Ἱερεμίας 16

1 καὶ σὺ μὴ λάβῃς γυναῖκα λέγει κύριος ὁ θεὸς Ισραηλ

A message from the Lord that came to me, saying,

2 καὶ οὐ γεννηθήσεταί σοι υἱὸς οὐδὲ θυγάτηρ ἐν τῷ τόπῳ τούτῳ

Don't marry or have children here.

3 ὅτι τάδε λέγει κύριος περὶ τῶν υἱῶν καὶ περὶ τῶν θυγατέρων τῶν γεννωμένων ἐν τῷ τόπῳ τούτῳ καὶ περὶ τῶν μητέρων αὐτῶν τῶν τετοκυιῶν αὐτοὺς καὶ περὶ τῶν πατέρων αὐτῶν τῶν γεγεννηκότων αὐτοὺς ἐν τῇ γῇ ταύτῃ

This is what the Lord says about children born here, and about their mothers and fathers—their parents here in this country:

4 ἐν θανάτῳ νοσερῷ ἀποθανοῦνται οὐ κοπήσονται καὶ οὐ ταφήσονται εἰς παράδειγμα ἐπὶ προσώπου τῆς γῆς ἔσονται καὶ τοῖς θηρίοις τῆς γῆς καὶ τοῖς πετεινοῖς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἐν μαχαίρᾳ πεσοῦνται καὶ ἐν λιμῷ συντελεσθήσονται

They will die from fatal diseases. No one will mourn for them. Their bodies won't be buried, but will lie on the ground like manure. They will be destroyed by war and famine, and their bodies will be food for birds of prey and wild animals.

5 τάδε λέγει κύριος μὴ εἰσέλθῃς εἰς θίασον αὐτῶν καὶ μὴ πορευθῇς τοῦ κόψασθαι καὶ μὴ πενθήσῃς αὐτούς ὅτι ἀφέστακα τὴν εἰρήνην μου ἀπὸ τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου

This is what the Lord says: Don't enter a home where people are having a funeral meal. Don't visit them to mourn or to offer condolences, for I have taken away my peace, my trustworthy love, and my mercy from these people, declares the Lord.

6 οὐ μὴ κόψωνται αὐτοὺς οὐδὲ ἐντομίδας οὐ μὴ ποιήσωσιν καὶ οὐ ξυρήσονται

Everyone, from the most important to the least, will die in this country. They will not be buried or mourned; there will be no rites for the dead such as cutting oneself or shaving of heads.

7 καὶ οὐ μὴ κλασθῇ ἄρτος ἐν πένθει αὐτῶν εἰς παράκλησιν ἐπὶ τεθνηκότι οὐ ποτιοῦσιν αὐτὸν ποτήριον εἰς παράκλησιν ἐπὶ πατρὶ καὶ μητρὶ αὐτοῦ

No funeral receptions will be held to comfort those who mourn—not even a comforting drink is to be offered at the loss of a father or mother.

8 εἰς οἰκίαν πότου οὐκ εἰσελεύσῃ συγκαθίσαι μετ’ αὐτῶν τοῦ φαγεῖν καὶ πιεῖν

Don't go into a house where people are celebrating and sit down with them to eat and drink.

9 διότι τάδε λέγει κύριος ὁ θεὸς Ισραηλ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ καταλύω ἐκ τοῦ τόπου τούτου ἐνώπιον τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ὑμῶν καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ὑμῶν φωνὴν χαρᾶς καὶ φωνὴν εὐφροσύνης φωνὴν νυμφίου καὶ φωνὴν νύμφης

This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I am going to put a stop right here, while you watch, to any sounds of celebration and joy, the happy voices of the groom and bride.

10 καὶ ἔσται ὅταν ἀναγγείλῃς τῷ λαῷ τούτῳ ἅπαντα τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα καὶ εἴπωσιν πρὸς σέ διὰ τί ἐλάλησεν κύριος ἐφ’ ἡμᾶς πάντα τὰ κακὰ ταῦτα τίς ἡ ἀδικία ἡμῶν καὶ τίς ἡ ἁμαρτία ἡμῶν ἣν ἡμάρτομεν ἔναντι κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ ἡμῶν

When you explain all this to them they'll ask you, “Why has the Lord ordered that such a terrible disaster should happen to us? What did we do wrong? What sin have we committed against the Lord our God?”

11 καὶ ἐρεῖς αὐτοῖς ἀνθ’ ὧν ἐγκατέλιπόν με οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν λέγει κύριος καὶ ᾤχοντο ὀπίσω θεῶν ἀλλοτρίων καὶ ἐδούλευσαν αὐτοῖς καὶ προσεκύνησαν αὐτοῖς καὶ ἐμὲ ἐγκατέλιπον καὶ τὸν νόμον μου οὐκ ἐφυλάξαντο

Answer them: It's because your forefathers deserted me, declares the Lord. They went and followed other gods, serving them and worshiping them. They abandoned me and didn't keep my laws.

