Yeremia 44
1 Nya sia va na Yeremia tso Yudatɔ siwo katã le Egipte ƒe anyigbe, le Migdol, Tapanhes, Memfis kple Egipte ƒe dzigbe be,
[This is] the message that Yahweh gave me concerning the Jews who were living in [northern] Egypt—in Migdol, Tahpenes, and Memphis [cities], and in the Pathros [region in southern Egypt]:
2 “Ale Yehowa, Dziƒoʋakɔwo ƒe Aƒetɔ, Israel ƒe Mawu la gblɔe nye esi: Miekpɔ gbegblẽ gã si mehe va Yerusalem kple Yuda duwo katã dzi. Egbe la, wozu aƒedo siwo me ame aɖeke mele o,
“This is what [I], the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [you] Israelis [say you belong to], say: ‘You saw the disaster that I caused [the people in] Jerusalem and the other towns in Judah to experience. Those towns are now ruined and deserted.
3 ɖe nu vɔ̃ɖi si wowɔ la ta. Wodo dziku nam vevie elabena wodo dzudzɔ ʋeʋĩ na gbetsiwo eye wode ta agu na mawu tutɔ siwo woawo ŋutɔwo loo, alo miawo alo wo fofowo menya kpɔ o.
[That happened] because I was extremely angry with them on account of their being very wicked. They burned incense to other gods and worshiped them. They were gods that you [previously] did not know about, and your ancestors also [did not know about them].
4 Zi geɖe meɖo nye dɔla nyagblɔɖilawo ɖe wo, ame siwo gblɔ na wo be, ‘Migawɔ ŋunyɔnu si metsri vevie la o!’
Many times I sent my prophets who served me, to say to them, “Do not do those abominable things that I hate!”
5 Ke womeɖo to alo tsɔ ɖeke le eme o; Womeɖe asi le woƒe nu vɔ̃ɖiwo wɔwɔ ŋu alo dzudzɔ dzudzɔʋeʋĩdodo na mawu tutɔwo o,
But my people would not pay any attention [DOU] [to what I said to them]. They would not turn away from their wicked behavior, or stop burning incense to [worship/honor] other gods.
6 eya ta metrɔ nye dɔmedzoe helĩhelĩ la kɔ ɖi eye wòbi le Yuda ƒe duwo kple Yerusalem kpɔdomewo, hewɔ wo wozu aƒedo abe ale si miele ekpɔm egbea ene.
So I poured out my anger [MTY] on them. I punished people on the streets of Jerusalem and on the [other] towns in Judah. It caused those towns to be ruined and deserted, and they are still like that.’
7 “Azɔ la, ale Yehowa, Dziƒoʋakɔwo ƒe Mawu, Israel ƒe Mawu la gblɔe nye esi: Nu ka ta miehe gbegblẽ gã sia va mia ɖokuiwo dzi, be mieɖe ŋutsuwo, nyɔnuwo, ɖeviwo kple vidzĩwo ɖa le Yuda eye miegble ɖeke ɖi na mia ɖokuiwo o?
So now [I], the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [you] Israelis [say you belong to], ask you: ‘Why are you causing yourselves to experience these disasters? [Do you not realize that because of what you are doing], soon there will be no more men or women or children or infants left among you [who have come here to Egypt] from Judah?
8 Nu ka wɔ mietsɔ miaƒe asinudɔwɔwɔwo do dziku nam, eye miedo dzudzɔʋeʋĩ na Egipte mawu tutɔwo, afi si mieva be mianɔ? Miele mia ɖokuiwo dome gblẽ ge, ahawɔe be miazu ɖiŋudonu kple ŋunyɔnu le anyigbadzidukɔwo katã dome.
Why are you [RHQ] provoking me and causing me to be very angry by burning incense to the idols that you have made here in Egypt? [If you continue doing this, ] you will destroy yourselves, and you will cause yourselves to be people whom all the nations on the earth will curse and despise.
