Yeremia 27

1 Yudahene Yosia babarima Sedekia adedi mfiase no, asɛm yi fi Awurade hɔ baa Yeremia nkyɛn se,

Soon after Zedekiah became the King of Judah, Yahweh gave a message to me.

2 Sɛɛ na Awurade ka kyerɛɛ me: “Fa mmeamdua ne nkyehama yɛ konnua sɛn wo kɔn mu.

This is what he said to me: “Make a (yoke/set of wooden bars to fasten around the neck of an ox), but fasten it around your own neck with leather straps.

3 Fa nkra ma abɔfo a wɔaba Yudahene Sedekia nkyɛn wɔ Yerusalem na wɔmfa nkɔma ahemfo a wɔwɔ Edom, Moab, Amon, Tiro ne Sidon.

[Then] send messages to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon, by telling those messages to the ambassadors from those countries who have come to Jerusalem to [talk to] King Zedekiah.

4 Fa nkra kɔma wɔn wuranom se: Sɛɛ na Asafo Awurade, Israel Nyankopɔn se, ‘Ka eyi kyerɛ wo wuranom se:

Tell them to give this message to their kings: This is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom the Israeli [people worship, ]:

5 Mede me tumi kɛse ne me basa a mateɛ mu yɛɛ asase ne so nnipa ne mmoa a wɔwɔ so, na mede ma obiara a mepɛ.

‘With my very great power [MTY, DOU] I created the earth and the people and the animals that are on the earth. And I can give my power to anyone whom I want to.

6 Afei mede mo aman nyinaa bɛhyɛ mʼakoa Babiloniahene Nebukadnessar nsa, na mede wuram mmoa mpo bɛhyɛ nʼase.

And now I am going to enable King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who does what I want him to do, to control your countries. I am going to enable him to rule everything, even the wild animals.

7 Amanaman nyinaa bɛsom no ne ne babarima ne ne nenabarima kosi sɛ ne bere betwa mu; na afei aman bebree ne ahemfo akɛseakɛse bedi ne so.

[The people of] all the nations will work for him, and [later] for his son, and [later] for his grandson, until the time for them [to rule] is finished. Then [the armies of] many great kings from many nations will conquer Babylon.’

8 “‘Nanso sɛ ɔman bi anaa ahenni bi rensom Babiloniahene Nebukadnessar anaa wɔremfa wɔn kɔn nhyɛ ne konnua ase a, mede afoa, ɔkɔm ne ɔyaredɔm bɛtwe saa ɔman no aso, kosi sɛ mede ne nsa bɛsɛe no, Awurade na ose.

But now I tell you that you must [do what the king of Babylon wants you to do] [MET], [like an ox that has] a yoke on its neck [must do what its master wants it to do]. I will punish any nation that refuses to do that. I will cause those people to experience war and famine and diseases, until [the armies of] Babylon have conquered that nation.

9 Ɛno nti munntie mo adiyifo, mo nkɔmhyɛfo, mo adae asekyerɛfo, mo samanfrɛfo anaa mo ntafowayifo a wɔka kyerɛ mo se, “Morensom Babiloniahene.”

So, do not pay attention to your [false] prophets and fortune-tellers and people who predict what will happen by working magic or by talking with spirits of dead people. Those people say that the king of Babylon will not conquer your country.

10 Wɔhyɛ mo atoro nkɔm a ɛbɛma wɔayi mo afi mo asase so akɔ akyirikyiri nko ara; mɛpam mo ama mo ase ayera.

Those people are [all] liars. [If you believe what they say, ] it will result in your being exiled from your land. I will cause you to be taken from your land, and you will die far away.

11 Nanso sɛ ɔman biara de ne kɔn bɛhyɛ Babiloniahene konnua no ase na wasom no a, mɛma saa ɔman no aka ɔno ara asase so na wadɔw so atena so, Awurade, na ose.’”

But the people of any country who do what the King of Babylon wants them to do will remain in their own country and be able to plant their crops [MTY] [as they always have done. That will surely happen because I], Yahweh, have said it.”

12 Mede saa nkra koro no ara kɔmaa Yudahene Sedekia se, “Momfa mo kɔn nhyɛ Babiloniahene konnua ase na monsom ɔno ne ne nkurɔfo na mubenya nkwa.

[After I gave that message to those ambassadors, ] I gave the same message to King Zedekiah of Judah. [I said to him, ] “If you want to remain alive, do what the King of Babylon and his officials want you to do [MET].

