The English-Kalanga Bilingual Language Learning Bible
Old Testament
Read each verse in English beside its African Kalanga equivalent.
Deuteronomy 7English
Matama 7African Kalanga
- English1
When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations–the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you–
African KalangaKuti Yahwe Ndzimu uwo bekuzhisa mu shango yaunongina kuithuwa bebe betata njudzi njinji mbeli kuko, Bahiti ne Bagirigashi ne Baamori ne Bakanana ne Baperizi ne Bahivi ne Bajebusi, njudzi dzili kutendeka whulu kuli dzakasima kukupinda,
- English2
and when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy.
African Kalangangono ha Yahwe Ndzimu uwo bekupa ibo ngono ube ubakunda, ipapo ubalobese tjose. Usitongo thama tjidumano nabo kakale Usitongo bawhila ngoni.
- English3
Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons,
African KalangaUsitongo lobolana nabo ulobodza bakololokadzi babo ku bakololo babo kene ukotosela bakololo babo bakololokadzi babo.
- English4
for they will turn your sons away from following me to serve other gods, and the Lord’s anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you.
African KalangaNgoti bangadwa bepambusa bakololo babo mukunditobela kuti bashingile midzimu mimwe, ipapo kugwadzamoyo kwa Yahwe kube kulingisana nawe ngono bebe bekulobesa tjinyolotjo.
- English5
This is what you are to do to them: Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones, cut down their Asherah poles and burn their idols in the fire.
African KalangaKoga ubathame sawhoku, upkhwanye zwibeso zwabo zwe zwibhayilo, uvunilile phanda dzabo uteme ulige bo Ashera babo upise nge moto zwifano zwabo zwakabezhiwa.
- English6
For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.
African Kalanga“Ngoti imwi mu bathu bakayengemala kuna Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu, Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu bakamushalula kube bathu babo babakazwishaluligwa kudwa mu bathu bose bamu shango.
- English7
The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples.
African KalangaAkuzoyikhwa ngekuti pamwe makabe mulibanji kupinda bamwe bathu kuti ndizo Yahwe bamude bamushalule ngoti imwi makabe muli bashomanana pa bathu bose.
- English8
But it was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt.
African KalangaKoga whuti Yahwe banomuda, kakale banolondolodza tjidumano tjabakatuna kuna bobatategulu benyu kuti Yahwe bakamudusa nge tjiazha tjakasima bakamudzutunula mu ng'umba ye busungwa, kudwa mu luboko gwa Faro mambo we Egipiti.
- English9
Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.
African KalangaNdizo ziba kuti Yahwe Ndzimu uwo ndibo Ndzimu, Ndzimu unogalikamoyo unolondolodza tjidumano ne ludo gusingazunguzike kuna ibabo banowuda bebe belondolodza milayo yawo, kunoti ku zwizekugwana zwili tjiwulu.
- English10
But those who hate him he will repay to their face by destruction; he will not be slow to repay to their face those who hate him.
African KalangaKoga unowogwilizila banowubenga nge kubalobesa, awutowononoka ngekwa iwoyo unowubenga, unowon'gwilizila nge tjakanlingisana.
- African Kalanga
Ndizo ube ne njele kulondolodza milayo iyeyi yandinomupa mu zhuba lino.”
- English12
If you pay attention to these laws and are careful to follow them, then the Lord your God will keep his covenant of love with you, as he swore to your forefathers.
African Kalanga“Ha muwha milayo iyeyi muyilondolodza, Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu unowolondolodza namwi tjidumano ne ludo gusingazunguzike gwaakagadzabgwe bobatategulu benyu kugulondolodza.
- English13
He will love you and bless you and increase your numbers. He will bless the fruit of your womb, the crops of your land–your grain, new wine and oil–the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks in the land that he swore to your forefathers to give you.
African KalangaBanowokuda bakakukombolela bakakuwatsha. Banowokombolela mbewu ye mbili uwo ne mbewu ye nnda uwo ne mathunde awo ne nkumbi uwo we zhambi ne mafuta awo ne kupaphidzika kwe ng'ombe dzidzo ne bana be ngubi iyo mu shango yabakatuna kuna botate benyu kukupa iyo.
- English14
You will be blessed more than any other people; none of your men or women will be childless, nor any of your livestock without young.
