5 Mose 23
1 Ɔbarima a wɔasa no anaa wɔatwa ne barima akyene no mma Awurade bagua ase.
“Any man whose testicles are crushed or whose penis is cut off shall not be (included as one of/allowed to worship with) Yahweh’s people.
2 Wɔn a wɔyɛ mpenamma ne wɔn aseni biara, mpo enkosi awo ntoatoaso du no, mma Awurade bagua ase.
“No (illegitimate person/person whose mother and father were not married), or descendant of that person, extending to the tenth generation, shall be included as one of Yahweh’s people.
3 Amonfo anaa Moabfo anaasɛ wɔn asefo biara, mpo enkosi awo ntoatoaso du no mu biara mma Awurade bagua ase.
“No one from the Ammon or Moab people-groups shall be (included as one of/allowed to worship with) Yahweh’s people, extending to the tenth generation.
4 Saa aman yi annye mo, amma mo aduan anaasɛ nsu, bere a mufi Misraim reba no. Mmom, wɔkɔbɔɔ Beor babarima Balaam a ofi Petor a ɛwɔ Mesopotamia paa sɛ ɔmmɛdome mo.
One reason is that their [leaders] refused to give your ancestors food and water when they were traveling from Egypt [to Canaan]. Another reason is that they wanted to pay Balaam, the son of Beor from Pethor [town] in Mesopotamia, to curse you Israelis.
5 Nanso Awurade, mo Nyankopɔn no, antie Balaam. Ɔdan nnome no maa ɛyɛɛ nhyira maa mo, efisɛ Awurade mo Nyankopɔn no, dɔ mo.
But Yahweh our God did not pay attention to Balaam; instead, he caused Balaam to bless your ancestors, because Yahweh loved them.
6 Na sɛ mote ase yi, mo ne Amonfo ne Moabfo nnyɛ ayɔnkofa apam koraa.
As long as Israel is a nation, you must not do anything to cause things to go well for those two people-groups or enable them to prosper.
7 Munnkyi Edomfo anaa Misraimfo, efisɛ Edomfo yɛ mo nuanom, na motenaa Misraimfo nso mu sɛ ahɔho.
“But do not despise anyone from the Edom people-group, because they are [descendants of your ancestor Jacob], just like you are. And do not despise people from Egypt, because [they treated your ancestors well when] they first lived in Egypt.
8 Wɔn awo ntoatoaso abiɛsa so mma no betumi akɔ Awurade bagua ase.
The children and grandchildren of people from Edom and Egypt [who live among you] may be (included among/allowed to worship with) Yahweh’s people.”
9 Sɛ mokɔ ɔko de tia mo atamfo a, montwe mo ho mfi nea ɛho ntew biara ho.
“When your soldiers are living in tents at a time of fighting your enemies, they must avoid doing things that would make them unacceptable to God.
10 Sɛ ɔbarima bi ho gu fi esiane anadwo mu ho nsu a ɛsen a, ɛsɛ sɛ ofi atenae hɔ kɔtena baabi da mu no nyinaa.
If any soldier becomes unacceptable to God because semen comes out of his body during the night, [the next morning] he must go outside the camp and stay there during that day.
11 Edu anwummere a, ɛsɛ sɛ oguare na owia kɔtɔ a, otumi san ba atenae hɔ.
But in the evening of that day, he must bathe himself, and at sunset he is allowed to come back into the camp.
12 Muntwa asraafo atenae hɔ baabi nto hɔ a mubegya mo anan.
“Your soldiers must have a toilet area outside the camp where you can go [when you need to].
13 Mofa biribi nka ne nneɛma ho a mode betu fam. Bere biara a mubegya mo anan no, momfa sofi no ntu amoa na monkata agyanan no so.
[When you go to fight against your enemies], carry a stick along with your weapons, in order that when you need to defecate [EUP], you can dig a hole with the stick, and then cover up the hole [when you have finished defecating].
