¹Zvino varume vaIsiraeri vakanga vapika paMizipa, vachiti, Hakuna mumwe wedu uchapa muBhenjamini mukunda wake, kuti ave mukadzi wake.

¹And the men of Israel have sworn in Mizpeh, saying, `None of us doth give his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.`

²Vanhu vakasvika paBheti-eri, vakagarapo pamberi paMwari kusvikira madekwana; vakachema kwazvo.

²And the people come in to Beth-El, and sit there till the evening before God, and lift up their voice, and weep — a great weeping,

³Vakati, Jehovha,Mwari waIsiraeri, chinhu ichi chakaitirweiko pakati paIsiraeri, kuti nhasi rumwe rudzi rushaikwe pakati paIsiraeri?

³and say, `Why, O Jehovah, God of Israel, hath this been in Israel — to be lacking to-day, from Israel, one tribe?`

⁴Zvino fume mangwana vanhu vakamuka mangwanani, vakavakapo atari, vakauya nezvipiriso zvinopiswa nezvipiriso zvokuyananisa.

⁴And it cometh to pass on the morrow, that the people rise early, and build there an altar, and cause to ascend burnt-offerings and peace-offerings.

⁵Ipapo vana vaIsiraeri vakati, Ndianiko pakati pamarudzi ose aIsiraeri vasina kukwira kuungano yaJehovha? nekuti vakanga vapika nokupika kukuru pamusoro pomunhu usina kukwira kuna Jehovha paMizipa, vachiti, Zvirokwazvo, anofanira kuurawa.

⁵And the sons of Israel say, `Who [is] he that hath not come up in the assembly out of all the tribes of Israel unto Jehovah?` for the great oath hath been concerning him who hath not come up unto Jehovah to Mizpeh, saying, `He is surely put to death.`

⁶Zvino vana vaIsiraeri vakazvidemba pamusoro pavaBhenjamini, hama dzavo, vakati, Nhasi rumwe rudzi rwagurwa pakati pavaIsiraeri.

⁶And the sons of Israel repent concerning Benjamin their brother, and say, `There hath been to-day cut off one tribe from Israel,

⁷Tichadiniko kuti tiwanire vakasara vakadzi, zvatakapika naJehovha, kuti hatingavapi vakunda vedu vave vakadzi vavo?

⁷what do we do for them — for those who are left — for wives, and we — we have sworn by Jehovah not to give to them of our daughters for wives?`

⁸Vakati, Ndianiko pamarudzi aIsiraeri usina kukwira kuna Jehovha paMizipa? Onei, kwakanga kusina munhu wakabva Jabheshi-Giriyadhi wakakwira kumisasa kuungano.

⁸And they say, `Who is [that] one out of the tribes of Israel who hath not come up unto Jehovah to Mizpeh?` and lo, none hath come in unto the camp from Jabesh-Gilead — unto the assembly.

⁹nekuti vanhu vakati vachiverengwa, onei kwakanga kusina munhu wavagere Jabheshi-Giriyadhi ipapo.

⁹And the people numbered themselves, and lo, there is not there a man of the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead.

¹⁰Zvino ungano ikatumirako varume voumhare kwazvo vane zviuru zvine gumi nezviviri, vakavaraira vachiti, Endai mundouraya vagere Jabheshi-Giriyadhi neminondo inopinza, pamwechete navakadzi navana.

¹⁰And the company send there twelve thousand men of the sons of valour, and command them, saying, `Go — and ye have smitten the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead by the mouth of the sword, even the women and the infants.

¹¹Munofanira kuitawo chinhu ichi: Munofanira kuparadza chose varume vose, nomukadzi mumwe nomumwe wakambovata nomurume.

¹¹And this [is] the thing which ye do; every male, and every woman knowing the lying of a male, ye devote.`

¹²Zvino vakandowana kuna vagere Jabheshi-Giriyadhi mhandara dzina mazana mana, vasina kumbovata nomurume; vakauya navo kumisasa paShiro munyika yeKanani.

¹²And they find out of the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead four hundred young women, virgins, who have not known man by the lying of a male, and they bring them in unto the camp at Shiloh, which [is] in the land of Canaan.

¹³Zvino ungano yose yakatuma nhume kundotaurirana navana vaBhenjamini vakanga vari padombo reRimoni, vakavaparidzira rugare.

