< Jeremiah 34 >

1 King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came with the armies of all the kingdoms that he ruled, and they fought against Jerusalem and the other towns [in Judah]. At that time, Yahweh gave me this message:
Ɛberɛ a Babiloniahene Nebukadnessar ne nʼakodɔm ne nʼahennie nyinaa ne nnipa a wɔwɔ ahemman a ɔdi soɔ no mu reko tia Yerusalem ne nkuro a atwa ne ho ahyia no, saa asɛm yi firi Awurade nkyɛn baa Yeremia hɔ sɛ,
2 “Go to Zedekiah the King of Judah, and say to him, ‘This is what Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship], says: “I am about to enable the army of the King of Babylon to capture this city, and they will burn it down.
“Deɛ Awurade, Israel Onyankopɔn seɛ nie: Kɔ Yudahene Sedekia nkyɛn na kɔka kyerɛ no sɛ, ‘Sɛdeɛ Awurade seɛ nie: Mede kuropɔn yi rebɛhyɛ Babiloniahene nsa, na ɔbɛhye no dworobɛɛ.
3 You will not escape from them; they will capture you and take you to the king of Babylon. And [then] they will take you to Babylon.”’
Worennwane mfiri ne nsam na nokorɛm wɔbɛkyere wo de wo akɔma no. Wo de wʼani bɛhunu Babiloniahene na ɔne wo bɛkasa anim ne anim. Na wobɛkɔ Babilonia.
4 But King Zedekiah, listen to this that Yahweh has promised: ‘You will not be killed in a battle [MTY];
“‘Nanso tie Awurade bɔhyɛ, Ao, Yudahene Sedekia. Yei ne deɛ Awurade ka fa wo ho: Worenwu wɔ akofena ano;
5 you will die peacefully. [When you die], people will burn incense to honor/remember you just as they did for your ancestors who were kings before you became king. They will mourn for you, crying, “We are very sad that our king is dead!” I, Yahweh, promise that will happen.’”
na wobɛwu asomdwoeɛ mu. Sɛdeɛ nnipa bɔɔ ayiyɛ gyatanaa de hyɛɛ wʼagyanom animuonyam, ahemfo dada a wɔdii wʼanim no, saa ara na wɔbɛbɔ gyatanaa ahyɛ wo animuonyam na wɔabɔ bena sɛ, “Ao owura!” Me ankasa na mehyɛ saa bɔ yi, Awurade na ɔseɛ.’”
6 [So] I took that message to King Zedekiah.
Na odiyifoɔ Yeremia kaa yeinom nyinaa kyerɛɛ Yudahene Sedekia wɔ Yerusalem,
7 At that time the army of Babylonia had surrounded Jerusalem and Lachish and Azekah. Those [three] cities were the only cities in Judah that had high walls around them that still had not been captured.
ɛberɛ a Babiloniahene akodɔm reko tia Yerusalem ne Yuda nkuropɔn, Lakis ne Aseka a na wɔgu so reko wɔ hɔ. Yei ne nkuropɔn a na aka wɔ Yuda a wɔwɔ banbɔ.
8 King Zedekiah had decreed that the people must free their slaves.
Asɛm no firi Awurade hɔ baa Yeremia nkyɛn ɛberɛ a ɔhene Sedekia ne Yerusalemfoɔ ayɛ apam sɛ wɔbɛma nkoa ahofadie no akyi.
9 [He decreed that] the people must free their Hebrew slaves, [both the] men slaves and the women [slaves]. No one would be allowed to force a fellow Jew to [continue to] be his slave.
Ɛsɛ sɛ obiara gyaa ne nkoa ne mfenaa Hebrifoɔ; na obiara nni ho ɛkwan sɛ ɔde ne yɔnko Yudani yɛ akoa.
10 The officials and the rest of the people had obeyed [what the king decreed],
Enti adwumayɛfoɔ no nyinaa ne nnipa a wɔyɛɛ saa apam yi penee so sɛ wɔbɛgyaa wɔn nkoa ne mfenaa, na wɔremfa wɔn nyɛ nkoa bio. Wɔpenee so, na wɔgyaa wɔn.
11 but later they changed their minds. They forced the men and women whom they had freed to become their slaves again.
Nanso, akyire yi, wɔsesaa wɔn adwene na wɔsane faa nnipa a wɔgyaa wɔn no de wɔn yɛɛ nkoa bio.
12 [So] Yahweh gave me this message [to tell to them]:
Na Awurade asɛm baa Yeremia nkyɛn sɛ,
13 “I, Yahweh, the God whom you Israelis [say you belong to], (made an agreement with/gave this command to) your ancestors [long ago], when I rescued them from being slaves in Egypt.
