Yeremia 7

1 Yei ne asɛm a ɛfiri Awurade hɔ baa Yeremia nkyɛn:

Yahweh gave me another message. He said to me,

2 “Gyina Awurade asɔredan no ɛpono ano, na ka saa asɛm yi: “‘Montie Awurade asɛm, mo nnipa a mo wɔ Yuda nyinaa a mofa apono yi ano kɔsom Awurade.

“Go to the entrance of my temple, and give this message to the people: You people of Judah who worship here, listen to this message from Yahweh!

3 Yei ne deɛ Asafo Awurade, Israel Onyankopɔn no seɛ: Monsesa mo akwan ne mo nneyɛɛ, na mɛma mo atena ha.

The Commander of the armies of angels says to you, ['If you] stop doing evil things and start doing what is right, I will allow you to remain living in your land.'

4 Mommfa mo ho nto nnaadaasɛm so na monnka sɛ, “Yei ne Awurade asɔredan, Awurade asɔredan, Awurade asɔredan!”

[But some people] are repeatedly saying to you, ‘The temple of Yahweh is here, [so we will be safe]; [he will not allow us and the temple to be destroyed].’ But do not pay attention to what they say, because they are deceiving you.

5 Sɛ mosesa mo akwan ne mo nneyɛɛ nokorɛm, na mone mo ho mo ho di no tenenee mu,

[I will act mercifully to you only] if you change your behavior and stop doing evil things, and if you [start to] act fairly/justly toward others,

6 sɛ moanhyɛ ɔhɔhoɔ, awisiaa anaa okunafoɔ so, na moanhwie mogya a ɛdi bem angu wɔ ha, na moanni anyame foforɔ akyi ankɔ mo ara ɔsɛeɛ mu a,

and if you stop oppressing foreigners [who live in your country], and orphans and widows, and if you stop murdering people, and if you stop worshiping (foreign gods/idols). However, if you continue to do those things, you will be destroyed.

7 ɛnneɛ mɛma mo atena ha, asase a mede maa mo agyanom afebɔɔ no.

If you do what I have told you, I will allow you to stay in this land that I promised to your ancestors that it would belong to them [and their descendants] forever.

8 Nanso monhwɛ, mode mo ho ato nnaadaa nsɛm a ɛho nni mfasoɔ so.

[People are repeatedly] telling you, [‘The temple is here, so we are safe]’, and you are trusting/believing [that what they are saying is true], but it is a lie. [Those people are deceiving you, and what they say is] worthless.

9 “‘Mobɛbɔ korɔno na moadi awu, mobɛbɔ adwaman na moadi adansekurumu, mobɛhye nnuhwam ama Baal na moadi anyame foforɔ a monnim wɔn akyi,

You think that [RHQ] you can steal things, murder people, commit adultery, tell lies in court, and worship Baal and all those other gods that you did not know about previously,

10 na afei, moaba abɛgyina mʼanim wɔ efie a medin da so na moaka sɛ, “Yɛnni ɔhaw,” sɛ moyɛ akyiwadeɛ yi nyinaa a na monni ɔhaw anaa?

and then come here and stand in front of this temple, which is my temple, and say ‘Nothing bad will happen to us!’, while you continue to do all those abominable things.

11 Na efie a medin da soɔ yi, abɛyɛ adwotwafoɔ tu ama mo anaa? Nanso megu so rehyɛ! Awurade na ɔseɛ.

Do you realize that you are causing this temple, which is my temple, to become like [MET] a den where bandits hide [RHQ]? Do you not know that I see [all the evil things that you people do there]?

12 “‘Na afei monkɔ Silo, beaeɛ bi a, medii ɛkan bɔɔ atenaeɛ de me Din too so, na monhwɛ deɛ meyɛɛ no ɛsiane me nkurɔfoɔ Israelfoɔ amumuyɛ enti.

[Long ago] I put my Sacred Tent at Shiloh [city], to be a place where people would worship me [MTY]. Think about how I [destroyed it] because my people, the Israeli people, did [many] wicked things there.

13 Ɛberɛ a moreyɛ yeinom nyinaa, Awurade na ɔseɛ, mekasa kyerɛɛ mo mpɛn bebree, nanso moantie; mefrɛɛ mo, nanso moannye so.

And while you were continually doing those wicked things, I told you about it many times, but you refused to listen. I called out to you, but you refused to answer [me].

14 Ɛno enti, sɛdeɛ meyɛɛ Silo no, mede bɛyɛ efie a me Din da so no, asɔredan a mode mo ho to so, beaeɛ a mede maa mo ne mo agyanom.

Therefore, just like I destroyed Shiloh, I will [now] destroy this temple that was built for people to worship me [MTY], this temple that you trust in, that is in this place that I gave to you and your ancestors.