¹³And all the company send, and speak, unto the sons of Benjamin who [are] in the rock Rimmon, and proclaim to them peace;

¹⁴Nenguva iyo vaBhenjamini vakadzoka; vakavapa vakadzi vavakanga vachengeta vari vapenyu pavakadzi veJabheshi-Giriyadhi; asi havana kuvaringana.

¹⁴and Benjamin turneth back at that time, and they give to them the women whom they have kept alive of the women of Jabesh-Gilead, and they have not found for [all of] them so.

¹⁵Vanhu vakazvidemba pamusoro pavaBhenjamini, nekuti Jehovha wakange aparadza vamwe pakati pamarudzi avaIsiraeri.

¹⁵And the people repented concerning Benjamin, for Jehovah had made a breach among the tribes of Israel.

¹⁶Ipapo vakuru veungano vakati, Tichadiniko kuti tiwanire vakasara vakadzi, vakadzi zvavaparadzwa pakati pavaBhenj amini?

¹⁶And the elders of the company say, `What do we do to the remnant for wives — for the women have been destroyed out of Benjamin?`

¹⁷Vakati, VaBhenjamini vakapukunyuka vanofanira kuva nenhaka yavo, kuti rudzi rumwe rurege kurova pakati pavaIsiraeri.

¹⁷And they say, `A possession of an escaped party [is] to Benjamin, and a tribe is not blotted out from Israel;

¹⁸Asi hatingavapi vakunda vedu, vave vakadzi vavo; nekuti vana vaIsiraeri vakanga vapika, vachiti, Munhu unopa vaBhenjamini mukadzi ngaatukwe.

¹⁸and we — we are not able to give to them wives out of our daughters, for the sons of Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed [is] he who is giving a wife to Benjamin.`

¹⁹Vakati: Gore rimwe nerimwe kune mutambo waJehovha paShiro, kurutivi rwekumusoro kweBheti-eri, kumabvazuva enzira huru inobva Bheti-eri ichikwira Shekemu, nezasi kweRebhona.

¹⁹And they say, `Lo, a festival of Jehovah [is] in Shiloh, from time to time, which [is] on the north of Beth-El, at the rising of the sun, by the highway which is going up from Beth-El to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.`

²⁰Vakaraira vana vaBhenjamini, vachiti, Endai, mundovandira muminda yemizambiringa;

²⁰And they command the sons of Benjamin, saying, `Go — and ye have laid wait in the vineyards,

²¹mutarire, muone kana vakunda veShiro vachibuda kuzotamba; zvino mubude paminda yenyu yemizambiringa, murume mumwe nomumwe agozvitorera mukadzi pakati pavakunda veShiro, muende kunyika yavaBhenjamini.

²¹and have seen, and lo, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances — then ye have gone out from the vineyards, and caught for you each his wife out of the daughters of Shiloh, and gone to the land of Benjamin;

²²Zvino kana madzibaba avo kana hama dzavo vachiuya kuzovakwirira kwatiri, isu tichati kwavari, Chitipai henyu ivavo zvakanaka, nekuti hatina kuvatapira vose vakadzi pakurwa; nemiwo hamuna kuvapa ivo, mungadai mune mhosva.

²²and it hath been, when their fathers or their brethren come in to plead unto us, that we have said unto them, Favour us [by] them, for we have not taken [to] each his wife in battle, for ye — ye have not given to them at this time [that] ye are guilty.`

²³Vana vaBhenjamini vakaita saizvozvo, vakazvitorera vakadzi kuna vakanga vachitamba, vakavaringana; vakaenda navo; vakabva ndokudzokera kunhaka yavo, vakavaka maguta, ndokugara mukati mawo.

²³And the sons of Benjamin do so, and take women according to their number, out of the dancers whom they have taken violently away; and they go, and turn back unto their inheritance, and build the cities, and dwell in them.

²⁴Zvino vana vaIsiraeri vakabvapo nenguva iyo, murume mumwe nomumwe kurudzi rwake nokumhuri yake; vakabudapo murume mumwe nomumwe akaenda kunhaka yake.

²⁴And the sons of Israel go up and down thence at that time, each to his tribe, and to his family; and they go out thence each to his inheritance.

²⁵Namazuva iwayo kwakanga kusina mambo pakati palsiraeri; murume mumwe nomumwe waiita sezvaakafunga kuti ndizvo zvakanaka.

²⁵In those days there is no king in Israel; each doth that which is right in his own eyes.