Abahluleli 18
1 Ngalezonsuku kwakungelankosi koIsrayeli; langalezonsuku isizwe sakoDani sazidingela ilifa lokuhlala, ngoba kuze kube ngalolosuku babengawelwanga yilifa phakathi kwezizwe zakoIsrayeli.
In those days there was no king in Israel. In those days the tribe of the Danites sought an inheritance to dwell in; for to that day, their inheritance had not fallen to them amongst the tribes of Israel.
2 Abantwana bakoDani basebethuma amadoda amahlanu avela kusendo lwabo esuka emaphethelweni abo, amaqhawe, evela eZora leEshitawoli, ukuhlola ilizwe lokuliphenya. Basebesithi kuwo: Hambani liphenye ilizwe. Asefika entabeni yakoEfrayimi, endlini kaMika, alala khona.
The children of Dan sent five men of their family from their whole number, men of valour, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to search it. They said to them, “Go, explore the land!” They came to the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there.
3 Esendlini kaMika wona alazi ilizwi lejaha umLevi; asephendukela khona athi kuye: Ngubani owakuletha lapha? Njalo wenzani lapha? Njalo ulani lapha?
When they were by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite; so they went over there and said to him, “Who brought you here? What do you do in this place? What do you have here?”
4 Wasesithi kiwo: UMika ungenzele kanje lakanje; ungiqhatshile, sengingumpristi wakhe.
He said to them, “Thus and thus has Micah dealt with me, and he has hired me, and I have become his priest.”
5 Asesithi kuye: Ake ubuze uNkulunkulu ukuze sazi ukuthi indlela yethu esihamba ngayo izaphumelela yini.
They said to him, “Please ask counsel of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.”
6 Umpristi wasesithi kibo: Hambani ngokuthula. Indlela yenu elihamba ngayo iphambi kweNkosi.
The priest said to them, “Go in peace. Your way in which you go is before the LORD.”
7 Asehamba lawomadoda amahlanu, ayafika eLayishi, abona abantu abaphakathi kwayo, behlezi bonwabile, ngokwendlela yamaSidoni, belokuthula, bengethuki lutho, kwakungelamahluleli elizweni ukubathiba, babekhatshana lamaSidoni, bengasebenzelani lamuntu.
Then the five men departed and came to Laish and saw the people who were there, how they lived in safety, in the way of the Sidonians, quiet and secure; for there was no one in the land possessing authority, that might put them to shame in anything, and they were far from the Sidonians, and had no dealings with anyone else.
8 Asefika kubafowabo eZora leEshitawoli, abafowabo basebesithi kuwo: Lithini?
They came to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol; and their brothers asked them, “What do you say?”
9 Asesithi: Sukumani asenyuke simelane labo, ngoba sibonile ilizwe, khangelani-ke, lihle kakhulu; pho lina lithule? Lingavilaphi ukuyangena ukudla ilifa lelizwe.
They said, “Arise, and let’s go up against them; for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good. Do you stand still? Don’t be slothful to go and to enter in to possess the land.
10 Ekufikeni kwenu khona lizafika ebantwini abonwabileyo lelizweni elibanzi inhlangothi zombili, ngoba uNkulunkulu ulinikele esandleni senu; indawo lapho okungasweleki lutho khona elizweni.
When you go, you will come to an unsuspecting people, and the land is large; for God has given it into your hand, a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.”
11 Asesuka lapho evela kusendo lwabakoDani eZora leEshitawoli amadoda angamakhulu ayisithupha ehlomile izikhali zempi,
The family of the Danites set out from Zorah and Eshtaol with six hundred men armed with weapons of war.
12 enyuka amisa inkamba eKiriyathi-Jeyarimi koJuda. Ngenxa yalokho ayibiza leyondawo ngokuthi yiMahane-Dani kuze kube lamuhla; khangela isemuva kweKiriyathi-Jeyarimi.
They went up and encamped in Kiriath Jearim in Judah. Therefore they call that place Mahaneh Dan to this day. Behold, it is behind Kiriath Jearim.
13 Asesedlula esuka lapho, aya entabeni yakoEfrayimi, afika endlini kaMika.
They passed from there to the hill country of Ephraim, and came to the house of Micah.
14 Khona amadoda amahlanu ayehambile ukuhlola ilizwe iLayishi aphendula athi kubafowabo: Liyazi yini ukuthi kulezizindlu kukhona i-efodi lamatherafi lesithombe esibaziweyo lesithombe esibunjwe ngokuncibilikisa? Ngakho-ke cabangani elizakwenza.
Then the five men who went to spy out the country of Laish answered and said to their brothers, “Do you know that there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and a carved image, and a molten image? Now therefore consider what you have to do.”
15 Asephambukela khona, aya endlini yejaha umLevi endlini kaMika, ambuza impilo.
They went over there and came to the house of the young Levite man, even to the house of Micah, and asked him how he was doing.
