Ἱερεμίας 6
1 ἐνισχύσατε υἱοὶ Βενιαμιν ἐκ μέσου τῆς Ιερουσαλημ καὶ ἐν Θεκουε σημάνατε σάλπιγγι καὶ ὑπὲρ Βαιθαχαρμα ἄρατε σημεῖον ὅτι κακὰ ἐκκέκυφεν ἀπὸ βορρᾶ καὶ συντριβὴ μεγάλη γίνεται
Run and hide, descendants of Benjamin, get out of Jerusalem! Blow the trumpet in Tekoa; light a signal fire in Beth-haccherem, for disaster and terrible destruction is arriving from the north.
2 καὶ ἀφαιρεθήσεται τὸ ὕψος σου θύγατερ Σιων
Even though she is pretty and delightful, I will destroy the Daughter of Zion.
3 εἰς αὐτὴν ἥξουσιν ποιμένες καὶ τὰ ποίμνια αὐτῶν καὶ πήξουσιν ἐπ’ αὐτὴν σκηνὰς κύκλῳ καὶ ποιμανοῦσιν ἕκαστος τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ
“Shepherds” and their “flocks” will come to attack her; they will set up their tents all around her, each one looking after his own.
4 παρασκευάσασθε ἐπ’ αὐτὴν εἰς πόλεμον ἀνάστητε καὶ ἀναβῶμεν ἐπ’ αὐτὴν μεσημβρίας οὐαὶ ἡμῖν ὅτι κέκλικεν ἡ ἡμέρα ὅτι ἐκλείπουσιν αἱ σκιαὶ τῆς ἑσπέρας
They get ready for battle against her, saying, “Come on, we'll attack at noon! Oh no, the day is almost over, the evening shadows are growing long.
5 ἀνάστητε καὶ ἀναβῶμεν ἐν τῇ νυκτὶ καὶ διαφθείρωμεν τὰ θεμέλια αὐτῆς
Come on, we'll attack at night instead and destroy her fortresses!”
6 ὅτι τάδε λέγει κύριος ἔκκοψον τὰ ξύλα αὐτῆς ἔκχεον ἐπὶ Ιερουσαλημ δύναμιν ὦ πόλις ψευδής ὅλη καταδυναστεία ἐν αὐτῇ
This is what the Lord Almighty says: Cut down the trees and make a siege ramp to use against Jerusalem. This city needs to be punished because it's full of people mistreating one another.
7 ὡς ψύχει λάκκος ὕδωρ οὕτως ψύχει κακία αὐτῆς ἀσέβεια καὶ ταλαιπωρία ἀκουσθήσεται ἐν αὐτῇ ἐπὶ πρόσωπον αὐτῆς διὰ παντός πόνῳ καὶ μάστιγι
Like a spring gushing out water, so she pours out her evil. The sounds of violence and abuse echo inside her. I see people sick and wounded everywhere.
8 παιδευθήσῃ Ιερουσαλημ μὴ ἀποστῇ ἡ ψυχή μου ἀπὸ σοῦ μὴ ποιήσω σε ἄβατον γῆν ἥτις οὐ κατοικηθήσεται
I'm warning you, people of Jerusalem, I'm going to give up on you in disgust. I will destroy you and leave your country uninhabited.
9 ὅτι τάδε λέγει κύριος καλαμᾶσθε καλαμᾶσθε ὡς ἄμπελον τὰ κατάλοιπα τοῦ Ισραηλ ἐπιστρέψατε ὡς ὁ τρυγῶν ἐπὶ τὸν κάρταλλον αὐτοῦ
This is what the Lord Almighty says: Even those left in Israel will be taken, just as grapes left on a vine are taken by the one harvesting the grapes who checks the branches again.
10 πρὸς τίνα λαλήσω καὶ διαμαρτύρωμαι καὶ ἀκούσεται ἰδοὺ ἀπερίτμητα τὰ ὦτα αὐτῶν καὶ οὐ δύνανται ἀκούειν ἰδοὺ τὸ ῥῆμα κυρίου ἐγένετο αὐτοῖς εἰς ὀνειδισμόν οὐ μὴ βουληθῶσιν αὐτὸ ἀκοῦσαι
Who can I give this warning to? Who's going to listen to me? Can't you see that they refuse to listen? They can't hear what I'm saying. See how offensive the Lord's message is to them. They don't like it at all.
