Yeremia 38
1 Matan babarima Sefatia, Pashur babarima Gedalia, Selemia babarima Yukal ne Malkia babarima Pashur tee nsɛm a na Yeremia reka kyerɛ nnipa no nyinaa sɛ,
[Four officials, ] Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, Jehucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of Malkijah, heard what I had been telling all the people.
2 “Yei ne deɛ Awurade seɛ: Obiara a ɔbɛtena kuropɔn yi mu bɛwu wɔ akofena, ɛkɔm anaa ɔyaredɔm ano, nanso obiara a ɔbɛkɔ Babiloniafoɔ afa no bɛtena nkwa mu. Ɔbɛnya ne tiri adidi mu, ɔbɛtena nkwa mu.
[I had been telling them] that Yahweh was saying, “Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die. They will be killed by [their enemies’] swords or from famines or from diseases. But those who surrender to the Babylonian army, they will be spared. They will not be killed.
3 Na yei ne deɛ Awurade seɛ, ‘Ampa ara, wɔde saa kuropɔn yi bɛhyɛ Babiloniahene akodɔm nsa, na wɔn na wɔbɛdi so.’”
Yahweh also says that the army of the King of Babylon will certainly capture this city [DOU].”
4 Ɛno enti adwumayɛfoɔ no ka kyerɛɛ ɔhene no sɛ, “Ɛsɛ sɛ wɔkum saa ɔbarima yi. Ɔde nsɛm a ɔreka no bu asraafoɔ a wɔaka wɔ kuropɔn yi mu ne nnipa no nyinaa aba mu. Saa ɔbarima yi nhwehwɛ saa nnipa yi yiedie na mmom wɔn sɛeɛ.”
So those officials [went] to the king and said, “This man [Jeremiah] should be executed! Because of what he is saying, he is discouraging our soldiers who remain in the city. He is also discouraging the people. He is not saying things that will help us; he is saying things that will defeat us.”
5 Ɔhene Sedekia buaa sɛ, “Ɔwɔ mo nsam, ɔhene rentumi nyɛ biribiara ntia mo.”
King Zedekiah said, “All right, do to him what you want to; I do not have the power to stop you.”
6 Enti wɔfaa Yeremia de no kɔhyɛɛ ɔhene babarima Malkia abura a ɛwɔ awɛmfoɔ adihɔ no mu. Wɔde ntampehoma gyaagyaa no too abura no mu; na nsuo nni mu, mmom atɛkyɛ na na ɛwom, enti Yeremia kɔhyɛɛ atɛkyɛ no mu.
So those officials took me from my cell and lowered me by ropes into a well in the courtyard. The well belonged to Malkijah, who was a son of the king. There was no water in the well, but there was [a lot of] mud, so I sank [down deep] into the mud.
7 Na Ebed-Melek Kusni odwumayɛni a ɔwɔ ahemfie hɔ tee sɛ wɔde Yeremia akɔto abura no mu. Ɛberɛ a ɔhene no te Benyamin Ɛpono hɔ no,
But Ebed-Melech, a palace official from Ethiopia, heard [someone say] that I was in the well. [At that time] the king was deciding/judging people’s cases at the Benjamin Gate.
8 Ebed-Melek firii ahemfie hɔ kɔka kyerɛɛ no sɛ,
Ebed-Melech went out of the palace and said to the king,
9 “Ɔdɛɛfoɔ, deɛ saa nnipa yi ayɛ nyinaa yɛ amumuyɛsɛm a ɛtia odiyifoɔ Yeremia. Wɔato no atwene abura mu, baabi a ɛkɔm bɛkum no wɔ ɛberɛ a burodo asa wɔ kuropɔn yi mu.”
“Your majesty, those men have done a very evil thing. They have put the prophet Jeremiah in a well. [Almost] all the food in the city is gone, [so they will not be able to bring him any food] and as a result he will die from hunger!”
10 Ɛna ɔhene hyɛɛ Kusni, Ebed-Melek sɛ, “Fa mmarima aduasa firi ha ka wo ho, na monkɔyi odiyifoɔ Yeremia mfiri abura no mu, ansa na wawu.”
