Ἱερεμίας 4
1 ἐὰν ἐπιστραφῇ Ισραηλ λέγει κύριος πρός με ἐπιστραφήσεται ἐὰν περιέλῃ τὰ βδελύγματα αὐτοῦ ἐκ στόματος αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ προσώπου μου εὐλαβηθῇ
Yahweh says, “You Israeli [people], come back to me! If you get rid of those detestable idols and do not turn away from me [again],
2 καὶ ὀμόσῃ ζῇ κύριος μετὰ ἀληθείας καὶ ἐν κρίσει καὶ ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ εὐλογήσουσιν ἐν αὐτῇ ἔθνη καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ αἰνέσουσιν τῷ θεῷ ἐν Ιερουσαλημ
and if you declare, ‘Just as surely as Yahweh lives, what he says is true,’ and if you [start to] always say what is true and act justly/fairly and righteously, then the [people in the other] nations [of the world] will request that I bless them [as I have blessed you], and they will [all come and] honor/praise me.”
3 ὅτι τάδε λέγει κύριος τοῖς ἀνδράσιν Ιουδα καὶ τοῖς κατοικοῦσιν Ιερουσαλημ νεώσατε ἑαυτοῖς νεώματα καὶ μὴ σπείρητε ἐπ’ ἀκάνθαις
This is what Yahweh says to the people of Jerusalem and [the other cities in] Judah: “[Prepare yourselves to receive my messages] like farmers plow up hard ground [in order that they can plant seed in it]. Just as farmers do not [waste good seed by] sowing seeds among thorny plants, [I do not want to waste my time telling you messages that you are not ready to receive].
4 περιτμήθητε τῷ θεῷ ὑμῶν καὶ περιτέμεσθε τὴν σκληροκαρδίαν ὑμῶν ἄνδρες Ιουδα καὶ οἱ κατοικοῦντες Ιερουσαλημ μὴ ἐξέλθῃ ὡς πῦρ ὁ θυμός μου καὶ ἐκκαυθήσεται καὶ οὐκ ἔσται ὁ σβέσων ἀπὸ προσώπου πονηρίας ἐπιτηδευμάτων ὑμῶν
Purify your inner beings and your minds for me. If you do not do that, my being angry with you [MTY] because of [all] the sins that you have committed will be like a fire that will be impossible to extinguish.”
5 ἀναγγείλατε ἐν τῷ Ιουδα καὶ ἀκουσθήτω ἐν Ιερουσαλημ εἴπατε σημάνατε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς σάλπιγγι καὶ κεκράξατε μέγα εἴπατε συνάχθητε καὶ εἰσέλθωμεν εἰς τὰς πόλεις τὰς τειχήρεις
“Declare this [DOU] to [all the people in] Jerusalem and [the rest of] Judea; blow the trumpets everywhere in the land [to warn the people]. Tell them that they should flee to the cities that have high walls around them.
6 ἀναλαβόντες φεύγετε εἰς Σιων σπεύσατε μὴ στῆτε ὅτι κακὰ ἐγὼ ἐπάγω ἀπὸ βορρᾶ καὶ συντριβὴν μεγάλην
Shout to the people of Jerusalem, ‘Run away [now]! Do not delay, because I am about to cause you to experience a terrible disaster [DOU] that will come from the north.
7 ἀνέβη λέων ἐκ τῆς μάνδρας αὐτοῦ ἐξολεθρεύων ἔθνη ἐξῆρεν καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτοῦ τοῦ θεῖναι τὴν γῆν εἰς ἐρήμωσιν καὶ πόλεις καθαιρεθήσονται παρὰ τὸ μὴ κατοικεῖσθαι αὐτάς
[An army] that has destroyed [many] nations will attack you [like] [MET] a lion that comes out of its den [to attack other animals]. [The soldiers of that army] have taken down their tents and they are ready to march toward your land. They will destroy your cities and leave them without any people still living in them.’
8 ἐπὶ τούτοις περιζώσασθε σάκκους καὶ κόπτεσθε καὶ ἀλαλάξατε διότι οὐκ ἀπεστράφη ὁ θυμὸς κυρίου ἀφ’ ὑμῶν
So, put on sackcloth/rough clothes and weep and beat your chests [to show that you are very sorry for what you have done], because Yahweh is still very angry with us.
9 καὶ ἔσται ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ λέγει κύριος ἀπολεῖται ἡ καρδία τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ ἡ καρδία τῶν ἀρχόντων καὶ οἱ ἱερεῖς ἐκστήσονται καὶ οἱ προφῆται θαυμάσονται
Yahweh said that at the time [he punishes you], the King of Judah and [all his] officials will be very afraid. The priests and the prophets will be terrified.
