Mbono ngekwe Ng'umba ye Ndzimu
Ezekiele unotolegwa ku Jerusalema
1 Mu gole le bumakumi mabili ana makole ali mashanu tili mu butapiwa, mu kutangisa kwe gole, mu zhuba le bugumi le mwedzi, mu gole le bugumi lina makole manna nzi nkulu wakapkhwanyiwa, mu zhuba ilelo koga luboko gwa Yahwe gwakabe gunami ngono bakandiyisa ikweno. 2 Mu mbono Ndzimu wakanditola ukandiyisa ku shango ye Iziraela ukandimisa pezhugwi kwe dombo lefulefu kwazo. Ku ndzibo walo we burwa kwakabe kuna mbako dzakabe dzilingika se nzi nkulu. 3 Bakandiyisako ngono abona nlume wakabe elingika se phangula ali mile pa nkoba akabhata nsungwana we jila ne lukombo gunolizanya. 4 Nlume ihwoyo kandidwa kati, “Nkololo we nthu, linga nge mesho awo uhwe nge zebe dzidzo ngono uyele njele tjimwe ne tjimwe tjandinowokulakidza ngoti nditjo tjawazhisigwa ipapa. Ubudze bathu be Iziraela tjimwe ne tjimwe tjaunobona.”
Nkoba weku bhezhuba
5 Kwakabe kuna guma kupoteleka ng'umba ye Ndzimu. Bulefu gwe lukombo gunolizanya gwakabe gwakabhakhwa nge nlume ihwoyo gwakabe guli thambo dzili gumi, ngono thambo imwe ne imwe ipaphidziwa nge tjiazha, ndizo kalizanya bukodu gwe guma gukabe thambo ing'ompela ne kuyenda pezhugwi kukabe thambo ing'ompela. 6 Kudwa ipapo kayenda ku nkoba wakalinga ku bhezhuba. Katathila pezhugwi ngono kalizanya gwasayile le nkoba litjapasi ngono likabe thambo ing'ompela. 7 Ng'umbana dze balindi dzakabe dzili thambo dzili thatu dzina gaswa bupabi ne bulefu imwe ne imwe yadzo, guma linodzithubukanya lili thambo dzili zhanakadzi bukodu gwalo. Makwasayile e nkoba wakabapa ne nkoto wakalingisana ne ng'umba ye Ndzimu wakabe uli lukombo gung'ompela bulefu gwawo. 8 Kabe elizanya nkoto utjemukati kwe nkoba wakabe thambo dzili nna kungina, 9 makuma awo ali thambo ina gaswa bukodu. Nkoto iwoyu we nkoba wakabe wakalingisana ne ng'umba ye Ndzimu. 10 Tjemukati kwe nkoba we ku bhezhuba kwakabe kuna ng'umbana dze balindi, thatu ku ndzibo we luji ne thatu ku ndzibo we lumeshwe, dzakabe dzilizana ne makuma anodzithubukanya elizana nadzo. 11 Kudwapo kalizanya bupabi gwe nkoba panonginiwa ndipo, kukabe thambo dzili kutendeka. 12 Mbeli kwe ng'umbana imwe ne imwe ye balindi kwakabe kuna guma fupifupi le bulefu kuyenda pezhugwi gunolizana gaswa le thambo ing'ompela, bukodu gwalo guli gaswa ye thambo. Ng'umbana imwe ne imwe yakabe ilizana mbizho dzose ili thambo thatu. 13 Kudwa ipapo kalizanya nkoba tjapezhugwi kwe ng'umbana kudwa mu guma li shule le ng'umbana kunoti ku ng'umbana imwe ngono kukabe thambo dzili gumi lina dzili nna. 14 Kalizanya makuma anothubukanya dzing'umbana wose atjemukati kwe nkoba kawana thambo dzili gumi lina ing'ompela ina gaswa. 15 Kudwa pa nkoba kunoti ku ng'umbana ye bupelo kwakabe kulizana thambo dzili makumi mabili ana dzili zhanakadzi. 16 Ng'umbana dze balindi dzakabe dzili tjemukati kwe nkoba ne makuma anodzithubukanya akabe ana mafesitere matukununu kuapoteleka efanana ne akabe ali mu mikoto, mikoba yose yakabe yakalinga tjamukati. Makuma akabe ethubukanya dzing'umbana akabe akanakisiwa nge zwifano zwe miti ye milala.