9 Ɖe mieŋlɔ nu vɔ̃ɖi si mia fofowo, Yuda fiawo kple fiasrɔ̃wo wɔ kple nu vɔ̃ɖi siwo miawo kple mia srɔ̃wo miewɔ le Yudanyigba dzi kple Yerusalem kpɔdomewo bea?
Have you forgotten [how I punished] your ancestors for the wicked things that they did, and [how I punished] the kings and queens of Judah for what they did, and you and your wives for the sins that you committed in the streets of Jerusalem and [the other towns] in Judah?
10 Va se ɖe egbe sia womebɔbɔ wo ɖokuiwo, de bubu ŋunye loo, alo wɔ nye sewo kple ɖoɖo siwo metsɔ ɖo mi kple mia fofowo ŋkume la dzi o.
Up until this day you have not humbled yourselves or revered me. You have not obeyed the laws and decrees [DOU] that I gave to you and your ancestors.’
11 “Eya ta ale Yehowa, Dziƒoʋakɔwo ƒe Aƒetɔ, Israel ƒe Mawu la gblɔe nye esi: Meɖoe kplikpaa be, mahe dzɔgbevɔ̃e va mia dzi, eye matsrɔ̃ Yuda katã.
Therefore, this is what [I], the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [you] Israelis [say you belong to], say: ‘I am determined to cause all of you to experience disasters and to get rid of every one of you.
12 Makplɔ Yuda ƒe ame mamlɛ siwo ɖoe be yewoayi aɖanɔ Egipte godoo la adzoe. Wo katã woatsrɔ̃ ɖe Egipte; woatsi yi nu loo, alo aku ɖe dɔwuame ƒe asi me. Tso ɖeviwo dzi va se ɖe tsitsiawo dzi la, woatsi yi nu alo aku ɖe dɔwuame ƒe asi me. Woazu ɖiŋudonu, ŋɔdzinu, fiƒodenu kple fewuɖunu.
[You] people from Judah who have survived were determined to come and live here in Egypt. So I will get rid of all of you here in Egypt. Every one of you will die, including those who are important and those who are not important. [Some of] you will be killed by [your enemies’] swords, [some will die] from famines. You will become [people whom others] curse, be horrified about, and make fun of.
13 Matsɔ yi, dɔwuame kple dɔvɔ̃ ahe toe na ame siwo le Egipte abe ale si mehe toe na Yerusalem nɔlawo ene.
I will punish you here in Egypt like I punished [others in] Jerusalem, [some of whom were killed] by [their enemies’] swords and [some of whom] died from famines or diseases.
14 Yuda ƒe ame mamlɛ siwo si yi ɖe Egipte la dometɔ aɖeke masi alo atsi agbe be wòatrɔ ayi ɖe Yudanyigba dzi, afi si ŋu woƒe dzi ku ɖo vevie be woaɖanɔ o; ame aɖeke matrɔ agbɔ o, negbe aʋasila aɖewo ko.”
You people who did not die in Judah fled here to Egypt, hoping that [some day] you would return to Judah. But very few [HYP] of you will survive and escape. You are longing/wanting to remain alive and return to Judah, but only a very few of you will escape and be able to do that.’”
15 Tete ŋutsu siwo katã nya be yewo srɔ̃wo le dzudzɔ ʋeʋĩ dom na mawu tutɔwo, kpe ɖe nyɔnuawo katã ŋuti, wonye ameha gã aɖe ŋutɔ eye ame siwo katã le Egipte ƒe anyigbe kple dzigbe kpe ɖe wo ŋuti wova gblɔ na Yeremia bena,
Then a large group of the people who had started to live in northern Egypt and southern Egypt, including all the men who knew that their wives had been burning incense to other gods, and all the women who were standing there, said this to me:
16 “Míaɖo to nya si nègblɔ na mí le Yehowa ŋkɔ me la o!
“You are saying that [MTY] Yahweh gave messages to you, but we will not pay any attention to your messages!
