Jeremiah 23
1 Anunae ka rhamtlim kah boiva a dawn vaengah aka milh sak tih aka taekyak aih te, he tah BOEIPA kah olphong ni.
Yahweh declares, “Terrible things will happen to [the leaders] [MET] [of my people—those who are like] shepherds of [the people who are like] my sheep—because they have scattered my people and sent them away, and have not taken care of them.
2 Te dongah Israel Pathen BOEIPA loh he ni a thui. Ka pilnam aka dawn tih aka luem puei nang loh ka boiva te na taekyak. Amih te na heh tih amih te na hip moenih. Na khoboe thaenah te namah soah kan cawh he khaw BOEIPA kah olphong coeng ni.
So, this is what [I, ] Yahweh, the God whom the Israeli [people worship], say to those leaders: ‘Instead of taking care of my people and [leading them to places where they are safe, like a shepherd does for] his sheep, you have scattered them. So I will punish you for the evil things that you have done.
3 Te dongah diklai pum lamkah ka boiva kah a meet te ka coi ni. Amih te te la ka heh hnap mai cakhaw a tolkhoeng la ka mael puei ni. Te vaengah pungtai uh vetih ping uh ni.
But later I will gather those who are still alive, from the countries where I have forced them to go. I will bring them back to their own country, where they will have many children, and their number/population will increase.
4 Amih aka dawn te ka thoh thil vetih amih te luem uh ni. Te vaengah rhih uh voel pawt vetih, rhihyawp uh pawt vetih hal uh mahpawh. He tah BOEIPA kah olphong ni.
[Then] I will appoint [other] leaders for my people, leaders who will take care of them. And my people will never be afraid [DOU] of anything again, and none of them will be [like a] lost [sheep].’”
5 BOEIPA kah olphong khohnin ha pawk coeng ke. Te vaengah thingdawn dueng te David ham ka thoh pah tih manghai la manghai pawn ni. Te dongah tiktamnah neh duengnah te diklai ah a saii vetih a cangbam ni.
Yahweh [also] says, “Some day I will appoint for you a righteous man who will be a descendant of King David. He will be a king who rules wisely. He will do what is just and right throughout the land.
6 Anih tue vaengah Judah te daem vetih Israel ngaikhuek la kho a sak ni. A ming te khaw BOEIPA tah mamih kah duengnah la a khue ni.
At that time, all the Israeli people [DOU] will be saved [from their enemies], and they will be safe. And his name will be ‘Yahweh, the one who vindicates/defends us.’”
7 Te dongah BOEIPA kah olphong hnin tah ha pawk coeng ke. Te vaengah Egypt kho lamloh Israel ca aka khuen hingnah BOEIPA te koep thui uh mahpawh.
Yahweh [also] says that at that time, people [who are solemnly promising to do something] will no longer say, “[I will do it as surely] as Yahweh lives, who rescued the Israeli people from Egypt.”
8 Tedae hingnah BOEIPA amah lat loh Israel imkhui kah tiingan te tlangpuei kho lamkah neh diklai pum lamloh hang khuen tih ham pawk puei. Te ah te amih heh mai cakhaw amamih khohmuen ah kho a sak uh ni.
Instead, they will say, “[I will do it] as surely as Yahweh lives, who brought [us] Israeli people back to our own land, from the land to the northeast and from all the [other] countries to which he had exiled us.” And they will live in their own land [again].
9 Tonghma kawng dongah, Ka kotak khuikah ka lungbuei paeng coeng. Ka rhuh he boeih hlinghlawk tih yurhui hlang bangla ka om. BOEIPA kah mikhmuh neh amah kah ol cim hmai ah misurtui loh a puem hlang bangla tui ka yuka.
I am very shocked because of the sacred message that Yahweh has spoken about [what will happen to] the [false] prophets; [it is as though] all my bones shake. I stagger like a man who is drunk after drinking a lot of wine.
