Jeremiah 44

1 The word came to Jeremiah concerning all the Judeans who lived in the land of Egypt, the ones staying in Migdol, Tahpanhes, Memphis, and in Upper Egypt:

The word that came to Jeremiah for all the Jews who dwell in the land of Egypt, who dwell at Migdol, and at Thachpanches, and at Noph, and in the country of Pathros, saying,

2 “Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says, 'You yourselves have seen all the disasters that I brought on Jerusalem and all the cities of Judah. See, they are ruins today. There is no one to live in them.

Thus hath said the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, You yourselves have seen all the evil that I have brought over Jerusalem, and over all the cities of Judah; and, behold, they are ruins this day, and no man is dwelling in them;

3 This is because of the wicked things they did to offend me by going to burn incense and to worship other gods. These were gods that neither they themselves, nor you, nor your ancestors knew.'

Because of their wickedness which they had committed to provoke me to anger, by going to burn incense, to serve other gods, whom they did not know, either they, you, or your fathers.

4 So I repeatedly sent all of my servants the prophets to them. I sent them to say, 'Stop doing these abominable things that I hate.'

And I sent unto you all my servants the prophets, making them rise early and sending them, saying, Oh, do not commit this abominable thing which I hate.

5 But they did not listen. They refused to pay attention or turn from their wickedness in burning incense to other gods.

But they hearkened not, and inclined not their ear to turn away from their wickedness, so as not to burn incense unto other gods.

6 So my fury and my wrath were poured out and kindled a fire in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. So they became ruins and devastations, as at this present day.'

Whereupon my fury and my anger were poured forth, and were enkindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: and they are become ruins, a desert, as at this day.

7 So now Yahweh, the God of hosts and the God of Israel, says this, 'Why are you doing great wickedness against yourselves? Why are you causing yourselves to be cut off from among Judah—men and women, children and babies? No remnant of you will be left.

And now thus hath said the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel, Wherefore do ye commit so great an evil against your souls, so as to cut off unto you man and woman, child and suckling, out of the midst of Judah, so as not to leave you any remainder,

8 By your wickedness you have offended me with the deeds of your hands, by burning incense to other gods in the land of Egypt, where you have gone to live. You have gone there so that you will be destroyed, so that you will be a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth.

By provoking me unto wrath with the works of your hands, in burning incense unto other gods in the land of Egypt, whither ye are come to sojourn there, in order to cut yourselves off, and in order that ye might become a curse and a disgrace among all the nations of the earth?

9 Have you forgotten the wickedness committed by your ancestors and the wickedness committed by the kings of Judah and their wives? Have you forgotten the evil committed by yourselves and your wives in the land of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem?

Have ye forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, and the wickedness of the kings of Judah, and the wickedness of their wives, and your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives, which they had committed in the land of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem?

10 To this day, they still are not humbled. They do not honor my law or decrees that I placed before them and their ancestors, nor do they walk in them.'

They are not humbled even up to this day, and they are not afraid, and they walk not in my law, nor in my statutes, that I have set before you and before your fathers.

11 Therefore Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this, 'See, I am about to set my face against you to bring disaster to you and to destroy all of Judah.

Therefore thus hath said the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I will set my face against you for evil, and to cut off all Judah.

12 For I will take the remnant of Judah that has set out to go to the land of Egypt to live there. I will do this so that they will all perish in the land of Egypt. They will fall by sword and famine. From the least to the greatest they will perish by sword and famine. They will die and will become an object of swearing, cursing, reproaching, and a horrible thing.

And I will take the remnant of Judah, that have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, and they shall all come to their end, and in the land of Egypt shall they fall: by the sword [and] by the famine shall they come to their end; from the least even unto the greatest, by the sword and by the famine shall they die; and they shall become an oath, an astonishment, and a curse, and a disgrace.

13 For I will punish the people inhabiting the land of Egypt just as I punished Jerusalem with the sword, with famine, and with the plague,

And I will inflict punishment on those that dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have inflicted punishment on Jerusalem, through the sword, through the famine, and through the pestilence:

14 so that none of the remnant of Judah who have gone to live in the land of Egypt will escape or survive or return to the land of Judah, to which they desire to return and live; and none of them will return except a few who escaped from there.'”

So that there shall be no one that escapeth or remaineth of the remnant of Judah, who are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, that they should return into the land of Judah, to which they direct [the desire of] their soul to return thither to dwell there; for they shall not return, but such as shall escape.

15 Then all the men who knew that their wives were burning incense to other gods, and all the women who were in the great assembly, and all the people who were living in Lower and Upper Egypt, answered Jeremiah.