17 Ke boŋ míawɔ nu sia nu si míegblɔ be míawɔ, míado dzudzɔʋeʋĩ na Dziƒofianyɔnu, eye míaƒo aha ɖi nɛ abe ale si ko mía fofowo, míaƒe fiawo kple dumegãwo wɔe le Yuda duwo kple Yerusalem kpɔdomewo ene. Le ɣe ma ɣi la, nuɖuɖu geɖe nɔ mía si, agbe hã dze dzi na mí nyuie eye míekpe hiã aɖeke o.
We will certainly do everything that we said that we would do. We will burn incense to [worship our goddess Astarte, ] the Queen of Heaven, and we will pour out offerings [of wine] to her, just like we and our ancestors and our kings and [their] officials have [always] done in the streets of Jerusalem and in the [other] towns in Judah. At that time, we had plenty of food, and we were prosperous and we did not have any troubles.
18 Gake tso esime míedzudzɔ dzudzɔdodo na Dziƒofianyɔnu la kple ahaƒoƒo ɖe anyi nɛ la, naneke megadzea edzi na mí o, eye míele tsɔtsrɔ̃m ɖe yi kple dɔwuame ƒe asi me boŋ.”
But ever since we stopped burning incense to the Queen of Heaven and giving her offerings [of wine], we have had many troubles, and [some of our people] have been killed by [our enemies’] swords and [some have died] from hunger.”
19 Nyɔnuawo gblɔ kpe ɖe ŋu be, “Esi míedoa dzudzɔ na Dziƒofianyɔnu la eye míeƒoa aha ɖi nɛ la, mía srɔ̃ŋutsuwo menya hã be míemea akpɔnɔ vivi si míewɔ ɖe eƒe nɔnɔme me la heƒoa aha ɖi nɛ oa?”
And [the women said], “[Furthermore], we burned incense and poured out [wine] offerings to the Queen of Heaven, and we also made small cakes that resembled her idol, to offer to her. But our husbands certainly knew about [and approved of] [RHQ] what we were doing!”
20 Tete Yeremia gblɔ na ameawo katã, ŋutsu kple nyɔnu siwo le nya ŋu ɖom nɛ la be,
Then I said to all the men and women who had answered me,
21 “Ɖe Yehowa meɖo ŋku edzi eye wòbu dzudzɔ ʋeʋĩ si miawo ŋutɔ, mia fofowo, miaƒe fiawo, miaƒe dumegãwo kple anyigbadzitɔwo dona le Yuda duwo kple Yerusalem kpɔdomewo ŋuti oa?
“Do not think [RHQ] that Yahweh did not know that you and your ancestors and your kings and their officials and all the other people in Judah were burning incense to [worship/honor] idols in the streets of Jerusalem and in the [other] towns in Judah!
22 Esi Yehowa magate ŋu atsɔ miaƒe nuwɔna vɔ̃ɖiwo kple miaƒe ŋunyɔnu siwo miewɔ o ta la, miaƒe anyigba zu ɖiŋudonu, aƒedo kple gbegbe eye amewo meganɔ dzi o, abe ale si wòle egbea ene.
It was because Yahweh could no longer endure/tolerate your wicked actions and the detestable things that you were doing that he caused your land to be [a place whose name people say when they] curse someone, a land that is ruined and which has no one living in it. And your land is still like that.
23 Esi miedo dzudzɔ ʋeʋĩ, hewɔ nu vɔ̃ ɖe Yehowa ŋu eye mieɖo toe alo wɔ eƒe sewo, ɖoɖowo kple dɔdeasiwo dzi o tae dzɔgbevɔ̃e sia va mia dzi ɖo, abe ale si miele ekpɔm egbea ene.”
It is because you burned incense to [worship/honor] idols and committed [other] sins against Yahweh that you experienced [all] those disasters. It is because you have not obeyed him or his laws and decrees and commandments.”
