Elija ali pezhugwi kwe Dombo le Sinai
1 Ahabu kabudza nkadzi uwe Jezebele tjimwe ne tjimwe tjakathamwa ndi Elija, nenge sekwa akabulaya balebesambeli ba Bhaale nge thumo. 2 Ipapo Jezebele katuma ntumwa kuna Elija kunon'dwa eti, “Dzene midzimu ingandiloba ipaphulula, ha kungati mangwana nge tjibaka itjetji abe ndisakubulayabo sekwa wakabulaya balebesambeli.” 3 Elija katja, kamilika katizhila ku Bheerisheba umu Juda ne nlanda uwe.
Kasiya nlanda uwe ko. 4 Elija wakayenda mu tjilambanyika zhuba lose, kaswika pa nsu kagala mu ntutshi wawo, katembezela eti, “Ngwenu kwatjilizana, Yahwe, dusani butjilo gwangu ngoti anditoyita pana botate bangu!”
5 Kalala pasi mu ntutshi we nti, ngono tjinyolotjo ntumwa we Ndzimu ukankutha ukandwa ukati, “Muka uje.” 6 Ngono kati elinga kabona tjiwunga tjakagotjiwa pa masimbe ne hajana ye vula ku misholo iye. Ngono katola tjiwunga kaja, kang'wa vula, kayizela kakale. 7 Ngono ntumwa wa Yahwe kazha kammusa gwe bubili kandwa kati, “Muka uje, ngoti gwendo gowokukulila.” 8 Elija kamuka kaja kang'wa, zojiwa zwikampa simba kayenda siku ne sikati mazhuba ali makumi manna (40) kunoti ku Horebu, Dombo le Ndzimu. 9 Ipapo kangina mu guwu, kagala mukati busiku gose.
Ngono bonani, dama likadwa kuna Yahwe likambhuzwa liti, “Elija, unothamani ipapa?”
10 Kashandula eti, “Ndakagwa fupa ngekwa Yahwe, Ndzimu Masimbawose, ngoti bana be Iziraela bakabe balasha tjidumano tjenyu, bakapkhwanya zwibeso zwenyu zwe zwibhayilo bebuya bebulaya balebesambeli benyu bose nge thumo. Ngono ndimi ndoga ndakasala pafa, ngono banoshaka kundibulaya!”
11 Yahwe bakadwa Elija bakati, “Bhuda unoma pezhugwi kwe dombo mbeli kwangu.” Ipapo Yahwe bakapinda, ngono phepo isishoma ikazha nge masimba ikatjakanyula shongwe mbeli kwabo, koga Yahwe bakabe basi mu phepo, ngono shule kwe phepo, kukabe ne kutengenyeka kwe shango, koga Yahwe bakabe basi mu kutengenyeka kwe shango. 12 Shule kwe kutengenyeka kwe shango, kukabe moto, koga Yahwe bakabe basi mu moto. Ngono shule kwe moto kukabe hwi dukununu lakadzikama. 13 Ngono Elija kati ehwa hwi kazwizwimba buso nge hazu iye kabhuda kanoma pa nkoba we guwu. Ipapo hwi likazha kunli liti, “Elija, unothamani ipapa?”
14 Ngono kadabila eti, “Ndakagwa fupa ngekwa Yahwe, Ndzimu Masimbawose ngoti bana be Iziraela bakalasha tjidumano tjenyu, bakapkhwanya zwibeso zwenyu bebuya bebulaya balebesambeli benyu nge thumo. Ndimi ndoga ndakasala pafa, ngono banoshaka kundibulaya.”
15 Yahwe bakandwa bakati, “Yenda, shandukila ku tjilambanyika tje Damasiko, unowoti uswikako ukazhodza Hazaele kube mambo we Aramu. 16 Ube uzhodza Jehu nkololo wa Nimishi kube mambo we Iziraela. Kakale uzhodze Elisha nkololo wa Shafati we Abelimehola kube nlebesambeli mu bumo gugo. 17 Ngono unowopudzumuka mu thumo la Hazaele unowobulawa ndi Jehu, unowopudzumuka mu thumo la Jehu Elisha unowombulaya. 18 Nenguba kwakajalo ndowosiya bathu bali zwiwulu zwili kutendeka 7 000 mu Iziraela betjila basakatongo thigamila kene kuli kuputa Bhaale.”