10 Diklai he samphaih neh hah coeng tih thaephoeinah hmai ah ni diklai he a nguekcoi uh. Khosoek toitlim ngawn koh coeng tih a yongnah khaw yoethae la a poeh pah dongah a thayung thamal om tangloeng pawh.
The land is full of [people who commit] adultery; and [Yahweh] has cursed the land. Even the pastures in the desert are all dried up, because the people do what is evil, and [the false prophets] use their power to do things that are not just/fair.
11 Tonghma neh khosoih khaw poeih uh coeng tih ka im khuiah pataeng amih kah boethae ka hmuh.
Yahweh says, “[Yes, even] the priests and the prophets are ungodly; they do wicked things even in my temple.
12 Te dongah amih taengah a longpuei te longhnal la poeh ni. Khohmuep khuila bung uh vetih a khuiah cungku uh ni. Amih cawhnah kum kah boethae te amih soah ka thoeng sak ni.
Therefore, [it will be as though] the paths that they walk on are slippery. [It will be as though] they are being chased in the darkness, and there they will fall down, because I will cause them to experience disasters at the time that I will punish them. [That will surely happen because I], Yahweh, have said it.”
13 Samaria tonghma rhoek taengah khaw a hohap ni ka hmuh. Baal rhangneh tonghma uh tih ka pilnam Israel te khohmang la a khueh uh.
[Previously] I saw that the prophets in Samaria were doing something that was wrong; they were prophesying, saying that Baal [gave them the messages that they were proclaiming], and they were deceiving my people.
14 Jerusalem tonghma rhoek taengah khaw a samphaih rhih om te ka hmuh. A honghi neh pongpa uh tih thaehuet ham kut a hluem uh. Hlang he a boethae lamloh a mael uh pawt dongah kai taengah tah amamih te Sodom bangla, a khuikah khosa rhoek khaw Gomorrah bangla boeih om uh coeng.
And [now] I have seen the prophets in Jerusalem doing terrible things. They commit adultery and habitually tell lies. They encourage evil people to continue to do evil things, with the result that the people do not stop sinning. Those prophets are as wicked as the people in Sodom and Gomorrah were.
15 Te dongah caempuei BOEIPA loh he ni a thui. Amih tonghma rhoek te pantong ni ka cah coeng he. Jerusalem tonghma taeng lamloh diklai pum ah a rhonging a coe dongah amih te anrhat tui ni ka tul eh.
So, this is what the Commander of the armies of angels says about those [false] prophets: “I will give those prophets bitter things to eat and poison to drink, because it is because of them that this land is filled with [people who do] wicked things.”
16 Caempuei BOEIPA loh he ni a thui. Nangmih taengah aka tonghma, tonghma rhoek ol te hnatun uh boeh. Amih te amamih lungbuei kah mangthui neh nangmih taengah hoemdawk uh tih BOEIPA kah ka lamloh aka thoeng te a thui uh moenih.
This is what the Commander of the armies of angels says: “Do not pay any attention to what those [false] prophets say to you, because they are just deceiving you. They tell you about visions that they have thought/created [only] in their own minds, not about visions that I have given them.
17 Kai yahbai ham aka thui la aka thui nangmih taengah, ‘BOEIPA ngaimongnah om saeh,’ a ti lahko. Te dongah nim a lungbuei kah thinthahnah dongah aka pongpa boeih loh, ‘Nangmih taengah yoethae ha pawk mahpawh,” a ti uh.
They habitually say to those who hate me, ‘[Yahweh says that] you will have peace.’ And they say to those who stubbornly do what they want to do, ‘Nothing bad will happen to you [because of your doing those things].’
18 Tedae BOEIPA kah baecenol dongah pai tih aka hmu coeng neh a ol aka ya te unim? A ol te a ol bangla aka hnatung tih aka ya te unim?
But none of them has ever been in a council [meeting] in heaven in order to listen to a message from me. None of them has paid attention to anything that [I], Yahweh, have said.
