The English-Kalanga Bilingual Language Learning Bible
Old Testament
Read each verse in English beside its African Kalanga equivalent.
Numbers 5English
Mbalo 5African Kalanga
- African Kalanga
Yahwe bakadwa Mushe bakati,
- English2
“Command the Israelites to send away from the camp anyone who has an infectious skin disease or a discharge of any kind, or who is ceremonially unclean because of a dead body.
African Kalanga“Idwa bathu be Iziraela badusile kuzhe kwe bukotokelo mmwe ne mmwe unogwala mapele ne mmwe ne mmwe unogwala tjigwele ne mmwe ne mmwe wakatemapadziwa nge bafi.
- English3
Send away male and female alike; send them outside the camp so they will not defile their camp, where I dwell among them.”
African KalangaUtatile kuzhe bose bakadzi ne balume bakatemapala, kuti basitemapadze bukotokelo gwabo, pandinogala pakati kwe bathu bangu.”
- English4
The Israelites did this; they sent them outside the camp. They did just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
African KalangaNgono Baiziraela bakathama beijalo, bakabadusila kuzhe kwe bukotokelo Yahwe sekwa bakadwa Mushe.
- African Kalanga
Yahwe bakadwa Mushe bakati:
- English6
“Say to the Israelites: ‘When a man or woman wrongs another in any way and so is unfaithful to the Lord, that person is guilty
African Kalanga“Idwa bathu be Iziraela uti, ‘Ha nlume kene nkadzi ethama zwimwe zwe zwibi ngosangalamoyo muna Yahwe nthu wakajalo nlandu,
- English7
and must confess the sin he has committed. He must make full restitution for his wrong, add one fifth to it and give it all to the person he has wronged.
African Kalangaazwilebe nlandu uwe, abe elipa nlandu uwe nge buzhalo, ebuya epapha nge ikwamu tjing'ompela mu zwikwamu zwili zwishanu zwe themba ye nlandu uwe, ebe epa uwoyo waathamila nlandu.
- English8
But if that person has no close relative to whom restitution can be made for the wrong, the restitution belongs to the Lord and must be given to the priest, along with the ram with which atonement is made for him.
African KalangaKoga ha nthu wakafanila lipiwa asina n'gali thaka, ndipo ye nlandu inothamigwa Yahwe ili ye mpirisiti, ipapha pezhugwi kwe nyundo yaisiwa tjibhayilo tje gadzano tjathamigwa wathama nlandu.
- African Kalanga
Ngono zwipo zose zwakayengemala zwe Baiziraela zwabanoyisa ku mpirisiti zowobe zwizwe.
- English10
Each man’s sacred gifts are his own, but what he gives to the priest will belong to the priest.’”
African KalangaTjipo tje nthu tjimwe ne tjimwe tjakayengamala tjinoyisiwa kuna Yahwe, mpirisiti azwitolegwe itjo.’ ”
- African Kalanga
Yahwe bakadwa Mushe bakati,
- English12
“Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘If a man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him
African Kalanga“Idwa bathu be Iziraela uti, ‘Ha nkadzi we nthu angatjinya ngothama bupombgwe,
- English13
by sleeping with another man, and this is hidden from her husband and her impurity is undetected (since there is no witness against her and she has not been caught in the act),
African Kalangaebe ewalilana thobo ne mmwe nlume, nlume uwe kasizibe, kukasibe ne waziba kuti wa temapala kakale kusina butendeki gwe kuti wabhakhwa bupombgwe,
- English14
and if feelings of jealousy come over her husband and he suspects his wife and she is impure–or if he is jealous and suspects her even though she is not impure–
African Kalangangono ha nlume uwe angazhigwa ne fupa kakumbulila nkadzi uwe kuti wathama bupombwe katemapala, ngono asina butendeki,
- English15
then he is to take his wife to the priest. He must also take an offering of a tenth of an ephah of barley flour on her behalf. He must not pour oil on it or put incense on it, because it is a grain offering for jealousy, a reminder offering to draw attention to guilt.
African KalangaIpapo nlume azhise nkadzi uwe ku mpirisiti, abe ezhisa ne tjipo tjinoshakigwa nkadzi uwe tjili tjilizanyo tje seme ing'ompela ye bgwisa gwe mathunde e bhali, asitongogudila mafuta, kakale asitongo gulonga motsha unonuwha zwinozipa pezhugwi kwago, ngobe tjili tjipo tje mathunde tjinoyisiwa nge nlume unokumbulila, tjithamigwa kudusila lebeswa patjena.’ ”
- African Kalanga
“Ngono mpirisiti unowosedzedza nkadzi, kambiga mbeli kwa Yahwe.
- English17
Then he shall take some holy water in a clay jar and put some dust from the tabernacle floor into the water.
African KalangaMpirisiti unowotola vula yakayengemala nge ndilo ye ntapkhwi, ebe etola whuluba pa budzilo mukati kwe bugalo gwe Ndzimu ebe edila mu vula.
- English18
After the priest has had the woman stand before the Lord, he shall loosen her hair and place in her hands the reminder offering, the grain offering for jealousy, while he himself holds the bitter water that brings a curse.
