Plots against Nehemiah
1 Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem, and our other enemies learned that I had completely rebuilt the wall. All I lacked was hanging the doors in the gates. 2 Then Sanballat and Geshem sent a message, asking me to meet with them in one of the villages in Ono Valley. I knew they were planning to harm me in some way. 3 So I sent messengers to tell them, “My work is too important to stop now and go there. I can't afford to slow down the work just to visit with you.” 4 They invited me four times, but each time I refused to go.
5 Finally, Sanballat sent an official to me with an unsealed letter, 6 which said:
A rumor is going around among the nations that you and the other Jews are rebuilding the wall and planning to rebel, because you want to be their king. And Geshem says it's true! 7 You even have prophets in Jerusalem, claiming you are now the king of Judah. You know the Persian king will hear about this, so let's get together and talk it over.
8 I sent a message back to Sanballat, saying, “None of this is true! You are making it all up.”
9 Our enemies were trying to frighten us and to keep us from our work. But I asked God to give me strength.
10 One day I went to visit Shemaiah. He wasn't supposed to leave his house, but he said, “Let's hurry to the holy place of the temple and hide there. We will lock the temple doors, because your enemies are planning to kill you tonight.”
11 I answered, “Why should someone like me have to run and hide in the temple to save my life? I won't go!”
12 Suddenly I realized that God had not given Shemaiah this message. But Tobiah and Sanballat had paid him to trick me 13 and to frighten me into doing something wrong, because they wanted to ruin my good name.
14 Then I asked God to punish Tobiah and Sanballat for what they had done. I prayed that God would punish the prophet Noadiah and the other prophets who, together with her, had tried to frighten me.
The Work Is Finished
15 On the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, the wall was completely rebuilt. It had taken 52 days. 16 When our enemies in the surrounding nations learned that the work was finished, they felt helpless, because they knew that our God had helped us rebuild the wall.
17 All this time the Jewish leaders and Tobiah had been writing letters back and forth. 18 Many people in Judah were loyal to Tobiah for two reasons: Shecaniah son of Arah was his father-in-law, and Tobiah's son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam son of Berechiah. 19 The people would always tell me about the good things Tobiah had done, and then they would tell Tobiah everything I had said. So Tobiah kept sending letters, trying to frighten me.
Nehemiya unolukigwa gwanga
1 Ngono ngwenu kukanotjetiwa kuna Sanibalati na Tobiya na Geshemu we N'arabu ne bamwe be zwita zwedu kuti ndakamusa guma kakale akuna ne pang'ompela pakasala mulili, nenguba mu tjibaka itjetjo ndakabe ndisathu alonga zwizhalilo mu mikoba. 2 Sanibalati na Geshemu bakanditumilila ndayidzo inoti “Izha tishangane mu mmwe we mizi ye lubala gwe Ono” Koga bakabe bakazwimisila kundithama tjimwe tjakabipa. 3 Ngono ndakatumila batumwa ku bali nditi babadwe bati, “Ndoshinga nshingo nkulu kwazo ndizo andingatubule kuzha ikoko. Ini ndakafanila misa nshingo ngekuzha kumuli kene?”
4 Bakanditumila bathu kukabe kanna kose, koga imi abashandula nge zila ing'ompela koga.
5 Nge zila yakajalo Sanibalati wakatumila nlanda uwe we bushanu ku ndili, ezha akabhata lukwalo gwakazhugwa. 6 Kwakabe kwakakwagwa kuyi,
“Kwakahwika mu zwitjaba na Geshemu unosisithila kuti iwe ne Bajuta moshaka panduka, ndizo mumusa guma, kakale unoshaka kube mambo wabo, mbiko iyeyi inojalo. 7 Kakale wakashalula balebesambeli kuti bathame zibiso ngekuko mu Jerusalema ‘Kuna mambo mu Juda’ Ngono ngwenu matama iyawa anowoswika mu zebe dza mambo. Ndizo ngwenu izhangeno tilebesane.”
8 Ndakantumilila shandulo inoti, “Hakuna tjaunoleba tjashingikala sekwa unoleba, ngobe unozwilebela kudwa mu nkumbulo uwo koga”. 9 Bose bakabe beshaka kuti totomosa bekumbula beti, “Banowotemeka mafupa ngono abatowoshinga.” Koga ngwenu Ndzimu, thamani kuti maboko angu asime.
10 Zhuba limwe ndakati ndiswika mu ng'umba ya Shemaya nkololo wa Delaya iye ali nkololo wa Mehetabele wakabe akazhaliligwa mu ng'umba, kandidwa kati, “Ngatishangane ku Ng'umba ye Ndzimu ku Bugalo gwakayengemala, tizhalile mikoba ye ku Bugalo gwakayengemala, ngoti balume ibaba baswika bawokubulaya, banowozha busiku bawokubulaya.”
11 Ngono ndakati, “Apa nlume unonga imi ungatizha kene? Apa nthu unonga imi ungangina mu Ng'umba ye Ndzimu ka tjila kene? Andidi kuyendako!”
12 Ndakalingisisa ngono abona kuti aazotung'wa nge Ndzimu, koga wakabe endizibisa tjaabona nge kwangu ngobe Tobiya na Sanibalati bakabe bantenga. 13 Wakabe atengwa kuti ndizo nditotomoke ndibe ndithama saikoku, ndibe ndithama nlandu babe bendipa zina biibi kuti ndizo bandinenele.
14 Ndzimu wangu, kumbulani Tobiya na Sanibalati mu zwithu zose zwabakathama ne nlebesambeli Nowadiya ne balebesambeli bose bakabe beshaka kuti nditotomoke.
15 Guma lakapedzisiwa mu zhuba le bumakumi mabili ana mashanu e mwedzi we Eluli mu mazhuba ali makumi mashanu ana mabili. 16 Ngono kwakati zwita zwedu zwihwa ne kwako, zwitjaba zwakatikomba zwikatja ngono zwikalashikigwa nge kuzwigalabgwe ngobe bakabe bebona kuti nshingo iwoyu wakashingwa nge bhatsho ye Ndzimu wedu.
17 Mu tjibaka itjetjo banokudziwa be Juda bakabe betumilila hwalo njinji kuna Tobiya ngono ne shandulo dzakabe dzidwa kuna Tobiya dzikadwilila dzizha kubalibo. 18 Bunjinji gwe Bajuta bakabe batuna kubhatshana naye se Tobiya akabe ali nkwasha wa Shekaniya nkololo wa Ara ne nkololo uwe Jehohanani wakabe akalobola nkololokadzi wa Meshulamu nkololo wa Bherekiya. 19 Bakadwilila be ndibudza zwakanaka nge kukwe mbeli kwangu bebuya bembudzabo tjandakaleba. Tobiya iye wakanditumilila hwalo kuti nditotomoke.