13 Adɛn nti na ɛsɛ sɛ wo ne wo nkurɔfo wuwu wɔ afoa, ɔkɔm ne ɔyaredɔm ano, sɛnea Awurade de ahunahuna ɔman biara a ɔmpɛ sɛ ɔsom Babiloniahene no?

[It would be foolish for you not to do that, because the result would be that] you and your people would die by [your enemies’] swords or by famine or diseases, which Yahweh will cause any nation to experience that refuses to allow the King of Babylon to rule them.

14 Munntie adiyifo no a wɔka kyerɛ mo se, ‘Morensom Babiloniahene,’ efisɛ wɔhyɛ mo atoro nkɔm.

Do not pay attention to those prophets who say to you, ‘The King of Babylon will not conquer your country.’ They are liars.

15 ‘Mensomaa wɔn’ Awurade na ose. ‘Wɔhyɛ atoro nkɔm wɔ me din mu. Enti mɛpam mo na moayera, mo ne adiyifo a wɔhyɛ mo nkɔm no.’”

[This is what] Yahweh says: ‘I have not appointed those prophets. They are saying that I [MTY] gave them messages, but they are lying. So, [if you believe them, ] I will expel you from this land. And you and all those prophets will die [in Babylon]!’”

16 Na meka kyerɛɛ asɔfo no ne saa nkurɔfo yi nyinaa se, “Sɛɛ na Awurade se: Munntie adiyifo no a wɔhyɛ mo nkɔm se, ‘Ɛrenkyɛ koraa wɔde Awurade fi nneɛma no befi Babilonia aba.’ Wɔhyɛ atoro nkɔm kyerɛ mo.

Then I spoke to the priests and the other people, and I said, “This is what Yahweh says: ‘Do not believe your prophets who tell you that all the gold items [that were taken] from my temple [by soldiers from Babylon] will soon be returned from Babylon, because what they are prophesying is a lie.

17 Munntie wɔn. Monsom Babiloniahene na mubenya nkwa. Adɛn nti na ɛsɛ sɛ saa kuropɔn yi sɛe?

Do not pay attention to what they say. Surrender to the king of Babylon. If you do that, you will remain alive. [If you do not do that] [RHQ], this entire city will be destroyed.

18 Sɛ wɔyɛ adiyifo na Awurade asɛm wɔ wɔn mu a, ma wɔn nkotow nsrɛ Asafo Awurade na nneɛma a wɔde siesie dan mu a aka wɔ Awurade fi ne Yudahene ahemfi ne Yerusalem no, wɔamfa ankɔ Babilonia.

If they are really prophets who speak messages from me, tell them to plead to me, the Commander of the armies of angels, that [the soldiers from Babylon] will not be allowed to take away to Babylon the valuable items that [still] remain in the temple and in the king’s palace and in [the other palaces in] Jerusalem.

19 Na sɛɛ na Asafo Awurade ka fa kɔbere mfrafrae afadum, po, nnyinaso a wotumi pia ne nneɛma a wɔde siesie dan mu no a aka wɔ kuropɔn yi mu no ho.

[I say this] because the [huge] pillars [that are in front of the temple] and the large water tank and the [ten water] carts and all the other items that are used [for offering sacrifices are still in this city].

20 Nea Babiloniahene Nebukadnessar amfa ankɔ bere a ɔbɛfaa Yudahene Yehoiakim babarima Yehoiakyin ne Yuda ne Yerusalem mmapɔmma fii Yerusalem kɔɔ nkoasom mu wɔ Babilonia no.

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon left those things here when he exiled Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, to Babylon, along with all the [other] leaders of Jerusalem and [the leaders of other places in] Judah.

21 Yiw, nea Asafo Awurade, Israel Nyankopɔn, ka fa nneɛma a aka wɔ Awurade fi, Yudahene ahemfi ne Yerusalem no ho no ni:

[I], the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom the Israeli [people worship], say this about all those valuable things that are still outside the temple and in the palace of the king of Judah and in [other places in]:

22 ‘Wɔbɛfa akɔ Babilonia, na hɔ na ɛbɛka kosi da a mɛba abɛfa,’ Awurade na ose. ‘Afei mede nneɛma no bɛsan aba bio abesisi wɔn sibea wɔ ha.’”

They will [all] be carried away to Babylon. And they will stay there until I say that they should be brought back to Jerusalem. Then they will be bought back here. [That is what I, ] Yahweh, say.’”