Jeremiah 22
1 Thus said Jehovah, 'Go down [to] the house of the king of Judah, and thou hast spoken there this word, and hast said,
Thus said Jehovah: Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and there speak these words.
2 Hear a word of Jehovah, O king of Judah, who art sitting on the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people, who are coming in at these gates,
Hear the word of Jehovah, thou king of Judah, That sittest upon the throne of David, Thou, and thy servants, and thy people, Who go in and out through these gates!
3 Thus said Jehovah: Do ye judgment and righteousness, And deliver the plundered from the hand of the oppressor, And sojourner, orphan, and widow, ye do not oppress nor wrong, And innocent blood ye do not shed in this place.
Thus saith Jehovah: Do justice and righteousness; Deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor; To the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow Do no wrong, do no violence, And shed no innocent blood in this place!
4 For, if ye certainly do this thing, Then come in by the gates of this house Have kings sitting for David on his throne, Riding on chariot, and on horses, He, and his servants, and his people.
For if ye shall do this, Then shall there enter in through the gates of this house Kings, who shall sit upon the throne of David, Riding in chariots and upon horses, Each one with his servants and his people.
5 And if ye do not hear these words, By myself I have sworn — an affirmation of Jehovah, That this house is for a desolation.
But if ye will not hearken to these words, By myself do I swear, saith Jehovah, That this house shall become a desolation.
6 For thus said Jehovah, Concerning the house of the king of Judah: Gilead [art] thou to Me — head of Lebanon, If not — I make thee a wilderness, Cities not inhabited.
For thus saith Jehovah to the house of the king of Judah: Gilead art thou to me, yea, the summit of Lebanon; Yet will I make thee a desert, As cities not inhabited.
7 And I have separated for thee destroyers, Each with his weapons, And they have cut down the choice of thy cedars, And have cast them on the fire.
I will appoint against thee destroyers, Every one with his weapons; And they shall cut down thy choice cedars, And cast them into the fire.
8 And many nations have passed by this city, And they have said, each to his neighbour, For what hath Jehovah done thus to this great city?
And many nations shall pass by this city, And they shall say one to another, “Wherefore hath Jehovah done thus to this great city?”
9 And they have said, 'Because that they have forsaken The covenant of Jehovah their God, And bow themselves to other gods, and serve them.'
Then shall they answer: “Because they forsook the covenant of Jehovah their God, And worshipped strange gods, And served them.”
10 Ye do not weep for the dead, nor bemoan for him, Weep ye sore for the traveller, For he doth not return again, Nor hath he seen the land of his birth.
Weep not for him that is dead, Make no lamentation for him! Weep, weep ye for him who is gone away; For he shall return no more, Nor see his native land!
11 For thus said Jehovah concerning Shallum son of Josiah king of Judah, who is reigning instead of Josiah his father, who hath gone forth from this place: He doth not turn back hither again;
For thus saith Jehovah Concerning Shallum, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, Who reigned instead of Josiah his father, Who went forth from this place: He shall return to it no more;
12 For in the place whither they have removed him he dieth, And this land he doth not see again.
But in the place whither they have led him captive shall he die, And shall see this land no more.
13 Woe to him who is building his house by unrighteousness, And his upper chambers by injustice, On his neighbour he layeth service for nought, And his wage he doth not give to him.
Woe to him that buildeth his house with injustice, And his upper apartments with wrong; That exacteth a man's service without wages, And giveth him no recompense!
14 Who is saying, 'I build for myself a large house, And airy upper chambers,' And he hath cut out for himself its windows, Ceiled with cedar, and painted with vermilion.
That saith, “I will build me a large house, And spacious apartments,” And that cutteth out windows, And ceileth it with cedar, And painteth it with vermilion!
15 Dost thou reign, because thou art fretting thyself in cedar? Thy father — did he not eat and drink? Yea, he did judgment and righteousness, Then [it is] well with him.