10 καὶ εἶπα ὦ δέσποτα κύριε ἄρα γε ἀπατῶν ἠπάτησας τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον καὶ τὴν Ιερουσαλημ λέγων εἰρήνη ἔσται ὑμῖν καὶ ἰδοὺ ἥψατο ἡ μάχαιρα ἕως τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτῶν
Then I replied, “Yahweh [my] God, you completely deceived the people by telling them that there would be peace in Jerusalem, but now [our enemies] [PRS] are ready to slaughter us with their swords!”
11 ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ ἐροῦσιν τῷ λαῷ τούτῳ καὶ τῇ Ιερουσαλημ πνεῦμα πλανήσεως ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ ὁδὸς τῆς θυγατρὸς τοῦ λαοῦ μου οὐκ εἰς καθαρὸν οὐδ’ εἰς ἅγιον
When that happens, [Yahweh] will say to the people of Jerusalem, [“A huge army will come to attack you]. They will not [be like a gentle breeze that] separates wheat from chaff. [They will be like] a very hot wind [that blows in] from the desert [MET].
12 πνεῦμα πληρώσεως ἥξει μοι νῦν δὲ ἐγὼ λαλῶ κρίματα πρὸς αὐτούς
[They will be like] [MET] a strong blast that I will send. Now I am declaring that I will punish/destroy you.”
13 ἰδοὺ ὡς νεφέλη ἀναβήσεται καὶ ὡς καταιγὶς τὰ ἅρματα αὐτοῦ κουφότεροι ἀετῶν οἱ ἵπποι αὐτοῦ οὐαὶ ἡμῖν ὅτι ταλαιπωροῦμεν
[Our enemies] are about to rush down on us; their chariots are like [SIM] whirlwinds. Their horses are faster than eagles. It will be terrible for us!
14 ἀπόπλυνε ἀπὸ κακίας τὴν καρδίαν σου Ιερουσαλημ ἵνα σωθῇς ἕως πότε ὑπάρξουσιν ἐν σοὶ διαλογισμοὶ πόνων σου
[You people of] Jerusalem [APO], purify your hearts/inner beings, in order that Yahweh will rescue you. How long will you continue to think about [doing] evil things?
15 διότι φωνὴ ἀναγγέλλοντος ἐκ Δαν ἥξει καὶ ἀκουσθήσεται πόνος ἐξ ὄρους Εφραιμ
From Dan [city in the far north] to the hills of Ephraim [a few miles/kilometers north of Jerusalem] messengers are proclaiming that disasters are coming.
16 ἀναμνήσατε ἔθνη ἰδοὺ ἥκασιν ἀναγγείλατε ἐν Ιερουσαλημ συστροφαὶ ἔρχονται ἐκ γῆς μακρόθεν καὶ ἔδωκαν ἐπὶ τὰς πόλεις Ιουδα φωνὴν αὐτῶν
Tell this to the [people in other] nations [but also] announce it in Jerusalem: [Yahweh says], “An army is coming to Jerusalem from far away; they will shout [a battle-cry] against the cities in Judah.
17 ὡς φυλάσσοντες ἀγρὸν ἐγένοντο ἐπ’ αὐτὴν κύκλῳ ὅτι ἐμοῦ ἠμέλησας λέγει κύριος
They will set up tents around Jerusalem like people set up temporary shelters [SIM] around a field [at harvest time]. That will happen because the people of Judah have rebelled against me.
18 αἱ ὁδοί σου καὶ τὰ ἐπιτηδεύματά σου ἐποίησαν ταῦτά σοι αὕτη ἡ κακία σου ὅτι πικρά ὅτι ἥψατο ἕως τῆς καρδίας σου
You will be punished very severely; it will [be as though a sword] has stabbed your inner beings. But you are causing those things to happen to you because of the evil things that you have done.”
19 τὴν κοιλίαν μου τὴν κοιλίαν μου ἀλγῶ καὶ τὰ αἰσθητήρια τῆς καρδίας μου μαιμάσσει ἡ ψυχή μου σπαράσσεται ἡ καρδία μου οὐ σιωπήσομαι ὅτι φωνὴν σάλπιγγος ἤκουσεν ἡ ψυχή μου κραυγὴν πολέμου
I am extremely anguished/sad; the pain in my inner being is very severe. My heart beats wildly. But I cannot remain silent because I have heard [our enemies] blowing their trumpets to announce that the battle [against Judah will start immediately].
20 καὶ ταλαιπωρίαν συντριμμὸν ἐπικαλεῖται ὅτι τεταλαιπώρηκεν πᾶσα ἡ γῆ ἄφνω τεταλαιπώρηκεν ἡ σκηνή διεσπάσθησαν αἱ δέρρεις μου
Disasters will occur one after another until the whole land is ruined. Suddenly [all] our tents will be destroyed; [even] the curtains [inside the tents] will be ripped apart.