17 Ipapo kandiyisa ku nsha utjakuzhe. Ikoko ndakabona ng'umba dzili makumi matatu ne budzilo gwakadzipoteleka. 18 Budzilo gwakabe gwakabapisa mikoba, bulefu gwago ne bupabi gwago gulizana. Igogu budzilo gutjapasi. 19 Ipapo kalizanya bulefu gunodwa tjemukati kwe nkoba utjapasi kunoti tjakuzhe kwe nsha utjemukati, kukabe thambo dzili makumi mashanu ana dzili tathatu kuyendila ku bhezhuba ne kuyendila ku bunandzwa.
Nkoba we bunandzwa
20 Ipapo kalizanya bulefu ne bupabi gwe nkoba wakalinga ku bunandzwa unobhudila ku nsha utjakuzhe. 21 Ng'umbana dzawo dze balindi, thatu ku ndzibo we luji ne ku ndzibo we lumeshwe ne makuma anodzithubukanya ne nkoto wadzo dzakabe dzilizana ne dze nkoba we kutanga. Kwakabe kulizana thambo dzili makumi mabili ana dzili zhanakadzi bulefu, bupabi guli thambo dzili gumi lina dzili nna. 22 Mafesitere awo ne nkoto wawo ne zwifano zwe nlala zwakanakisa makuma zwakabe zwilizana ne zwe nkoba wakabe wakalinga ku bhezhuba. Kwakabe kuna matathiso ali kutendeka anotathila kuuli, nkoto wawo wakalingisana nawo. 23 Kwakabe kuna nkoba unonginila mu nsha utjemukati wakalinga ku nkoba we bunandzwa kufanana koga nge kwakabe kuli iko nge nkoba we ku bhezhuba. Kalizanya kudwa mu nkoba mmwe kuyenda ku mmwe wakalingisana nawo ngono kukalizana thambo dzili makumi mashanu ana dzili tathatu.
Nkoba we burwa
24 Kudwa ipapo kanditungamilila ku burwa ngono abona nkoba ku burwa, ngono kalizanya makuma anoithubukanya nenge mikoto yayo ngono dzikabe dzilizalizana ne dzimwe. 25 Ng'umbana dze nkoba iwoyu ne makuma e nkoto dzakabe dzina mafesitere matukununu kufanana ne amu mikoba mimwe. Bulefu gwe nkoba gwakabe guli thambo dzili makumi mabili ana dzili zhanakadzi bupabi guli thambo dzili gumi lina dzili tathatu. 26 Kwakabe kuna matathiso ali kutendeka akabe etathila kuuli, nkoto wawo wakabe wakalingisana nawo. Wakabe wakanakisiwa nge zwifano zwe nlala mu makuma awo anothubukanya ng'umbana dze balindi mu midzibo yawo yose. 27 Nsha utjemukati wakabe una nkoba bo wakabe wakalinga ku burwa, ngono kalizanya kudwa pa nkoba iwoyu kunoti ku nkoba utjakuzhe ku ndzibo uku burwa ngono kukalizana thambo dzili makumi mashanu ana dzili tathatu.
Mikoba ye misha itjemukati
28 Nlume ihwoyo kanditungamilila ku nsha utjemukati nge nkoba we burwa, ngono kalizanya nkoba we burwa ngono ukalizana ne mimwe mikoba. 29 Ng'umbana dzawo dze balindi ne makuma anodzithubukanya ne nkoto wawo kwakabe kulizana koga ne mimwe mikoba. Nkoba ne nkoto zwakabe zwina mafesitere kose kupoteleka. Wakabe ulizana thambo dzili makumi mabili ana dzili zhanakadzi bulefu, bupabi gulizana thambo dzili gumi lina dzili nna. 30 Mikoto kupoteleka nkoba we nsha utjemukati yakabe ilizana thambo dzili makumi mabili ana dzili zhanakadzi bulefu, bupabi gulizana thambo dzili gumi lina dzili nna. 31 Ng'umbana dzawo dze balindi dzakabe dzakalinga ku nsha utjakuzhe, makuma anodzithubukanya akabe akanakisiwa nge zwifano zwe nlala ngono kuna matathiso anotathila kuuli ali zhanakadzi.
