the evil things that they desire.

18 ‌ʻE haʻu ʻae fale ʻo Siuta ʻi he ngaahi ʻaho ko ia ʻo ʻaʻeva mo e fale ʻo ʻIsileli, pea te na omi fakataha mei he fonua ʻi he tokelau ki he fonua ʻaia kuo u foaki ko e tofiʻa ki hoʻomou ngaahi tamai.

At that time you people [MTY] of Israel and the people of Judah will return from [being (exiled/forced to live) in] lands to the northeast. You will return to the land that I gave to your ancestors to belong to them [forever].

19 “Pea naʻaku pehē, ‘ʻE fēfē ʻeku fakataha koe mo e fonua, pea foaki kiate koe ʻae fonua lelei, mo e tofiʻa lelei ʻoe kakai tokolahi?’ Pea naʻaku pehē, Ke ke ui au, “Ko hoʻo Tamai;” pea ʻe ʻikai te ke tafoki meiate au.”

You people of Israel, I wanted to accept you to be my children. I wanted to give you [this] delightful land. It is a land more desirable/pleasant than the land of any other nation! I wanted you to call me ‘father’, and I wanted you to never turn away from me.

20 ʻOku pehē ʻe Sihova, “ʻE fale ʻo ʻIsileli, ko e moʻoni kuo mou fai kākā kiate au, ʻo hangē ko e fefine kākā kuo liʻaki hono husepāniti.”

But you have abandoned me like wives who have abandoned their husbands.’” [That is what] Yahweh said, and [I told it] to the people of Israel.

21 Naʻe ongoʻi ʻae leʻo ʻi he ngaahi potu māʻolunga, ko e tangi mo e tangilāulau ʻae fānau ʻa ʻIsileli: he kuo nau fakakoviʻi honau hala, pea kuo nau fakangalongaloʻi ʻa Sihova ko honau ʻOtua.

People will hear a noise on the barren hilltops. It will be the noise made by people weeping and pleading [for God to be merciful to them]. They will be admitting/saying that they have forgotten Yahweh their God, and that they turned away from behaving as God wanted them to.

22 ‌ʻAe fānau fakaholomui, mou tafoki, pea te u fakamoʻui hoʻomou fakaholomui. “Vakai, ʻoku mau haʻu kiate koe; he ko koe ko Sihova ko homau ʻOtua.

Yahweh will say to them, “You Israeli people, come back to me! [If you do that], I will cause you to never turn away from me again.” [The people will reply], “We are returning to you, because you are Yahweh, our God.

23 “Ko e moʻoni ʻoku taʻeʻaonga [ke ʻamanaki ʻae fakamoʻui ]mei he ngaahi potu māʻolunga, pea mei he ngaahi moʻunga: ko e moʻoni ʻoku ʻia Sihova ko hotau ʻOtua ʻae fakamoʻui ʻo ʻIsileli.

We did not get any help from [the idols that we worshiped on] the hilltops; we did not get any help from making all that noise up there.

24 He kuo fakaʻauha ʻi he tamapua fakamā ʻae ngāue ʻa ʻetau ngaahi tamai talu ʻemau tupu; ko ʻenau fanga sipi mo e fanga manu, ko honau ngaahi foha, pea mo e ʻofefine.

From the time when we were young, the shameful [god Baal] has taken away [from us] everything that our ancestors worked hard to acquire. He has taken away their flocks [of sheep] and herds [of cattle], their sons and their daughters.

25 ‌ʻOku tau tokoto ʻi he mā, pea ʻoku ʻufiʻufi ʻakitautolu ʻe he fakamā: koeʻuhi kuo tau fai kovi kia Sihova ko hotau ʻOtua, ko kitautolu mo ʻetau ngaahi tamai, talu ʻetau kei siʻi ʻo aʻu ki he ʻaho ni, pea naʻe ʻikai te tau talangofua ki he leʻo ʻo Sihova ko hotau ʻOtua.”

So, now we should lie down feeling very ashamed [DOU], because we and our ancestors have sinned against Yahweh our God, and we have never obeyed him.”