Aasamaria taa kateke okutunga otempeli
1 Aatondi yAajuda nAabenjamin oyu uvu kutya aantu mboka ya galuka muupika, otaa tungulula otempeli yOmuwa, Kalunga kaIsrael. 2 Oya yi kuSerubbabel naakuluntu yomaludhi e taa ti: “Tu pitikeni, tu tunge otempeli pamwe nane. Ndishi ohatu simaneke Kalunga gumwe, notwe mu yamba omayambo okuza komasiku ngoka, omupangeli gwaAssur Asarhaddon sho e tu tumine tu kale huka.”
3 Serubbabel, Josua naakuluntu yomaludhi oya ti kuyo: “Itatu pumbwa ekwatho lyeni okutunga otempeli yOmuwa, Kalunga ketu. Otatu yi tungu tse yene, naanaa ngaashi omupangeli gwaPersia Kores e tu lombwele.”
4 Nena aantu mboka ya adhika moshilongo, oya kambadhala okutyololokitha nokuhalutha Aajuda, opo yaa tunge we. 5 Oya gandja oombumbo kaakwanepangelo yAapersia, opo ye ya kondjithe. Oye ya keelele ethimbo alihe lyelelo lyaKores sigo omelelo lyaDarius.
Ekateko lyetungo lyaJerusalem
6 Petameko lyepangelo lyaKserkses aatondi yaantu mboka ya li muJuda naJerusalem, oya nyola oontumwafo tadhi ya kondjitha.
7 Muuyuni womupangeli Artakserkses gwaPersia Bishlam, Mitredat, Tabeel naahangani nayo oya nyolele omupangeli ontumwafo. Ontumwafo oya li ya nyolwa melaka lyOshiaramea nomoondanda dhasho.
8 Omunashikandjo Rehum naAmushanga Shimshai oya nyolele Artakserkses ontumwafo tayi popi Jerusalem: 9 “Rehum, omunashikandjo naShimshai, Amushanga naakwanepangelo ooyakwawo, aatokolihapu oontumwa, aatonateli nomalenga agehe, aantu ya za muErek, Babilon naSusa muElam, 10 ayehe kumwe naantu mboka Asenappar omunene nomunankondo e ya tembudha maandjawo e te ya langeke moshilando Samaria nopalwe kuuninginino womulonga Eufrat.”
11 Ontumwafo otayi ti: “Komupangeli Artakserkses, otse aamati yoye kombinga ndjika yokuuninginino waEufrat.
12 “Otwa hala oku ku tseyithila kutya Aajuda mboka ye ya huka ya zi miitopolwa yilwe yoshilongo shoye, oya tula muJerusalem notaa tungulula oshilando shoka shoshipwe noshondumbo. Oya tameke okutungulula omadhingililokuma notaye ke ga mana mbala. 13 Nkeyama, oshilando shino ngele otashi tungululwa, nomadhingililokuma gasho taga opalekwa, aantu otaa ka tinda okufuta oompale, neliko lyoye otali fupipala. 14 Ngashingeyi, oshoka tse oyopungoye, tatekulu, noinatu hala shika shi ningwe, otwa dhiladhila, 15 u konakonithe embo lyondjokonona yoohokulu. Ngele to shi ningi, oto ka dhimbulula kutya oshilando shoka oshipwidhi okuza konale noshe etele aakwaniilwa naaleli yiikandjo uudhigu. Omolwashoka osha hanagulwa po. 16 Tse ano otatu ku tseyithile kutya oshilando shika ngele tashi tungululwa nomadhingililokuma gasho taga kolekwa, nena ito ka vula we okupangela oshitopolwa shika shokuuninginino waEufrat.” 17 Omupangeli okwa tumu eyamukulo tali ti:
“KuRehum omunashikandjo nokuShimshai amushanga nokaakwanepangelo ooyakwawo ye li muSamaria nokuuninginino womulonga Eufrat, kundweni.