11 καὶ τὸν θυμόν μου ἔπλησα καὶ ἐπέσχον καὶ οὐ συνετέλεσα αὐτούς ἐκχεῶ ἐπὶ νήπια ἔξωθεν καὶ ἐπὶ συναγωγὴν νεανίσκων ἅμα ὅτι ἀνὴρ καὶ γυνὴ συλλημφθήσονται πρεσβύτερος μετὰ πλήρους ἡμερῶν
But as for me, I'm full of the Lord's anger; I have a hard time keeping it in. The Lord replies, Pour it out on children in the street, and on groups of young people, because both husband and wife are going to be captured—it's everyone, and it doesn't matter how old they are.
12 καὶ μεταστραφήσονται αἱ οἰκίαι αὐτῶν εἰς ἑτέρους ἀγροὶ καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτό ὅτι ἐκτενῶ τὴν χεῖρά μου ἐπὶ τοὺς κατοικοῦντας τὴν γῆν ταύτην λέγει κύριος
Their houses will be given to others, their fields and wives too, because I'm going to punish everyone living in this country, declares the Lord.
13 ὅτι ἀπὸ μικροῦ αὐτῶν καὶ ἕως μεγάλου πάντες συνετελέσαντο ἄνομα ἀπὸ ἱερέως καὶ ἕως ψευδοπροφήτου πάντες ἐποίησαν ψευδῆ
Everyone cheats because they're greedy, poor and rich alike. Even prophets and priests—they are all dishonest liars!
14 καὶ ἰῶντο τὸ σύντριμμα τοῦ λαοῦ μου ἐξουθενοῦντες καὶ λέγοντες εἰρήνη εἰρήνη καὶ ποῦ ἐστιν εἰρήνη
They give my wounded people first aid, but they don't really care about them. They tell them, “Don't worry! We have peace!” even as war approaches.
15 κατῃσχύνθησαν ὅτι ἐξελίποσαν καὶ οὐδ’ ὧς καταισχυνόμενοι κατῃσχύνθησαν καὶ τὴν ἀτιμίαν αὐτῶν οὐκ ἔγνωσαν διὰ τοῦτο πεσοῦνται ἐν τῇ πτώσει αὐτῶν καὶ ἐν καιρῷ ἐπισκοπῆς αὐτῶν ἀπολοῦνται εἶπεν κύριος
Were they ashamed of the disgusting things they did? No, they weren't ashamed at all, they couldn't even blush. So they will fall just like the others, when I punish them; they will drop down dead, says the Lord.
16 τάδε λέγει κύριος στῆτε ἐπὶ ταῖς ὁδοῖς καὶ ἴδετε καὶ ἐρωτήσατε τρίβους κυρίου αἰωνίους καὶ ἴδετε ποία ἐστὶν ἡ ὁδὸς ἡ ἀγαθή καὶ βαδίζετε ἐν αὐτῇ καὶ εὑρήσετε ἁγνισμὸν ταῖς ψυχαῖς ὑμῶν καὶ εἶπαν οὐ πορευσόμεθα
This is what the Lord says: Go and stand where the roads divide, and look. Find out which are the old paths. Ask, “What's the right way?” Then follow it and you'll be content. But you refused, saying, “We won't go that way!”
17 κατέστακα ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς σκοπούς ἀκούσατε τῆς φωνῆς τῆς σάλπιγγος καὶ εἶπαν οὐκ ἀκουσόμεθα
I put watchmen in charge of you and told you, make sure you listen for the trumpet call warning you of danger. But you answered, “We won't listen!”
18 διὰ τοῦτο ἤκουσαν τὰ ἔθνη καὶ οἱ ποιμαίνοντες τὰ ποίμνια αὐτῶν
So now you other nations can listen and find out what's going to happen to them.
19 ἄκουε γῆ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἐπάγω ἐπὶ τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον κακά τὸν καρπὸν ἀποστροφῆς αὐτῶν ὅτι τῶν λόγων μου οὐ προσέσχον καὶ τὸν νόμον μου ἀπώσαντο
Earth, you listen too! I am bringing disaster down on this people, the end result of what they themselves planned. It's because they paid no attention to what I said, and rejected my instructions.
