The English-Kalanga Bilingual Language Learning Bible
Old Testament
Read each verse in English beside its African Kalanga equivalent.
Esther 2English
Esita 2African Kalanga
- English1
Later when the anger of King Xerxes had subsided, he remembered Vashti and what she had done and what he had decreed about her.
African KalangaKwakati shule kwe zwithu izwezwi, Mambo Ahasurusi asinowiligwa kakumbula ngekwa Nfumakadzi Vashiti ne zwaakayita nenge ndaulo yaakadusa nge kukwe.
- English2
Then the king’s personal attendants proposed, “Let a search be made for beautiful young virgins for the king.
African KalangaNgono bakumbuludzi ba mambo bakan'dwa bakati “Imani mushakigwe baanadi bakanaka basathu bakaziba balume.
- English3
Let the king appoint commissioners in every province of his realm to bring all these beautiful girls into the harem at the citadel of Susa. Let them be placed under the care of Hegai, the king’s eunuch, who is in charge of the women; and let beauty treatments be given to them.
African KalangaDusani makulukota mu mituthu yose yenyu kuti bakubunganye baanadi ibaba bose bakanaka ku Harimo ku ng'umba ya mambo mu Susa. Mutole Hagayi we ngomwa iye wakalingilila bakadzi kuti ibe iye nlingilili wabo ngono baanadi ibaba bapiwe zose zwinobanakisa.
- English4
Then let the girl who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti.” This advice appealed to the king, and he followed it.
African KalangaNgono ha kuna mwanadi pakati kwabo unomushathisa mutole iye mu bumo gwe Nfumakadzi Vashiti.” Nkumbulo iwoyu ukashathisa mambo kwazo ngono kathama saikoku.
- English5
Now there was in the citadel of Susa a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin, named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish,
African KalangaNgono kwakabe kuna Njuta we nsha wa Bhenjamini egala mu ng'umba ya mambo ye Susa edang'wa Modekayi ali nkololo wa Jairi, Jairi ali nkololo wa Shimeyi, Shimeyi ali nkololo wa Kishi.
- English6
who had been carried into exile from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, among those taken captive with Jehoiachin king of Judah.
African KalangaKishi wakabe ali mmwe we bathu bakabe batapiwa mu Jerusalema ne mambo we Bajuta Jekoniya, bakabe batapiwa ndi Mambo Nebukadineza mambo we Bhabhiloni.
- English7
Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This girl, who was also known as Esther, was lovely in form and features, and Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died.
African KalangaModekayi ndiye wakalela mwana wa batatenini babe Hadasa iye unodang'wa Esita, asinobe afigwa ndi mmeyabe na tate babe. Modekayi wakabe ali gamu la Hadasa le bhuda ndibhude, ndizo akantola kanthama mwana uwe. Hadasa iwhoyo wakabe akanaka kwazo.
- English8
When the king’s order and edict had been proclaimed, many girls were brought to the citadel of Susa and put under the care of Hegai. Esther also was taken to the king’s palace and entrusted to Hegai, who had charge of the harem.
African KalangaNgono kukati ndaulo ya mambo isinozibisiwa bathu ne baanadi bakubunganyigwa ku ng'umba ya mambo mu Susa kakale batjibe pasi kwa Hagayi we nlingilili we bakadzi, Esita wakabe mmwe we baanadi bakatolegwa ku ng'umba ya mambo naiyebo kabe pasi kwa Hagayi.
- English9
The girl pleased him and won his favor. Immediately he provided her with her beauty treatments and special food. He assigned to her seven maids selected from the king’s palace and moved her and her maids into the best place in the harem.
African KalangaNgono Hagayi kati elinga mwanadi Esita kanshathisa kwazo, katangisa kampa zwinozhogwa zwinothama kuti anake kwazo ne zojiwa ali ega zwakatini ne balandakadzi banonshinga bali kutendeka bakashagwa mu bamwe banoshinga mu ng'umba ya mambo. Esita kanogala ku magalo akanaka ku ng'umba ye bakadzi.
- English10
Esther had not revealed her nationality and family background, because Mordecai had forbidden her to do so.
African KalangaModekayi wakabe adwa Esita kuti asitongoleba ludzi gugwe kene makamu awe ndizo Esita kathama tjaakadwiwa, kasilebe.
- English11
Every day he walked back and forth near the courtyard of the harem to find out how Esther was and what was happening to her.
African KalangaZhuba ne zhuba Modekayi wakabe eyenda yenda mbeli kwe ng'umba ye bakadzi kuti azibe kuti Esita utjani.
- English12
Before a girl’s turn came to go in to King Xerxes, she had to complete twelve months of beauty treatments prescribed for the women, six months with oil of myrrh and six with perfumes and cosmetics.
