The Promised Messenger
1 I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will send my messenger
to prepare the way for me.
Then suddenly the Lord
you are looking for
will appear in his temple.
The messenger you desire
is coming with my promise,
and he is on his way.
A Day of Change
2 On the day the Lord comes, he will be like a furnace that purifies silver or like strong soap in a washbasin. No one will be able to stand up to him. 3 The Lord will purify the descendants of Levi, as though they were gold or silver. Then they will bring the proper offerings to the Lord, 4 and the offerings of the people of Judah and Jerusalem will please him, just as they did in the past.
Don't Cheat God
5 The Lord All-Powerful said:
I'm now on my way to judge you. And I will quickly condemn all who practice witchcraft or cheat in marriage or tell lies in court or rob workers of their pay or mistreat widows and orphans or steal the property of foreigners or refuse to respect me.
6 Descendants of Jacob, I am the Lord All-Powerful, and I never change. That's why you haven't been wiped out, 7 even though you have ignored and disobeyed my laws ever since the time of your ancestors. But if you return to me, I will return to you.
And yet you ask, “How can we return?”
8 You people are robbing me, your God. And, here you are, asking, “How are we robbing you?”
You are robbing me of the offerings and of the ten percent that belongs to me. 9 That's why your whole nation is under a curse. 10 I am the Lord All-Powerful, and I challenge you to put me to the test. Bring the entire ten percent into the storehouse, so there will be food in my house. Then I will open the windows of heaven and flood you with blessing after blessing. 11 I will also stop locusts from destroying your crops and keeping your vineyards from producing. 12 Everyone of every nation will talk about how I have blessed you and about your wonderful land. I, the Lord All-Powerful, have spoken!
13 You have said horrible things about me, and yet you ask, “What have we said?”
14 Here is what you have said: “It's foolish to serve the Lord God All-Powerful. What do we get for obeying God and from going around looking sad? 15 See how happy those arrogant people are. Everyone who does wrong is successful, and when they put God to the test, they always get away with it.”
Faithfulness Is Rewarded
16 All those who truly respected the Lord and honored his name started discussing these things, and when God saw what was happening, he had their names written as a reminder in his book.
17 Then the Lord All-Powerful said:
You people are precious to me, and when I come to bring justice, I will protect you, just as parents protect an obedient child. 18 Then everyone will once again see the difference between those who obey me by doing right and those who reject me by doing wrong.
Efiku lOmwene
1 Tala, Ame ohandi tumu omutumwa wange, ou ta ka kokolela nge ondjila yange. Opo Omwene ou tamu mu kongo, ote ke uya divadiva motembeli yaye, nokutya Omweengeli wehangano, ou mwe mu djuulukwa. Tala, Ye ote uya, Omwene womatanga ovakwaita ta ti. 2 Ndelenee olyelye ta dulu okulididimika efiku leuyo laye? Ndele olyelye ta dulu okukala po, Ye eshi ta holoka? Osheshi Ye e li ngaashi omundilo womeleva lomuhambwidi nongaashi ofewa yomukoshi. 3 Ndele Ye ota ka kala omutumba, ngaashi omuhengumuni nomuyelifi woshisiliveli, ndele Ye ota ka yelifa ovana ovamati vaLevi ndele te va yelifa ngaashi oshingoldo noshisiliveli, opo vo tava ka etela Omwene eyambo nouyuki. 4 Opo nee eyambo laJuda nolaJerusalem tali ka wapalela Omwene, ngaashi momafiku onale nongaashi momido domounyuni wonale. 5 Ndele Ame ohandi ka ehena kunye ndi ninge etokolo, ndele Ame handi endelele okuninga ondobwedi ndi tokole eendudu novatei vohombo naava va ana moipupulu nohava fininike omulongeli wondjabi mokufuta, novafiyekadi neefiye. Naava hava ngolyola eendjovo domunailongo ndele itava tila nge. Omwene womatanga ovakwaita ta ti.
6 Osheshi Ame Omwene ihandi lunduluka. Ndele nye ovana vaJakob inamu xula po. 7 Okudja komafiku ooxo nye mwa efa eemhango dange, ndele inamu di diinina. Alukileni kwaame, opo Ame nda hala okwaalukila kunye, Omwene womatanga ovakwaita ta ti. Ndelenee nye tamu pula: Mushike tu nokwaaluka? 8 Omunhu ota nyeka tuu Kalunga? Osheshi nye otamu nyeka nge ndele tamu ti: Mushike twe ku nyeka? Moitimulongo nomoiyandjiwa. 9 Nye mwa fingwa nokufingililwa, ndelenee natango tamu nyeka nge, nye, oshiwana ashishe. 10 Eteni oitimulongo aishe ya wana kelimba lange, opo mongulu yange mu kale eendja. Ndele yelekeni nge nye mu tale, Omwene womatanga ovakwaita ta ti, ngeenge ihandi ke mu yeululila omakende keulu ndele handi ke mu lokifila enangekonoupuna la wanenena. 11 Noshipaxu yo ohandi ke shi taataa punye, opo shiha hanaune po oiimati yomapya eni. Nomiviinyu domomapya itadi ka kala itadi ima, Omwene womatanga ovakwaita ta ti. 12 Opo nee oiwana aishe tai ke mu tanga nye ovanelao, osheshi nye otamu ka kala oshilongo sha hokiwa, Omwene womatanga ovakwaita ta ti.
13 Eendjovo deni mokupopya nge odi nodino, Omwene ta ti. Ndelenee nye tamu pula: Fye otwe ku popya ngahelipi mokati ketu? 14 Nye mwa tile: Okulongela Kalunga itaku kwafa sha, notwa mona shike mokudiinina kwetu onghedimhango yaye nokweenda twa djala oikutu yeefya koshipala shOmwene womatanga ovakwaita? 15 Hano paife ohatu tange elao lovashishimani. Havo aveke ava hava dini Kalunga tava kala va pama, nonande vo hava shindi Kalunga ve li memanguluko.
16 Opo vo ava hava tila Omwene ova kundafana kumwe. Ndele Omwene okwe shi dimbulukwa nokwe shi uda. Nokoshipala shaye pa shangwa embo lokudimbulukwa ava hava tila Omwene nohava fimaneke edina laye. 17 Ndele vo otava ka ninga emona lange mefiku olo handi ke li shita, Omwene womatanga ovakwaita ta ti. Ndele Ame ohandi ke va filonghenda ngaashi omulumenhu ta file omona waye omumati onghenda, ou te mu longele. 18 Opo nee nye tamu ka mona vali etongolo pokati kovayuki novadinikalunga, pokati kaau ha longele Kalunga naau ihe mu longele.