21 ἕως πότε ὄψομαι φεύγοντας ἀκούων φωνὴν σαλπίγγων
How long will this battle continue? How long will I continue to see the enemy battle flags and hear the sound of their trumpets being blown?
22 διότι οἱ ἡγούμενοι τοῦ λαοῦ μου ἐμὲ οὐκ ᾔδεισαν υἱοὶ ἄφρονές εἰσιν καὶ οὐ συνετοί σοφοί εἰσιν τοῦ κακοποιῆσαι τὸ δὲ καλῶς ποιῆσαι οὐκ ἐπέγνωσαν
[Yahweh says], “My people are [very] foolish! They do not have a relationship with me. They are [like] [MET] stupid children who do not understand [anything]. They very cleverly do what is wrong, but they do not know how to do what is good.”
23 ἐπέβλεψα ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ ἰδοὺ οὐθέν καὶ εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν καὶ οὐκ ἦν τὰ φῶτα αὐτοῦ
[God gave me a vision in which] I saw that the earth was barren and without form. I looked at the sky, and there was no light there.
24 εἶδον τὰ ὄρη καὶ ἦν τρέμοντα καὶ πάντας τοὺς βουνοὺς ταρασσομένους
I looked at the mountains and hills, and they shook and moved from side to side.
25 ἐπέβλεψα καὶ ἰδοὺ οὐκ ἦν ἄνθρωπος καὶ πάντα τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἐπτοεῖτο
I looked and saw that there were no [more] people, and all the birds had flown away.
26 εἶδον καὶ ἰδοὺ ὁ Κάρμηλος ἔρημος καὶ πᾶσαι αἱ πόλεις ἐμπεπυρισμέναι πυρὶ ἀπὸ προσώπου κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ προσώπου ὀργῆς θυμοῦ αὐτοῦ ἠφανίσθησαν
I looked and saw that the fields that previously were fertile had become a desert. The cities were all ruined; they had all been destroyed by Yahweh because he was extremely angry.
27 τάδε λέγει κύριος ἔρημος ἔσται πᾶσα ἡ γῆ συντέλειαν δὲ οὐ μὴ ποιήσω
This is what Yahweh is saying: “The entire land [of Judah] will be ruined, but I will not destroy it completely.
28 ἐπὶ τούτοις πενθείτω ἡ γῆ καὶ συσκοτασάτω ὁ οὐρανὸς ἄνωθεν διότι ἐλάλησα καὶ οὐ μετανοήσω ὥρμησα καὶ οὐκ ἀποστρέψω ἀπ’ αὐτῆς
I will do to my people what I said that I would do, and I will not change my mind. So [when that happens, it will be as though] the earth will mourn and the sky will become very dark.”
29 ἀπὸ φωνῆς ἱππέως καὶ ἐντεταμένου τόξου ἀνεχώρησεν πᾶσα χώρα εἰσέδυσαν εἰς τὰ σπήλαια καὶ εἰς τὰ ἄλση ἐκρύβησαν καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς πέτρας ἀνέβησαν πᾶσα πόλις ἐγκατελείφθη οὐ κατοικεῖ ἐν αὐταῖς ἄνθρωπος
[When the people hear] the sound of the [enemy] army marching, [they will be terrified as] they flee from their cities. Some of them will find places to hide in the bushes, and others will run toward the mountains/hills [to escape being killed by their enemies]. All the cities [in Judah] will be abandoned; not one person will remain in them.
30 καὶ σὺ τί ποιήσεις ἐὰν περιβάλῃ κόκκινον καὶ κοσμήσῃ κόσμῳ χρυσῷ καὶ ἐὰν ἐγχρίσῃ στίβι τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς σου εἰς μάτην ὁ ὡραϊσμός σου ἀπώσαντό σε οἱ ἐρασταί σου τὴν ψυχήν σου ζητοῦσιν
So you who will surely be destroyed, [why are you doing the things that you are doing now]? Why are you wearing beautiful clothes and jewelry? Why are you putting paint around your eyes? Doing those things will not help you, because the people [in other countries that you think] love you [actually] despise you, and they will try to kill you.
31 ὅτι φωνὴν ὡς ὠδινούσης ἤκουσα τοῦ στεναγμοῦ σου ὡς πρωτοτοκούσης φωνὴ θυγατρὸς Σιων ἐκλυθήσεται καὶ παρήσει τὰς χεῖρας αὐτῆς οἴμμοι ἐγώ ὅτι ἐκλείπει ἡ ψυχή μου ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀνῃρημένοις
[It is as though] I already hear [the people in Jerusalem] crying very loudly, like [SIM] a woman cries when she is giving birth to her first child; she gasps for breath and pleads for someone to help her. [It is as though Jerusalem] is crying, “Something terrible is happening to me! They are about to murder me!”
