Jeremiah 5
1 Go quickly through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and get knowledge, and make a search in her wide places if there is a man, if there is one in her who is upright, who keeps faith; and she will have my forgiveness.
“Mizɔ to Yerusalem ƒe kpɔdomewo, mitsa ŋku le teƒeteƒewo ne miabu eŋuti eye miatsa to eƒe ablɔwo dzi. Ne miate ŋu akpɔ ame ɖeka teti si awɔ nu anukwaretɔe eye wòati nyateƒe ko yome la, matsɔe ake du sia.
2 And though they say, By the living Lord; truly their oaths are false.
Togbɔ be wogblɔ be, ‘Meta Yehowa ƒe agbe’ hã la, wole nu tam alakpatɔe kokoko.”
3 O Lord, do not your eyes see good faith? you have given them punishment, but they were not troubled; you have sent destruction on them, but they did not take your teaching to heart: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they would not come back.
O Yehowa, ɖe wò ŋkuwo mele nyateƒe ŋu oa? ȃo wo gake womese veve o, ègbã wo nyanyanya gake womese veve o, ègbã wo nyanyanya gake wogbe ɖɔɖɔɖowɔwɔ. Wowɔ woƒe mo wòsẽ wu kpe eye wogbe dzimetɔtrɔ.
4 Then I said, But these are the poor: they are foolish, for they have no knowledge of the way of the Lord or of the behaviour desired by their God.
Mebui be, “Ame siawo la, ame dahewo ko wonye. Wonye movitɔwo hã elabena womenya Yehowa ƒe mɔ kple woƒe Mawu la ƒe didiwo o.
5 I will go to the great men and have talk with them; for they have knowledge of the way of the Lord and of the behaviour desired by their God. But as for these, their one purpose is a broken yoke and burst bands.
Eya ta mayi ɖe woƒe kplɔlawo gbɔ, aƒo nu na wo; woawo ya nya Yehowa ƒe mɔ kple woƒe Mawu la ƒe didiwo godoo.” Gake woawo hã tsɔ lɔlɔ̃nu ɖeka ŋe kɔkuti la ɖa eye wotu kɔsasawo.
6 And so a lion from the woods will put them to death, a wolf of the waste land will make them waste, a leopard will keep watch on their towns, and everyone who goes out from them will be food for the beasts; because of the great number of their sins and the increase of their wrongdoing.
Eya ta dzata ado tso ave me ava dze wo dzi, amegaxi ado tso gbegbe avuvu wo, eye lãkle ava de xa ɖe woƒe duwo ƒe gbɔto, be wòavuvu ame si ake atse ado go la ʋayaʋaya, elabena woƒe aglãdzedze lolo, eye woƒe megbededewo sɔ gbɔ.
7 How is it possible for you to have my forgiveness for this? your children have given me up, taking their oaths by those who are no gods: when I had given them food in full measure, they were false to their wives, taking their pleasure in the houses of loose women.
“Nu ka ta matsɔe ake mi ɖo? Mia viwo gbem, eye wota mawu siwo menye mawu o togbɔ be mekpɔ woƒe hiahiãwo katã gbɔ na wo hã la, wogayi ɖawɔ ahasi, eye woƒo ta kpli ɖe gboloxɔwo me.
8 They were full of desire, like horses after a meal of grain: everyone went after his neighbour's wife.
Woɖi ƒo nyuie abe sɔtsu siwo le asi yɔm la ene, ɖe sia ɖe le gbe tem ɖe ame bubu srɔ̃ ŋu.
9 Am I not to give punishment for these things? says the Lord: will not my soul take payment from such a nation as this?
Ɖe mele be mahe to na wo ɖe esia ta oa? Ɖe nyemabia hlɔ̃ dukɔ sia tɔgbi oa?” Yehowae gblɔe.
10 Go up against her vines and make waste; let the destruction be complete: take away her branches, for they are not the Lord's.
“Mige ɖe eƒe waingblewo me eye mialã woƒe wainkawo. Ke migagblẽ wo gbidigbidi o. Milã alɔwo elabena dukɔ sia menye Yehowa tɔ o.
11 For the people of Israel and the people of Judah have been very false to me, says the Lord.
Israel kple Yuda ƒe aƒewo meto nyateƒe nam kura o.” Yehowae gblɔe.
12 They would have nothing to do with the Lord, saying, He will do nothing, and no evil will come to us; we will not see the sword or be short of food:
Woda alakpa tso Yehowa ŋu hegblɔ bena, “Mawɔ naneke o! Vɔ̃ aɖeke mawɔ mí o eye míakpɔ dɔwuame alo yi ƒe ŋkume gbeɖe o.
13 And the prophets will become wind, and the word is not in them; so it will be done to them.
Nyagblɔɖilawo la, ya ko wonye eye nya la mele wo me o, eya ta, na woawɔ nu si wogblɔ la na wo.”
14 For this reason the Lord, the God of armies, has said: Because you have said this, I will make my words in your mouth a fire, and this people wood, and they will be burned up by it.
Eya ta ale Yehowa, Dziƒoʋakɔwo ƒe Mawu la gblɔe nye esi: “Esi dukɔ la gblɔ nya siawo ta la, mawɔ nye nya la wòazu dzo bibi anɔ wò nu me eye dukɔ la anye nake si wòabi.”
15 See, I will send you a nation from far away, O people of Israel, says the Lord; a strong nation and an old nation, a nation whose language is strange to you, so that you may not get the sense of their words.
Yehowa be, “O Israel ƒe aƒe, mele dukɔ aɖe kplɔ ge atso didiƒe ava ƒo ɖe dziwò, blemadukɔ si li tegbee, dukɔ si ƒe gbegbɔgblɔ mènya o, eye mèse egɔme hã o.