19 BOEIPA kah kosi hlipuei ha thoeng pawn ni ke. Te vaengah hlipuei te kilkul vetih halang kah a lu te a kilkul thil ni.
So, listen to this: I will punish them; it will be [like] a great storm; it will come down [like] a whirlwind, swirling around the heads of those wicked people.
20 Anih loh a saii tih a lungbuei kah thuepnah a thoh duela BOEIPA kah thintoek tah mael mahpawh. Te te hmailong tue vaengah yakmingnah neh na yakming uh bitni.
I will not stop being angry until I completely accomplish all that I have planned. In the future, you will understand [all of] this clearly.”
21 Tonghma rhoek te ka tueih pawt dae amamih yong uh. Amih te ka uen pawt dae amamih tonghma uh.
[Yahweh also says, ] “I have not appointed those prophets, but they run [around telling people their messages]. I did not speak to them, but they [continue to] prophesy.
22 Tedae kai kah baecenol dongah pai uh tih ka pilnam te kai ol yaak sak uh koinih a longpuei thae neh a khoboe thaenah lamloh amih mael uh ni.
If they had been in my council [meetings], they would have been able to speak messages from me, and they would have caused people to turn away from committing evil things.”
23 He tah BOEIPA kah olphong ni. Kai neh a yoei kah Pathen la om tih a hla ah tah a Pathen moenih a?
Yahweh [also] says, “Am I a God who is only nearby? No, I am a God who is far away, also.
24 Hlang he a huephael ah thuh uh cakhaw kai loh anih te ka hmuh moenih a? He tah BOEIPA kah olphong ni. Vaan neh diklai he ka tluek moenih a? He tah BOEIPA kah olphong ni.
So, no one can hide in some secret place with the result that I cannot see him. I am everywhere, in heaven and on the earth! [That is what I], Yahweh, say!
25 Tonghma rhoek loh kai ming neh ka tonghma a ti uh tih a laithae neh mang ka maan rhoe ka maan coeng a ti uh te ka yaak.
I have heard those prophets prophesy lies, saying that they are telling people messages from me. They say, ‘[Listen to me tell you] the dream that God gave me last night! I [really] had this dream!’
26 Me hil nim laithae la aka tonghma tonghma rhoek neh a lungbuei aka huep tonghma rhoek kah lungbuei khuiah a koe aih ve.
How long will they continue to do this? How long will those lying prophets continue to prophesy things that come only from their own minds?
27 A mang dongah ni ka pilnam loh ka ming he hnilh ham a moeh uh. A napa rhoek loh Baal kongah kai ming a hnilh uh vanbangla hlang loh a hui taengah ana thui te.
They think that because of the dreams that they tell to each other, people will forget me, like their ancestors forgot about me when they started to worship Baal.
28 Amah taengah mueimang aka om tonghma te tah a mueimang khaw thui saeh. Tedae a taengah kai ol aka dang long tah ka ol oltak he thui saeh. He tah BOEIPA kah olphong ni, cangpai neh cangkong te metlam a vai uh eh?
Allow those [false] prophets to tell people their dreams, but those who have messages that [really] come from me should proclaim those messages faithfully. I, Yahweh, say [that like] straw and grain are certainly very different, [my messages and the messages from those false prophets are certainly very different].
29 He tah BOEIPA kah olphong coeng ni. Ka ol he hmai bangla, thaelpang aka taekyak kilung bangla a om moenih a?
[It is as though] my messages [burn] like a fire; they [strike people’s inner beings like] someone strikes a rock with a hammer and smashes it into pieces.
30 Te dongah a hui taeng lamloh ka ol aka huen hlang neh tonghma rhoek te ka pai thil coeng ne. He tah BOEIPA kah olphong coeng ni.
Therefore, [I, ] Yahweh say, 'I oppose all those prophets who steal messages from each other and claim that those messages came from me.