So the king told Ebed-Melech, “Take thirty of my men/soldiers with you, and pull Jeremiah out of the well, in order that he does not die!”
11 Ɛno enti, Ebed-Melek faa mmarima no kaa ne ho, na wɔkɔɔ ɛdan bi a ɛwɔ adekorabea ase, wɔ ahemfie hɔ. Ɔkɔsesaa ntomago ne ntadeɛ dada de kyekyeree ntampehoma ho, gyaa mu maa Yeremia wɔ abura no mu.
So Ebed-Melech took thirty men with him and they went into a room in the palace below the room where they stored very valuable things. There they found some old rags and discarded clothing. They took those things and went to the well. They fastened them to a rope and lowered the rope to me.
12 Na Kusni, Ebed-Melek ka kyerɛɛ Yeremia sɛ, “Fa ntomago ne ntadeɛ dada no hyehyɛ wo mmɔtoam, na ntampehoma no ammia wo.” Na Yeremia yɛɛ saa,
Then Ebed-Melech called down to me, “Put these rags underneath your armpits, to protect you from [being injured by] the ropes!” So I did that.
13 Wɔde ntampehoma no twetwee no de yii no firii abura no mu. Na Yeremia tenaa awɛmfoɔ adihɔ hɔ.
Then they pulled me out of the well. I [returned] to the courtyard where the palace guards stayed, and I stayed there.
14 Na Ɔhene Sedekia soma ma wɔkɔfaa odiyifoɔ Yeremia baa Awurade asɔredan ano ɛkwan a ɛtɔ so mmiɛnsa hɔ. Ɔhene ka kyerɛɛ Yeremia sɛ, “Merebɛbisa wo asɛm bi, mfa biribiara nsie me.”
[One day] King Zedekiah summoned me, and I was brought to the king, [who was waiting for me] at the entrance of the temple. He said to me, “I want to ask you something. I want you [to answer me truthfully, and] and to not conceal anything.”
15 Yeremia ka kyerɛɛ Sedekia sɛ, “Sɛ mema wo mmuaeɛ a, worenkum me anaa? Mpo sɛ metu wo fo a, worentie me.”
I replied, “If I tell you [the truth], you will [command that I] be executed. And if I give you [good] advice, you will not pay attention to what I say.”
16 Nanso ɔhene Sedekia kaa saa ntam yi kɔkoam kyerɛɛ Yeremia sɛ, “Sɛ Awurade a ɔma yɛn nkwa no te ase yi, merenkum wo, na meremfa wonhyɛ wɔn a wɔpɛ sɛ wɔkum wo no nsa.”
But King Zedekiah secretly promised me, “[Tell me the truth]! And as surely as Yahweh lives, I will not [cause] you to be executed, and I will not hand you over to those who are wanting to kill you.”
17 Afei Yeremia ka kyerɛɛ Sedekia sɛ, “Yei ne deɛ Asafo Awurade Onyankopɔn, Israel Onyankopɔn, no seɛ: ‘Sɛ wode wo ho ma Babiloniahene adwumayɛfoɔ a, wɔrenkum wo na wɔrenhye kuropɔn yi, wo ne wʼabusuafoɔ bɛtena nkwa mu.
[So] then I said to Zedekiah, “This is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom [we] Israelis [worship], says: ‘If you surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, you and your family will (be spared/not be killed), and this city will not be burned.
18 Na sɛ woremfa wo ho mma Babiloniahene adwumayɛfoɔ a, wɔde saa kuropɔn yi bɛma Babiloniafoɔ, na wɔbɛhye no dwerɛbee; na wʼankasa rentumi nnwane mfiri wɔn nsam.’”
But if you refuse to surrender to them, you will not escape. And the army from Babylonia will capture this city and completely burn it.’”
19 Ɔhene Sedekia ka kyerɛɛ Yeremia sɛ, “Mesuro Yudafoɔ a wɔkɔ Babiloniafoɔ afa no, ɛfiri sɛ, ebia Babiloniafoɔ no de me bɛma wɔn na wɔayɛ me ayakayakadeɛ.”