Kudang'wa kwa Elisha
19 Ndizo Elija kabhuda ipapo kanowana Elisha nkololo wa Shafati elima. Kwakabe kuna zwipani zwili gumi lina tjing'ompela (11) mbeli kukwe, Elisha iye elima nge tje bugumi lina zwibili (12). Elija kapinda pana Elisha kambula tjiambalo tjitje katjiambadza Elisha. 20 Ngono Elisha kasiya ng'ombe kalabuka shule kwa Elija ngono kandwa kati, “Imani ndinowoneka mme na tate, ndizo ndikomutobela.”
Elija kanshandula eti, “Shandukazo, ndabe ndakuthamani?” 21 Ndizo Elisha kasiya Elija kashandukila shule. Kaswika ebhaya mangabe ebe etola majokwe ebesa moto ndiwo, ebe ebhika nyama epa bathu beja. Ndizo ebe emilika etobela Elija kunoshinga ali mbhatshi uwe.
Elijah on Mount Sinai
1 King Ahab told his wife Jezebel everything that Elijah had done and how he had put all the prophets of Baal to death. 2 She sent a message to Elijah: “May the gods strike me dead if by this time tomorrow I don't do the same thing to you that you did to the prophets.” 3 Elijah was afraid and fled for his life; he took his servant and went to Beersheba in Judah.
Leaving the servant there, 4 Elijah walked a whole day into the wilderness. He stopped and sat down in the shade of a tree and wished he would die. “It's too much, Lord,” he prayed. “Take away my life; I might as well be dead!”
5 He lay down under the tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said, “Wake up and eat.” 6 He looked around and saw a loaf of bread and a jar of water near his head. He ate and drank, and lay down again. 7 The Lord's angel returned and woke him up a second time, saying, “Get up and eat, or the trip will be too much for you.” 8 Elijah got up, ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to walk forty days to Sinai, the holy mountain. 9 There he went into a cave to spend the night.
Suddenly the Lord spoke to him, “Elijah, what are you doing here?”
10 He answered, “Lord God Almighty, I have always served you—you alone. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed all your prophets. I am the only one left—and they are trying to kill me!”
11 “Go out and stand before me on top of the mountain,” the Lord said to him. Then the Lord passed by and sent a furious wind that split the hills and shattered the rocks—but the Lord was not in the wind. The wind stopped blowing, and then there was an earthquake—but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake there was a fire—but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the soft whisper of a voice.
13 When Elijah heard it, he covered his face with his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. A voice said to him, “Elijah, what are you doing here?”
14 He answered, “Lord God Almighty, I have always served you—you alone. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed all your prophets. I am the only one left—and they are trying to kill me.”
15 The Lord said, “Return to the wilderness near Damascus, then enter the city and anoint Hazael as king of Syria; 16 anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king of Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 17 Anyone who escapes being put to death by Hazael will be killed by Jehu, and anyone who escapes Jehu will be killed by Elisha. 18 Yet I will leave seven thousand people alive in Israel—all those who are loyal to me and have not bowed to Baal or kissed his idol.”
The Call of Elisha
19 Elijah left and found Elisha plowing with a team of oxen; there were eleven teams ahead of him, and he was plowing with the last one. Elijah took off his cloak and put it on Elisha. 20 Elisha then left his oxen, ran after Elijah, and said, “Let me kiss my father and mother good-bye, and then I will go with you.”
Elijah answered, “All right, go back. I'm not stopping you!”
21 Then Elisha went to his team of oxen, killed them, and cooked the meat, using the yoke as fuel for the fire. He gave the meat to the people, and they ate it. Then he went and followed Elijah as his helper.