Then did all the men who knew that their wives were burning incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, and all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answer Jeremiah, saying,

16 They said, “About the word that you have told us in Yahweh's name—we will not listen to you.

Respecting the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee.

17 For we will certainly do all the things that we said we would do—burn incense to the queen of heaven and pour out drink offerings to her just as we, our ancestors, our kings, and our leaders did in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. Then we will be filled with food and will prosper, without experiencing any disaster.

For to a surety we will do all the word that is gone forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: when we had plenty of food, and fared well, and saw no evil.

18 When we refrained from doing these things, not offering incense to the queen of heaven and not pouring out drink offerings to her, we were all suffering poverty and were dying by sword and famine.”

But since the time we have left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto her, have we had a lack of every thing; and we have come to our end through the sword and through the famine.

19 The women said, “When we were making incense offerings before the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, was it against our husbands that we did these things, making cakes in her image and pouring out drink offerings to her?”

And when we burnt incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink-offerings unto her, —was this without [the consent of] our husbands, that we did make cakes for her to make her image, and pour out drink-offerings unto her?

20 Then Jeremiah said to all the people—to the men and women, and all the people who answered him—he proclaimed and said,

Then said Jeremiah unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, and to all the people who had answered him [with that] word, saying,

21 “Did not Yahweh remember the incense that you burned in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem—you and your ancestors, your kings and leaders, and the people of the land? For Yahweh calls this to mind; it comes to his thoughts.

Behold, it was the incense that ye burnt in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye, and your fathers, your kings, and your princes, and the people of the land, which the Lord remembered, and which came into his mind;

22 Then he was no longer able to bear it because of your wicked practices, because of the abominations that you did. Then your land became a desolation, a horror, and a curse so there was no longer an inhabitant as at this present day.

So that the Lord could no longer endure it, because of the evil of your doings, because of the abominations which ye had committed: therefore is your land become a ruin, and an [object of] astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day.

23 Because you burned incense and sinned against Yahweh, and because you would not listen to his voice, his law, his statutes, or his covenant decrees, this disaster against you has happened as at this present day.”

Because that ye had burnt incense, and because ye had sinned against the Lord, and had not hearkened to the voice of the Lord, and had not walked in his law, in his statutes, and in his testimonies: therefore did this evil befall you, as it is this day.

24 Then Jeremiah said to all the people and all the women, “Hear the word of Yahweh, all of Judah who are in the land of Egypt.

And Jeremiah said [farther] to all the people, and to all the women, Hear the word of the Lord, all Judah that are in the land of Egypt,

25 Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this, 'You and your wives both have said with your mouths and carried out with your hands what you said, “We will certainly carry out the vows that we made to worship the queen of heaven, to pour out drink offerings to her.” Now fulfill your vows; carry them out.'

Thus hath said the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, Ye and your wives have both spoken with your mouth, and fulfilled with your hands, saying, We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto her: ye will fully accomplish your vows, and fully perform your vows.

26 So then, hear the word of Yahweh, all of Judah who are staying in the land of Egypt, 'See, I have sworn by my great name—says Yahweh. My name will no longer be called upon by the mouths of any of the men of Judah in all the land of Egypt, you who now say, “As the Lord Yahweh lives.”

Therefore hear ye the word of the Lord, all Judah that dwell in the land of Egypt, Behold, I have sworn by my great name, saith the Lord, that my name shall no more be called by the mouth of any man of Judah, saying, “As the Lord Eternal liveth,” in all the land of Egypt.

27 See, I am watching over them for disaster and not for good. Every person of Judah in the land of Egypt will perish by sword and famine until they are all finished.

Behold, I will watch over them for evil, and not for good: and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall come to their end through the sword and through the famine, until they be destroyed.

28 Then the survivors of the sword will return from the land of Egypt to the land of Judah, only a small number of them. So all the remnant of Judah who went to the land of Egypt to live there will know whose word will stand—mine or theirs.

Yet some that escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, but few in number; and all the remnant of Judah, that are come into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall know whose words shall stand firm, mine, or theirs.

29 This will be the sign for you—this is Yahweh's declaration—that I am setting against you in this place, so that you will know that my words will certainly attack you with disaster.'

And this shall be unto you the sign, saith the Lord, that I will inflict punishment on you in this place, in order that ye may know that my words shall surely stand firm against you for evil:

30 Yahweh says this, 'Look, I am about to give Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies and into the hand of those who seek to kill him. It will the same as when I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, his enemy who sought his life.'”

Thus hath said the Lord, Behold, I will give Pharaoh-chophra' the king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies, and into the hand of those that seek his life, as I gave Zedekiah the king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, his enemy, and who had sought his life.