Unfaithful Israel
1 The Lord says, “If a man divorces his wife, and she leaves him and becomes another man's wife, he cannot take her back again. This would completely defile the land. But, Israel, you have had many lovers, and now you want to return to me! 2 Look up at the hilltops. Is there any place where you have not acted like a prostitute? You waited for lovers along the roadside, as an Arab waits for victims in the desert. You have defiled the land with your prostitution. 3 That is why the rains were held back, and the spring showers did not come. You even look like a prostitute; you have no shame.
4 “And now you say to me, ‘You are my father, and you have loved me ever since I was a child. 5 You won't always be angry; you won't be mad at me forever.’ Israel, that is what you said, but you did all the evil you could.”
Israel and Judah Must Repent
6 When Josiah was king, the Lord said to me, “Have you seen what Israel, that unfaithful woman, has done? She has turned away from me, and on every high hill and under every green tree she has acted like a prostitute. 7 I thought that after she had done all this, she would surely return to me. But she did not return, and her unfaithful sister Judah saw it all. 8 Judah also saw that I divorced Israel and sent her away because she had turned from me and had become a prostitute. But Judah, Israel's unfaithful sister, was not afraid. She too became a prostitute 9 and was not at all ashamed. She defiled the land, and she committed adultery by worshiping stones and trees. 10 And after all this, Judah, Israel's unfaithful sister, only pretended to return to me; she was not sincere. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
11 Then the Lord told me that, even though Israel had turned away from him, she had proved to be better than unfaithful Judah. 12 He told me to go and say to Israel, “Unfaithful Israel, come back to me. I am merciful and will not be angry; I will not be angry with you forever. 13 Only admit that you are guilty and that you have rebelled against the Lord, your God. Confess that under every green tree you have given your love to foreign gods and that you have not obeyed my commands. I, the Lord, have spoken.
14 “Unfaithful people, come back; you belong to me. I will take one of you from each town and two from each clan, and I will bring you back to Mount Zion. 15 I will give you rulers who obey me, and they will rule you with wisdom and understanding. 16 Then when you have become numerous in that land, people will no longer talk about my Covenant Box. They will no longer think about it or remember it; they will not even need it, nor will they make another one. 17 When that time comes, Jerusalem will be called ‘The Throne of the Lord,’ and all nations will gather there to worship me. They will no longer do what their stubborn and evil hearts tell them. 18 Israel will join with Judah, and together they will come from exile in the country in the north and will return to the land that I gave your ancestors as a permanent possession.”
The Idolatry of God's People
19 The Lord says,
“Israel, I wanted to accept you as my child
and give you a delightful land,
the most beautiful land in all the world.
I wanted you to call me father
and never again turn away from me.
20 But like an unfaithful wife,
you have not been faithful to me.
I, the Lord, have spoken.”
21 A noise is heard on the hilltops:
it is the people of Israel crying and pleading
because they have lived sinful lives
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 Return, all of you who have turned away from the Lord;
he will heal you and make you faithful.
You say, “Yes, we are coming to the Lord because he is our God. 23 We were not helped at all by our pagan worship on the hilltops. Help for Israel comes only from the Lord our God. 24 But the worship of Baal, the god of shame, has made us lose flocks and herds, sons and daughters—everything that our ancestors have worked for since ancient times. 25 We should lie down in shame and let our disgrace cover us. We and our ancestors have always sinned against the Lord our God; we have never obeyed his commands.”
Iziraela isingagalikemoyo
1 “Ha nlume elamba nkadzi uwe,
nkadzi ebe etogwa ne mmwe nlume,
ebe nkadzi we nlume upoga,
apa nlume unga tjabgwilila kunli kakale wali?
Apa ikoku akungatemapadze shango kwakapindilila?
Makafukula ne zwamba zwinjinji
apa mungatjabgwilila kundili kene?
Kojalo Yahwe
2 Milidzilani mesho enyu kwakatuthumala kusina tjimwe mubone!
Ndingayi kwamusakawalilanila ko kene?
Hwunde ne dzizila makagala makalindila zwamba
se N'arabu ali mu tjilambanyika.
Makatemapadza shango
nge bufukula gwenyu kwakayipa.
3 Ndizo wali vula yadzibiwa
vula ye nsewulo aizobuya,
ne kwakajalo tjiso tjitjo tjoboneka bufukula,
unolamba kubhakhwa nge shoni.
4 Apa auzondidana ngwenu uti,
‘Tate bangu, nzwalani wangu kudwa mu butjetjana gwangu,
5 apa banowondigwadzila moyo nge kusingapele kene,
apa banowobe ne shungu kunoti ku bupelo kene?’
Bona, waleba uijalo
ngono wakathama zose zwakabipa sekwa wakatubula.”
