The Lord's Own People
(Exodus 34.11-16)1 “The Lord your God will bring you into the land that you are going to occupy, and he will drive many nations out of it. As you advance, he will drive out seven nations larger and more powerful than you: the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 2 When the Lord your God places these people in your power and you defeat them, you must put them all to death. Do not make an alliance with them or show them any mercy. 3 Do not marry any of them, and do not let your children marry any of them, 4 because then they would lead your children away from the Lord to worship other gods. If that happens, the Lord will be angry with you and destroy you at once. 5 So then, tear down their altars, break their sacred stone pillars in pieces, cut down their symbols of the goddess Asherah, and burn their idols. 6 Do this because you belong to the Lord your God. From all the peoples on earth he chose you to be his own special people.
7 “The Lord did not love you and choose you because you outnumbered other peoples; you were the smallest nation on earth. 8 But the Lord loved you and wanted to keep the promise that he made to your ancestors. That is why he saved you by his great might and set you free from slavery to the king of Egypt. 9 Remember that the Lord your God is the only God and that he is faithful. He will keep his covenant and show his constant love to a thousand generations of those who love him and obey his commands, 10 but he will not hesitate to punish those who hate him. 11 Now then, obey what you have been taught; obey all the laws that I have given you today.
The Blessings of Obedience
(Deuteronomy 28.1-14)12 “If you listen to these commands and obey them faithfully, then the Lord your God will continue to keep his covenant with you and will show you his constant love, as he promised your ancestors. 13 He will love you and bless you, so that you will increase in number and have many children; he will bless your fields, so that you will have grain, wine, and olive oil; and he will bless you by giving you many cattle and sheep. He will give you all these blessings in the land that he promised your ancestors he would give to you. 14 No people in the world will be as richly blessed as you. None of you nor any of your livestock will be sterile. 15 The Lord will protect you from all sickness, and he will not bring on you any of the dreadful diseases that you experienced in Egypt, but he will bring them on all your enemies. 16 Destroy every nation that the Lord your God places in your power, and do not show them any mercy. Do not worship their gods, for that would be fatal.
17 “Do not tell yourselves that these peoples outnumber you and that you cannot drive them out. 18 Do not be afraid of them; remember what the Lord your God did to the king of Egypt and to all his people. 19 Remember the terrible plagues that you saw with your own eyes, the miracles and wonders, and the great power and strength by which the Lord your God set you free. In the same way that he destroyed the Egyptians, he will destroy all these people that you now fear. 20 He will even cause panic among them and will destroy those who escape and go into hiding. 21 So do not be afraid of these people. The Lord your God is with you; he is a great God and one to be feared. 22 Little by little he will drive out these nations as you advance. You will not be able to destroy them all at once, for, if you did, the number of wild animals would increase and be a threat to you. 23 The Lord will put your enemies in your power and make them panic until they are destroyed. 24 He will put their kings in your power. You will kill them, and they will be forgotten. No one will be able to stop you; you will destroy everyone. 25 Burn their idols. Do not desire the silver or gold that is on them, and do not take it for yourselves. If you do, that will be fatal, because the Lord hates idolatry. 26 Do not bring any of these idols into your homes, or the same curse will be on you that is on them. You must hate and despise these idols, because they are under the Lord's curse.
Kutata njudzi
(Kufuluka 34:11-16)1 Kuti Yahwe Ndzimu uwo bekuzhisa mu shango yaunongina kuithuwa bebe betata njudzi njinji mbeli kuko, Bahiti ne Bagirigashi ne Baamori ne Bakanana ne Baperizi ne Bahivi ne Bajebusi, njudzi dzili kutendeka hwulu kuli dzakasima kukupinda, 2 ngono ha Yahwe Ndzimu uwo bekupa ibo ngono ube ubakunda, ipapo ubalobese tjose. Usitongo thama tjidumano nabo kakale Usitongo bahwila ngoni. 3 Usitongo lobolana nabo ulobodza bakololokadzi babo ku bakololo babo kene ukotosela bakololo babo bakololokadzi babo. 4 Ngoti bangadwa bepambusa bakololo babo mukunditobela kuti bashingile midzimu mimwe, ipapo kugwadzamoyo kwa Yahwe kube kulingisana nawe ngono bebe bekulobesa tjinyolotjo.
5 Koga ubathame sahwoku, upkhwanye zwibeso zwabo zwe zwibhayilo, uvunilile phanda dzabo uteme ulige bo Ashera babo upise nge moto zwifano zwabo zwakabezhiwa.