31 He tah BOEIPA kah olphong ni. Olphong te a phong lalah amih kah ol loh kongah tonghma rhoek te ka pai thil coeng ne.
I oppose those prophets who speak their own messages but claim that those messages came from me.
32 He tah BOEIPA kah olphong coeng ni. A honghi kah mang neh aka tonghma rhoek khaw ka pai thil coeng ne. A thui uh vaengah ka pilnam he a honghi neh, a hohap neh khohmang la a khueh uh. Tedae amih te ka tueih pawt tih amih ka uen van pawt dongah a hoeikhang ham akhaw pilnam ham a hoeikhang moenih. He tah BOEIPA kah olphong coeng ni.
I oppose those prophets who falsely say that I told them something in a vision, but they are [only] telling lies that cause my people to sin. I did not send those prophets. I did not even appoint them [to be prophets]. And they have no messages that will benefit my people at all.' [That is what I, ] Yahweh, declare.”
33 He pilnam long khaw, tonghma long khaw, khosoih long khaw nang n'dawt atah BOEIPA kah olrhuh te thui pah. Te vaengah amih taengah nangmih kam phap ham olrhuh te amih taengah thui pah. He tah BOEIPA kah olphong coeng ni.
[Yahweh said to me], “If one of those prophets or priests or one of the [other] people asks you, ‘What problem has Yahweh told you about [now]?’, you must reply, ‘You are the problem! And Yahweh says that he will abandon you!’
34 Te dongah tonghma khaw, khosoih khaw, pilnam khaw BOEIPA kah olrhuh aka phoei tah tekah hlang te khaw a im te ka cawh pah ni.
And if any prophet or priest or anyone [else falsely] says, ‘[I have] a prophecy from Yahweh,’ I will punish that person and his family.
35 BOEIPA loh metla a doo tih BOEIPA loh metla a voek khaw hlang neh a hui taengah khaw hlang neh a manuca taengah khaw thui pah tangloeng.
What you should continually ask each other is, ‘[When you spoke to Yahweh, ] what did he reply? What is he saying [to us]?’
36 A ol he hlang taengah olrhuh la om dae BOEIPA kah olrhuh te koep na poek uh moenih. Te dongah ni caempuei BOEIPA mamih kah Pathen, hingnah Pathen kah ol he na maelh uh.
But stop saying ‘[I have] a prophecy/message from Yahweh,’ because those who say that are doing it only because they want people to accept their ideas, and by doing that they distort/change the messages that are from our God, the Commander of the armies of angels.
37 BOEIPA loh nang metla n'doo tih BOEIPA loh metla m'voek khaw tonghma taengah thui pah van.
This is what you should ask each prophet: ‘What did Yahweh reply [when you talked to him]? What is he saying [to us]?’
38 BOEIPA kah olrhuh na ti van atah BOEIPA loh a thui he thui van tangloeng. He ol he BOEIPA kah olrhuh la na thui. Tedae Thui hamla nang te kan tueih vaengah BOEIPA kah olrhuh ni na ti hae moenih.
If he replies, ‘[What I told you] is a prophecy/message from Yahweh,’ you should say to him, ‘You have continued to say, “[I received] a prophecy/message from Yahweh” even though I told you to not claim that you have received prophecies/messages from Yahweh.’
39 Te dongah kai loh nangmih te kan hnilh rhoe kan hnilh pawn ni he. Nangmih taeng neh na pa rhoek taengah kam paek khopuei neh ka mikhmuh khui lamloh nangmih te kam phap ni.
So I [, Yahweh, ] will get rid of you [false prophets]. I will expel you from my presence. And I will get rid of this city that I gave to you and to your ancestors.
40 Kumhal kah kokhahnah neh kumhal kah yahpohnah te nangmih soah kang khueh vetih hnilh tlaih mahpawh.
I will cause people to make fun of you forever. People will never forget that you were disgraced.”