20 ἵνα τί μοι λίβανον ἐκ Σαβα φέρετε καὶ κιννάμωμον ἐκ γῆς μακρόθεν τὰ ὁλοκαυτώματα ὑμῶν οὔκ εἰσιν δεκτά καὶ αἱ θυσίαι ὑμῶν οὐχ ἥδυνάν μοι
What's the point of offering me frankincense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a far-away land? I don't accept your burnt offerings; I'm not pleased with your sacrifices.
21 διὰ τοῦτο τάδε λέγει κύριος ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ δίδωμι ἐπὶ τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον ἀσθένειαν καὶ ἀσθενήσουσιν ἐν αὐτῇ πατέρες καὶ υἱοὶ ἅμα γείτων καὶ ὁ πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἀπολοῦνται
So this is what the Lord says: I'm going to put blocks in front of these people to trip them up. Fathers and sons will fall down dead, friends and neighbors too.
22 τάδε λέγει κύριος ἰδοὺ λαὸς ἔρχεται ἀπὸ βορρᾶ καὶ ἔθνη ἐξεγερθήσεται ἀπ’ ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς
This is what the Lord says: Look! An army is invading from the north; a powerful nation is getting ready to attack all the way from the ends of the earth.
23 τόξον καὶ ζιβύνην κρατήσουσιν ἰταμός ἐστιν καὶ οὐκ ἐλεήσει φωνὴ αὐτοῦ ὡς θάλασσα κυμαίνουσα ἐφ’ ἵπποις καὶ ἅρμασιν παρατάξεται ὡς πῦρ εἰς πόλεμον πρὸς σέ θύγατερ Σιων
They pick up their bows and spears. They are cruel and show no mercy. Their war-cries are like the sea roaring, and they ride horses lined up ready to attack you, Daughter of Zion.
24 ἠκούσαμεν τὴν ἀκοὴν αὐτῶν παρελύθησαν αἱ χεῖρες ἡμῶν θλῖψις κατέσχεν ἡμᾶς ὠδῖνες ὡς τικτούσης
The people reply, “We've heard the news, and our hands are limp with shock! We're overcome with agony, suffering pain like a woman in labor.
25 μὴ ἐκπορεύεσθε εἰς ἀγρὸν καὶ ἐν ταῖς ὁδοῖς μὴ βαδίζετε ὅτι ῥομφαία τῶν ἐχθρῶν παροικεῖ κυκλόθεν
Don't go to the field! Don't walk down the road! The enemy is armed with swords! Terror is everywhere!”
26 θύγατερ λαοῦ μου περίζωσαι σάκκον κατάπασαι ἐν σποδῷ πένθος ἀγαπητοῦ ποίησαι σεαυτῇ κοπετὸν οἰκτρόν ὅτι ἐξαίφνης ἥξει ταλαιπωρία ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς
Oh my people, put on sackcloth and roll around in ashes. Mourn and cry bitterly like you would for an only son, because the destroyer will come down on you suddenly.
27 δοκιμαστὴν δέδωκά σε ἐν λαοῖς δεδοκιμασμένοις καὶ γνώσῃ με ἐν τῷ δοκιμάσαι με τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτῶν
Jeremiah, I have made you a tester of metals so you can test my people as if they were metal, so you can know what they're made of and how they act.
28 πάντες ἀνήκοοι πορευόμενοι σκολιῶς χαλκὸς καὶ σίδηρος πάντες διεφθαρμένοι εἰσίν
They're all stubborn rebels going around talking slander. They are hard as bronze and iron; they are all corrupt.
29 ἐξέλιπεν φυσητὴρ ἀπὸ πυρός ἐξέλιπεν μόλιβος εἰς κενὸν ἀργυροκόπος ἀργυροκοπεῖ πονηρία αὐτῶν οὐκ ἐτάκη
The bellows in the refiner's furnace blow powerfully, burning away the lead. But this refining is pointless, because the wicked are not purified.
30 ἀργύριον ἀποδεδοκιμασμένον καλέσατε αὐτούς ὅτι ἀπεδοκίμασεν αὐτοὺς κύριος
They are identified as impure silver to be rejected, because the Lord has rejected them.