The king replied, “But I am afraid [to surrender to the soldiers from Babylon], because their officers may hand me over to the people of Judah who have already joined the soldiers from Babylonia, and those people from Judah will mistreat me.”
20 Yeremia buaa sɛ, “Wɔremfa wo mma wɔn. Tie Awurade asɛm na yɛ deɛ meka kyerɛ woɔ. Ɛno na ɛbɛma asi wo yie na woanya nkwa.
I replied, “If you obey Yahweh by doing what I tell you to do, they will not hand you over to our people. Things will go well for you, and you will remain alive.
21 Nanso sɛ woamfa wo ho amma Babiloniafoɔ no de a, deɛ Awurade ayi akyerɛ me nie:
But if you refuse to surrender, this is what Yahweh has revealed to me:
22 Mmaa a wɔaka wɔ Yudahene ahemfie hɔ nyinaa no, wɔde wɔn bɛfiri adi abrɛ Babiloniahene adwumayɛfoɔ no. Saa mmaa no bɛka akyerɛ wo sɛ, “‘Wɔdaadaa wo na wɔdii wo so wo nnamfonom a wogye wɔn die no. Wo nan amem wɔ atɛkyɛ mu; wo nnamfonom agya wo hɔ kɔ.’
All the women who remain in your palace will be brought out and given to the officers of the king of Babylon. Then those women will say to you: ‘You had friends whom [you thought] you could trust, but they have deceived you and caused you to make a wrong decision. Now [it is as though] you are stuck in mud, and your friends have abandoned you.’
23 “Wɔde wo yerenom nyinaa ne wo mma bɛbrɛ Babiloniafoɔ no. Wo deɛ worentumi nnwane mfiri wɔn nsam, na mmom Babiloniahene bɛkye wo, na wɔbɛhye saa kuropɔn yi.”
All of your wives and children [in the city] will be led out to the soldiers from Babylonia, and you also will not escape. [The soldiers of] the King of Babylon will seize you, and they will burn down this city.”
24 Na Sedekia ka kyerɛɛ Yeremia sɛ, “Mma obiara nte saa nkɔmmɔdie yi, anyɛ saa a, wobɛwu.
Then Zedekiah said to me, “Do not tell anyone what you told me; if you tell anyone, my officials may kill you.
25 Sɛ adwumayɛfoɔ no te sɛ me ne wo kasaeɛ, na wɔbɛbisa wo sɛ, ‘Ma yɛnte deɛ woka kyerɛɛ ɔhene ne deɛ ɔhene nso ka kyerɛɛ woɔ; mfa nsie yɛn anyɛ saa a yɛbɛkum wo a,’
If my officials find out that I talked to you, perhaps they will come to you and say, ‘Tell us what you and the king were talking about. If you do not tell us, we will kill you.’
26 ɛnneɛ ka kyerɛ wɔn sɛ, ‘Na meresrɛ ɔhene sɛ ɔmmfa me nsane nkɔ Yonatan efie mma me nkɔwu wɔ hɔ.’”
If that happens, [just] tell them that you pleaded with me not to send you back to the [dungeon/cell in] Jonathan’s house, [because you were afraid that] you would die [if you were put there again].”
27 Adwumayɛfoɔ no nyinaa baa Yeremia hɔ bɛbisaa no, na ɔkaa deɛ ɔhene hyɛɛ no sɛ ɔnka no nyinaa. Enti, wɔanka hwee ankyɛre no bio, ɛfiri sɛ obiara ante ɔne ɔhene nkɔmmɔdie no.
And [that is what happened]. The king’s officials came to me and asked [why the king had summoned me. But] I told them what the king told me to tell them. So they did not ask me any more [questions], because no one had heard what the king and I had said to each other.
28 Na Yeremia tenaa ɔwɛmfoɔ adihɔ hɔ kɔsii da a wɔfaa Yerusalem. Sɛdeɛ wɔfaa Yerusalem nie:
So I remained being guarded in the courtyard [of the palace], until the day that [the army of Babylonia] captured Jerusalem.
