False Prophets and Teachers
1 Sometimes false prophets spoke to the people of Israel. False teachers will also sneak in and speak harmful lies to you. But these teachers don't really belong to the Master who paid a great price for them, and they will quickly destroy themselves. 2 Many people will follow their evil ways and cause others to tell lies about the true way. 3 They will be greedy and cheat you with smooth talk. But long ago God decided to punish them, and God doesn't sleep.
4 God did not have pity on the angels that sinned. He had them tied up and thrown into the dark pits of hell until the time of judgment. 5 And during Noah's time, God did not have pity on the ungodly people of the world. He destroyed them with a flood, though he did save eight people, including Noah, who preached the truth.
6 God punished the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and this is a warning to anyone else who wants to sin.
7-8 Lot lived right and was greatly troubled by the terrible way those wicked people were living. He was a good man, and day after day he suffered because of the evil things he saw and heard. So the Lord rescued him. 9 This shows that the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their sufferings and to punish evil people while they wait for the day of judgment.
10 The Lord is especially hard on people who disobey him and don't think of anything except their own filthy desires. They are reckless and proud and are not afraid of cursing the glorious beings in heaven. 11 Although angels are more powerful than these evil beings, even the angels don't dare to accuse them to the Lord.
12 These people are no better than senseless animals that live by their feelings and are born to be caught and killed. They speak evil of things they don't know anything about. But their own corrupt deeds will destroy them. 13 They have done evil, and they will be rewarded with evil.
They think it is fun to have wild parties during the day. They are immoral, and the meals they eat with you are spoiled by the shameful and selfish way they carry on. 14 All they think about is having sex with someone else's husband or wife. There is no end to their wicked deeds. They trick people who are easily fooled, and their minds are filled with greedy thoughts. But they are headed for trouble!
15 They have left the true road and have gone down the wrong path by following the example of the prophet Balaam. He was the son of Beor and loved what he got from being a crook. 16 But a donkey corrected him for this evil deed. It spoke to him with a human voice and made him stop his foolishness.
17 These people are like dried up water holes and clouds blown by a windstorm. The darkest part of hell is waiting for them. 18 They brag out loud about their stupid nonsense. And by being vulgar and crude, they trap people who have barely escaped from living the wrong kind of life. 19 They promise freedom to everyone. But they are merely slaves of filthy living, because people are slaves of whatever controls them.
20 When they learned about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they escaped from the filthy things of this world. But they are again caught up and controlled by these filthy things, and now they are in worse shape than they were at first. 21 They would have been better off if they had never known about the right way. Even after they knew what was right, they turned their backs on the holy commandments they were given. 22 What happened to them is just like the true saying,
“A dog will come back
to lick up its own vomit.
A pig that has been washed
will roll in the mud.”
Badiyi be manyepkhwa
1 Koga balebesambeli be manyepkhwa na ibo bakabe yapo pakati kwe bathu, koga sekwa badiyi be manyepkhwa banowobe yapo pakati kwenyu, banowozhisa nge zila yakasumbikala zwidiyo zwinokolomola zwisizwe malebeswa, ne kuzwilandula She dumbu wakabadzutunula, ndizo banowozwitjimbidzila kuloba. 2 Ngono banji banowotobela zila dzabo dze kuwalilana dzinobhatisa shoni, ngono nge zila ye badiyi ibaba, zila ye malebeswa inowogongobogwa. 3 Mu bugovu gwabo, banowomulasha nge manyepkhwa, kuti ndizo batole mari mu muli. Kusumikilisiwa kwabo akubilobamilila ntolo, ngono kolomogwa kwabo kwakabalinda.
