UTertiyo—Unobhala Othembekileyo KaPawulos

UTERTIYO wayejongene nocelomngeni. Umpostile uPawulos wayefuna ukumsebenzisa njengonobhala wakhe xa wayebhalela amanye amaKristu aseRoma umtyukatha weleta. Oku kwakuza kuba ngumsebenzi onzima.

Kwakutheni ukuze kube nzima kangaka ukuba ngunobhala ngenkulungwane yokuqala yeXesha lethu Eliqhelekileyo? Wawusenziwa njani umsebenzi onjalo? Zinto zini ezazisetyenziswa ngelo xesha?

Oonobhala Bamandulo

Kubantu abangamaGrike nabangamaRoma, kwakukho oonobhala abahlukahlukeneyo. Amanye amadoda ayesebenza njengoonobhala baseburhulumenteni—amagosa asebenzela uwonke wonke kwiiofisi zeengqonyela. Kwakhona kwakukho noonobhala bakawonke wonke ababesebenzela abantu kwiindawo zentengiso. Oonobhala babucala (ababedla ngokuba ngamakhoboka) babeqeshwa zizinhanha. Kwandule ke, kubekho nabo babengabahlobo nje abanentumekelelo ababekuvuyela ukubhalela abanye iileta. Ngokutsho komphengululi uE. Randolph Richards, ubugcisa obabufuneka kwaba nobhala babengagunyaziswanga “yayikukuba nobugcisa obungephi kulwimi kunye/okanye nesakhono sokubhala ngobugcisa obukhulu obuya kuhlala buvelisa ileta echanileyo, efanelekileyo nemnandi.”

Ngoobani ababenokusebenzisa oonobhala? Okokuqala, ngabo babengakwazi ukulesa nokubhala. Izivumelwano neeleta ezininzi zoshishino zamandulo zaziqukunjelwa ngamazwi awayesithi unobhala abhale ukuba loo leta ibhalwe ngesandla sakhe ngenxa yokungakwazi kwaloo mntu oye wamnika loo msebenzi ukubhala. Isizathu sesibini sokuqesha oonobhala sidizwa yileta yamhlamnene eyayivela eThebes, eYiputa. Njengoko yayibhalelwe uAsklepiades othile, ithi xa iqukumbela: “UEumelus, unyana kaHerma, umbhalele . . . kuba kaloku yena bethu ubhala kancinane.”

Sekunjalo, ukuba nolwazi ngokulesa nokubhala akubonakali ukuba kwakunguthunywashe ogqibayo ekusetyenzisweni koonobhala. Ngokutsho komnye umgqabazi ngeBhayibhile uJohn L. McKenzie, “mhlawumbi yayingekokuxhalabela ukufundeka, kunoko yayikukuxhalabela ubuhle, okanye ubuncinane ukucoceka” okwabangela abantu babhenela ekuqesheni oonobhala. Kwanakwizifundiswa, ukubhala kwakuyindinisa, ingakumbi ukuba kwakufuneka kubhalwe umtyukatha wento. Umphengululi uJ. A. Eschlimann uthi nawuphi na owayenokwenjenjalo “wayewubaleka ngeenyawo lo msebenzi, ewuphathisa amakhoboka, nababhali abavunyiweyo.” Ngaphezu koko, kulula ukusiqonda isizathu sokuba abantu babengakuthandi ukubhala iileta zabo xa sinokucinga ngezinto ezazisetyenziswa kunye neemeko zomsebenzi.

Izinto ekwakubhalelwa kuzo ngokuqhelekileyo ngenkulungwane yokuqala yeXesha lethu Eliqhelekileyo yayiliphepha lomzi. Kwisiqu sesi sityalo kwakuncwelwa ngobude imicu emincinane yomphakathi wenwebu. Imicu yomaleko yayisandlalwa. Omnye umaleko wawubekwa kanye phezu kwalo wokuqala. Yomibini ke yayicinezelwa, nto leyo eyayivelisa “iphepha.”

Kwakungeyondlwan’ iyanetha ukubhala kule nto. Yayirhabaxa yaye inemicwana ejingayo. Ngokutsho komphengululi uAngelo Penna, “le micwana yephepha lomzi ifana nesiponji yayibangela ukusasazeka kweinki, ingakumbi kwizikroba ezincinane ezazisala ekudibaneni kwemicu emincinane.” Unobhala wayenokusebenza akhe isathanga aze abambe iphepha elibekwe kwibhodi ngesinye isandla. Ukuba wayewuqobola lo msebenzi okanye izinto awayezisebenzisa zingekho mgangathweni kakuhle, usiba lwakhe olukhulu, okanye usiba lwengcongolo, lwalunokumana lubambeka kweli phepha lomzi, iphepha lalinokukrazuka, okanye akubhalileyo kwakunokuba sisifilifili sento engafundekiyo.

