Jeremia 29
1 Zvino aya ndiwo mashoko etsamba yakatumwa nomuprofita Jeremia kubva kuJerusarema ichienda kuvakuru vakanga vachiri vapenyu pakati pavatapwa, nokuvaprista navaprofita, navamwe vanhu vose vakanga vaendeswa kuutapwa kuBhabhironi naNebhukadhinezari vachibviswa kuJerusarema.
After King Jehoiachin, his mother, his palace officials, other officials in Judah, and all the various kinds of craftsmen [DOU] had been exiled to Babylon, I wrote a letter to the elders, the priests, the prophets and all the other people who had been taken from Jerusalem to Babylon by [soldiers of] Nebuchadnezzar.
2 (Izvi zvakaitika shure kwokunge Mambo Jehoyakini namai vake, namachinda omuruvazhe rwamambo, navatungamiri veJudha neJerusarema, navavezi, navapfuri, vaendeswa kuutapwa vachibviswa kuJerusarema.)
3 Akaendesa tsamba iyi noruoko rwaErasa, mwanakomana waShafani, naGemaria mwanakomana waHirikia, avo vakatumwa naZedhekia mambo waJudha kuna Mambo Nebhukadhinezari kuBhabhironi. Yaiti:
[I gave] the letter to Elasah the son of Shaphan, and to Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, when they were about to go to Babylon to be ambassadors from King Zedekiah to King Nebuchadnezzar. This is what I wrote in the letter:
4 Zvanzi naJehovha Wamasimba Ose, Mwari waIsraeri, kuna vose vandakaendesa kuutapwa kuBhabhironi vachibva kuJerusarema:
This is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [we] Israelis [worship], says to all you people who were captured [here] in Jerusalem and taken [there] to Babylon:
5 “Zvivakirei dzimba mugare; murime mapindu mugodya zvibereko zvawo.
“Build houses [there], and plan to stay there [because you will be there for many years]. Plant gardens, and eat the food that is produced in the gardens.
6 Wananai mugova navanakomana navanasikana; tsvakirai vanakomana venyu vakadzi uye muwanise vanasikana venyu, kuti naivowo vave navanakomana navanasikana. Muwande ikoko; musadzikira pakuwanda.
Get married and have children. Then [when they grow up], choose wives for your sons, and husbands for your daughters, in order that they [also] may have children. [In that way], the number of you people will increase, not decrease.
7 Uyezve, mutsvake rugare nokubudirira kweguta randakakuendesai kuutapwa. Murinyengeterere kuna Jehovha, nokuti kana rikabudirira, nemiwo muchabudirira.”
Also, do things that will cause things to go well [for the other people there] in the city where I sent you. Pray that things will go well for [the people in] that city, because if things go well for them, things will go well for you, [also].”
8 Nokuti, zvanzi naJehovha Wamasimba Ose, Mwari weIsraeri, “Musarega vaprofita navavuki vari pakati penyu vachikunyengerai. Musateerera kurota kwamunovakurudzira kuti varote.
This is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [we] Israeli people [worship], says: “There are [false] prophets and fortune-tellers among you. Do not allow them to deceive you. Do not pay attention to [them when they tell you] their dreams,
9 Vanokuprofitirai nhema muzita rangu. Handina kuvatuma,” ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha.
because they are telling you lies, saying that [MTY] [I have given them the messages that they are telling you]. But, I have not appointed them.”
10 Nokuti zvanzi naJehovha: “Panopera makore makumi manomwe eBhabhironi, ndichauyazve kwamuri ndigozadzisa zvakanaka zvandakavimbisa kuti ndichakudzoserai kunzvimbo ino.
This is [also] what Yahweh says: “After you [and your children] have been in Babylon for seventy years, I will help you, and do for you the things that I promised, and I will enable you to return here [to Jerusalem].
11 Nokuti ndinoziva urongwa hwandinahwo pamusoro penyu,” ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha, “urongwa hwokuti mubudirire, kwete kukuitirai zvakaipa, urongwa hunokupai tariro neramangwana rakanaka.