4 Ngobe Ndzimu auzoletja batumwa be kudzimu bakabe batjinya, koga wakabaposela mu mwina umukatikati, iko kwabakabigwa busungwa gwe zhalima, bakalindila zhuba le kusumikilisiwa; 5 ha Ndzimu usakaletja shango ya ntolo, koga wakazhisa nkubila mu shango ye bathu bakabe betjinya, koga ukatjidza Nuwa, iye wakabe ediya ndulamo, ne bamwe bali kutendeka. 6 Ha Ndzimu wakalotesa mizi ye Sodoma ne Gomora, ikasala ili nlota, uthama tjilakidzilo tje tjinowoshingikala muna basina hanya nge Ndzimu. 7 Ha Ndzimu wakaangulila Lote, nlume we nlulwami, wakabe ehwisiwa zogwadza nge zila dzabo dze kuwalilana dzinobhatisa shoni, 8 nlume iwoyo we nlulwami, wakabe egala pakati kwabo, ngono zhuba ne zhuba wakabe engina buyendasi bukulu kwazo nge kubona nenge kuhwa mishingo yabo yakabe isi mu nlayo. 9 Ndizo akwakajalo She banoziba sekwa bangatjidza bathu banotjila se kunoshaka Ndzimu mu ndiko, ne kugadza bathu basakalulwama mu busungwa, kuswikila zhuba le sumikiliso, 10 kwazo kwazo ibabo banosala shule njemulo dzisi idzo dze mibili yabo, ngono belingila pasi bushe gwe Ndzimu.
Badiyi ibabo, bathu bakasima moyo, kakale banozwikudza basingatje kuleba bubi ngekwa ibabo bakakudziwa. 11 Koga batumwa be kudzimu, nenguba bana bukulu ne masimba anopinda e badiyi ibaba, abatobaleba bubi bebasumikilisa mbeli kwa She. 12 Koga bathu ibaba se phuka dzisingalaugwe, zwibumbiwa zwinoloba dzakazwaligwa bhakhwa nenge kubulawa, dzisingaalakane, banotuka Ndzimu mu tjimwe ne tjimwe tjabasingahwisise. Ngono banowolobesiwabo se phuka dze shango. 13 Banowolipiwa nge kuhwisiwa zogwadza koga sekwa bakathamabo. Mu bali kushatha hwupapamadza tjimwe ne tjimwe patjena masikati, tjabanoshinga tjinodzima nyota ye njemulo dze mibili yabo; zwibadzi zwinobhatisa shoni ha bezha bewoja zojiwa namwi, kakale bali mu kushatha, bethama zila dzabo dze bupitipiti. 14 Nge mesho abo azhele bupongwe habatoguta thama jinyo. Banowonga basakasima. Bakawolobedza mimoyo yabo bugovu. Ndzimu wakabalonga bhiso! 15 Bakafupatila zila yakatambunuka bakadzimila, bakatobela zila ya Bhalamu nkololo wa Bheore, wakabe eda mbuzilo ye bubi, 16 ngono katjemelegwa jinyo lile nge donki, phuka isingalebeleke ikalebeleka se nthu, ikamisa mishingo ye bupengo yakabe ithamwa ne nlebesambeli.
17 Bathu ibaba banofanana ne misenya yakawomelela, banofanana ne fulele itutudziwa nge dutu; Ndzimu wakababiganyidzila magalo mu zhalima dema dema. 18 Banolebeleka matama makulu kulu asina tjaanodwa, banoshingisa njemulo dzabo dze kuwalilana kunobhatisa shoni dze tjinyama, kubhatshila bathu banobe kuli iko batjabhuda mu ndashiko. 19 Banobagadzabgwe sununguko, ngono ibo bali basungwa be jinyo; ngobe nthu nsungwa we tjimwe ne tjimwe tjinonlaula. 20 Ha bathu batizha zila dzinolonga bubi, dze shango, nge luzibo gwa She wedu kakale ali Ntjidzi wedu Jesu Kirisiti, bedwa bebhatshigwa kakale bebuya bekundiwa ndidzo, bathu bakajalo bamu ndashiko hwulu inopinda yabakabe bali muili kutanga. 21 Kungabe kwakababhatsha, abakabe bati bukulu bakasizibe zila ye ndulamo pana kuti baizibe bedwa beti shule befupatila ndayo yakayengemala yabakapiwa. 22 Kwakabashingikalila nge malebeswa mapeswa anoti, “Mbgwa inobgwilila ikanoja matho ayo” kakale “Ngulube yaangudziwa inobgwilila ikanobumbuluka mu dope.”