Jeremias 38

1 Og Sefatja, Matthans Søn, og Gedalja, Paskurs Søn, og Jukal, Selemjas Søn, og Paskur, Malkias Søn, hørte de Ord, som Jeremias talte til alt Folket, der han sagde:

Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jehukal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malkijah heard the words that Jeremiah was declaring to all the people. He was saying,

2 Saa siger Herren: Hvo, som bliver i denne Stad, skal dø ved Sværdet, ved Hungeren og ved Pesten; men den, som gaar ud til Kaldæerne, han skal leve, og han skal have sit Liv som Bytte, saa at han skal blive i Live.

“Yahweh says this: Anyone staying in this city will be killed by sword, famine, and plague. But anyone who goes out to the Chaldeans will survive. He will escape with his own life, and live.

3 Saa siger Herren: Denne Stad skal visselig gives i Kongen af Babels Hærs Haand, og han skal indtage den.

Yahweh says this: This city will be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.”

4 Da sagde Fyrsterne til Kongen: Lad dog denne Mand dræbe, thi paa den Maade bringer han Hænderne paa Krigsmændene, som ere overblevne i denne Stad, og Hænderne paa hele Folket til at synke, idet han taler saadanne Ord til dem; thi denne Mand søger ikke dette Folks Bedste, men dets Ulykke.

So the officials said to the king, “Let this man die, for in this way he is weakening the hands of the fighting men who remain in this city, and the hands of all the people. He is proclaiming these words, for this man is not working for safety for this people, but disaster.”

5 Og Kong Zedekias sagde: Se, han er i eders Haand; thi Kongen formaar intet imod eder.

So King Zedekiah said, “Look, he is in your hand since there is no king able to resist you.”

6 Da toge de Jeremias og kastede ham i Malkias, Meleks Søns, Hule, som var i Fængselets Forgaard, og nedlode Jeremias ved Reb, og i Hulen var der ikke Vand, men Dynd, og Jeremias sank ned i Dyndet.

Then they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malkijah, son of the king. The cistern was in the courtyard of the guard. They lowered Jeremiah down on ropes. There was no water in the cistern, but it was muddy, and he sank down into the mud.

7 Der Kusiten Ebed-Melek, en Mand, som var Hofmand og var i Kongens Hus, hørte, at man havde kastet Jeremias i Hulen, og Kongen sad i Benjamins Port,

Now Ebed-Melek the Cushite was one of the eunuchs in the king's house. He heard that they had placed Jeremiah in the cistern. Now the king was sitting at the Benjamin Gate.

8 da gik Ebed-Melek ud af Kongens Hus, og han talte med Kongen og sagde:

So Ebed-Melek went from the king's house and spoke with the king. He said,

9 Min Herre Konge: Disse Mænd have gjort ilde i alt det, de have gjort imod Profeten Jeremias, som de kastede i Hulen, saa at han der, hvor han er, maa dø af Hunger; thi her er ikke Brød i Staden mere.

“My master the king, these men have done evil with the way they have treated Jeremiah the prophet. They threw him into a cistern for him to die in it from hunger, since there is no more food in the city.”

10 Da befalede Kongen Kusiten Ebed-Melek og sagde: Tag tredive Mand herfra med dig, og drag Profeten Jeremias op af Hulen, førend han dør.

Then the king gave a command to Ebed-Melek the Cushite. He said, “Take command of thirty men from here and take Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.”

11 Og Ebed-Melek tog Mændene med sig og gik ind i Kongens Hus, hen under Forraadskammeret, og tog derfra nogle gamle Pjalter og gamle Klude og lod dem gaa ned til Jeremias i Hulen med Rebene.

So Ebed-Melek took command of those men and went to the king's house, to a storeroom for clothing under the house. From there he took rags and worn-out clothing and then let them down by ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern.

12 Og Kusiten Ebed-Melek sagde til Jeremias: Læg dog de gamle Pjalter og Klude om dine Aksler under Rebene; og Jeremias gjorde saaledes.

Ebed-Melek the Cushite said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and worn-out clothing under your arms and on top of the ropes.” So Jeremiah did so.

13 Og de droge Jeremias op med Rebene og førte ham op af Hulen; og Jeremias blev i Fængselets Forgaard.

Then they pulled Jeremiah by the ropes. In this way they brought him up from the cistern. So Jeremiah stayed in the courtyard of the guard.

14 Og Kong Zedekias sendte Bud og lod Profeten Jeremias hente til sig, hen til den tredje Indgang til Herrens Hus; og Kongen sagde til Jeremias: Jeg vil spørge dig om noget, du maa intet dølge for mig.

Then King Zedekiah sent word and brought Jeremiah the prophet to himself, to the third entrance in Yahweh's house. The king said to Jeremiah, “I want to ask you something. Do not keep the answer from me.”