Shandukilani matjinyo enyu Iziraela ne Juda
6 Kwakati mu misi ya Mambo Josiya Yahwe bakati, “Apa wakabona tjaakathama kene, iwouje usingagalikemoyo, iye Iziraela kene? Kuti wakatatha matuthu mamwe ne mamwe kayenda tjini kusi kwe nti mmwe ne mmwe ntala ethama bufukula kene? 7 Ndakakumbula nditi, ‘Shule kwe athama zose izwezwi unowoshandukila kundili,’ koga aazoshanduka ngono ne hama iye isina malebeswa Juda wakakubona ikoku. 8 Wakabona kuti mu bupongwe gose gwa iwouje usingagalikemoyo iye Iziraela, ndakantatila ku tjena nge nkwalo we kunlamba koga hama iye isina malebeswa Juda, aazotja, ndizo na iyobo ikathama bufukula. 9 Ngoti bufukula gwakabe gusi tjimwe muili, yakatemapadza shango, ithama bupongwe ne mabgwe ne miti. 10 Koga ngekwa ikoku hama iye isina malebeswa Juda aizoshandukila kundili nge moyo wayo wose yakazwithama yashanduka, kojalo Yahwe.”
11 Ipapo Yahwe bakati kundili, “Iziraela usingagalikemoyo wakazwilakidza akalulwama muna Juda usina malebeswa. 12 Yenda, kalebe matama iyawa ku bunandzwa uti,
“‘Shandukani kaa, Iziraela isingagalikemoyo,
kojalo Yahwe.Anditowomulinga nge kugwadzamoyo,
ngoti ndina ngoni,
anditowogwadzilamoyo tjatjose,
kojalo Yahwe.13 Koga amutjilani nlandu wenyu,
kuti makapandukila Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu,
mukazwipa midzimu ipoga kusi kwe nti mmwe ne mmwe ntala
mukasibhulutane hwi langu,
kojalo Yahwe.14 Shandukani kaa imwi bana basingagalikemoyo,
kojalo Yahwe,ngoti ndi tetshi wenyu.
Ndowomutola, nn'gompela kudwa mu nzi nkulu
ne babili kudwa mu nsha,
ngono ndowomuzhisa ku Ziyoni.
15 “‘Ipapo ndowomupa balisi kuyenda nge moyo wangu, banowomufudza nge luzibo ne hwisiso. 16 Mu mazhuba iyawo mowoti matjiwanda kakale mapaphidzika mu shango, kojalo Yahwe, abatjowobe batjati, “Bhokisi le Tjidumano tja Yahwe.” Akutowozha mu njalakang'wa dzabo kene kuli kukumbugwa kene kushubiwa, kene kuthamiwa kakale. 17 Mu tjibaka itjetjo Jerusalema inowodang'wa tjiala tje bushe tja Yahwe, zwitjaba zose zowokubunganila kuili, mbeli kwa Yahwe mu Jerusalema ngono abatjowotobela nge bukomba mimoyo yabo yakabipa. 18 Mu mazhuba iyawo ng'umba ya Juda inowobhatana nge ng'umba ya Iziraela ngono bose banowozha kudwa ku shango ye bunandzwa beyenda ku shango yandakapa botate benyu ili thaka.
Namata midzimu kwe bathu be Ndzimu
19 “‘Ndakakumbula kuti
ndowomubhata se bakololo bangu tjini
ndikamupa shango yakanaka,
thaka mbuya mu zwitjaba zose,
akumbula nditi pamwe swiyo mowondidana Tate,
mukasiletje kunditobela.
20 Nge malebeswa, koga se nkadzi usingagalikemoyo esiya nlume uwe
ndiko sekwa musakagalikamoyo kundili imwi Baiziraela,
kojalo Yahwe.’ ”21 Hwi lohwika pezhugwi kwe matuthu,
kulila ne kumbila kwe bathu be Iziraela,
ngoti bakapambuka mu zila yabo,
bakakangang'wa Yahwe Ndzimu wabo.
22 “Shandukani kaa, imwi bathu basingagalikemoyo,
ndowopodza kusagalikamoyo kwenyu.”
“Bonani, tozha ku muli
ngoti ndimwi Yahwe Ndzimu wedu.
23 Nge malebeswa zhoba yeku matuthu manyepkhwa koga,
butjebeli guku matombo.
Nge malebeswa Yahwe Ndzimu wedu
ba jidzo le Iziraela.
24 “Koga kudwa mu butjetjana gwedu midzimu inobhatisa shoni yakaja mitjelo ye masimba a botate bedu, mbudzi ne pkhwizi dzabo ne ng'ombe dzabo ne bakololo ne bakololokadzi babo. 25 Ngati lingeni pasi tibhakhwe nge shoni, kulengudzika kwedu ngakutifukidze, ngoti takatjinyila Yahwe Ndzimu wedu, iswi na botate bedu kudwa tjose mu butjetjana gwedu kuswika zhuba la nasi, atizobhulutana hwi la Yahwe Ndzimu wedu.”