1 The Lord Almighty says to the priests, “This command is for you: 2 You must honor me by what you do. If you will not listen to what I say, then I will bring a curse on you. I will put a curse on the things you receive for your support. In fact, I have already put a curse on them, because you do not take my command seriously. 3 I will punish your children and rub your faces in the dung of the animals you sacrifice—and you will be taken out to the dung heap. 4 Then you will know that I have given you this command, so that my covenant with the priests, the descendants of Levi, will not be broken.
5 “In my covenant I promised them life and well-being, and this is what I gave them, so that they might respect me. In those days they did respect and fear me. 6 They taught what was right, not what was wrong. They lived in harmony with me; they not only did what was right themselves, but they also helped many others to stop doing evil. 7 It is the duty of priests to teach the true knowledge of God. People should go to them to learn my will, because they are the messengers of the Lord Almighty.
8 “But now you priests have turned away from the right path. Your teaching has led many to do wrong. You have broken the covenant I made with you. 9 So I, in turn, will make the people of Israel despise you because you do not obey my will, and when you teach my people, you do not treat everyone alike.”
The People's Unfaithfulness to God
10 Don't we all have the same father? Didn't the same God create us all? Then why do we break our promises to one another, and why do we despise the covenant that God made with our ancestors? 11 The people of Judah have broken their promise to God and done a horrible thing in Jerusalem and all over the country. They have defiled the Temple which the Lord loves. Men have married women who worship foreign gods. 12 May the Lord remove from the community of Israel those who did this, and never again let them participate in the offerings our nation brings to the Lord Almighty.
13 This is another thing you do. You drown the Lord's altar with tears, weeping and wailing because he no longer accepts the offerings you bring him. 14 You ask why he no longer accepts them. It is because he knows you have broken your promise to the wife you married when you were young. She was your partner, and you have broken your promise to her, although you promised before God that you would be faithful to her. 15 Didn't God make you one body and spirit with her? What was his purpose in this? It was that you should have children who are truly God's people. So make sure that none of you breaks his promise to his wife. 16 “I hate divorce,” says the Lord God of Israel. “I hate it when one of you does such a cruel thing to his wife. Make sure that you do not break your promise to be faithful to your wife.”
The Day of Judgment Is Near
17 You have tired the Lord out with your talk. But you ask, “How have we tired him?” By saying, “The Lord Almighty thinks all evildoers are good; in fact he likes them.” Or by asking, “Where is the God who is supposed to be just?”
1 Omuwa Omunankondoawike ota ti kaayambi: “Otamu pewa oshipango shika. 2 Omu na okusimaneka ndje mushoka tamu longo. Ngele itamu pulakene shoka te ti, nena otandi ke mu thinga. Otandi ka thinga iitaambwa yeni ayihe hayi mu kwatha. Tashi ti, onde yi thinga nokuli, oshoka inamu taamba iipango yandje nuudhiginini. 3 Otandi ka geela aana yeni e tandi pwikike iipala yeni mehoho lyiimuna yomayambo geni — notamu ku umbilwa mondoya. 4 Nena otamu ka tseya kutya onde mu pa oshipango shika, opo ehangano lyandje naayambi noluvalo lwaLevi lyaa teke po.
5 “Mehangano lyandje onde ya uvanekele omwenyo nuundjolowele, naashika onde shi ya ningile, opo ya simaneke ndje. Momasiku ngeyaka oya li ya longele ndje nesimaneko. 6 Oya nongeke shoka shu uka, haashoka sha puka. Oya kala meuvathano nangame; inaa longa ashike shoka shu uka yoyene, ihe oya pukulula oyendji yalwe, ye ethe okulonga uukolokoshi. 7 Oshilonga shaayambi osho okunongeka okutseya oshili yaKalunga. Aantu oye na okuya kuyo, yi ilonge ehalo lyandje, oshoka oyo aatumwa yOmuwa Omunankondoawike.
8 “Ihe ngashingeyi, ne aayambi, omwa pilamene ondjila yu uka. Omalongo geni oga fala oyendji mokulonga iihuna. Omwa teya ehangano ndyoka twa hangana nane. 9 Osho tuu nangame tandi mu dhinitha koshigwana shaIsrael, oshoka inamu vulika kehalo lyandje nomu na ontondo menongeko lyeni.”
Uunyolowe waantu okudhiginina Kalunga
10 Tse atuheni hatu na Tate gumwe? HaKalunga gumwe e tu shita atuhe? Omolwashike nduno itaatu tsakanitha omauvaneko getweni, nomolwashike tatu dhini ehangano ndyoka Kalunga a hangana nootate? 11 Aantu yaJuda oya yono euvaneko lyawo naKalunga noya longo iihuna muJerusalem nomoshilongo ashihe. Oya nyateke otempeli yi holike kOmuwa. Aalumentu oya hokana aakiintu mboka haa simaneke iikalunga. 12 Omuwa na kuthe megwaneno lyaIsrael ngoka te shi ningi, kaa vule we okweetela Omuwa Omunankondoawike omayambo pamwe noshigwana shetu.
13 Oshinima oshikwawo hamu shi ningi, osho shika. Ohamu hipike oshiyambelo shOmuwa nomahodhi, ohamu lili nokuhekumuna, sho itaa taamba we omayambo ngoka tamu mu etele. 14 Otamu pula, oshike itee ga taamba we. Ite ga taamba, oshoka oku shi shi kutya owa yono euvaneko kumukadhoye ngoka wa hokana muugundjuka woye. Okwa li kuume koye, ongoye nowa yono euvaneko lyoye kuye, nonando owa uvaneke koshipala shaKalunga kutya oto ke mu dhiginina. 15 Kalunga nani ine mu ninga olutu lumwe nombepo yimwe naye? Elalakano lye olini mpaka? Ndishi ou mone aanona mboka taa kala aantu lela yaKalunga. Shi tseyeni ano, pwaa kale nando ogumwe ta henge po omukiintu gwe. 16 Omuwa Kalunga kaIsrael ota ti: “Otandi tondo eteyo lyoondjokana. Ondi tonde omuntu ta ningile omukadhi esithahoni li thike mpa. Kala u shi shi, waa yone euvaneko lyoye, ihe u dhiginine omukulukadhi gwoye.”
Esiku lyepangulo oli li popepi
17 Omwa vulitha Omuwa nokupopya kweni. Ihe otamu pula: “Otwe mu vulitha ngiini?” Sho tamu ti: “Omuwa Omunankondoawike ota dhiladhila kutya aadhudhu oyo aawanawa; aantu ya tya ngaaka okwe ya hokwa.” Nenge sho tamu pula tamu ti: “Kalunga kuuyuuki oku li peni?”