Shalt thou reign because thou rivallest others in cedar? Did not thy father eat and drink? Yet he had regard to justice and equity; Therefore it was well, with him.
16 He decided the cause of the poor and needy, Then [it is] well — is it not to know Me? An affirmation of Jehovah.
He maintained the cause of the poor and needy; Then was it well with him; Was not this to know me, saith Jehovah?
17 But thine eyes and thy heart are not, Except on thy dishonest gain, And on shedding of innocent blood, And on oppression, and on doing of violence.
But thine eyes and thy heart are only upon thine own gain, And the shedding of innocent blood, And deeds of violence and oppression.
18 Therefore, thus said Jehovah concerning Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: They do not lament for him, Ah, my brother, and Ah, sister, They do not lament for him, Ah, lord, and Ah, his honour.
Therefore thus saith Jehovah, Concerning Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah: They shall not lament for him, saying, “Alas, my brother!” or, “Alas, sister!” They shall not lament for him, saying, “Alas, lord!” or, “Alas, his glory!”
19 The burial of an ass — he is buried, Dragged and cast out thence to the gates of Jerusalem.
With the burial of an ass shall he be buried, Dragged along and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.
20 Go up to Lebanon, and cry, And in Bashan give forth thy voice, And cry from Abarim, For destroyed have been all loving thee.
Go thou up to Lebanon and cry, [[O Jerusalem!]] And upon Bashan lift up thy voice; Cry aloud from Abarim! For all thy lovers are fallen.
21 I have spoken unto thee in thine ease, Thou hast said, 'I do not hearken,' This [is] thy way from thy youth, For thou hast not hearkened to My voice.
I spake to thee in thy prosperity, But thou saidst, “I will not hear.” This hath been thy manner from thy youth; Thou hast not obeyed my voice.
22 All thy friends consume doth wind, And thy lovers into captivity do go, Surely then thou art ashamed, And hast blushed for all thy wickedness.
The wind shall consume all thy shepherds, And thy lovers shall go into captivity; Then shalt thou be ashamed And confounded for all thy wickedness.
23 O dweller in Lebanon, making a nest among cedars, How gracious hast thou been when pangs come to thee, Pain — as of a travailing woman.
O thou that dwellest in Lebanon, That makest thy nest in cedars, How wretched shalt thou be, when anguish cometh upon thee, Pain, as of a woman in travail!
24 I live — an affirmation of Jehovah, Though Coniah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah Were a seal on My right hand, Surely thence I draw thee away,
As I live, saith Jehovah, Thou Coniah, son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, Though thou wert the signet upon my right hand, Even thence would I pluck thee!
25 And I have given thee into the hand of those seeking thy life, And into hands of which thou art afraid, Into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, And into the hand of the Chaldeans.
And I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, And into the hand of them that thou fearest, Even into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, And into the hand of the Chaldaeans.
26 And I have cast thee, And thy mother who bore thee, unto another country, Where ye were not born, and there do ye die.
And I will cast thee forth, And thy mother that bore thee, Into a foreign land, Where ye were not born; And there shall ye die.
27 And to the land whither they are lifting up their soul to return, Thither they do not return.
To the land to which they desire to return, Thither shall they not return.
28 A grief — a despised broken thing — is this man Coniah? A vessel in which there is no pleasure? Wherefore have they been cast up and down, He and his seed, Yea, they were cast on to a land that they knew not?
“Is then this man Coniah a contemptible broken vessel? Is he a vessel which no man careth for? Wherefore are he and his offspring cast forth, And thrown into a land which they know not?”
29 Earth, earth, earth, hear a word of Jehovah,
O land, land, land, hear the word of Jehovah!
30 Thus said Jehovah: Write ye this man childless, A man — he doth not prosper in his days, For none of his seed doth prosper, Sitting on the throne of David, And ruling again in Judah!
Thus saith Jehovah: Write ye this man childless, A man that shall not be prosperous through his life; For none of his offspring shall prosper, So as to sit on the throne of David, And reign hereafter in Judah.
