Yeremiya 44
1 Ekigambo ne kijjira Yeremiya ekikwata ku Bayudaaya bonna abaali mu nsi y’e Misiri e Migudooli n’e Tapaneese n’e Noofu ne mu nsi ey’e Pasuloosi nga kigamba nti,
[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 “Bw’ati bw’ayogera Mukama ow’Eggye, Katonda wa Isirayiri nti, Mwalaba ekikangabwa ekinene kye naleeta ku Yerusaalemi ne ku bibuga byonna ebya Yuda. Leero matongo
“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 olw’ebibi bye baakola. Bankwasa obusungu olw’okwotereza bakatonda abalala obubaane n’okusinza, bo newaakubadde mmwe wadde bajjajjammwe be batamanyangako.
[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 Emirundi mingi natuma abaddu bange bannabbi, abaabagamba nti, ‘Temukola bintu bino eby’omuzizo bye nkyawa!’
Many times I sent my prophets who served me, to say to them, “Do not do those abominable things that I hate!”
5 Naye tebaawulira wadde okufaayo; tebaalekayo mpisa zaabwe embi wadde okulekayo okwotereza bakatonda abalala obubaane.
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 Noolwekyo, obusungu bwange obungi ennyo kyebwava bubabuubuukira; ne buzinda ebibuga bya Yuda n’enguudo za Yerusaalemi era ne bifuuka amatongo, ne leero.
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 “Kale kaakano bw’ati bw’ayogera Mukama ow’Eggye, Katonda wa Isirayiri nti, Lwaki mweretako akabi akanene bwe kati nga musala ku Yuda abasajja n’abakazi, n’abaana abato n’abawere aba Yuda ne mutalekaawo muntu?
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 Lwaki munsunguwaza olw’ebyo emikono gyammwe bye gikoze, nga mwotereza bakatonda abalala obubaane e Misiri, gye mwajja okubeera? Mujja kwezikiriza mufuuke eky’omuzizo n’eky’okukolimirwa mu mawanga gonna ag’omu nsi.
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 Mwerabidde ebibi bakitammwe ne bakabaka ba Yuda ne bakazi bammwe bye baakola era n’ebibi bye mwakola mmwe ne bakazi bammwe mu nsi ya Yuda ne mu nguudo za Yerusaalemi?
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 Naye n’okutuusa leero tebeetoowazizza wadde okutya, wadde okugondera amateeka gange n’ebiragiro bye nabateekerawo mmwe ne bajjajjammwe.
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 “Noolwekyo, bw’ati bw’ayogera Mukama ow’Eggye, Katonda wa Isirayiri nti, Mmaliridde okubazikiriza mmwe ne Yuda yonna.
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 Ndiggyawo abaasigalira mu Yuda abaamalirira okugenda e Misiri okusenga eyo. Bonna balizikiririra mu Misiri, balifa ekitala oba enjala. Okuva ku muto okutuuka ku mukulu asingayo balifa era balifuuka ekyenyinyalwa n’eky’okusekererwa era n’okukolimirwa.
[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 Ndibonereza abo ababeera mu Misiri, bafe ekitala, n’enjala ne kawumpuli, nga bwe nabonereza Yerusaalemi.
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 Tewali n’omu ku baasigalawo mu Yuda eyaddukira e Misiri, aliwona oba alisigalawo okudda mu nsi ya Yuda, gye beegomba okudda, tewali aliddayo okuggyako abatono ennyo.”
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 Awo abasajja bonna abaali bamanyi nga bakazi baabwe baali bootereza bakatonda abalala obubaane, n’abakazi abalala abaaliwo, olukuŋŋaana nga lunene n’abantu bonna abaali babeera mu Misiri e Pasuloosi, ne baddamu Yeremiya nga boogera nti,
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 “Tetujja kuwulira bubaka bw’oyogedde naffe mu linnya lya Mukama!
“You are saying that [MTY] Yahweh gave messages to you, but we will not pay any attention to your messages!
