Ezra Reads God's Law to the People
1-2 On the first day of the seventh month, the people came together in the open area in front of the Water Gate. Then they asked Ezra, who was a teacher of the Law of Moses, to read to them from this Law that the Lord had given his people. Ezra the priest came with the Law and stood before the crowd of men, women, and the children who were old enough to understand. 3 From early morning till noon, he read the Law of Moses to them, and they listened carefully. 4 Ezra stood on a high wooden platform that had been built for this occasion. Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah were standing to his right, while Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hash Baddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam were standing to his left.
5 Ezra was up on the high platform, where he could be seen by everyone, and when he opened the book, all the people stood up. 6 Ezra praised the great Lord God, and they lifted their hands, shouting “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed with their faces to the ground and worshiped the Lord.
7-8 After this, the Levites Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah went among the people, explaining the meaning of what Ezra had read.
9 The people started crying when God's Law was read to them. Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and teacher, and the Levites who had been teaching the people all said, “This is a special day for the Lord your God. So don't be sad and don't cry!”
10 Nehemiah told the people, “Enjoy your good food and wine and share some with those who didn't have anything to bring. Don't be sad! This is a special day for the Lord, and he will make you happy and strong.”
11 The Levites encouraged the people by saying, “This is a sacred day, so don't worry or mourn!” 12 When the people returned to their homes, they celebrated by eating and drinking and by sharing their food with those in need, because they had understood what had been read to them.
Celebrating the Festival of Shelters
13 On the second day of the seventh month, the leaders of all the family groups came together with the priests and the Levites, so Ezra could teach them the Law 14 that the Lord had given to Moses. They learned from the Law that the people of Israel were to live in shelters when they celebrated the festival in the seventh month of the year. 15 They also learned that they were to go into the woods and gather branches of leafy trees such as olives, myrtles, and palms for making these shelters.
16 So the people gathered branches and made shelters on the flat roofs of their houses, in their yards, in the courtyard of the temple, and in the open areas around the Water Gate and Ephraim Gate. 17 Everyone who had returned from Babylonia built shelters. They lived in them and joyfully celebrated the Festival of Shelters for the first time since the days of Joshua son of Nun. 18 On each of the first seven days of the festival, Ezra read to the people from God's Law. Then on the eighth day, everyone gathered for worship, just as the Law had said they must.
Ezera unobalila bathu nlayo
1 Ngono bathu bakakubungana bali tjithu tjing'ompela pa tjibata tji mbeli kwe Nkoba we Vula, bakadwa Ezera we nkwalili kakale ali mpirisiti kuti azhise lukwalo gwe nlayo wa Mushe, iwo wakapiwa Iziraela ndi Yahwe. 2 Mu zhuba le kutanga mu mwedzi we kutendeka, Ezera wakazhisa nlayo mbeli kwe balume ne bakadzi bakabe betubula kuhwisisa. 3 Wakaubala akalingisana nge tjibata tji mbeli kwe Nkoba we Vula, kutangisa mangwanana kunoti masikati mbeli kwe balume ne bakadzi bakabe betubula kuhwisisa. Bathu bose bakabe bakabhulutana kwazo.
4 Ezera we nkwalili wakatatha itubhu tje makwasayile tjabakabe bathamila nshingo iwoyo. Kubapa naye ku luji kwakabe kuli Mathitiya na Shema na Anaya na Uriya na Hilikiya na Maaseya. Ku lumeshwe kwakabe kuna Pedaya na Mishayele na Malikija na Hashumu na Hashabhadana na Zekariya na Meshulamu.
5 Ezera wakazhula lukwalo gwe nlayo. Bathu bose bakabe betubula kumbona ngobe wakabe alimile ali pezhugwi pakatathila, wakati eguzhula bathu bose bakamilika. 6 Ezera wakakudza Yahwe, Ndzimu nkulu ngono bathu bakamilidza maboko bakadabila beti, “Ngakujalo! Ngakujalo!” Bakakotamisa misholo bakanamata Yahwe bakathigama, njiso dzabo dzakalinga pasi.
7 Jeshuwa na Bhani na Sherebiya na Jamini na Akubu na Shabethayi na Hodiya na Maaseya na Kelita na Azariya na Jozabadi na Hanani na Pelaya ne Balevi bakabhatsha kuti bathu bahwisise, bathu ibo bakabe bali mile mu mamo abo. 8 Bakabala mu lukwalo gwe nlayo we Ndzimu, betoloka bethama kuti utjeneseseke kuti ndizo bathu ba hwisise tjabe tjibagwa.
9 Nehemiya wakabe ali nlauli Ezera ali mpirisiti kakale ali nkwalili ne Balevi bakabe bediya bathu bakadwa bathu beti, “Zhuba ileli lakayengemala kwazo kuna Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu, musibe mu buyendasi kene musilile.” Ngobe bathu bakabe belila abehwa matama e nlayo. 10 Wakabadwa kati, “Tjiyendani zwenyu, munoja zwakanaka, mung'we nkumbi we zhambi unozipa, mupe basina tjabangaja baje, zhuba ileli lakayengemala kuna She wedu ndizo musilile ngobe shatho ya Yahwe ndiyo simba lenyu.”
11 Balevi bakanyaladza bathu bose beti, “Nyalalani ngobe zhuba ileli lakayengemala, musilile” 12 Kudwapo bathu bose bakayenda bakanoja beng'wa bepabo ibabo basina, bakazana nge shatho hwulu ngobe ngwenu bakabe bohwisisa matama ababudziwa.
Nzano we Mishasha
13 Mu zhuba le bubili le mwedzi, batungamili be misha bakashangana ne bapirisiti ne Balevi bakanokubungana pana Ezera we nkwalili kuhwilila kwazo kwazo matama e Nlayo. 14 Bakawana kwaka kwagwa mu Nlayo ndaulo ya Yahwe yabakapa Mushe kuti Baiziraela bakafanila gala mu mishasha mu tjibaka tje nzano we mwedzi we kutendeka, 15 kakale bakafanila zibisa dama ileli kakale baliandamise mu mizi yabo ne mu Jerusalema, “Yendani ku shango ye matombo mu zhise thabi dze ntoba ne dze mitoba ye shango ne dze nshangule ne dze nlala ne dze miti ye mitutshi mubake mishasha nayo” sekwa kwakakwagwa.
16 Bathu bakayenda bakanoshaka thabi ngono bakazwibakila mishasha pezhugwi kwe matenga e ng'umba dzabo ne mu misha yabo ne mu zwing'umbana zwe Ng'umba ye Ndzimu ne mu zwibata zwi mbeli kwe Nkoba we Vula ne mbeli kwe Nkoba we Ifureimi. 17 Bose bakabuya kutapiwa bakabaka mishasha bakagala muili. Kudwa tjose mu mazhuba a Jeshuwa nkololo wa Nuni kunoti mu zhuba ilelo, Baiziraela abazotongo lishathila saikoku. Shatho yabo yakabe ili hwulu kwazo. 18 Zhuba ne zhuba, kudwa mu zhuba lekutanga kunoti le bupelo, Ezera wakabala mu lukwalo gwe Nlayo we Ndzimu. Bakazana nzano mazhuba ali kutendeka ngono mu zhuba lebu zhanakadzi sekwa kuli iko mu nlayo kwakabe ne nshangano.