6 “Ngoti imwi mu bathu bakayengemala kuna Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu, Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu bakamushalula kube bathu babo babakazwishaluligwa kudwa mu bathu bose bamu shango. 7 Akuzoyikhwa ngekuti pamwe makabe mulibanji kupinda bamwe bathu kuti ndizo Yahwe bamude bamushalule ngoti imwi makabe muli bashomanana pa bathu bose. 8 Koga hwuti Yahwe banomuda, kakale banolondolodza tjidumano tjabakatuna kuna bobatategulu benyu kuti Yahwe bakamudusa nge tjiazha tjakasima bakamudzutunula mu ng'umba ye busungwa, kudwa mu luboko gwa Faro mambo we Egipiti. 9 Ndizo ziba kuti Yahwe Ndzimu uwo ndibo Ndzimu, Ndzimu unogalikamoyo unolondolodza tjidumano ne ludo gusingazunguzike kuna ibabo banowuda bebe belondolodza milayo yawo, kunoti ku zwizekugwana zwili tjiwulu. 10 Koga unowogwilizila banowubenga nge kubalobesa, awutowononoka ngekwa iwoyo unowubenga, unowon'gwilizila nge tjakanlingisana. 11 Ndizo ube ne njele kulondolodza milayo iyeyi yandinomupa mu zhuba lino.”
Makombolelo e kuhwa
(Matama 28:1-14)12 “Ha muhwa milayo iyeyi muyilondolodza, Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu unowolondolodza namwi tjidumano ne ludo gusingazunguzike gwaakagadzabgwe bobatategulu benyu kugulondolodza. 13 Banowokuda bakakukombolela bakakuwatsha. Banowokombolela mbewu ye mbili uwo ne mbewu ye nnda uwo ne mathunde awo ne nkumbi uwo we zhambi ne mafuta awo ne kupaphidzika kwe ng'ombe dzidzo ne bana be ngubi iyo mu shango yabakatuna kuna botate benyu kukupa iyo. 14 Unowokombolegwa kupinda bathu bose, akutowobe ne usina mbeleko, nlume kene nkadzi mukuli kene mu ng'ombe dzidzo. 15 Ngono Yahwe banowodusa kugwala kose mukuli, akuna gumwe gwe njigwele mbiibi dze Egipiti dzamunoziba dzingakuwila koga banowodzilonga muna bose banokubenga. 16 Ngono unowolobesa bathu bose Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu babanowokupa, usitongo bahwila zogwadza kene kuli kushingila midzimu yabo ngoti ikoku kungabe dati kukuli.
17 “Ha ungazwidwa mu moyo uwo ukati, ‘Njudzi idzedzi dzihwulu pandili ndingadzilobesa tjini?’ 18 Usitongo dzitja, koga ukumbule Yahwe Ndzimu uwo tjabakashingila Faro ne Egipiti yose, 19 ndiko hwulu dzawakabona nge mesho awo ne zwilakidzo ne matjenamiso, tjiazha tjakasima ne luboko gwakatambunuka Yahwe Ndzimu uwo gwawakakudusa ndigo, ndizo Yahwe Ndzimu uwo unowothamila bathu bose ibabo baunotja saikoko. 20 Pezhugwi kwa ikoku Yahwe Ndzimu uwo unowotumila phuzephuze pakati kwabo kuswikila ibabo basala bakabgwata belobesiwa. 21 Usitongo paluka moyo nge kwabo ngoti Yahwe Ndzimu banawe, Ndzimu nkulu wakabangalala. 22 Yahwe Ndzimu uwo banodusila njudzi idzedzi kutjena mbeli kuko kutukununu ne kutukununu, awutowobalobesa kang'ompela, kungadwa kuthama kuti phuka dze shango dziwande dzibe njisa pamuli. 23 Koga Yahwe Ndzimu uwo banowokupa idzo, banowobashanganya misholo kukulukulu kudzina wabalobesa. 24 Ngono banowolonga bomambo mu maboko awo ngono unowothama mazina abo kuti uabukushe pasi kwe kudzimu, akuna nthu unowotubula kumidzana nawe kudzina ubalobesa. 25 Midzimu yabo ye zwifano yakabezhiwa uyipise nge moto. Usitongo yemula siliva kene golide imuzwili, usitongo izwitolegwa udwa uwana wabhatshigwa ndiyo ngoti inoshimisa kuna Yahwe Ndzimu uwo. 26 Usitongo zhisa tjithu tjinoshimika mu ng'umba iyo ube unging'wa nge bhiso saitjo, ubengane natjo kwazo kakale utjishime ngoti tjithu tjina bhiso.