17 Tujja kukola byonna bye twagambye okukola. Tujja kwotereza kabaka omukazi ow’eggulu obubaane, tuweeyo n’ebiweebwayo ebyokunywa nga bwe twakolanga, ffe ne bakitaffe, ne bakabaka baffe n’abakungu baffe mu bibuga bya Yuda ne mu nguudo z’e Yerusaalemi. Mu biseera ebyo twalina emmere nnyingi era nga tuli bulungi nga tetutuukibwako kabi.
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 Naye okuva lwe twalekeraawo okwotereza kabaka omukazi ow’eggulu obubaane, n’okumuwa ekiweebwayo ekyokunywa, tetubadde na kantu konna era tubadde tuzikirira n’ekitala n’enjala.”
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 Abakazi ne bongerako nti, “Bwe twayotereza kabaka omukazi ow’eggulu obubaane ne tumuwa n’ekiweebwayo ekyokunywa, abaami baffe tebaamanya nti twali tumukolera obugaati obuliko ekifaananyi kye ne tumuwa n’ekiweebwayo ekyokunywa?”
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 Awo Yeremiya n’agamba abantu bonna, abasajja n’abakazi n’abantu bonna abaali bamuzzeemu nti,
Then I said to all the men and women who had answered me,
21 “Obubaane bwammwe bwe mwayotereza mu bibuga bya Yuda ne mu nguudo za Yerusaalemi, mmwe ne bakitammwe, ne bakabaka bammwe, n’abakungu n’abantu bonna mu nsi, ebyo Mukama si bye yajjukira n’alowoozaako?
“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 Mukama nga takyayinza kugumiikiriza bikolwa byammwe bibi n’eby’emizizo bye mwakola, ensi yammwe kyeyava efuuka ekikolimo n’ekyenyinyalwa era eteriimu bantu, nga bweri leero.
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 Kubanga mwotereza obubaane abalala era ne mukola ebibi mu maaso ga Mukama Katonda ne mutamugondera wadde okugoberera amateeka ge oba ebiragiro bye oba bye yategeeza, emitawaana gibagidde nga kaakano bwe mulabye.”
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 Awo Yeremiya n’agamba abantu bonna, ng’ogasseeko abakazi nti, “Muwulire ekigambo kya Mukama Katonda, abantu mwenna aba Yuda mu Misiri.
[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 Bw’ati bw’ayogera Mukama ow’Eggye, Katonda wa Isirayiri nti, mmwe ne bakazi bammwe mulaze mu bikolwa byammwe ebyo bye mwasuubiza nti, ‘Tujja kukola nga bwe tweyama okwotereza kabaka omukazi ow’eggulu obubaane era n’okumuwa ekiweebwayo ekyokunywa.’ “Mugende mu maaso, mukole bye mwasuubiza! Mutuukirize obweyamo bwammwe!
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 Naye muwulire ekigambo kya Mukama, mmwe Abayudaaya mwenna abali mu Misiri. ‘Ndayira mu linnya lyange ekkulu,’ bw’ayogera Mukama nti, ‘Tewali n’omu ku abo abaava mu Yuda ababeera mu Misiri, aliddayo okuyita erinnya lyange wadde okulayira nti, “Nga Mukama Katonda bw’ali omulamu.”
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 Kubanga mbawaddeyo eri akabi, si lwa bulungi; Abayudaaya abali mu Misiri balimalibwawo n’ekitala n’enjala okutuusa bonna lwe baliggwaawo.
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 Abo abaliwona ekitala ne baddayo mu Yuda okuva e Misiri baliba batono nnyo. Olwo abalisigalawo bonna okuva mu Yuda abajja okubeera mu Misiri, balitegeera ekigambo ekirikola, ekyange oba ekyabwe.
[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 “‘Kano ke kanaabeera akabonero gye muli nti ndibabonerereza mu kifo kino,’ bw’ayogera Mukama, ‘Mulyoke mumanye nga okulabula kwange okw’okubabonereza kujja kutuukirira.’
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 Bw’ati bw’ayogera Mukama nti, ‘Ŋŋenda kuwaayo Falaawo Kofera kabaka w’e Misiri eri abalabe be abanoonya okumutta, nga bwe n’awaayo Zeddekiya kabaka wa Yuda eri Nebukadduneeza kabaka w’e Babulooni, omulabe eyamunoonya okumutta.’”
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].
