The Parable of the Eagles and the Vine
1 The Lord spoke to me. 2 “Mortal man,” he said, “tell the Israelites a parable 3 to let them know what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying to them: There was a giant eagle with beautiful feathers and huge wings, spread wide. He flew to the Lebanon Mountains and broke off the top of a cedar tree, 4 which he carried to a land of commerce and placed in a city of merchants. 5 Then he took a young plant from the land of Israel and planted it in a fertile field, where there was always water to make it grow. 6 The plant sprouted and became a low, wide-spreading grapevine. The branches grew upward toward the eagle, and the roots grew deep. The vine was covered with branches and leaves.
7 “There was another giant eagle with huge wings and thick plumage. And now the vine sent its roots toward him and turned its leaves toward him, in the hope that he would give it more water than there was in the garden where it was growing. 8 But the vine had already been planted in a fertile, well-watered field so that it could grow leaves and bear grapes and be a magnificent vine.
9 “So I, the Sovereign Lord, ask: Will this vine live and grow? Won't the first eagle pull it up by its roots, pull off the grapes, and break off the branches and let them wither? It will not take much strength or a mighty nation to pull it up. 10 Yes, it is planted, but will it live and grow? Won't it wither when the east wind strikes it? Won't it wither there where it is growing?”
The Parable Is Explained
11 The Lord said to me, 12 “Ask these rebels if they know what the parable means. Tell them that the king of Babylonia came to Jerusalem and took the king and his officials back with him to Babylonia. 13 He took one of the king's family, made a treaty with him, and made him swear to be loyal. He took important men as hostages 14 to keep the nation from rising again and to make sure that the treaty would be kept. 15 But the king of Judah rebelled and sent agents to Egypt to get horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Can he get away with that? He cannot break the treaty and go unpunished!
16 “As surely as I am the living God,” says the Sovereign Lord, “this king will die in Babylonia because he broke his oath and the treaty he had made with the king of Babylonia, who put him on the throne. 17 Even the powerful army of the king of Egypt will not be able to help him fight when the Babylonians build earthworks and dig trenches in order to kill many people. 18 He broke his oath and the treaty he had made. He did all these things, and now he will not escape.”
19 The Sovereign Lord says, “As surely as I am the living God, I will punish him for breaking the treaty which he swore in my name to keep. 20 I will spread out a hunter's net and catch him in it. I will take him to Babylonia and punish him there, because he was unfaithful to me. 21 His best soldiers will be killed in battle, and the survivors will be scattered in every direction. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken.”
God's Promise of Hope
22 This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“I will take the top of a tall cedar
and break off a tender sprout;
I will plant it on a high mountain,
23 on Israel's highest mountain.
It will grow branches and bear seed
and become a magnificent cedar.
Birds of every kind will live there
and find shelter in its shade.
24 All the trees in the land will know
that I am the Lord.
I cut down the tall trees
and make small trees grow tall.
I wither up the green trees
and make the dry trees become green.
I, the Lord, have spoken. I will do what I have said I would do.”
Madzu mabili ne nzhambi
1 Dama la Yahwe lakazha kundili liti, 2 “Nkololo we nthu, tengela ikalabe utjifananye ne bathu be Iziraela 3 uti ku bali, ‘Tjinolebgwa ndi She Yahwe ndietji, dzu gulugulu lina mapapilo makulu ne misiba milefu ne misibana minjinji ina mibala yakasiyana lakazha ku Lebanoni. Likatola theswi dze nsida Dzu gulu 4 likathubula theswi ye lutabi. Likayisenga likayenda nayo ku shango ye baseenyi kwalakaswika liidzwala.
5 “ ‘Ngono likatola imwe ye mbewu mu shango likaidzwala mu mavu akakola. Likaidzikila pana vula njinji se lutabi gwe wilo. 6 Yakamela ikabe n'dapkhwi ukatandabala ukapasha, koga uli tjapasi. Thabi dzawo dzikashanduka dzikalinga kulili, koga midzi ikasala pawakamela. Ndizo ukatandabala, ukabe ne thabi dzina mazhani.
