The English-Kalanga Bilingual Language Learning Bible
Old Testament
Read each verse in English beside its African Kalanga equivalent.
Joshua 4English
Joshuwa 4African Kalanga
- African Kalanga
Kwakati itjaba tjose tje Iziraela tjisinotjuluka gwizi gwe Jorodani, Yahwe bakadwa Joshuwa bakati,
- African Kalanga
“Shalula balume bali gumi lina babili mu bathu ibaba, mmwe ne mmwe wabo ali milile ludzi gugwe,
- English3
and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan from right where the priests stood and to carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight.”
African Kalangangono ubadwe uti, ‘Mmwe ne mmwe wenyu ngaatole bgwe ling'ompela mu gwizi pabe pali mile bapirisiti, muasenge munoabiga kwamunonolala nasi.’ ”
- English4
So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe,
African KalangaIpapo Joshuwa kadana balume bali gumi lina babili kudwa mu bathu be Iziraela, baakabe ashalula mmwe ne mmwe edwa mu ludzi gugwe,
- English5
and said to them, “Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites,
African Kalangangono kabadwa kati, “Pindilani mbeli kwe Bhokisi le Tjidumano tja Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu, mungine pakati kwe gwizi gwe Jorodani, mmwe ne mmwe wenyu kuyenda nge mbalo ye njudzi dze bathu be Iziraela, mmwe ne mmwe aswike apike bgwe ling'ompela aliyise ku bukotokelo,
- English6
to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’
African Kalangamabgwe iyawa abe ikumbuludzo mu muli. Mangwana ha bana benyu be mubhuzwa beti, ‘Mabgwe iyawa anodwani?’
- English7
tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.”
African KalangaMowobabudza kuti, kwakati Bhokisi le Tjidumano tja Yahwe litjuluka gwizi, vula ikama wunga, ndizo mabgwe iyawa anowobe ikumbuludzo tje tjakashingikala mu bathu be Iziraela nge kusingapele kose.”
- English8
So the Israelites did as Joshua commanded them. They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, as the Lord had told Joshua; and they carried them over with them to their camp, where they put them down.
African KalangaNgono balume be Iziraela bakathama sekwakaleba Joshuwa, bakatola mabgwe ali gumi lina mabili pakati kwe Jorodani kuyenda nge mbalo ye njudzi dze bathu be Iziraela koga sekwakadwiwa Joshuwa ndi Yahwe. Bakatola mabgwe bakanoabiga kwabakabe bakakotokela.
- English9
Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day.
African KalangaJoshuwa kabiga mabgwe mamwe ali gumi lina mabili pakati kwe gwizi pakabe pali mile bapirisiti bakabe bakasenga Bhokisi le Tjidumano. Mabgwe iyawo ayapo na nasi.
- English10
Now the priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything the Lord had commanded Joshua was done by the people, just as Moses had directed Joshua. The people hurried over,
African KalangaBapirisiti bakabe bakasenga Bhokisi le Tjidumano bakabe bali mile pakati kwe gwizi kuswikilila kwathamiwa tjimwe ne tjimwe tjakabe tjadwiwa Joshuwa ndi Yahwe kuti atjidwe bathu kuti batjithame kuyendidzana nakose kwakabe kwadwiwa Joshuwa ndi Mushe. Bathu bakatjuluka gwizi belibilidza,
- English11
and as soon as all of them had crossed, the ark of the Lord and the priests came to the other side while the people watched.
African Kalangangono kwakati bathu bose basinobe batjuluka, Bhokisi le Tjidumano la Yahwe likatjuluka lakasengwa nge bapirisiti, itjaba tjakalingilila.
- English12
The men of Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over, armed, in front of the Israelites, as Moses had directed them.
African KalangaBalume be ludzi gwa Rubheni ne gwa Gadi ne gwamu le ludzi gwa Manase, bose bakabe bakashakatila mathumo bakatungamila Baiziraela Mushe sekwa akabadwa.
- English13
About forty thousand armed for battle crossed over before the Lord to the plains of Jericho for war.
African KalangaKwakabe kuli balume bangabhata zwiwulu zwili makumi manna (40 000) bakazwilulwamisila ngwa bakapinda mbeli kwa Yahwe beyenda ku mabala e Jerikho.
- English14
That day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they revered him all the days of his life, just as they had revered Moses.
African KalangaMu zhuba ilelo Yahwe bakakudza Joshuwa mbeli kwe Baiziraela bose ngono Baiziraela bakazwiyisa pasi mbeli kwa Joshuwa butjilo gugwe gose koga sekwa bakabe bezwiyisa pasi mbeli kwa Mushe.
- African Kalanga
Ngono Yahwe bakadwa Joshuwa bakati,
- African Kalanga
“Idwa bapirisiti bakasenga bhokisi le butendeki kuti babhude mu gwizi gwe Jorodani.”
- African Kalanga
Ndizo Joshuwa kadwa bapirisiti kati babhude mu gwizi.
- English18
And the priests came up out of the river carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord. No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and ran at flood stage as before.
African KalangaKwakati koga bapirisiti bakasenga Bhokisi le Tjidumano tja Yahwe betshamba pasi pakawoma vula ikatangisa wunga koga se mukutanga.
- English19
On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho.
African KalangaBathu bakabhuda mu Jorodani mu zhuba le bugumi le mwedzi we kutanga ngono bakanokotokela ku Giligala ku n'gathu uku bhezhuba kwe Jerikho.
- African Kalanga
Ngono Joshuwa katola mabgwe ali gumi lina mabili akabe atogwa mu gwizi gwe Jorodani kaatshila kaamisa mu Giligala.
- English21
He said to the Israelites, “In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, ‘What do these stones mean?’
African KalangaNgono Joshuwa wakadwa bathu be Iziraela eti, “Mangwana ha bana be bana benyu bebhuzwa botate babo kuti mabgwe iyawa anodwani,
- African Kalanga
mu babudze muti, ‘Baiziraela bakatjuluka gwizi gwe Jorodani gwakawoma.’
- English23
For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over.
African KalangaYahwe Ndzimu wenyu bakapkhwisa vula mu Jorodani kuswikila mose matjuluka koga Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu sekwa bakathama ku Gungwa Shaba, bakapkhwisa vula kuswikilila tose tatjuluka,
- English24
He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God.”
African Kalangakuti ndizo bathu bose bamu shango bazibe kuti Yahwe bana masimba ne kuti mugale mutja Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu misi yose.”
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.