16 Amadoda angamakhulu ayisithupha ayehlomile ngezikhali zempi, ayengabantwana bakoDani, asesima ekungeneni kwesango.
The six hundred men armed with their weapons of war, who were of the children of Dan, stood by the entrance of the gate.
17 Lawomadoda amahlanu ayehambile ukuhlola ilizwe enyuka angena lapho athatha isithombe esibaziweyo, le-efodi, lamatherafi, lesithombe esibunjwe ngokuncibilikisa, umpristi esemi ekungeneni kwesango lamadoda angamakhulu ayisithupha ayebhince izikhali zempi.
The five men who went to spy out the land went up, and came in there, and took the engraved image, the ephod, the teraphim, and the molten image; and the priest stood by the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men armed with weapons of war.
18 La-ke esengenile endlini kaMika athatha isithombe esibaziweyo, i-efodi, lamatherafi, lesithombe esibunjwe ngokuncibilikisa, umpristi wathi kiwo: Lenzani?
When these went into Micah’s house, and took the engraved image, the ephod, the teraphim, and the molten image, the priest said to them, “What are you doing?”
19 Asesithi kuye: Thula, bamba umlomo wakho, uhambe lathi, ube ngubaba kithi lompristi. Kungcono yini ukuthi ube ngumpristi wendlu yomuntu oyedwa kumbe ukuthi ube ngumpristi wesizwe losendo lwakoIsrayeli?
They said to him, “Hold your peace, put your hand on your mouth, and go with us. Be a father and a priest to us. Is it better for you to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and a family in Israel?”
20 Lenhliziyo yompristi yathokoza, wasethatha i-efodi lamatherafi lesithombe esibaziweyo, wangena phakathi kwabantu.
The priest’s heart was glad, and he took the ephod, the teraphim, and the engraved image, and went with the people.
21 Basebephenduka behamba, babeka abantwanyana lezifuyo lempahla phambi kwabo.
So they turned and departed, and put the little ones, the livestock, and the goods before them.
22 Sebekhatshana lomuzi kaMika, amadoda ayesezindlini ezaziseduze lendlu kaMika abizelwa ndawonye abafica abantwana bakoDani.
When they were a good way from the house of Micah, the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house gathered together and overtook the children of Dan.
23 Amemeza abantwana bakoDani. Basebephendula ubuso babo bathi kuMika: Ulani ukuze libuthane?
As they called to the children of Dan, they turned their faces, and said to Micah, “What ails you, that you come with such a company?”
24 Wasesithi: Lithethe onkulunkulu bami engabenzayo, lompristi, lahamba; pho ngiseselani? Kuyini lokho elikutsho kimi: Uhlutshwa yini?
He said, “You have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and have gone away! What more do I have? How can you ask me, ‘What ails you?’”
25 Abantwana bakoDani basebesithi kuye: Ilizwi lakho kalingezwakali phakathi kwethu, hlezi amadoda alolaka akuhlasele, ulahlekelwe yimpilo yakho lempilo yabendlu yakho.
The children of Dan said to him, “Don’t let your voice be heard amongst us, lest angry fellows fall on you, and you lose your life, with the lives of your household.”
26 Basebezihambela ngendlela yabo abantwana bakoDani. Lapho uMika esebonile ukuthi balamandla kulaye, waphenduka wabuyela endlini yakhe.
The children of Dan went their way; and when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his house.
27 Bona basebethatha lokho uMika ayekwenzile lompristi owayelaye, bafika eLayishi ebantwini ababelokuthula bengethuki lutho, babatshaya ngobukhali benkemba, batshisa umuzi ngomlilo.
They took that which Micah had made, and the priest whom he had, and came to Laish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck them with the edge of the sword; then they burnt the city with fire.
28 Njalo kwakungekho umkhululi, ngoba wawukhatshana leSidoni, bengasebenzelani lamuntu. Wawusesihotsheni esasingaseBeti-Rehobi. Basebesakha umuzi, bahlala kiwo.
There was no deliverer, because it was far from Sidon, and they had no dealings with anyone else; and it was in the valley that lies by Beth Rehob. They built the city and lived in it.
29 Basebebiza ibizo lomuzi ngokuthi yiDani ngebizo likaDani uyise owazalelwa uIsrayeli. Kodwa ibizo lomuzi laliyiLayishi kuqala.
They called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born to Israel; however the name of the city used to be Laish.
30 Abantwana bakoDani basebezimisela isithombe esibaziweyo. Njalo uJonathani indodana kaGereshoma, indodana kaManase, yena lamadodana akhe babengabapristi besizwe sakoDani kwaze kwaba lusuku lokuthunjwa kwelizwe.
The children of Dan set up for themselves the engraved image; and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land.
31 Basebezimisela isithombe esibaziweyo sikaMika ayesenzile, zonke izinsuku indlu kaNkulunkulu iseShilo.
So they set up for themselves Micah’s engraved image which he made, and it remained all the time that God’s house was in Shiloh.