18 “Ontumwafo ndjoka mwa tumu, oya leshwa kungame noya yela. 19 Onda gandja elaka, ekonakono li ningwe, nosha monika mo kutya konalenale Jerusalem osha tukulila epangelo iipotha nosha li shu udha aatsindumbo naatsithi yomaminimini. 20 Aakwaniilwa aanankondo omo ya lele noya pangele oshitopolwa ashihe shokuuninginino waEufrat nokupula oompale nomaliko. 21 Ano lombweleni aantu, ya mweneke etungululo lyoshilando, sigo tandi ka gandja elaka. 22 Shi ningeni mbala, opo pwaa kale oshiponga tashi etelwa aakwaniilwa.”
23 Ontumwafo yaArtakserkses sho ya leshelwa Rehum, Shimshai nooyakwawo, oya yi mbala kuJerusalem e taa indike Aajuda okutungulula oshilando.
Etungululo lyotempeli tali tameke ishewe
24 Iilonga yotempeli oya kankekwa noya kala sigo omumvo omutiyali gwepangelo lyomupangeli gwaPersia, Darius.
Foreigners Want To Help Rebuild the Temple
1 The enemies of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin heard that the people had come back to rebuild the temple of the Lord God of Israel. 2 So they went to Zerubbabel and to the family leaders and said, “Let us help! Ever since King Esarhaddon of Assyria brought us here, we have worshiped your God and offered sacrifices to him.”
3 But Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the family leaders answered, “You cannot take part in building a temple for the Lord our God! We will build it ourselves, just as King Cyrus of Persia commanded us.”
4 Then the neighboring people began to do everything possible to frighten the Jews and to make them stop building. 5 During the time that Cyrus was king and even until Darius became king, they kept bribing government officials to slow down the work.
Trouble Rebuilding Jerusalem
6 In the first year that Xerxes was king, the neighboring people brought written charges against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.
7 Later, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and their advisors got together and wrote a letter to Artaxerxes when he was king of Persia. It was written in Aramaic and had to be translated.
8-10 A letter was also written to Artaxerxes about Jerusalem by Governor Rehum, Secretary Shimshai, and their advisors, including the judges, the governors, the officials, and the local leaders. They were joined in writing this letter by people from Erech and Babylonia, the Elamites from Susa, and people from other foreign nations that the great and famous Ashurbanipal had forced to settle in Samaria and other parts of Western Province.
11 This letter said:
Your Majesty King Artaxerxes, we are your servants from everywhere in Western Province, and we send you our greetings.
12 You should know that the Jews who left your country have moved back to Jerusalem and are now rebuilding that rebellious city. In fact, they have almost finished rebuilding the walls and repairing the foundations. 13 You should also know that if the walls are completed and the city is rebuilt, the Jews won't pay any kind of taxes, and there will be less money in your treasury.
14 We are telling you this, because you have done so much for us, and we want everyone to respect you. 15 If you look up the official records of your ancestors, you will find that Jerusalem has constantly rebelled and has led others to rebel against kings and provinces. That's why the city was destroyed in the first place. 16 If Jerusalem is rebuilt and its walls completed, you will no longer have control over Western Province.
17 King Artaxerxes answered:
Greetings to Governor Rehum, Secretary Shimshai, and to your advisors in Samaria and other parts of Western Province.
18 After your letter was translated and read to me, 19 I had the old records checked. It is true that for years Jerusalem has rebelled and caused trouble for other kings and nations. 20 And powerful kings have ruled Western Province from Jerusalem and have collected all kinds of taxes.
21 I want you to command the people to stop rebuilding the city until I give further notice. 22 Do this at once, so that no harm will come to the kingdom.
23 As soon as this letter was read, Governor Rehum, Secretary Shimshai, and their advisors went to Jerusalem and forced everyone to stop rebuilding the city.
Work on the Temple Starts Again
24 The Jews were forced to stop work on the temple and were not able to do any more building until the year after Darius became king of Persia.
