1 Muhona Omunamasaaehe ma ziri nai: “Tara, ami me hindi omuhindwa wandje kutja a ṱune ondjira komurungu wandje! Nu Muhona ngu mamu paha otji meya tjimanga kondjuwo ye. Nomuengeri womerikutiropamwe wandje ngu mamu zeri u ri pokuya.”
2 Nungwari owaṋi ngu ma yenene okurikukutisa meyuva eye ndi meya? Nowaṋi ngu ma yenene okuhupa eye tje ya? Eye ma sana komuriro womuhambure na komeva nga hara esuzu. 3 Eye meya okupangura otja umwe ngu hambura nokukohorora osilveri. Eye ma kohorora ovapristeri tjimuna osilveri nongoldo tji vi zuzurwa kutja vi kohoroke. Notji mave punguhire Muhona ozombunguhiro komuhingo omusemba, 4 nozombunguhiro nḓu maze punguhirwa Muhona i ovandu va Juda nova Jerusalem maze rire ozonanyuṋe ku ye otja punga apa ri rukuru.
5 Muhona Omunamasaaehe ma tja nai: “Ami meya ku eṋe okumupangura; nu kamanga ami otji me hongononene ozondjai novakatuke wotukupo, na imba mbe kora ovizeze, na imba mbe tjita ovineya kovakarere vawo pomasutiro wozondjambi zawo, na imba mbe ṋiṋikiza ovahepundu nozosewa novozonganda, okutja owo mba avehe mbe he ndji yozike.
Omasutiro wotjitjamurongo
6 “Ami, ngu mbi ri Muhona, hi runduruka; neṋe mbu mu ri ozondekurona za Jakob, ingee otji mu hiya hangauka. 7 Okuza komayuva wooiho mukururume mwa humburuka nomatwako wandje namu he ye ṱakamisa. Ritanaurireye ku ami, nu ami otji me tanaukire ku eṋe. Nungwari eṋe mamu pura nai: ‘Ngatu tanaukire tjike?’ 8 Osemba nao okutikura Ndjambi are? Kako! Nungwari mamu ndji tikura. Mamu pura nai: ‘Tu ku tikura vi?’ Omoviṋa vyotjitjamurongo na moviyandjewa vyozombunguhiro. 9 Osengiro ya tuwa ku eṋe amuhe, orondu eṋe amuhe, ihi otjiwaṋa atjihe, mamu ndji tikura. 10 Eteye otjitjamurongo atjihe kondjuwo ya Muhona Omunamasaaehe kutja mu kare ovikurya ovingi mu yo. Nu ndji roreye kutja nani me mu patururire otuiho tweyuru nokumutiririra ondaya onyingi tjinene. 11 Ami wina me mu tjaerere ozombahu kutja aze ha nyono ovihape vyovikunino vyeṋu, nokutja ovikunino vyeṋu vyomivite vi kare nomandjembere omengi. 12 Nomihoko avihe otji mavi tanga ouindandu weṋu, ehi reṋu tjinga amari rire ewa okutura mo.” Muhona Omunamasaaehe ongwa hungire.
Omakwizikiro wotjari tja Ndjambi
13 Muhona ma tja nai: “Eṋe mwa hungira omambo omakukutu ku ami. Nungwari mamu pura nai: ‘Eṱe twa hungira tjike kove?’ 14 Eṋe mwa tja nai: ‘Okukarera Ndjambi kahepero. Nu mape tu vatere tjike okuṱakamisa omazikamisiro we nokuryanga atwa pirike komurungu wa Muhona Omunamasaaehe? 15 Nambano tu hivirika ouindandu wa imba ovirangaranga mbe zemba Muhona; ovatjite vouvi aruhe kave munu ouṋingandu porwe, nungwari tjinene ve kara nokuhinokuverwa, andarire kutja ve rora onḓaro orure ya Ndjambi.’ ”
16 Ovandu mbe nondira ku Muhona otji verihungirire oveni ave tja, nu Muhona wa puratena na zuu imbi mbyaa ve hungire. Nu momurungu we pa tjangwa embo romazemburukiro ku imba mbe nondira ku ye nu mbe yozika ena re. 17 Muhona Omunamasaaehe ma tja nai: “Meyuva ndo ami tji me yenenisa oviṋa mbi owo mave rire ouini wandje omuini. Nami meve tjariparere otja ihe tjinga e tjariparera omuzandu we ngu mu karera. 18 Nu eṋe rukwao otji mamu munu ombangu ndji ri pokati komusemba nomunauvi, na pokati kaingwi ngu karera Ndjambi na ingwi ngu he mu karere.”
1 The Lord Almighty answers, “I will send my messenger to prepare the way for me. Then the Lord you are looking for will suddenly come to his Temple. The messenger you long to see will come and proclaim my covenant.”
2 But who will be able to endure the day when he comes? Who will be able to survive when he appears? He will be like strong soap, like a fire that refines metal. 3 He will come to judge like one who refines and purifies silver. As a metalworker refines silver and gold, so the Lord's messenger will purify the priests, so that they will bring to the Lord the right kind of offerings. 4 Then the offerings which the people of Judah and Jerusalem bring to the Lord will be pleasing to him, as they used to be in the past.
5 The Lord Almighty says, “I will appear among you to judge, and I will testify at once against those who practice magic, against adulterers, against those who give false testimony, those who cheat employees out of their wages, and those who take advantage of widows, orphans, and foreigners—against all who do not respect me.
The Payment of Tithes
6 “I am the Lord, and I do not change. And so you, the descendants of Jacob, are not yet completely lost. 7 You, like your ancestors before you, have turned away from my laws and have not kept them. Turn back to me, and I will turn to you. But you ask, ‘What must we do to turn back to you?’ 8 I ask you, is it right for a person to cheat God? Of course not, yet you are cheating me. ‘How?’ you ask. In the matter of tithes and offerings. 9 A curse is on all of you because the whole nation is cheating me. 10 Bring the full amount of your tithes to the Temple, so that there will be plenty of food there. Put me to the test and you will see that I will open the windows of heaven and pour out on you in abundance all kinds of good things. 11 I will not let insects destroy your crops, and your grapevines will be loaded with grapes. 12 Then the people of all nations will call you happy, because your land will be a good place to live.
God's Promise of Mercy
13 “You have said terrible things about me,” says the Lord. “But you ask, ‘What have we said about you?’ 14 You have said, ‘It's useless to serve God. What's the use of doing what he says or of trying to show the Lord Almighty that we are sorry for what we have done? 15 As we see it, proud people are the ones who are happy. Evil people not only prosper, but they test God's patience with their evil deeds and get away with it.’”
16 Then the people who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard what they said. In his presence, there was written down in a book a record of those who feared the Lord and respected him. 17 “They will be my people,” says the Lord Almighty. “On the day when I act, they will be my very own. I will be merciful to them as parents are merciful to the children who serve them. 18 Once again my people will see the difference between what happens to the righteous and to the wicked, to the person who serves me and the one who does not.”
