Jeremiah 16

1 Then the LORD’s word came to me, saying,

And the word of Yahweh came unto me saying:

2 “You shall not take a wife, neither shall you have sons or daughters, in this place.”

Thou shall not take to thee a wife, —Neither shalt thou have sons or daughters, in this place.

3 For the LORD says concerning the sons and concerning the daughters who are born in this place, and concerning their mothers who bore them, and concerning their fathers who became their father in this land:

For, Thus, saith Yahweh, Concerning the sons and concerning the daughters that are being born in this place, —and concerning their mothers who do bear them, and concerning their fathers who do beget them, in this land,

4 “They will die grievous deaths. They will not be lamented, neither will they be buried. They will be as dung on the surface of the ground. They will be consumed by the sword and by famine. Their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the sky and for the animals of the earth.”

Of deaths from diseases, shall they die, They shall not be lamented, Neither shall they be buried, As heaps of dung on the face of the ground, shall they serve, —Yea by sword and by famine, shall they be consumed, And, their dead bodies shall become, food—To the bird of the heavens, and To the beast of the earth.

5 For the LORD says, “Don’t enter into the house of mourning. Don’t go to lament. Don’t bemoan them, for I have taken away my peace from this people,” says the LORD, “even loving kindness and tender mercies.

For, Thus, saith Yahweh—Do not thou enter into the house of crying, Neither do thou go to lament, nor do thou bemoan for them, —For I have withdrawn my blessing from this people, Declareth Yahweh, Both lovingkindness and compassion.

6 Both great and small will die in this land. They will not be buried. Men won’t lament for them, cut themselves, or make themselves bald for them.

So shall great and small die in this land, They shall not be buried, —Neither shall men lament for them Nor cut themselves, Nor make themselves bald for them;

7 Men won’t break bread for them in mourning, to comfort them for the dead. Men won’t give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or for their mother.

Neither shall they break bread to them in mourning To console one over his dead, —Nor cause them to drink the cup of consolation, Over one’s father Or over one’s mother;

8 “You shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and to drink.”

And the house of banqueting, shall thou not enter To sit with them, To eat and to drink.

9 For the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel says: “Behold, I will cause to cease out of this place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.

For, Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, Behold me! causing to cease out of this place, Before your eyes, And in your days, The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, The voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride,

10 It will happen, when you tell this people all these words, and they ask you, ‘Why has the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us?’ or ‘What is our iniquity?’ or ‘What is our sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?’

And it shall be when thou shalt declare to this people, all these words, —and they shall say unto thee—For what reason, hath Yahweh pronounced against us all this great calamity? Or what is our iniquity, or what our sin, which we have sinned against Yahweh our God?

11 then you shall tell them, ‘Because your fathers have forsaken me,’ says the LORD, ‘and have walked after other gods, have served them, have worshiped them, have forsaken me, and have not kept my law.

Then shalt thou say unto them, —For that your fathers forsook, me, Declareth Yahweh, And walked after other gods, and served them, and bowed down to them, —Whereas me, they forsook And my law, kept they not;

12 You have done evil more than your fathers, for behold, you each walk after the stubbornness of his evil heart, so that you don’t listen to me.

And, ye, have done more wickedly than your fathers, —for look at you! walking every man after the stubbornness of his wicked heart, so as not to hearken unto me,

13 Therefore I will cast you out of this land into the land that you have not known, neither you nor your fathers. There you will serve other gods day and night, for I will show you no favor.’

Therefore will I hurl you forth, from off this land, unto a land which ye have not known, ye, nor your fathers, —and ye can serve there other gods day and night, in that I will grant you no favour.

14 “Therefore behold, the days come,” says the LORD, “that it will no more be said, ‘As the LORD lives, who brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;’

Therefore lo! days are coming, Declareth Yahweh, When it shall be said no more By the life of Yahweh, who brought up the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but—

15 but, ‘As the LORD lives, who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the countries where he had driven them.’ I will bring them again into their land that I gave to their fathers.

By the life of Yahweh, who hath brought up the sons of Israel out of the land of the North, and out of all the lands whither he had driven them, —So will I bring them back upon their own soil, which I gave to their fathers.

16 “Behold, I will send for many fishermen,” says the LORD, “and they will fish them up. Afterward I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them from every mountain, from every hill, and out of the clefts of the rocks.

Behold me! sending for many fishers Declareth Yahweh, And they shall catch them, —and thereafter will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from off every mountain and from off every hill, and out of the clefts of the crags.

17 For my eyes are on all their ways. They are not hidden from my face. Their iniquity isn’t concealed from my eyes.

For mine own eyes are upon all their ways, they have not been hid from my face—neither hath their iniquity been concealed from being straight before mine eyes.

18 First I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double, because they have polluted my land with the carcasses of their detestable things, and have filled my inheritance with their abominations.”

Thus will I recompense, first, twofold, their iniquity and their sin, because of their profaning my land, —with the carcase of their disgusting and detestable things, have they filled mine inheritance.

19 LORD, my strength, my stronghold, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the nations will come to you from the ends of the earth, and will say, “Our fathers have inherited nothing but lies, vanity and things in which there is no profit.

O Yahweh, my strength, and my refuge, and my place to fly to, in the day of distress, —Unto thee, shall nations come in, out of the ends of the earth, that they may say—Surely! Falsehood, did our fathers inherit, Vanity, among whom is none that can profit:

20 Should a man make to himself gods which yet are no gods?”

Shall a son of earth, make for himself gods, Seeing that, they, are no-gods?

21 “Therefore behold, I will cause them to know, this once I will cause them to know my hand and my might. Then they will know that my name is the LORD.”

Therefore behold me! causing them to know, by this stroke, I will cause them to know my hand and my might, —That they may know that my name, is Yahweh!