15 Og Jeremias sagde til Zedekias: Naar jeg forkynder dig det, mon du da ikke vil lade mig dræbe? og naar jeg giver dig Raad, saa vil du dog ikke høre mig!

Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “If I answer you, will you not certainly kill me? But if I give you advice, you will not listen to me.”

16 Da svor Kong Zedekias Jeremias i Løndom og sagde: Saa sandt Herren lever, som har skabt os denne Sjæl, saa vil jeg ikke dræbe dig, ej heller give dig i disse Mænds Haand, som søge efter dit Liv.

But King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in private and said, “As Yahweh lives, the one who made us, I will not kill you or give you into the hand of those men who are seeking your life.”

17 Og Jeremias sagde til Zedekias: Saa siger den Herre Zebaoths Gud, Israels Gud: Dersom du godvilligt gaar ud til Kongen af Babels Fyrster, da skal du beholde Livet, og denne Stad skal ikke opbrændes med Ild; og du skal leve, du og dit Hus.

So Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “Yahweh, God of hosts, God of Israel, says this: If you indeed go out to the officials of the king of Babylon then you will live, and this city will not be burned. You and your family will live.

18 Men dersom du ikke gaar ud til Kongen af Babels Fyrster, da skal denne Stad gives i Kaldæernes Haand, og de skulle opbrænde den med Ild; og du skal ikke undkomme af deres Haand.

But if you do not go out to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city will be given into the hand of the Chaldeans. They will burn it, and you will not escape from their hand.”

19 Og Kong Zedekias sagde til Jeremias: Jeg frygter for de Jøder, som ere gaaede over til Kaldæerne, at man maaske vil give mig i deres Haand, og at disse ville handle ilde med mig.

King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “But I am afraid of the people of Judah who have deserted to the Chaldeans, because I might be given over into their hand, for them to treat me badly.”

20 Og Jeremias sagde: Man vil ikke give dig til Pris; hør dog paa Herrens Røst i det, som jeg taler til dig, og det skal gaa dig vel, og du skal beholde Livet.

Jeremiah said, “They will not give you over to them. Obey the message from Yahweh that I am telling you, so that things will go well for you, and so that you will live.

21 Men dersom du vægrer dig ved at gaa ud, saa er her det Ord, som Herren har ladet mig se:

But if you refuse to go out, this is what Yahweh has shown me.

22 Se, alle Kvinderne, som ere blevne tilbage i Judas Konges Hus, føres ud til Kongen af Babels Fyrster og sige: Dine gode Venner have forført dig og have faaet Overhaand over dig, dine Fødder ere nedsunkne i Skarnet, medens hine ere vegne tilbage.

Look! All the women who are left in your house, king of Judah, will be brought out to the officials of the king of Babylon. These women will say to you, 'You have been deceived by your friends; they have ruined you. Your feet are now sunk into the mud, and your friends will run away.'

23 Og man skal føre alle dine Hustruer og dine Børn ud til Kaldæerne, og du selv skal ikke undkomme fra deres Haand, men gribes ved Kongen af Babels Haand, og denne Stad skal du bringe til at blive opbrændt med Ild.

For all of your wives and children will be brought out to the Chaldeans, and you yourself will not escape from their hand. You will be captured by the hand of the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned.”

24 Og Zedekias sagde til Jeremias: Lad ingen vide disse Ord, saa skal du ikke dø.

Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Do not inform anyone about these words, so that you do not die.

25 Og naar Fyrsterne høre, at jeg har talt med dig, og de komme til dig og sige til dig: Kære, kundgør os, hvad du har talt til Kongen, dølg det ikke for os, og vi ville ikke dræbe dig; og hvad Kongen har talt til dig:

If the officials hear that I have talked with you, and if they come and say to you, 'Tell us what you said to the king and do not hide it from us, or we will kill you,'

26 Saa skal du sige til dem: Jeg lod min ydmyge Begæring komme ind for Kongens Ansigt, at man ikke maatte føre mig igen i Jonathans Hus, at dø der.

then you must say to them, 'I made a humble plea before the king that he would not return me to the house of Jonathan to die there.'”

27 Da kom alle Fyrsterne til Jeremias og spurgte ham, og han svarede dem efter alle disse Ord, som Kongen havde befalet; da tav de og lode ham i Ro; thi Ordet fik de ej at høre.

Then all the officials came to Jeremiah and questioned him, so he answered them as the king had instructed him. So they stopped talking with him, because they had not heard the conversation between Jeremiah and the king.

28 Og Jeremias blev i Fængselets Forgaard indtil den Dag, da Jerusalem blev indtaget. Og det skete, da Jerusalem blev indtaget, —

So Jeremiah remained in the courtyard of the guard until the day Jerusalem was captured.