< Jeremiah 38 >
1 Jeremiah loh pilnam pum taengah a thui ol te Mattan capa Shephatiah, Pashur capa Gedaliah, Shelemiah capa Jukal, Malkhiah capa Pashur loh a yaak.
[Four officials, ] Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, Jehucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of Malkijah, heard what I had been telling all the people.
2 “BOEIPA loh he ni a. thui. He khopuei kah khosa rhoek te cunghang neh, khokha neh, duektahaw neh duek uh ni. Tedae Khalden taengah aka mop tah hing rhoe hing ni. A hinglu te a taengah kutbuem bangla om vetih hing ni.
[I had been telling them] that Yahweh was saying, “Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die. They will be killed by [their enemies’] swords or from famines or from diseases. But those who surrender to the Babylonian army, they will be spared. They will not be killed.
3 BOEIPA loh he ni a. thui. He khopuei he Babylon manghai caem kut dongah a paek rhoe a paek vetih a loh ni,” a ti.
Yahweh also says that the army of the King of Babylon will certainly capture this city [DOU].”
4 Tedae mangpa rhoek loh manghai taengah, “Hekah hlang he duek laeh saeh. He ol lamloh amih taengah a thui ham akhaw he khopuei kah aka sueng caemtloek hlang rhoek kut neh pilnam pum kah kut ni a khah pah. Hekah hlang ngawn tah he pilnam kah ngaimongnah ham lakah yoethaenah ham bueng toem pawt nim?” a ti uh.
So those officials [went] to the king and said, “This man [Jeremiah] should be executed! Because of what he is saying, he is discouraging our soldiers who remain in the city. He is also discouraging the people. He is not saying things that will help us; he is saying things that will defeat us.”
5 Te dongah manghai Zedekiah loh, “Anih he nangmih kut ah ni a om ne. Nangmih ol te manghai loh a aal thai ngawn moenih,” a ti nah.
King Zedekiah said, “All right, do to him what you want to; I do not have the power to stop you.”
6 Te dongah Jeremiah te a khuen uh tih thongim vongup kah manghai capa Malkhiah kah tuito khuila a voeih uh. Jeremiah te rhui neh a colh uh vaengah tangrhom khuiah tui om pawh. Tedae tangnong kak la om tih Jeremiah khaw tangnong dongah buek.
So those officials took me from my cell and lowered me by ropes into a well in the courtyard. The well belonged to Malkijah, who was a son of the king. There was no water in the well, but there was [a lot of] mud, so I sank [down deep] into the mud.
7 Jeremiah tuito ah a khueh uh te manghai im kah imkhoem Kushi hlang Ebedmelek loh a yaak. Te vaengah manghai te Benjamin vongka ah ngol.
But Ebed-Melech, a palace official from Ethiopia, heard [someone say] that I was in the well. [At that time] the king was deciding/judging people’s cases at the Benjamin Gate.
8 Te dongah Ebedmelek te manghai im lamloh cet tih manghai te a thui pah.
Ebed-Melech went out of the palace and said to the king,
9 “Ka boei manghai aw, he kah hlang rhoek loh thaehuet nen ni tonghma Jeremiah te boeih a saii uh. Anih he tangrhom khuila a voeih uh dae khopuei khuiah buh a om voel pawt dongah khokha ah amah khaw duek ni,” a ti nah.
“Your majesty, those men have done a very evil thing. They have put the prophet Jeremiah in a well. [Almost] all the food in the city is gone, [so they will not be able to bring him any food] and as a result he will die from hunger!”
10 Te dongah manghai loh Kushi Ebedmelek te a uen tih, “Na kut hmukah hlang sawmthum he khuen lamtah tonghma Jeremiah te a duek hlan ah tangrhom lamloh doek laeh,” a ti nah.
So the king told Ebed-Melech, “Take thirty of my men/soldiers with you, and pull Jeremiah out of the well, in order that he does not die!”
11 Te dongah Ebedmelek loh a kut dongkah hlang rhoek te a kuen tih manghai im thakvoh taengla cet. Te phoeiah himbai rhuem lamkah aka pawn, aka pawn te a loh tih nakkhoe rhuem te tangrhom khuikah Jeremiah taengah rhui neh a hlak pah.
So Ebed-Melech took thirty men with him and they went into a room in the palace below the room where they stored very valuable things. There they found some old rags and discarded clothing. They took those things and went to the well. They fastened them to a rope and lowered the rope to me.
12 Kushi Ebedmelek loh Jeremiah te, “Himbai rhuem nakpawn neh nakkhoe te na ban sukvai hmuikah rhui dang ah dok ne,” a ti nah tih Jeremiah long khaw a saii van.
Then Ebed-Melech called down to me, “Put these rags underneath your armpits, to protect you from [being injured by] the ropes!” So I did that.
13 Jeremiah te rhui neh a doek uh tih tangrhom lamloh a poh uh. Tedae Jeremiah he thongim vongup ah ni a. om.
Then they pulled me out of the well. I [returned] to the courtyard where the palace guards stayed, and I stayed there.
14 Te phoeiah manghai Zedekiah loh a tah tih tonghma Jeremiah te BOEIPA im kah a pathum vongka la a khuen. Manghai loh Jeremiah te, “Kai loh nang te ol kan dawt vaengah he kai taengah ol phah boeh ne,” a ti nah.
[One day] King Zedekiah summoned me, and I was brought to the king, [who was waiting for me] at the entrance of the temple. He said to me, “I want to ask you something. I want you [to answer me truthfully, and] and to not conceal anything.”