I, Yahweh, know what I have planned for you. I am planning to cause things to go well for you, not to cause you to experience disasters. I am planning to give you many things that you confidently expect to receive in the future.
12 Ipapo muchadana kwandiri uye muchauya kuzonyengetera kwandiri, neni ndichakunzwai.
At that time, when you pray, I will heed you.
13 Muchanditsvaka mukandiwana, pamunonditsvaka nemwoyo yenyu yose.
If you earnestly desire for me [to bless you], you will experience me [blessing you].
14 Ndichawanikwa nemi,” ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha, “uye ndichakudzosai kubva kuutapwa. Ndichakuunganidzai kubva kundudzi dzose nokunzvimbo dzandakanga ndakudzingirai,” ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha, “uye ndichakudzoseraizve kunzvimbo yandakanga ndakubudisai ndichikuendesai kuutapwa.”
I will make my help available to you [IDM]. I will cause you to no longer be slaves [in Babylon]. I will gather you from all the nations to which I have exiled you, and I will bring you back [here to your own land], to the place from which you were taken.”
15 Imi mungati henyu, “Jehovha akatimutsira vaprofita muBhabhironi,”
[Some of] you say that Yahweh has appointed prophets for you [there] in Babylon.
16 asi zvanzi naJehovha pamusoro pamambo achagara pachigaro choushe chaDhavhidhi navanhu vose vanosara vari muguta rino, vanhu venyika yenyu vasina kuenda nemi kuutapwa,
But this is what Yahweh says about the king who rules [here] in Jerusalem, and about all the other people who are [still] living here—your relatives who were not taken to Babylon with you.
17 hongu, zvanzi naJehovha Wamasimba Ose, “Ndichatuma munondo, nzara nedenda pamusoro pavo uye ndichavaita samaonde akaipa akaora zvokuti haangadyiwi.
The Commander of the armies of angels says this: “I will cause them to experience wars and famines and diseases. I will cause them to become like [SIM] bad figs that are very rotten, with the result that no one can eat them.
18 Ndichavatevera nomunondo, nzara nedenda uye ndichavaita chinhu chinovengwa noushe hwose hwenyika uye chinhu chinotukwa, nechinotyisa, nechinosekwa, nechinoshorwa pakati pendudzi dzose kwandakavadzingira.
I will not stop causing them to experience wars and famines and diseases. And I will scatter them all around the world. In every country where I (force them to be taken/exile them), I will cause them to be people whom [others] curse and be horrified about and make fun of [DOU].
19 Nokuti havana kuteerera kumashoko angu,” ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha, “mashoko andakatuma ndatumazve kwavari navaranda vangu vaprofita. Nemiwo vakatapwa makaramba kuateerera,” ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha.
[That will happen] because they have refused to pay attention to my messages, messages that I gave to the prophets whom I sent to them. And you [who have been exiled to Babylon] have not paid attention to them, [either].” [That is what] Yahweh says.
20 Naizvozvo, chinzwai shoko raJehovha, imi mose makatapwa vandakadzingira kuBhabhironi muchibva kuJerusarema.
[Therefore], you people who have been (exiled/forced to go) from Jerusalem to Babylon, listen to this message from Yahweh.
21 Zvanzi naJehovha Wamasimba Ose, Mwari weIsraeri, pamusoro paAhabhu mwanakomana waKoraya naZedhekia mwanakomana waMaaseya, vari kukuprofitirai nhema muzita rangu: “Ndichavaisa muruoko rwaNebhukadhinezari mambo weBhabhironi, uye achavauraya pamberi penyu muchizviona.
This is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [we] Israelis [worship], says about Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and about Zedekiah, the son of Maaseiah, who are telling lies to you, saying that they are giving messages [MTY] from him: “They will be seized and taken to [MTY] King Nebuchadnezzar, who will cause them to be executed while you are watching.
22 Nokuda kwavo, vatapwa vose vakabva kuJudha vari muBhabhironi vachashandisa chituko ichi: ‘Jehovha akuitire sezvaakaita kuna Zedhekia naAhabhu avo vakapiswa mumoto namambo weBhabhironi.’
