Nehemia ta hangenwa
1 Sanballat, Tobia, Geshem naatondi yetu yalwe oyu uvu kutya twa hulitha etungo lyedhingililokuma lyo kali na we nando okambululu, nando otwa li inaatu tula mo manga omiyelo miikulo. 2 Sanballat naGeshem oya tumine ndje elaka taa indile ndje, tu tsakanene nayo muKefirim molushandja lwaOno. Shika osha li omwigo ye gu lukilila ndje, gu yule ndje. 3 Onda tumu kuyo elaka tali ti: “Ondi na iilonga ya simana, ite vulu okuza po. Itandi vulu okuzimbula iilonga, ndi ye kune.”
4 Oya tumine ndje elaka olyo tuu ndyoka lune, nonde ya tumine aluhe eyamukulo lya faathana.
5 Opo ihe Sanballat okwa tumu omupiya gwe gumwe kungame e na elaka etitano li li montumwafo yomontaneho. 6 Otali ti: “Geshem okwa lombwele ndje kutya omufofotolo ogu li miigwana yopuushiinda kutya ne Aajuda omwa hala okutukula oshipotha. Omolwashoka tamu tungulula edhingililokuma. Okwa ti ishewe, oto dhiladhila u ininge omukwaniilwa 7 nowa longekidha aahunganeki yamwe ya kugilile muJerusalem kutya ngoye omukwaniilwa gwaJuda. Iinima mbika otayi uvika komukwaniilwa, onkee nda dhiladhila, tse nangoye tu tsakanene, opo tu kundathane po nawa.”
8 Onde mu tumine eyamukulo tali ti: “Wa fundju, shoka to popi kashi shi shoshili.”
9 Oya kambadhala oku tu tilitha, ya kankameke iilonga. Onda galikana nda ti: “Ngashingeyi, Kalunga, nkondopaleka ndje.”
10 Esiku limwe onda ka talela po Shemaia yaDelaja, omutekulu gwaMehetabel, ngoka a li itaa vulu okuza maandjawo. Okwa ti kungame: “Natu ye, tu ka holame mela enene lyotempeli, tse tu pate omiyelo, molwaashoka otaye ya, ye ku dhipage. Uusiku wontumba otaye ya, ye ku dhipage.”
11 Onda yamukula nda ti: “Ngame, hatse yokufadhuka po nokuholama. Oto dhiladhila, omuntu ngangame ndi hupithe omwenyo gwandje nokuholama motempeli? Itandi shi ningi.”
12 Sho nda dhimbulula kutya Kalunga ina lombwela Shemaia, ndele oSanballat naTobia, mboka ye mu pe oombumbo, opo a londodhe ndje. 13 Oye mu futu, opo ya haluthe ndje, ndi yone yo ya vule okunyateka edhina lyandje noya fupipike ndje.
14 Onda galikana nda ti: “Kalunga, dhimbulukwa shoka Tobia naSanballat ya longo, ngoye u ya geele. Dhimbulukwa omuhunganeki omukulukadhi Noadia naahunganeki ooyakwawo ya kambadhala okutilitha ndje.”
Ehulitho lyiilonga
15 Sho pwa piti omasiku omilongo ntano nagaali, edhingililokuma alihe olya pu mesiku etimilongombali nagatano gomwedhi Elul. 16 Aatondi yetu miigwana ye tu kunduka sho ye shi uvu, oya haluka, oshoka oya li yu uvite kutya oshilonga shika osha longwa kekwatho lyaKalunga ketu.
17 Methimbo alihe aawiliki yaJuda oya li haa nyolelathana naTobia. 18 Aantu oyendji muJuda oya li ya gama kuye molwahemweno Omujuda, edhina lye Shekania yaArah. Niishewe, omwanamati Jehohanan okwa li a hokana omuna gwaMeshullam yaBerekia. 19 Oya hokololele ndje iilonga yaTobia iiwanawa noye mu hokololele ashihe shoka nda ti. Okwa li ha nyolele ndje oontumwafo ta tilitha ndje.
Plots against Nehemiah
1 Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem, and the rest of our enemies heard that we had finished building the wall and that there were no gaps left in it, although we still had not set up the gates in the gateways. 2 So Sanballat and Geshem sent me a message, suggesting that I meet with them in one of the villages in the Plain of Ono. This was a trick of theirs to try to harm me. 3 I sent messengers to say to them, “I am doing important work and can't go down there. I am not going to let the work stop just to go and see you.”
4 They sent me the same message four times, and each time I sent them the same reply.
5 Then Sanballat sent one of his servants to me with a fifth message, this one in the form of an unsealed letter. 6 It read:
“Geshem tells me that a rumor is going around among the neighboring peoples that you and the Jewish people intend to revolt and that this is why you are rebuilding the wall. He also says you plan to make yourself king 7 and that you have arranged for some prophets to proclaim in Jerusalem that you are the king of Judah. His Majesty is certain to hear about this, so I suggest that you and I meet to talk the situation over.”8 I sent a reply to him: “Nothing of what you are saying is true. You have made it all up yourself.”
9 They were trying to frighten us into stopping work. I prayed, “But now, God, make me strong!”
10 About this time I went to visit Shemaiah, the son of Delaiah and grandson of Mehetabel, who was unable to leave his house. He said to me, “You and I must go and hide together in the Holy Place of the Temple and lock the doors, because they are coming to kill you. Any night now they will come to kill you.”
11 I answered, “I'm not the kind of person that runs and hides. Do you think I would try to save my life by hiding in the Temple? I won't do it.”
12 When I thought it over, I realized that God had not spoken to Shemaiah, but that Tobiah and Sanballat had bribed him to give me this warning. 13 They hired him to frighten me into sinning, so that they could ruin my reputation and humiliate me.
14 I prayed, “God, remember what Tobiah and Sanballat have done and punish them. Remember that woman Noadiah and all the other prophets who tried to frighten me.”
The Conclusion of the Work
15 After fifty-two days of work the entire wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month of Elul. 16 When our enemies in the surrounding nations heard this, they realized that they had lost face, since everyone knew that the work had been done with God's help.
17 During all this time the Jewish leaders had been in correspondence with Tobiah. 18 Many people in Judah were on his side because of his Jewish father-in-law, Shecaniah son of Arah. In addition, his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam son of Berechiah. 19 People would talk in front of me about all the good deeds Tobiah had done and would tell him everything I said. And he kept sending me letters to try to frighten me.