32 Ipapo kandiyisa ku nsha utjemukati ku bhezhuba ngono kalizanya nkoba, wakabe ulizana ne mimwe mikoba. 33 Ng'umbana dzawo dze balindi ne makuma anodzithubukanya ne mikoto yawo yakabe ili zana ne mimwe mikoba. Nkoba ne ng'umbana dzawo dze balindi wakabe una mafesitere kupoteleka. Kose kulizana thambo dzili makumi mabili ana dzili zhanakadzi bulefu, bupabi gulizana thambo dzili gumi dzina dzili nna. 34 Mikoto yawo yakabe yakalinga ku guma litjakuzhe, makuma anothubukanya mikoto akabe akanakisiwa nge zwifano zwe nlala, ngono kuna matathiso ali zhanakadzi anotathila kuuli.
35 Ipapo kandiyisa ku nkoba we bunandzwa kabe eulizanya. Iwo wakabe ulizana ne mimwe mikoba. 36 Ng'umbana dzawo dze balindi ne makuma anodzithubukanya ne nkoto wawo kwakabe kulizana ne zwimwe ngono zose zwina mafesitere matukununu kupoteleka. Wakabe uli thambo dzili makumi mabili ana dzili zhanakadzi bulefu, bupabi guli thambo dzili gumi dzina dzili nna. 37 Mikoto yawo yakabe yakalinga ku guma litjakuzhe, makuma anothubukanya mikoto aku ndzibo we luji ne we lumeshwe akabe akanakisiwa nge zwifano zwe nlala. Kwakabe kuna matathiso anotathila kuuli ali zhanakadzi.
38 Kwakabe kuna ng'umba kubapa ne mikoto pa nkoba mmwe ne mmwe utjemukati, ndiko kwakabe kusukigwa tjibhayilo tjinopisiwa. 39 Mu mikoto ye nkoba ku ndzibo we luji kwakabe kuna tafuli mbili newe lumeshwe kwakabe kuna tafuli mbili kwakabe kubulayigwa pezhugwi kwadzo tjibhayilo tjinopisiwa ne tjibhayilo tje tjibi ne tjibhayilo tje nlandu. 40 Kuzhe kwe guma le nkoto we nkoba pejo ne matathiso pa nkoba we bunandzwa kwakabe kuna tafuli dzili mbili, ku ndzibo mmwe we matathiso kuna dzimwe tafuli dzili mbili. 41 Ndizo wali kwakabe kuna tafuli dzili nna ku ndzibo we nkoba, kuna dzimwe dzili nna ku ndzibo mmwe we nkoba, dzose dzili zhanakadzi dzakabe dzibulayigwa zwibhayilo. 42 Kwakabe kuna dzimwe tafuli nna dzakathamiwa nge mabgwe akabezhiwa dzithamigwa zwibhayilo zwinopisiwa, imwe ne imwe yadzo yakabe ilizana mbizho dzose dzili gaswa le thambo bulefu ne bupabi. Kwakabe kubigwa pezhugwi kwadzo zwakabe zwishingisiwa kubulaya zwibhayilo zwinopisiwa ne zwimwe zwibhayilo. 43 Kwakabe kuna zwihweko zwilefu kungapa bupabi gwe tjiazha zwakanamatidziwa mu midzibo ye tafuli kupoteleka. Tafuli dzakabe dzibigwa nyama ye zwibhayilo.