14 Ɛsɛ sɛ asraafo atenae hɔ yɛ kronkron, efisɛ Awurade, mo Nyankopɔn no, nam mo atenae no so bɔ mo ho ban na moadi mo atamfo so nkonim. Ɛnsɛ sɛ ohu animguasede biara wɔ mo mu; sɛ ɛba saa a, ɔbɛdan nʼakyi akyerɛ mo.
You must keep the camp acceptable to Yahweh our God, because he is with you in your camp to protect you and to enable you to defeat your enemies. Do not do anything disgraceful/indecent that would cause Yahweh to abandon you.”
15 Sɛ nkoa guan ba mo nkyɛn bɛbɔ wɔn ho aguaa a, munnyi wɔn mma wɔn wuranom.
“If slaves who escape from their masters come to you [and request you to protect them], do not send them back to their masters.
16 Momma wɔntena mo mu wɔ kurow biara a wɔpɛ so a monnyɛ wɔn ayayade.
Allow them to stay/live among you, in whatever town they choose, and do not mistreat them.
17 Ɛnsɛ sɛ Israelni barima anaa ɔbea biara yɛ nsɔree so oguamanfo.
“Do not [allow] any Israeli man or woman [to] become a prostitute at the temple.
18 Mommfa afɔrebɔde anaa adenya bi a efi oguamanfo nkyɛn, sɛ ɔyɛ ɔbarima anaa ɔbea, mma Awurade, mo Nyankopɔn no, fi, efisɛ ɛyɛ Awurade, mo Nyankopɔn no, akyiwade.
Also, do not allow any people who earned money from being a prostitute to bring any of that money into the temple of Yahweh our God, even if they solemnly promised to pay that money to Yahweh. Yahweh hates those who are prostitutes.
19 Bosea a mobɔ mo yɔnko Israelni no, sɛ ɛyɛ sika, aduan anaa biribi foforo bi a wogye ho mfɛntom no, monnnye ho mfɛntom.
“When you lend money or food or anything else to a fellow Israeli, do not charge them interest.
20 Mutumi gye bosea ho mfɛntom fi ahɔho nkyɛn na nyɛ Israelfo nkyɛn sɛnea Awurade, mo Nyankopɔn no, behyira mo wɔ biribiara a moyɛ mu wɔ asase a morekɔ so akɔfa no so.
You are allowed to charge interest when you lend money to foreigners [who live in your land], but not when you lend money to Israelis. Do this in order that Yahweh our God will bless you in everything that you do in the land that you are about to enter and occupy.
21 Sɛ mohyɛ Awurade, mo Nyankopɔn no, bɔ a, biribiara a mohyɛɛ no ho bɔ no, monyɛ no ntɛm so. Efisɛ ɛdan dɛn ara a Awurade, mo Nyankopɔn no, bɛdan mo ka na mubedi bɔne ho fɔ.
“When you vow to give something to Yahweh your God [or to do something for him], do it as soon as you can. Yahweh expects you to do what you promised, and if you do not do it, you will be committing a sin.
22 Nanso sɛ moanhyɛ biribiara ho bɔ a, monyɛɛ bɔne biara.
But if you [SYN] do not vow [to do something], that is not sinful.
23 Na sɛ wo ara wufi wo pɛ mu hyɛ bɔ a, hwɛ yiye na di asɛm a woaka no so, efisɛ Awurade, mo Nyankopɔn no, na woafi wo pɛ mu de wʼano ahyɛ no bɔ.
But if you voluntarily promise to do something, you must do it.
24 Wutumi di bobe aba dodow biara a wopɛ wɔ wo yɔnko bobeturo mu, nanso mfa bi ngu kɛntɛn mu nkɔ.
“When you walk through someone else’s vineyard, you are allowed to [pick and] eat as many grapes as you want, but you must not [cut some from a vine and carry them away] in a container.
25 Saa ara na mubetumi de mo nsa abubu atoko kakra wɔ mo yɔnko afum, nanso ɛnsɛ sɛ mode afoa twa.
When you walk [along a path] in someone else’s field of grain, you are allowed to pluck/pick some of the grain and eat it, but you must not cut any grain with a sickle [and take it with you].”