African KalangaBaanadi bakabe begala mimwedzi ili gumi lina mibili bezwinakisa basathu bakayenda kuna mambo sekwakabe ili fanilo. Bakabe begala mimwedzi ili tathatu bezhola mafuta akathamwa nge nti unoyi mira, mimwedzi mimwe mitathatu bezhola zwinonuwha zwinozipa ne zwithu zwe bakadzi zwinobanakisa. Bakabe beti ha baligila mimwedzi iyeyi ndiko kwabanga yenda benobona mambo.
- English13
And this is how she would go to the king: Anything she wanted was given her to take with her from the harem to the king’s palace.
African KalangaNgono kwabe kuti ha mwanadi eyenda kuna mambo wakabe epiwa tjimwe ne tjimwe koga tjaakumbila tjinonnakisa kuti ungayenda natjo ku ng'umba ya mambo.
- English14
In the evening she would go there and in the morning return to another part of the harem to the care of Shaashgaz, the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the concubines. She would not return to the king unless he was pleased with her and summoned her by name.
African KalangaMwanadi wakabe eyenda kuna mambo mu madekwana ngono ekobuya mu mangwanana e tjimuka eyenda ku ng'umba ye bubili ye bakadzi, yakabe yakalingisana na Shashegazi we ngomwa wakabe ali iye wakalingisana ne bakadzi ba mambo. Wakabe asingake kabgwilila kuna mambo kuzhe kwe adang'wa ndi mambo.
- English15
When the turn came for Esther (the girl Mordecai had adopted, the daughter of his uncle Abihail) to go to the king, she asked for nothing other than what Hegai, the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the harem, suggested. And Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her.
African KalangaNgono kwakati tjibaka tjatjizha kuti Esita nkololokadzi wa Abihaile batatenini ba Modekayi, iye wakantola kanlela kayenda kuna mambo kakumbila tjaakabe adwiwa ndi Hagayi ngomwa ya mambo kakale ali nlingilili we bakadzi. Ngono Esita wakashathisa mmwe ne mmwe wakabe embona.
- English16
She was taken to King Xerxes in the royal residence in the tenth month, the month of Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign.
African KalangaKwakabe kuli mu mwedzi we bugumi we Tebeti, mu gole le kutendeka le mbuso wa Mambo Ahasurusi, ha Esita eyisiwa kuna mambo.
- English17
Now the king was attracted to Esther more than to any of the other women, and she won his favor and approval more than any of the other virgins. So he set a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.
African KalangaNgono mambo kada Esita kupinda bakadzi bose, mu baanadi bose kawana ada Esita kupinda ngono kambadza tjiala tje bushe mu bumo gwa Nfumakadzi Vashiti.
- English18
And the king gave a great banquet, Esther’s banquet, for all his nobles and officials. He proclaimed a holiday throughout the provinces and distributed gifts with royal liberality.
African KalangaMambo bakathamila makulukota awe ne balanda babe mabhikwa makulu kuli kushathila Esita. Kakale mambo wakati kube ne zhuba le kunyaluluka mu mituthu yose, kakale kadusa zwipo sekwakabe kwakawolobeleka.
- African Kalanga
Mu tjibaka itjetji Modekayi wakabe abigwa mmwe we makulukota a mambo.
- English20
But Esther had kept secret her family background and nationality just as Mordecai had told her to do, for she continued to follow Mordecai’s instructions as she had done when he was bringing her up.
African KalangaEsita iye wakabe asathu akazwizibisa bathu kuti Njuta koga sekwa akabe adwiwa kuti asilebe ndi Modekayi atji ntukununu.
- English21
During the time Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s officers who guarded the doorway, became angry and conspired to assassinate King Xerxes.
African KalangaMu tjibaka itjetjo tja Modekayi ali mmwe we makulukota a mambo, makobgwa a Mambo Bhigithani na Tereshi ibo bakabe bakalingisana nge magalo a mambo, bakamukilana na mambo ngono bakazhigwa nge nkumbulo we kubulaya Mambo Ahasurusi.
- English22
But Mordecai found out about the plot and told Queen Esther, who in turn reported it to the king, giving credit to Mordecai.
African KalangaNgono Modekayi kaziba ngekwe nkumbulo iwhoyo ndizo kazibisa Nfumakadzi Esita, Esita kadwapo kazibisa mambo tjaabudziwa ndi Modekayi.
- English23
And when the report was investigated and found to be true, the two officials were hanged on a gallows. All this was recorded in the book of the annals in the presence of the king.
African KalangaNgono kwakati kusinoshakisisiwa kukawanika kuli malebeswa, balume ibaba bakabulawa ngo sungiligwa mu thungamakole. Ngono ikoku kwakakwagwa ngekwako mbeli kwa mambo mu lukwalo gwe Zwiyitikalo.
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.