African KalangaNgono mpirisiti unowozhisa nkadzi mbeli kwa Yahwe, abe ewundumula mavudzi mu nsholo we nkadzi, abe entshitsha bgwisa mu maboko, guli bgwisa gwe tjipo tje fupa, gunoyisigwa kukumbulila. Mpirisiti iye ebe akabhata vula inobaba mu maboko awe inozhisa bhiso.
- English19
Then the priest shall put the woman under oath and say to her, “If no other man has slept with you and you have not gone astray and become impure while married to your husband, may this bitter water that brings a curse not harm you.
African KalangaNdizo mpirisiti antunise alebeleke ati, ‘Ha kusina nlume wakapombgwa nawe, kene usaka pambuka mu zila uka tjinya ukazwitemapadza, utjipasi kwe nlayo we nlume uwo, usungunuke mu kulongwa bhiso nge vula iyeyi inobaba.
- English20
But if you have gone astray while married to your husband and you have defiled yourself by sleeping with a man other than your husband”-
African KalangaKoga ha wakapambuka mu zila ukapombgwa, utji pasi kwe nlayo we nlume uwo, ngono wazwitemapadza, ngolala ne nlume usi uwo mu bumo gwe nlume uwo,
- English21
here the priest is to put the woman under this curse of the oath-”may the Lord cause your people to curse and denounce you when he causes your thigh to waste away and your abdomen to swell.
African Kalangampirisiti unowotunisa nkadzi nge tuna kwe bhiso eti, “Yahwe ngabakulonge bhiso pakati kwe bakanyi kwenyu. Yahwe ngaba ku bhatise shoni, bakukumadze ntumbu uwo.
- English22
May this water that brings a curse enter your body so that your abdomen swells and your thigh wastes away. “ “ ‘Then the woman is to say, “Amen. So be it.”
African KalangaVula iyeyi inolonga bhiso ikungine mu ntumbu, ikuzwimbise mbili na mbeli kuko kuswabe.” ’ ” “Ngono nkadzi unowodabila eti, ‘Ngakujalo, ngakujalo.’
- English23
“ ‘The priest is to write these curses on a scroll and then wash them off into the bitter water.
African Kalanga“Ndizo mpirisiti unowokwala bhiso ileli mu lukwalo, ebe elisukila mu ndilo ina vula inobaba.
- English24
He shall have the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and this water will enter her and cause bitter suffering.
African KalangaNgono mpirisiti unong'wisa nkadzi vula inobaba inolonga bhiso, inowongina mu ntumbu uwe ikanlonga zwibhayo zwinogwadza.
- English25
The priest is to take from her hands the grain offering for jealousy, wave it before the Lord and bring it to the altar.
African KalangaMpirisiti unotola tjipo tje bgwisa tje kumbulila mu luboko gwe nkadzi, ebe ezunguza bgwisa mbeli kwa Yahwe eguyisa ku tjibeso tjinopisigwa zwibhayilo.
- English26
The priest is then to take a handful of the grain offering as a memorial offering and burn it on the altar; after that, he is to have the woman drink the water.
African KalangaMpirisiti unowonokola luboko gulizhele ili gobe le ikumbuludzo ebe egupisila mu tjibeso tjinopisigwa zwibhayilo, shule kwa ikoko mpirisiti unong'wisa nkadzi vula.
- English27
If she has defiled herself and been unfaithful to her husband, then when she is made to drink the water that brings a curse, it will go into her and cause bitter suffering; her abdomen will swell and her thigh waste away, and she will become accursed among her people.
African KalangaNgono kowoti shule kwe anng'wisa vula, ndizo ha angabe akazwitemapadza, akathamila nlume uwe bupombgwe, vula inolonga bhiso inongina mu ntumbu uwe ikanlonga zwibhayo zwinogwadza, ebe ezwimba mbili ebe eswaba na mbeli, ngono nkadzi unowobhakhwa nge shoni muna bakanyi kwabo.
- English28
If, however, the woman has not defiled herself and is free from impurity, she will be cleared of guilt and will be able to have children.
African KalangaKoga ha nkadzi asakazwitemapadza kakale asina nlandu, aatowowhisiwa zogwadza kakale unowotubula kuwana bana.
- English29
“ ‘This, then, is the law of jealousy when a woman goes astray and defiles herself while married to her husband,
African Kalanga“Oyu ndiwo nlayo we kumbulila, ha nkadzi ali pasi kwe nlayo we nlume uwe, ebe ebhuda mu zila ezwitemapadza,
- English30
or when feelings of jealousy come over a man because he suspects his wife. The priest is to have her stand before the Lord and is to apply this entire law to her.
African Kalangakene ha meya dze kumbulila dzangina mu nlume, ebe enomisa nkadzi mbeli kwa Yahwe, mpirisiti unoshingikadza nlayo uwoyu.
- English31
The husband will be innocent of any wrongdoing, but the woman will bear the consequences of her sin.’”
African KalangaNlume unowobhuda mu nlandu, koga ha nkadzi ali nlandu wakafanila kuusenga nge mathudzi.”
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.