“Deɛ Awurade, Israel Onyankopɔn, seɛ nie: Me ne mo agyanom yɛɛ apam ɛberɛ a meyii wɔn firii Misraim, nkoasom asase so no. Mekaa sɛ,
14 I told them that they must free all their Hebrew slaves after the slaves had worked for them for six years. But your ancestors did not pay any attention to what I said.
‘Mfeɛ nson biara no, ɛsɛ sɛ mo mu biara gyaa ne yɔnko Hebrini a watɔn ne ho ama no. Sɛ wasom mfeɛ nsia a gyaa no na ɔmfa ne ho nni.’ Nanso, mo agyanom antie na wɔamfa mʼasɛm.
15 Recently, you obeyed my command and stopped doing what was wrong and did what was right. You made a solemn agreement at my temple [that you would free your slaves], and [then] you freed them.
Ɛnkyɛree koraa monuu mo ho na moyɛɛ deɛ ɛyɛ wɔ mʼani so: Mo mu biara paee ahofadie maa ne ɔman mma. Mpo moyɛɛ apam wɔ mʼanim, wɔ efie a me Din da soɔ no mu.
16 But now you have disregarded what you solemnly promised, and you have shown contempt for what I [MTY] said by taking back the women and men whom you had freed and said they could live wherever they wanted to. [Now] you have forced them to be your slaves again.
Nanso seesei, moadane mo ho na moahura me din ho; mo mu biara asane akɔfa nkoa ne mfenaa a mogyaa wɔn sɛ wɔnkɔ baabiara a wɔpɛ no. Moahyɛ wɔn ama wɔayɛ mo nkoa bio.
17 Therefore, this is what [I], Yahweh, say: ‘Because you have not obeyed me by freeing your fellow Israelis, I will free you to [be destroyed by] the swords [of your enemies] and by famines and diseases. All the nations of the earth will be horrified because of [what happens to] you.
“Afei, deɛ Awurade seɛ nie: Montiee me na mompaee ahofadie mmaa mo ankasa nkurɔfoɔ. Enti afei mepae mu ka ahofadie ma mo, Awurade na ɔseɛ. Mɛgyaa mo ama akofena, ɔyaredɔm ne ɔkɔm. Mɛma mo ayɛ akyiwadeɛ ama asase so ahennie ahodoɔ nyinaa.
18 Because you have disregarded what I said in my agreement with you, I will do to you just like you did to the calves that you cut in half to show that you would surely do what you solemnly promised that you would do. I will [enable your enemies to] cut you into pieces, you officials of Judah and you officials of Jerusalem, and you officials in the palace, and you priests and all you common people. I will do that because you have disregarded what you solemnly promised [about freeing your slaves].
Nnipa a wɔabu mʼapam so, na wɔanni nhyehyɛeɛ a ɛwɔ apam a wɔayɛ wɔ mʼanim no so no, mɛyɛ wɔn sɛ nantwie ba a wɔpaee ne mu mmienu na wɔnantee nʼafaafa no ntam no.
Yuda ne Yerusalem ntuanofoɔ, asɛnniiɛ adwumayɛfoɔ, asɔfoɔ ne asase no so nnipa no nyinaa a monante faa nantwie ba no afaafa no ntam no,
20 I will enable your enemies to capture you, and they will kill you. And your bodies will be food for vultures and wild animals.
mede wɔn bɛma wɔn atamfoɔ a wɔrepɛ wɔn nkwa no. Wɔn afunu bɛyɛ aduane ama ewiem nnomaa ne asase so mmoa.
21 I will enable the army of the king of Babylon to capture King Zedekiah and his officials. Although the king of Babylon and his army have left Jerusalem [for a short time],
“Mede Yudahene Sedekia ne nʼadwumayɛfoɔ bɛhyɛ wɔn atamfoɔ a wɔrepɛ wɔn nkwa, Babiloniahene akodɔm a wɔatwe wɔn ho no nsa.
22 I will summon them back again. [This time], they will fight against this city and capture it and burn it down. I will make [sure] that all the towns in Judah are destroyed, [with the result that] no one will live there [any more].’”
Merebɛhyɛ, Awurade asɛm nie, na mɛsane de wɔn aba kuropɔn yi mu. Wɔbɛko atia no, wɔbɛfa, na wɔahye no dwerɛbee. Na mɛma Yuda nkuro ada mpan a ɔbiara rentumi ntena hɔ.”

< Jeremiah 34 >