Midzimwana ya Mika
1 Kwakabe kuna nlume we shango ye matuthu ye Ifureimi zina lile kuyi Mika. 2 Kadwa mmeyabe kati, “Shekele dze siliva dzili tjiwulu ne zana (1 100) dzatogwa mumuli, idzo dzandahwa mulonga bhiso, siliva iyeyo ndinayo, ndakaitola.” Ipapo mme yabe bakandwa beti, “Yahwe bakukombolele nkololo wangu.” 3 Wakati ebgwiliza siliva ye shekele dzili tjiwulu tjina zana (1 100) kuna mme yabe, bakandwa bakati, “Ndoyengemadzila Yahwe siliva iyeyi ngekwe nkololo wangu, kuthama ifano tje ndzimu wakabezhiwa ne wakabumbiwa, ndizo ngwenu ndowokubgwilizila iyo.” 4 Ndizo wakati ebgwiliza siliva kuna mme yabe, mme yabe bakatola maloso ali mazana mabili (200) e siliva bakabebepa nthuli we siliva, kathama ndzimwana wakabezhiwa ne wakabumbiwa. Zwika bigiwa mu ng'umba ya Mika. 5 Nlume iwoyu unoyi Mika wakabe ana dulana le midzimu, kathama khiba ne zwifano ngono kabiga nkololo uwe kube mpirisiti. 6 Mu mazhuba iyawo kwakabekusina mambo mu Iziraela, mmwe ne mmwe ethama tjaanobona tjakalulwama mu mesho awe.
7 Kwakabe kuna nzhuzha edwa ku Bhetelehema mu Juda, we ludzi gwa Juda. 8 Nlume iwoyu kabhuda mu nzi we Bhetelehema mu Juda, kunogala kwaangabona magalo, wakayenda kaswika ku shango ye matuthu ye Ifureimi ku ng'umba ya Mika. 9 Mika kambhuzwa kati, “Unodwa poni?” Kanshandula eti, “Ndi Nlevi we Bhetelehema mu Juda, ndoshaka magalo pandingagala.”
10 Mika kandwa kati, “Gala nami, ube tate bangu ube mpirisiti wangu, ngono ndowokupa shekele dze siliva dzili gumi (10) ne gole, kose ne zwiambalo ne zojiwa.” 11 Ndizo Nlevi kaduma gala naye, ngono nzhuzha kanga bakololo babe kunli. 12 Ndizo Mika kalonga Nlevi mu nshingo, nzhuzha kabe mpirisiti uwe, kagala mu ng'umba ya Mika. 13 Mika kabe eti, “Ngwenu ndoziba kuti Yahwe banowondithamila zwakanaka, ngoti ndina mpirisiti we Nlevi.”
Micah's Idols
1 There was once a man named Micah, who lived in the hill country of Ephraim. 2 He told his mother, “When someone stole those eleven hundred pieces of silver from you, you put a curse on the robber. I heard you do it. Look, I have the money. I am the one who took it.”
His mother said, “May the Lord bless you, my son!” 3 He gave the money back to his mother, and she said, “To keep the curse from falling on my son, I myself am solemnly dedicating the silver to the Lord. It will be used to make a wooden idol covered with silver. So now I will give the pieces of silver back to you.” 4 Then he gave them back to his mother. She took two hundred of the pieces of silver and gave them to a metalworker, who made an idol, carving it from wood and covering it with the silver. It was placed in Micah's house.
5 This man Micah had his own place of worship. He made some idols and an ephod, and appointed one of his sons as his priest. 6 There was no king in Israel at that time; everyone did whatever they wanted.
7 At that same time there was a young Levite who had been living in the town of Bethlehem in Judah. 8 He left Bethlehem to find another place to live. While he was traveling, he came to Micah's house in the hill country of Ephraim. 9 Micah asked him, “Where do you come from?”
He answered, “I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah. I am looking for a place to live.”
10 Micah said, “Stay with me. Be my adviser and priest, and I will give you ten pieces of silver a year, some clothes, and your food.” 11 The young Levite agreed to stay with Micah and became like a son to him. 12 Micah appointed him as his priest, and he lived in Micah's home. 13 Micah said, “Now that I have a Levite as my priest, I know that the Lord will make things go well for me.”