12 καὶ ὑμεῖς ἐπονηρεύσασθε ὑπὲρ τοὺς πατέρας ὑμῶν καὶ ἰδοὺ ὑμεῖς πορεύεσθε ἕκαστος ὀπίσω τῶν ἀρεστῶν τῆς καρδίας ὑμῶν τῆς πονηρᾶς τοῦ μὴ ὑπακούειν μου

You however have done even more evil than your forefathers. Look at how all of you followed your own stubborn evil thinking instead of obeying me.

13 καὶ ἀπορρίψω ὑμᾶς ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ταύτης εἰς τὴν γῆν ἣν οὐκ ᾔδειτε ὑμεῖς καὶ οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν καὶ δουλεύσετε ἐκεῖ θεοῖς ἑτέροις οἳ οὐ δώσουσιν ὑμῖν ἔλεος

So I'm going to throw you out of this country and exile you in a country unfamiliar to you and your forefathers. There you'll serve other gods day and night, because I won't help you at all.

14 διὰ τοῦτο ἰδοὺ ἡμέραι ἔρχονται λέγει κύριος καὶ οὐκ ἐροῦσιν ἔτι ζῇ κύριος ὁ ἀναγαγὼν τοὺς υἱοὺς Ισραηλ ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου

But listen! The time is coming, declares the Lord, when people won't any longer make vows, saying. “On the Lord's life, who led the Israelites out of Egypt.”

15 ἀλλά ζῇ κύριος ὃς ἀνήγαγεν τὸν οἶκον Ισραηλ ἀπὸ γῆς βορρᾶ καὶ ἀπὸ πασῶν τῶν χωρῶν οὗ ἐξώσθησαν ἐκεῖ καὶ ἀποκαταστήσω αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν γῆν αὐτῶν ἣν ἔδωκα τοῖς πατράσιν αὐτῶν

Instead they'll say, “On the Lord's life, who led the Israelites back from the northern country and all the other countries where he had exiled them.” I'm going to bring them back to the country I gave their forefathers.

16 ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἀποστέλλω τοὺς ἁλεεῖς τοὺς πολλούς λέγει κύριος καὶ ἁλιεύσουσιν αὐτούς καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα ἀποστελῶ τοὺς πολλοὺς θηρευτάς καὶ θηρεύσουσιν αὐτοὺς ἐπάνω παντὸς ὄρους καὶ ἐπάνω παντὸς βουνοῦ καὶ ἐκ τῶν τρυμαλιῶν τῶν πετρῶν

But for the moment I'm going to send for many fishermen and they'll catch them, declares the Lord. Then I'm going to send for many hunters, and they'll hunt them down on every mountain and hill, even from their hiding places in the rocks.

17 ὅτι οἱ ὀφθαλμοί μου ἐπὶ πάσας τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτῶν καὶ οὐκ ἐκρύβη τὰ ἀδικήματα αὐτῶν ἀπέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν μου

I see everything they're doing. They can't hide from me, and their sins aren't hidden from me either.

18 καὶ ἀνταποδώσω διπλᾶς τὰς ἀδικίας αὐτῶν καὶ τὰς ἁμαρτίας αὐτῶν ἐφ’ αἷς ἐβεβήλωσαν τὴν γῆν μου ἐν τοῖς θνησιμαίοις τῶν βδελυγμάτων αὐτῶν καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἀνομίαις αὐτῶν ἐν αἷς ἐπλημμέλησαν τὴν κληρονομίαν μου

First I'm going to pay them back double for their wickedness and sin, because they have made my land unclean with the lifeless bodies of their disgusting idols, filling my special country with their offensive pagan images.

19 κύριε ἰσχύς μου καὶ βοήθειά μου καὶ καταφυγή μου ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κακῶν πρὸς σὲ ἔθνη ἥξουσιν ἀπ’ ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς καὶ ἐροῦσιν ὡς ψευδῆ ἐκτήσαντο οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν εἴδωλα καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν αὐτοῖς ὠφέλημα

Lord, you are my strength and my fortress, my safe place in the time of trouble. Nations will come to you from all over the earth, and they will say, “The religion of our forefathers was a total lie! The idols they worshiped were useless—no good at all.

20 εἰ ποιήσει ἑαυτῷ ἄνθρωπος θεούς καὶ οὗτοι οὔκ εἰσιν θεοί

How can people make gods for themselves? These aren't gods!”

21 διὰ τοῦτο ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ δηλώσω αὐτοῖς ἐν τῷ καιρῷ τούτῳ τὴν χεῖρά μου καὶ γνωριῶ αὐτοῖς τὴν δύναμίν μου καὶ γνώσονται ὅτι ὄνομά μοι κύριος

Now they'll see! I'll show them, and then they'll recognize my power and strength. Then they'll know that I am the Lord!