African KalangaUnowokombolegwa kupinda bathu bose, akutowobe ne usina mbeleko, nlume kene nkadzi mukuli kene mu ng'ombe dzidzo.
- English15
The Lord will keep you free from every disease. He will not inflict on you the horrible diseases you knew in Egypt, but he will inflict them on all who hate you.
African KalangaNgono Yahwe banowodusa kugwala kose mukuli, akuna gumwe gwe njigwele mbiibi dze Egipiti dzamunoziba dzingakuwila koga banowodzilonga muna bose banokubenga.
- English16
You must destroy all the peoples the Lord your God gives over to you. Do not look on them with pity and do not serve their gods, for that will be a snare to you.
African KalangaNgono unowolobesa bathu bose Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu babanowokupa, usitongo bawhila zogwadza kene kuli kushingila midzimu yabo ngoti ikoku kungabe dati kukuli.
- English17
You may say to yourselves, “These nations are stronger than we are. How can we drive them out?”
African Kalanga“Ha ungazwidwa mu moyo uwo ukati, ‘Njudzi idzedzi dziwhulu pandili ndingadzilobesa tjini?’
- English18
But do not be afraid of them; remember well what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt.
African KalangaUsitongo dzitja, koga ukumbule Yahwe Ndzimu uwo tjabakashingila Faro ne Egipiti yose,
- English19
You saw with your own eyes the great trials, the miraculous signs and wonders, the mighty hand and outstretched arm, with which the Lord your God brought you out. The Lord your God will do the same to all the peoples you now fear.
African Kalangandiko whulu dzawakabona nge mesho awo ne zwilakidzo ne matjenamiso, tjiazha tjakasima ne luboko gwakatambunuka Yahwe Ndzimu uwo gwawakakudusa ndigo, ndizo Yahwe Ndzimu uwo unowothamila bathu bose ibabo baunotja saikoko.
- English20
Moreover, the Lord your God will send the hornet among them until even the survivors who hide from you have perished.
African KalangaPezhugwi kwa ikoku Yahwe Ndzimu uwo unowotumila phuzephuze pakati kwabo kuswikila ibabo basala bakabgwata belobesiwa.
- English21
Do not be terrified by them, for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a great and awesome God.
African KalangaUsitongo paluka moyo nge kwabo ngoti Yahwe Ndzimu banawe, Ndzimu nkulu wakabangalala.
- English22
The Lord your God will drive out those nations before you, little by little. You will not be allowed to eliminate them all at once, or the wild animals will multiply around you.
African KalangaYahwe Ndzimu uwo banodusila njudzi idzedzi kutjena mbeli kuko kutukununu ne kutukununu, awutowobalobesa kang'ompela, kungadwa kuthama kuti phuka dze shango dziwande dzibe njisa pamuli.
- English23
But the Lord your God will deliver them over to you, throwing them into great confusion until they are destroyed.
African KalangaKoga Yahwe Ndzimu uwo banowokupa idzo, banowobashanganya misholo kukulukulu kudzina wabalobesa.
- English24
He will give their kings into your hand, and you will wipe out their names from under heaven. No one will be able to stand up against you; you will destroy them.
African KalangaNgono banowolonga bomambo mu maboko awo ngono unowothama mazina abo kuti uabukushe pasi kwe kudzimu, akuna nthu unowotubula kumidzana nawe kudzina ubalobesa.
- English25
The images of their gods you are to burn in the fire. Do not covet the silver and gold on them, and do not take it for yourselves, or you will be ensnared by it, for it is detestable to the Lord your God.
African KalangaMidzimu yabo ye zwifano yakabezhiwa uyipise nge moto. Usitongo yemula siliva kene golide imuzwili, usitongo izwitolegwa udwa uwana wabhatshigwa ndiyo ngoti inoshimisa kuna Yahwe Ndzimu uwo.
- English26
Do not bring a detestable thing into your house or you, like it, will be set apart for destruction. Utterly abhor and detest it, for it is set apart for destruction.
African KalangaUsitongo zhisa tjithu tjinoshimika mu ng'umba iyo ube unging'wa nge bhiso saitjo, ubengane natjo kwazo kakale utjishime ngoti tjithu tjina bhiso.
Source: The English-Kalanga Bilingual Language Learning Bible, Ndzimu-unami Emmanuel Moyo, 2026. This online edition was extracted and reformatted from the PDF edition. Licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.