I-inki yayisenziwa ngomxube womsizi nentlaka. Ekubeni wawuthengiswa uzizitena, kwakufuneka uxutywe namanzi kwiqula leinki ngaphambi kokuba kubhalwe ngawo. Phakathi kwezixhobo ekusenokwenzeka ukuba unobhala onjengoTertiyo wayenazo yimela yokulola usiba lwengcongolo kunye nesiponji esimanzi sokosula iimpazamo zakhe. Naliphi na igama lalimele libhalwe ngobunono. Ngoko ke kwakubhalwa ngesantya sonwabu yaye kunzima.

‘Mna, Tertiyo, Ndiyanibulisa’

Phakathi kwemibuliso equkiweyo ekupheleni kweleta eya kwabaseRoma kukho nekanobhala kaPawulos, owabhala wathi: “Ndiyanibulisa ngokwaseNkosini, mna, Tertiyo, obhale le leta.” (Roma 16:22) Esi ke kuphela kwesihlandlo kwiileta zikaPawulos apho kubhekiselwe ngokucacileyo komnye woonobhala bakhe.

Akukho nto ingako esiyaziyo ngalo Tertiyo. Ngenxa yombuliso wakhe ‘ongokwaseNkosini,’ sisenokugqiba sithi wayengumKristu othembekileyo. Mhlawumbi wayelilungu lebandla laseKorinte ibe esazi amaKristu amaninzi eRoma. Umphengululi weBhayibhile uGiuseppe Barbaglio ucinga ukuba uTertiyo wayelikhoboka okanye indoda ekhululekileyo. Ngoba? Okokuqala, ngenxa yokuba “ababhali babedla ngokuba ludidi olunjalo lwabantu; nangenxa yokuba igama lakhe lesiLatini . . . lalixhaphake gqitha kumakhoboka nakumakhoboka akhululekileyo.” “Ngoko ke,” uhambisa athi lo kaBarbaglio, “wayengengombhali nje oyingcali ‘osisifede,’ wayekwangumsebenzi owathi ngale ndlela waba sisandla sikaPawulos ekumncedeni ekubhaleni eyona ncwadi yakhe inde neyona yakha yamnandi: inkonzo exabisekileyo, eyenza uPawulos wakwazi ukonga ixesha namandla.”

Ngokuqinisekileyo lo msebenzi kaTertiyo uxabisekile. NoBharuki wenzela uYeremiya umsebenzi ofanayo, kwananjengokuba noSilvano wenzela uPetros. (Yeremiya 36:4; 1 Petros 5:12) Elinjani lona ilungelo ababenalo aba basebenzi!

Ukubhalela AbaseRoma

Ileta eya kwabaseRoma yabhalwa ngoxa uPawulos wayesandwendwele uGayo, mhlawumbi eKorinte. Ngelo xesha kwakumalunga nowama-56 C.E., ebudeni bohambo lwesithathu lobuvangeli balo mpostile. (Roma 16:23) Nangona sisazi mhlophe ukuba uPawulos wayesebenzisa uTertiyo njengonobhala wakhe ekubhaleni le leta, asinalwazi ngendlela awamsebenzisa ngayo. Nayiphi na indlela awayisebenzisayo, lo msebenzi wawungenakuqatyeliswa nje lula. Kodwa ke nantsi into esinokuqiniseka ngayo: Njengayo yonke iBhayibhile, ileta kaPawulos eya kwabaseRoma ‘yaphefumlelwa nguThixo.’—2 Timoti 3:16, 17.

Ekugqityweni kwale leta, uTertiyo kunye noPawulos babebhale amawaka ngamawaka amazwi, besebenzisa amaphepha aliqela omzi. Emva kokuba encanyathiselwe eludinini, la maphepha ayesiba ngumsongo, mhlawumbi onobude obuziimitha ezintathu ukuya kwezine. Le leta yasongwa ngocoselelo yaza yatywinwa. Kuyabonakala ke ukuba uPawulos wayiphathisa uFibhi, udade waseKenkreya, owayesele eza kubekeka endleleni eya eRoma.—Roma 16:1, 2.

Ukususela kwinkulungwane yokuqala, iindlela ezazisetyenziswa ekuveliseni umbandela obhaliweyo ziye zatshintsha ngendlela eshiy’ amehlo. Kodwa ukutyhubela iinkulungwane ileta eya kumaKristu aseRoma, uThixo uye wayilondoloza. Hayi indlela esinokuba nombulelo ngayo ke ngoko ngale nxalenye yeLizwi likaYehova, eyabhalwa ngesandla sikaTertiyo unobhala kaPawulos othembekileyo nozibhokoxayo!