15 Jeremiah loh Zedekiah te, “Nang taengah ka puen atah kai he a duek khaw nan duek sak pawt nim? Nang te khoem kang uen ah pataeng kai taengkah he na hnatun moenih,” a ti nah.
I replied, “If I tell you [the truth], you will [command that I] be executed. And if I give you [good] advice, you will not pay attention to what I say.”
16 Tedae manghai Zedekiah loh Jeremiah taengah a huep la a toemngam tih, “Hingnah BOEIPA amah loh mamih ham hinglu a saii. Nang te kan duek sak pawt vetih na hinglu aka mae hlang rhoek kut ah khaw nang kan tloeng mahpawh,” a ti nah.
But King Zedekiah secretly promised me, “[Tell me the truth]! And as surely as Yahweh lives, I will not [cause] you to be executed, and I will not hand you over to those who are wanting to kill you.”
17 Te dongah Jeremiah loh Zedekiah te, “Israel Pathen caempuei Pathen BOEIPA loh he ni a thui. Babylon manghai mangpa rhoek taengah a kun rhoe na kun daengah ni na hinglu te hing vetih khopuei he hmai neh a hoeh pawt eh. Te phoeiah namah khaw na imkhui neh na hing ni.
[So] then I said to Zedekiah, “This is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [we] Israelis [worship], says: ‘If you surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, you and your family will (be spared/not be killed), and this city will not be burned.
18 Tedae Babylon manghai kah mangpa rhoek taengla na kun pawt koinih khopuei he Khalden kut ah a paek vetih hmai neh a hoeh uh ni. Namah khaw amih kut lamloh na loeih mahpawh,” a ti nah.
But if you refuse to surrender to them, you will not escape. And the army from Babylonia will capture this city and completely burn it.’”
19 Manghai Zedekiah loh Jeremiah taengah, “Khalden taengah aka kuep Judah rhoek te ka mawn coeng, amih kut ah kai n'tloeng vetih kai he m'poelyoe lah ve,” a ti nah.
The king replied, “But I am afraid [to surrender to the soldiers from Babylon], because their officers may hand me over to the people of Judah who have already joined the soldiers from Babylonia, and those people from Judah will mistreat me.”
20 Jeremiah loh, “N'tloeng mahpawh. Namah taengah ka thui BOEIPA ol te hnatun laeh. Te daengah ni na taengah voelphoeng vetih na hinglu khaw a hing eh.
I replied, “If you obey Yahweh by doing what I tell you to do, they will not hand you over to our people. Things will go well for you, and you will remain alive.
21 Tedae BOEIPA loh kai n'tueng ol dongah he kun ham na aal atah,
But if you refuse to surrender, this is what Yahweh has revealed to me:
22 Judah manghai im ah aka sueng huta rhoek te khaw Babylon manghai kah mangpa taengla boeih a khuen uh ni ne. Te vaengah amih loh, “Namah te m'vueh uh tih na ngaimongnah hlang loh namah m'vueinan coeng. Na kho te tuinok dongah buek tih a hnuk la balkhong coeng,’ a ti uh ni.
All the women who remain in your palace will be brought out and given to the officers of the king of Babylon. Then those women will say to you: ‘You had friends whom [you thought] you could trust, but they have deceived you and caused you to make a wrong decision. Now [it is as though] you are stuck in mud, and your friends have abandoned you.’
23 Na yuu neh na ca rhoek te Khalden taengla boeih a khuen uh ni. Namah khaw amih kut lamloh na poenghal pawt vetih Babylon manghai kut loh n'tuuk ni. Te vaengah khopuei he hmai neh a hoeh uh ni,” a ti nah.
All of your wives and children [in the city] will be led out to the soldiers from Babylonia, and you also will not escape. [The soldiers of] the King of Babylon will seize you, and they will burn down this city.”
24 Zedekiah loh Jeremiah te, “He ol he hlang loh a ming pawt daengah ni na duek pawt eh.
Then Zedekiah said to me, “Do not tell anyone what you told me; if you tell anyone, my officials may kill you.
25 Nang taengah ka thui te mangpa rhoek loh a yaak tih nang taengla ha pawk uh khaming. Te vaengah nang te, 'Kaimih taengah thui laeh, manghai taengah balae na thui? Kaimih taengah phah boeh, nang te kan duek sak uh mahpawh, manghai loh nang taengah balae a thui?' a ti uh atah,
If my officials find out that I talked to you, perhaps they will come to you and say, ‘Tell us what you and the king were talking about. If you do not tell us, we will kill you.’
26 amih te, 'Ka lungmacil he manghai mikhmuh ah ka buk coeng, duek sak pahoi ham atah Jonathan im la kai mael sak boeh,’ ti nah,” a ti nah.
If that happens, [just] tell them that you pleaded with me not to send you back to the [dungeon/cell in] Jonathan’s house, [because you were afraid that] you would die [if you were put there again].”
27 Mangpa rhoek te Jeremiah taengla boeih ha pawk uh tih anih te a dawt uh. Te vaengah manghai loh a uen ol rhoek te amih taengah boeih a thui. Ol te a yaak uh pawt dongah a taengah hil a phah uh van.
And [that is what happened]. The king’s officials came to me and asked [why the king had summoned me. But] I told them what the king told me to tell them. So they did not ask me any more [questions], because no one had heard what the king and I had said to each other.
28 Jerusalem a tuuk khohnin duela thongim vongup ah ni Jeremiah a om pueng. Jerusalem a loh vaengah khaw om pueng.
So I remained being guarded in the courtyard [of the palace], until the day that [the army of Babylonia] captured Jerusalem.