Ng'umba dze bapirisiti
44 Kuzhe kwe nkoba utjemukati mu nsha utjemukati kwakabe kuna ng'umba mbili, imwe ili ku bunandzwa yakalinga ku bunandzwa, imwe ili burwa yakalinga ku burwa. 45 Nlume iwoyo kabe eti kundili, “Ng'umba yakalinga ku burwa ngeye bapirisiti banotjengeta Ng'umba ye Ndzimu, 46 ng'umba yakalinga ku bunandzwa ngeye bapirisiti banotjengeta tjibeso tjinopisigwa zwibhayilo. Bapirisiti ibaba bakololo ba Zadoki iye yega pakati kwe bakololo ba Levi ungazha pejo na Yahwe kubashingila.”
Nsha utjemukati ne mbako ye Ng'umba ye Ndzimu
47 Ipapo kalizanya nsha ukalizana thambo dzili makumi mashanu ana dzili zhanakadzi bulefu ne bupabi. Tjibeso tje zwibhayilo tjakabe tjili mbeli kwe Ng'umba ye Ndzimu. 48 Kandiyisa ku nkoto we Ng'umba ye Ndzimu ngono kalizanya makuma anothubukanya mikoto kalizana thambo dzili zhanakadzi bulefu ne bupabi, makuma anothubukanya mikoto akalizana thambo dzili thatu. 49 Nkoto wakabe ulizana thambo dzili gumi lina thambo ina gaswa bulefu, bupabi guli thambo dzili zhanakadzi. Kwakabe kuna matathiso anotathila kuuli, kuna phanda ku ndzibo mmwe ne mmwe we makuma akabe ethubukanya mikoto.
A VISION OF THE FUTURE TEMPLE (40.1—48.35)
Ezekiel Is Taken to Jerusalem
1 It was the tenth day of the new year, which was the twenty-fifth year after we had been taken into exile and the fourteenth year after Jerusalem was captured. On that day I felt the powerful presence of the Lord, and he carried me away. 2 In a vision God took me to the land of Israel and put me on a high mountain. I saw in front of me a group of buildings that looked like a city. 3 He took me closer, and I saw a man who shone like bronze. He was holding a linen tape measure and a measuring rod and was standing by a gateway.
4 He said to me, “Watch, mortal man. Listen carefully and pay close attention to everything I show you, because this is why you were brought here. You are to tell the people of Israel everything you see.”
The East Gate
5 What I saw was the Temple, and there was a wall around it. The man took his measuring rod, which was 10 feet long, and measured the wall. It was 10 feet high and 10 feet thick. 6 Then he went to the gateway that faced east. He went up the steps, and at the top he measured the entrance; it was 10 feet deep. 7 Beyond it there was a passageway, which had three guardrooms on each side. Each of the rooms was square, 10 feet on each side, and the walls between them were 8 feet thick. Beyond the guardrooms there was a passageway 10 feet long that led to an entrance room which faced the Temple. 8-9 He measured this room and found it was 14 feet deep. It formed that end of the gateway which was nearest the Temple, and at its far end the walls were 4 feet thick. ( 10 These guardrooms on each side of the passageway were all the same size, and the walls between them were all of the same thickness.)
11 Next, the man measured the width of the passageway in the gateway. It was 22 feet altogether, and the space between the open gates was 16 feet. 12 In front of each of the guardrooms there was a low wall 20 inches high and 20 inches thick. (The rooms were 10 feet square.) 13 Then he measured the distance from the back wall of one room to the back wall of the room across the passageway from it, and it was 42 feet. 14 The room at the far end led out to a courtyard. He measured that room and found it was 34 feet wide. 15 The total length of the gateway from the outside wall of the gate to the far side of the last room was 84 feet. 16 There were small openings in the outside walls of all the rooms and also in the inner walls between the rooms. There were palm trees carved on the inner walls that faced the passageway.
The Outer Courtyard
17 The man took me through the gateway into the courtyard. There were thirty rooms built against the outer wall, and in front of them there was an area paved with stones, 18 which extended around the courtyard. This outer courtyard was at a lower level than the inner courtyard.
19 There was a gateway at a higher level that led to the inner courtyard. The man measured the distance between the two gateways, and it was 168 feet.
