1 “Ngwenu nlayo iwoyu wakalingisana namwi imwi bapirisiti. 2 Ha musingawo hwilila, ha musingawo musa moyo kukudza zina langu, ndowomulonga bhiso abuya alonga bhiso mu makombolelo enyu, nge malebeswa ndaalonga bhiso kale nge kuti amutotongokumusila moyo. Koleba Yahwe Masimbawose. 3 Bonani, ndowotjemela bana benyu amuzhodza nswane mu njiso, ndowomuzhodza nswane we zwibhayilo zwenyu ngono ndowomudusa pandilipo.
4 “Ndizo mowoziba kuti ndatumila nlayo iwoyu kumuli kuyita kuti tjidumano tjangu na Levi tjidwilile. Koleba Yahwe Masimbawose. 5 Tjidumano tjangu naye tjakabe tjili tjidumano tje butjilo ne mbakiso, ndakampa izo kuti atete, ngono wakanditeta ngono kakudza zina langu. 6 Wakabe ediya malebeswa koga, akuna tjisilebeswa tjakadwa mu nlomo uwe. Wakabe etjila nami mu malebeswa akatambunuka ngono kashandula banji kudwa mu matjinyo. 7 Ngoti milomo ye mpirisiti yakafanila kubakilila zibo, ne bathu bakafanila kushaka kudiyiwa nge nlomo uwe ngoti ntumwa wa Yahwe Masimbawose. 8 Koga makapambuka mu zila, makathama banjinji nge kudiya kwenyu kuti batjinye, makatjinya tjidumano tja Levi. Koleba Yahwe Masimbawose. 9 Ndizo wali ndothama kuti ulengudzike usibe tjimwe mbeli kwe bathu bose se usakalondolodza zila dzangu koga wakabe usiyilila mu kudiya kuko.
Kusagalamoyo kwa Juda
10 “Apa tose atina tate bang'ompela kene? Apa atizobumbiwa nge Ndzimu nng'ompela kene? Ini tilengudza tjidumano tja botate bedu nge kusagalana moyo kene? 11 Juda aazogalika moyo, tjimwe tjinoshimisa tjakashingikala mu Iziraela ne mu Jerusalema. Juda wakalengudza bugalo gwakayengemala gwa Yahwe igo gwabanoda, ngolobola nkololokadzi we ndzimu upoga. 12 Yahwe ngabaduse mmwe ne mmwe unothama ikoku mu mishasha ya Jakubo una butendeki ngekwako nenguba edusila Yahwe Masimbawose tjibhayilo.
13 “Tjimwe etji naitjobo tjamunoshinga. Mozhadza tjibeso tjinopisigwa zwibhayilo tja Yahwe nge mishodzi mulila mububula ngoti basingayitile hanya zwibhayilo zwenyu kene kuli kuzwiamutjila nge kushatha mu maboko enyu. 14 Mobhuzwa muti, ‘Kanti ini basingaamutjile?’ Hwuti Yahwe bakabe ntendeki pakati kuko ne nkadzi uwo we buzhuzha gugo wawusakagalika moyo kunli nenguba ali nkwinya uwo ali nkadzi uwo nge tjidumano. 15 Apa Ndzimu iwozwawo ate iwo wakababumba kube tjing'ompela kene? Nyama kose ne meya nge kwawo. Ndzimu iwoyu tjaunoda ini? Unoda bana bana Ndzimu mubali. Ndizo muzwibhate muthame kuti mmwe ne mmwe aletje kusagalika moyo ku nkadzi we buzhuzha gugwe. 16 Ngoti Yahwe Ndzimu we Iziraela bakati, ‘Ndoshima kukolomoka kwe ndobolo, ndoshima ne nthu unosumbika phipiti nge tjiambalo. Koleba Yahwe Masimbawose. Ndizo wali muzwiyele njele musibe basingagalike moyo.’
Zhuba le kusumikilisiwa
17 “Manyadza Yahwe nge matama enyu. Koga mobhuzwa muti, ‘Tabanyadza tjini?’ Mabanyadza ngoleba muti, ‘Bose banoshinga mbipo bakalulwama mu mesho a Yahwe, naiko banobashathila.’ Monyadza nge kubhuzwa muti, ‘Ungayi Ndzimu we kutambunuka?’ ”
True and False Priests
1 I, the Lord All-Powerful, have something else to say to you priests. 2 You had better take seriously the need to honor my name. Otherwise, when you give a blessing, I will turn it into a curse. In fact, I have already done this, because you haven't taken to heart your duties as priests. 3 I will punish your descendants and rub your faces in the manure from your animal sacrifices, and then be done with you.
4 I am telling you this, so I can continue to keep my agreement with your ancestor Levi. 5 I blessed him with a full life, as I had promised, and he kept his part of the agreement by honoring me and respecting my name. 6 He taught the truth and never told lies, and he led a lot of people to turn from sin, because he obeyed me and lived right.
7 You priests should be eager to spread knowledge, and everyone should come to you for instruction, because you speak for me, the Lord All-Powerful. 8 But you have turned your backs on me. Your teachings have led others to do sinful things, and you have broken the agreement I made with your ancestor Levi. 9 So I caused everyone to hate and despise you, because you disobeyed me and failed to treat all people alike.
A Broken Agreement
10 Don't you know that we all have God as our Father? Didn't the one God create each of us? Then why do you cheat each other by breaking the agreement God made with your ancestors? 11 You people in Judah and Jerusalem have been unfaithful to the Lord. You have disgraced the temple that he loves, and you have committed the disgusting sin of marrying the worshipers of other gods. 12 I pray that the Lord will no longer let those who are guilty belong to his people, even if they eagerly decide to offer the Lord a gift.
13 And what else are you doing? You cry noisily and flood the Lord's altar with your tears, because he isn't pleased with your offerings and refuses to accept them. 14 And why isn't God pleased? It's because he knows that each of you men has been unfaithful to the wife you married when you were young. You promised that she would be your partner, but now you have broken that promise. 15 Didn't God create you and your wife to become like one person? And why did he do this? It was so you would have children, and then lead them to become God's people. Don't ever be unfaithful to your wife. 16 The Lord God All-Powerful of Israel hates anyone who is cruel enough to divorce his wife. So take care never to be unfaithful!
17 You have worn out the Lord with your words. And yet, you ask, “How did we do that?”
You did it by saying, “The Lord is pleased with evil and doesn't care about justice.”