7 “ ‘Koga kwakabe kuna limwe dzu gulugulu lina mapapilo makulu ne misiba minjinji. Ngono nti iwoyu ukatambunudzila midzi yawo kulili. Thabi dzinomela ukadzilingisa kulili kuti liwudilidzile. 8 Wakadzikigwa mu mavu akakola pana vula njinji kuti ube ne thabi, uzwale mitjelo ube nti mbuya.’
9 “Ubadwe uti, ‘Tjinolebgwa ndi She Yahwe etji, Apa unowobhudilila kene? Apa autowosimugwa mitjelo yawo ikapuluka ikawoma, thabi ne mazhani kukawoma kene? Unosimugwa nge bulelu kusina simba limwe linoshingisiwa kene bathu banjinji kuusimula. 10 Nenguba ungadzikigwa apa ungatjila kene? Phepo ye kubhezhuba ayitowoti iwuloba ukawoma, uwomela pawakakulila kene?’ ”
Ifano tjotjenesiwa
11 Ipapo dama la Yahwe likazha kundili liti, 12 “Idwa bapanduki ibaba uti, ‘Apa amutoziba kuti zwithu izwezwi zodwani kene?’ Ubabudze uti, ‘Mambo we Bhabhiloni wakazha ku Jerusalema, katola mambo wayo ne makombgwa ayo kabgwilila nabo ku Bhabhiloni. 13 Ipapo katola mmwe we ng'umba ye bumambo ngono kathama tjidumano naye ngekuntunisa. Batungamili be shango naibo kabasenga kayenda nabo, 14 kuthama kuti bumambo guwile pasi, gusitongo milika gutjile koga nge kulondolodza tjidumano. 15 Koga mambo kampandukila nge kutuma bamilili babe ku Egipiti kuti abhatshiwe nge ngwa hwulu. Apa unowatshika kene? Apa iye unothama zwithu zwakajali unowophunyuka kene? Ungatjinya tjidumano ngono kaphunyuka kene? 16 Nge malebeswa se nditjila, koleba She Yahwe, unowofila mu Bhabhiloni, mu shango ya mambo wakan'gadza pa tjigalo tje bumambo, waakalengudza kutuna kukwe, waakatjinya tjidumano tjitje. 17 Faro ne ngwa iye yakasima ne bunjinji gwaanago abatowobe ne bhatsho kunli tjibaka tjinowobe kubakiwa makuma e ngwa kupoteleka ne guma lipkhwanyiwa. 18 Wakalengudza kutuna kukwe katjinya tjidumano. Nge kuti wakabe azwimisila kulondolodza tjidumano ngono koga kabe ethama zwithu zose izwezwi, aangaphunyuke.
19 “ ‘Ndizo She Yahwe bakati, Nge malebeswa senditjila ndowonkhiga kutuna kwangu kwaakalengudza ne tjidumano tjangu tjaakatjinya. 20 Ndowon'walila gwanga gwangu, ngono unowobhatshigwa nge dati langu. Ndowonzhisa ku Bhabhiloni ndibe ndi nsumikilisila ko nge kuti aatogalikabgwe kundili. 21 Babhayani babe bose banotizha banowoligwa nge thumo, batjila banowopalala nge mbizho dzose. Ndiko kwaanowoziba kuti ndimi Yahwe ndakaleba.
Ndzimu unogadzabgwe Iziraela
22 “ ‘Tjinoleba She Yahwe etjetji,
“ ‘Imi nge kwangu ndowotola lutabi gwathinila
mu thabi dziku theswi ye nsida
ndibe ndiyidzikila.
Ndowothubula lutabi gutjibutjetjana
mu thabi dzipezhugwizhugwi tjetjana
ndibe ndigudzikila pezhugwi
kwe dombo lefu lakakula.
23 Ndowogudzikila
pezhugwizhugwizhugwi kwe Dombo le Iziraela.
Gowobe ne thabi gukazwala mitjelo,
gukabe nsida mbuya.
Nyuni dze njudzi dzakasiyana dzowobaka mashaka muuli,
dzowowana bugalo mu ntutshi wawo,
zose zwibumbiwa zwina mapapilo.
24 Miti yose mu shango inowoziba
kuti ndimi Yahwe.
Ndowobuzila pasi nti nlefu
athama nti nfupi ukakula ukabe nlefu.
Ndowowomesa nti nnyolo,
athama nti wakawoma ukathinila.
Imi Yahwe ndimi ndaleba
ibile ndowokuthama.’ ”