24 Emegbe Yeremia gblɔ na ameha la katã kple nyɔnuwo siaa be, “Mi Yudatɔ siwo katã le Egiptenyigba dzi, mise Yehowa ƒe nya.
[Then] I said to all of them, including the women, “All you [people of] Judah who are [here] in Egypt, listen to this message from Yahweh.
25 Ale Yehowa, Dziƒoʋakɔwo ƒe Aƒetɔ, Israel ƒe Mawu la gblɔe nye esi: ‘Miawo ŋutɔ kple mia srɔ̃nyɔnuwo, to miaƒe nuwɔnawo me, ɖe ŋugbe si miedo la fia, esi miegblɔ be, míawɔ adzɔgbe si míeɖe be míado dzudzɔ ʋeʋĩ, aƒo aha ɖi na Dziƒofianyɔnu la dzi godoo.’ “Eya ta, miyi edzi, miwɔ ɖe miaƒe ŋugbedodowo dzi! Milé miaƒe adzɔgbeɖeɖewo me ɖe asi!
This is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [we] Israelis [worship], says [to you Israeli men]: ‘You and your wives have said that you would continue to do what you promised, to burn incense and pour out wine to the [goddess whom you call] the Queen of Heaven. [And you have proved by your actions that you intend to continue to do that]. So go ahead and continue doing what you have promised to do [for her].’
26 Gake mise Yehowa ƒe nya, mi Yudatɔ siwo katã le Egiptenyigba dzi: ‘Yehowa be, meta nye ŋkɔ gã la be, Yudatɔ siwo kaka ɖe Egiptenyigba dzi ƒe ɖeke magayɔ nye ŋkɔ alo aka atam be, “Meta Aƒetɔ Yehowa ƒe agbe” o,
But now, all you people from Judah who are [now] living [here] in Egypt, listen to this message from Yahweh. He says, ‘I have solemnly declared, using my great name, that [soon] none of [you] people from Judah who are here in Egypt will ever again use my name. [There will be none of you who, when you solemnly promise to do something, ] will ever again say, “[I will do it as surely] as Yahweh lives.”
27 elabena nye ŋku le wo ŋuti hena vɔ̃, menye nyui o. Yudatɔ siwo le Egipte la atsrɔ̃ ɖe yi kple dɔwuame ƒe asi me va se ɖe esime wo katã woavɔ.
Because I will be watching over you, not to cause good things to happen to you but to cause things to happen that will harm you. [Almost] everyone [HYP] from Judah who is [now here] in Egypt will experience being [killed by their enemies’] swords, or dying from famine.
28 Ame siwo asi le yi nu le Egipte atrɔ ayi Yudanyigba dzi la anɔ ʋɛe ko, ekema Yuda ƒe ame mamlɛawo katã, ame siwo va Egipte nɔ ge la, anya ame si ƒe nya le eteƒe, tɔnye loo, alo wo tɔ.’
[Only a very] few [of you] will not die, and will return to Judah. [When that happens], all those who came to Egypt will find out whose words (were true/were fulfilled), theirs or mine.’
29 “Yehowa be, ‘Esia anye dzesi na mi be mele to he ge na mi le teƒe sia, ale be mianya be nye atam si meka be mawɔ vɔ̃ mi la anɔ edzi godoo.’
And Yahweh [also] says, ‘I will do something that will prove to you that everything that I have said will happen, and that I will punish you [here] in this place.
30 Ale Yehowa gblɔe nye esi: ‘Matsɔ Farao Hofra, Egipte fia ade asi na eƒe futɔ siwo le eƒe agbe yome tim, abe ale si metsɔ Yuda fia Zedekia de asi na Babilonia fia Nebukadnezar si nye eƒe futɔ si le eƒe agbe yome tim la ene.’”
I will cause Hophra, the king of Egypt, to be captured by his enemies who want to kill him, just like I caused King Zedekiah of Judah to be captured by [the soldiers of] King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.’” [And that is what happened several years later].