The North Gate
20 Then the man measured the gateway on the north side that led into the outer courtyard. 21 The three guardrooms on each side of the passageway, the walls between them, and the entrance room all had the same measurements as those in the east gateway. The total length of the gateway was 84 feet and the width 42 feet. 22 The entrance room, the windows, and the carved palm trees were like those in the east gate. Here seven steps led up to the gate, and the entrance room was at the end facing the courtyard. 23 Across the courtyard from this north gateway was another gateway leading to the inner courtyard, just as there was on the east side. The man measured the distance between these two gateways, and it was 168 feet.
The South Gate
24 Next, the man took me to the south side, and there we saw another gateway. He measured its inner walls and its entrance room, and they were the same as the others. 25 There were windows in the rooms of this gateway just as in the others. The total length of the gateway was 84 feet and the width 42 feet. 26 Seven steps led up to it, and its entrance room was also at the end facing the courtyard. There were palm trees carved on the inner walls that faced the passageway. 27 Here, too, there was a gateway leading to the inner courtyard. The man measured the distance to this second gateway, and it was 168 feet.
The Inner Courtyard: The South Gate
28 The man took me through the south gateway into the inner courtyard. He measured the gateway, and it was the same size as the gateways in the outer wall. 29-30 Its guardrooms, its entrance room, and its inner walls were the same size as those in the other gateways. There were also windows in the rooms of this gateway. The total length was 84 feet and the width 42 feet. 31 Its entrance room faced the other courtyard, and palm trees were carved on the walls along the passageway. Eight steps led up to this gate.
The Inner Courtyard: The East Gate
32 The man took me through the east gateway into the inner courtyard. He measured the gateway, and it was the same size as the others. 33 Its guardrooms, its entrance room, and its inner walls measured the same as those in the other gateways. There were windows all around, and in the entrance room also. The total length was 84 feet and the width 42 feet. 34 The entrance room faced the outer courtyard. Palm trees were carved on the walls along the passageway. Eight steps led up to this gate.
The Inner Courtyard: The North Gate
35 Then the man took me to the north gateway. He measured it, and it was the same size as the others. 36 Like them, it also had guardrooms, decorated inner walls, an entrance room, and windows all around. Its total length was 84 feet and its width 42 feet. 37 The entrance room faced the outer courtyard. Palm trees were carved on the walls along the passageway. Eight steps led up to this gate.
Buildings Near the North Gate
38 In the outer courtyard there was an annex attached to the inner gateway on the north side. It opened into the entrance room that faced the courtyard, and there they washed the carcasses of the animals to be burned whole as sacrifices. 39 In this entrance room there were four tables, two on each side of the room. It was on these tables that they killed the animals to be offered as sacrifices, either to be burned whole or to be sacrifices for sin or as repayment offerings. 40 Outside the room there were four similar tables, two on either side of the entrance of the north gate. 41 Altogether there were eight tables on which the animals to be sacrificed were killed: four inside the room and four out in the courtyard. 42 The four tables in the annex, used to prepare the offerings to be burned whole, were of cut stone. They were 20 inches high, and their tops were 30 inches square. All the equipment used in killing the sacrificial animals was kept on these tables. 43 Ledges 3 inches wide ran around the edge of the tables. All the meat to be offered in sacrifice was placed on the tables.
44 Then he brought me into the inner court. There were two rooms opening on the inner court, one facing south beside the north gateway and the other facing north beside the south gateway. 45 The man told me that the room which faced south was for the priests who served in the Temple, 46 and the room which faced north was for the priests who served at the altar. All the priests are descended from Zadok; they are the only members of the tribe of Levi who are permitted to go into the Lord's presence to serve him.
The Inner Courtyard and the Temple Building
47 The man measured the inner courtyard, and it was 168 feet square. The Temple was on the west side, and in front of it was an altar. 48 Then he took me into the entrance room of the Temple. He measured the entranceway: it was 9 feet deep and 24 feet wide, with walls 5 feet thick on either side. 49 Steps led up to the entrance room, which was 34 feet wide and 20 feet deep. There were two columns, one on each side of the entrance.