16 Their arrows give certain death, they are all men of war.
Woƒe daku le abe yɔdo si le nuvo la ene. Wo katã wonye aʋawɔla kalẽtɔwo.
17 They will take all the produce of your fields, which would have been food for your sons and your daughters: they will take your flocks and your herds: they will take all your vines and your fig-trees: and with the sword they will make waste your walled towns in which you put your faith.
Woava ɖu wò agblemenukuwo kple wò nuɖuɖu, woaɖu viwò ŋutsuwo kple viwò nyɔnuwo. Woaɖu wò alẽhawo kple nyihawo, eye woaɖu wò waintsetsewo kple gbotiwo. Woatsɔ yi agblẽ wò du sesẽ siwo ŋu nèle ŋu ɖom ɖo.”
18 But even in those days, says the Lord, I will not let your destruction be complete.
Yehowa be, “Ke le ɣe ma ɣi hã la, nyematsrɔ̃ mi gbidigbidi o.
19 And it will come about, when you say, Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us? that you will say to them, As you gave me up, making yourselves servants to strange gods in your land, so will you be servants to strange men in a land which is not yours.
Ale be ne amewo bia be, ‘Nu ka ta Yehowa, míaƒe Mawu la wɔ esiawo ɖe mía ŋu hã?’ la, miagblɔ na wo be, ‘Esi miegbem hesubɔ dutamawuwo le wò ŋutɔ wò anyigba dzi ta la, azɔ la mianye kluviwo na dutatɔwo le anyigba si menye mia tɔ o la dzi.’
20 Say this openly in Jacob and give it out in Judah, saying,
“Ɖe gbeƒã nya sia na Yakob ƒe aƒe la eye nàdo kpo le Yuda.
21 Give ear now to this, O foolish people without sense; who have eyes but see nothing, and ears without the power of hearing:
‘Mise nya sia, mi bometsilawo kple susumanɔsitɔwo, ame siwo ŋku li na, gake womekpɔa nu o, ame siwo to li na, gake womesea nu o.’
22 Have you no fear of me? says the Lord; will you not be shaking with fear before me, who have put the sand as a limit for the sea, by an eternal order, so that it may not go past it? and though it is ever in motion, it is not able to have its way; though the sound of its waves is loud, they are not able to go past it.
Yehowa be, ‘Ɖe mele be miavɔ̃m oa? Mewɔ ke be wòado liƒo na atsiaƒu, wòanye dɛ mavɔ si nu mate ŋu atso o. Ƒutsotsoewo aŋe aƒo ɖe eŋu gake womate ŋui o. Woadze agbo gake womate ŋui o. Woadze agbo gake womate ŋu agbɔ liƒoa ŋu o.
23 But the heart of this people is uncontrolled and turned away from me; they are broken loose and gone.
Ke dukɔ sia la, dzi sesẽ, dzeaglãe li na wo. Wodze ɖe aga, eye wotra mɔ.’
24 And they do not say in their hearts, Now let us give worship to our God, who gives the rain, the winter and the spring rain, at the right time; who keeps for us the ordered weeks of the grain-cutting.
Womegblɔna na wo nɔewo be, ‘Mina míavɔ̃ Yehowa, míaƒe Mawu la, ame si naa adametsi kple kelemetsi dzana na mí le edzaɣi eye wòkana ɖe nuŋeɣi ƒe kɔsiɖawo dzi na mí’ la o.
25 Through your evil-doing these things have been turned away, and your sins have kept back good from you.
Miaƒe nu tovowo wɔwɔe xe mɔ na nu siawo katã, eye miaƒe nu vɔ̃wo te nu nyuiwo mi.
26 For there are sinners among my people: they keep watch, like men watching for birds; they put a net and take men in it.
“Ame vɔ̃ɖiwo le nye dukɔ me, ame siwo de xa abe ale si ŋutsu siwo trea mɔ na xeviwo wɔnɛ ene eye wole abe ŋutsu siwo trea mɔ na amewo ene.
27 As the fowl-house is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: for this reason they have become great and have got wealth.
Abe ale si xeviwo yɔa xadzanu fũu ene la, nenema woƒe aƒewo yɔ taŋ kple beble. Ale wova zu kesinɔtɔwo kple ŋusẽtɔwo,
28 They have become fat and strong: they have gone far in works of evil: they give no support to the cause of the child without a father, so that they may do well; they do not see that the poor man gets his rights.
eye woda ami hezrɔ̃ lãlãlã. Seɖoƒe meli na woƒe nu tovowo wɔwɔ o, womexɔa nya ɖe tsyɔ̃eviwo nu be woaɖu dzi o, eye womeʋlia ame dahewo ƒe ablɔɖevinyenye ta o.”
29 Am I not to give punishment for these things? says the Lord: will not my soul take payment from such a nation as this?
Yehowa be, “Ɖe nyemahe to na wo le esia ta oa? Ɖe nyemabia hlɔ̃ dukɔ sia tɔgbi oa?
30 A thing of wonder and fear has come about in the land;
“Ŋɔdzinu kple dzigbãnu aɖe dzɔ le anyigba dzi.
31 The prophets give false words and the priests give decisions by their direction; and my people are glad to have it so: and what will you do in the end?
Nyagblɔɖilawo gblɔ aʋatsonyawo ɖi. Nunɔlawo le nuwo wɔm le woawo ŋutɔ ƒe ŋusẽ me eye wòdze nye dukɔ ŋu alea. Ke nu ka nàwɔ le nuwuwu?”
