Jerusalema ino lobgwa
1 Ipapo ahwa Ndzimu udana nge hwi gulu uti, “Sedzelani ngeno imwi batjengeti be nzi, mmwe ne mmwe azhe akabhata thumo lile linobulaya.” 2 Ngono bonani, kukazha balume bali kutathatu bedwa mu lubizho gwe nkoba upezhugwi wakalinga ku bunandzwa, mmwe ne mmwe akabhata thumo linobulaya mu luboko gugwe. Pakati kwabo kwakabe kuna nlume wakaambala zwiambalo zwe jila, akapakatila gobhodo lina zwikwalilo. Bakanginila tje mukati bakama pa tjibeso tjinopisigwa zwibhayilo tje phangula.
3 Ipapo tjedza tje Ndzimu we Iziraela tjakabe tjadwa pezhugwi kwe dzikherubhu kwatjakabe tjabe tjilipo ngono tjabe ku manginilo e ng'umba ye Ndzimu. Yahwe bakadana nlume wakaambala zwiambalo zwe jila wakapakatila gobhodo lina zwikwalilo, 4 bakabe beti kunli, “Yenda mu nzi nkulu wose, upalame Jerusalema ubige lutjwayo mu phazha dzaibabo banohwa zogwadza belila ngekwe zwithu zwinoshimisa zwinothamiwa muuli.” 5 Kuna ibaba bamwe Ndzimu ukati, “Palama nzi nkulu wose shule kukwe mubulaye, musitongo hwilangoni kene kutjidza mmwe. 6 Mubulaye bathuntana ne bazhuzha ne baanadi ne bana ne bakadzi koga musitongo thama tjimwe una lutjwayo. Tangisani mu bugalo gwangu gwakayengemala.” Ndizo bakatangisa ne sholotjena dzakabe dzili mbeli kwe ng'umba. 7 Ipapo ukabe uti ku bali, “Temapadzani ng'umba ye Ndzimu, muzhadze misha nge zwitumbu. Yendani!” Ngono bakatangisa kubulaya bathu mu nzi nkulu. 8 Bakati bebulaya saikoko, imi ndasala ndili ndoga, athigama akotamila pasi alila kwazo ati, “She Yahwe! Apa mowolobesa malimbelimbe wose e Iziraela mu kugwadzila moyo Jerusalema kene?”
9 Ndzimu bakandidabila beti, “Nlandu we bathu be Iziraela ne bathu be Juda nkulu kwazo, shango izhele kutebula malopa, nzi nkulu uzhele kutjebela, ngoti banoleba beti, ‘Yahwe bakafupatila shango, Yahwe abatotibona.’ 10 Ndizo wali andingabahwile ngoni kene kuli kubatjidza, koga ndowothama kuti babuyigwe nge zwe mishingo yabo.”
11 Bonani, ipapo nlume wakaambala zwiambalo zwe jila akapakatila gobhodo lina zwikwalilo kazhisa mbiko eti, “Ndathama sekwa mandidwa.”
The Lord Gives the Command To Punish Jerusalem
1 After that, I heard the Lord shout, “Come to Jerusalem, you men chosen to destroy the city. And bring your weapons!”
2 I saw six men come through the north gate of the temple, each one holding a deadly weapon. A seventh man dressed in a linen robe was with them, and he was carrying things to write with. The men went into the temple and stood by the bronze altar.
3 The brightness of God's glory then left its place above the statues of the winged creatures inside the temple and moved to the entrance. The Lord said to the man in the linen robe, 4 “Walk through the city of Jerusalem and mark the forehead of anyone who is truly upset and sad about the terrible things that are being done here.”
5-6 He turned to the other six men and said, “Follow him and put to death everyone who doesn't have a mark on their forehead. Show no mercy or pity! Kill men and women, parents and children. Begin here at my temple, but be sure not to harm those who are marked.”
The men immediately killed the leaders who were standing there.
7 Then the Lord said, “Pollute the temple by piling the dead bodies in the courtyards. Now get busy!” They left and started killing the people of Jerusalem.
8 I was then alone, so I bowed down and cried out to the Lord, “Why are you doing this? Are you so angry with the people of Jerusalem that everyone must die?”
9 The Lord answered, “The people of Israel and Judah have done horrible things. Their country is filled with murderers, and Jerusalem itself is filled with violence. They think that I have deserted them, and that I can't see what they are doing. 10 And so I will not have pity on them or forgive them. They will be punished for what they have done.”
11 Just then, the man in the linen robe returned and said, “I have done what you commanded.”