Because of [what will happen to] them, all you people who have been taken from Judah to Babylon will say this when they curse someone: ‘I hope/wish that Yahweh will do to you the same thing that he did to Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the King of Babylon caused to be [killed by being] burned in a fire.’
23 Nokuti vakaita zvinhu zvinonyangadza muIsraeri; vakaita upombwe navakadzi vavavakidzani vavo uye vakareva nhema muzita rangu, izvo zvandisina kuvaudza kuti vaite. Ndinozviziva uye ndiri chapupu chazvo,” ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha.
They have done terrible things to [my] Israeli people. They have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and they have spoken lies, saying that they were messages [MTY] from me. They have said things that I did not tell them to say, and I, Yahweh, have heard them [say those things].”
24 Udza Shemaya muNeherami kuti,
[Yahweh told me to] send this message to Shemaiah, a man from Nehelam [town who was living in Babylon]:
25 “Zvanzi naJehovha Wamasimba Ose, Mwari weIsraeri: Wakatumira matsamba muzita rako kuvanhu vose vomuJerusarema, kuna Zefania mwanakomana waMaaseya muprista, nokuna vamwe vaprista vose. Wakati kuna Zefania,
This is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [we] Israelis [worship], says: “You wrote a letter that no one told you to write. You sent it to Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, and [you sent copies] to the other priests and all the [other] people here in Jerusalem. [This is what] you wrote to him:
26 ‘Jehovha akakugadza kuva muprista panzvimbo yaJehoyadha kuti uve mutariri weimba yaJehovha; unofanira kuisa muchitokisi nomumangetani munhu upi zvake anopenga achiita somuprofita.
[Zephaniah], Yahweh has appointed you to be the priest instead of Jehoiada, to supervise those who work in the temple. Anyone who acts like a crazy man and who claims that he is a prophet, you should put his arms and legs and head into (stocks/a wooden frame [so that he cannot move)].
27 Saka wakaregererei kuranga Jeremia weAnatoti, anozviti muprofita pakati penyu?
So why have you not done anything to stop Jeremiah, the man from Anathoth [town], who [pretends that he] is a prophet among you?
28 Akatuma shoko iri kwatiri paBhabhironi, achiti: Zvichatora nguva yakareba. Naizvozvo zvivakirei dzimba mugogara; murime mapindu mugodya zvibereko zvawo.’”
He sent a letter to us [who are here] in Babylon, saying that [we will be here for] a long time. He said that [therefore] we should build houses and plan to stay here, and plant gardens, and eat the food that is produced in the gardens.”
29 Uye, Zefania muprista akaverengera muprofita Jeremia tsamba iyi.
[But when] Zephaniah the priest [received] the letter from you, he [brought it to me and] read it to me.
30 Ipapo shoko raJehovha rakasvika kuna Jeremia, richiti,
Then Yahweh gave me this message:
31 “Tumira shoko iri kuvatapwa vose, uti, ‘Zvanzi naJehovha pamusoro paShemaya, muNeherami: Nokuti Shemaya akuprofitirai, kunyange ini ndisina kumutuma, uye aita kuti mutende nhema,
“Send this message to all the people [from Judah] who are there [in Babylon]. Say that this is what Yahweh says about Shemaiah, the man from Nehelam: ‘I did not appoint him, but he has deceived you and caused you to believe the lies that he prophesied.
32 zvanzi naJehovha: Zvirokwazvo ndicharanga Shemaya muNeherami nezvizvarwa zvake. Haangavi nomunhu achasara pakati pavanhu ava, kana kuona zvinhu zvakanaka zvandichaitira vanhu vangu, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha, nokuti akaparidza zvokundimukira.’”
So, I will punish him and his family. He has incited you to rebel against me. Because of that, all of his descendants will soon die. I will do [many] good things for [you], my people, but he and his descendants will not see those things, [because they will be dead]. [That will surely happen because I], Yahweh, have said it!’”