15 Mɛpam mo afiri mʼanim sɛdeɛ meyɛɛ mo nuanom Efraimfoɔ no.’

And I will expel you from this land and send you [to other countries] far away from me, just like I did to your relatives, the people of Israel.”

16 “Enti mommmɔ mpaeɛ mma saa nnipa yi, monnsrɛ na monni mma wɔn nso; monnsrɛ me ɛfiri sɛ merentie mo.

[Yahweh said to me, “Jeremiah], do not pray for these people [any longer]. Do not cry for them or plead for [me to help] them, because I will not pay any attention to you.

17 Monhunu deɛ wɔreyɛ wɔ Yuda nkuro no mu ne Yerusalem mmɔntene so anaa?

Do you see [the wicked things] that they are doing in the streets of Jerusalem and in the [other] towns in Judah?

18 Mmɔfra boaboa anyina ano, na agyanom sɔ ogya no ano, mmaa fɔtɔ asikyiresiam de to burodo ma Ɔsoro Hemmaa. Na wɔgu nsã ma anyame foforɔ de hyɛ me abufuo.

The children gather firewood and their fathers use it to make fires [on the altars to burn sacrifices]. The women knead/make dough to make cakes to offer to [their goddess Astarte who is called] the Queen of Heaven. And [on their altars] they pour out offerings of wine to [their] other idols. All of those things cause me to become extremely angry!

19 Na ɛyɛ me na wɔrehyɛ me abufuo anaa? Awurade na ɔseɛ. Na ɛnyɛ wɔn mmom na wɔreha wɔn ho, hyɛ wɔn ho aniwuo anaa?

But I am not [RHQ] the one whom they are hurting; they are really [RHQ] hurting themselves [by doing these things for which they should be] very ashamed!”

20 “Ɛno enti, deɛ Otumfoɔ Awurade seɛ nie: Wɔbɛhwie mʼabufuo ne mʼabufuhyeɛ agu beaeɛ yi so, agu nnipa ne mmoa, mfuo so nnua ne asase no so aba so, na ɛbɛdɛre a ɛrennum.

So Yahweh the Lord says this: “Because I am extremely angry with [what happens at] this place, I will punish these people severely [MTY]; my being very angry will be [like] [MET] a fire that will not be extinguished, and I will destroy the people, [their] animals, [their] fruit trees, and [their] crops.”

21 “‘Yei ne deɛ Asafo Awurade, Israel Onyankopɔn, seɛ: Monkɔ so, momfa mo ɔhyeɛ afɔrebɔ nka mo afɔrebɔ a aka no ho, na mo ankasa monwe ɛnam no!

Therefore, this is what the Commander of the armies of angels says: “Take away [IRO] your offerings that you bring to burn completely on your altars and your [other] sacrifices; [don’t give them to me]; eat them [yourselves]!

22 Na ɛberɛ a meyii mo agyanom firii Misraim na mekasa kyerɛɛ wɔn no, manhyɛ wɔn mmara a ɛfa ɔhyeɛ afɔrebɔ ne afɔrebɔ ho nko ara,

When I led your ancestors out of Egypt, it was not offerings to be completely burned on the altar or [other] sacrifices that I wanted from them.

23 mmom mede saa mmara yi kaa ho: Monyɛ ɔsetie mma me, na mɛyɛ mo Onyankopɔn, na moayɛ me nkurɔfoɔ. Monnante akwan nyinaa a mɛhyɛ mo no so, na asi mo yie.

What I told them was, ‘Obey me; [if you do that], I will be your God and you will be my people. If you do the things that I want you to do, everything will go well for you.’

24 Nanso, wɔantie na wɔannyɛ aso; mmom, wɔfiri wɔn akoma bɔne mu yɛɛ asobrakyeɛ. Wɔsane wɔn akyi na wɔankɔ wɔn anim.

But your ancestors would not pay any attention [DOU] to me. They continued to do [the evil things] that they wanted to do, everything that in their stubborn inner beings they desired to do. Instead of coming closer to me, they went further away from me.

25 Ɛfiri ɛberɛ a mo agyanom firii Misraim de bɛsi ɛnnɛ yi, da biara da ne ɛberɛ biara mesomaa me nkoa adiyifoɔ baa mo nkyɛn.

From the day that your ancestors left Egypt until now, I have continued to send my prophets to you.

26 Nanso wɔantie me na wɔanyɛ aso. Wɔde asoɔden yɛɛ bɔne boroo wɔn agyanom deɛ so.’

But you, [my people], have not listened to me or paid attention to what I said; you have been stubborn, and you have done more sinful things than your ancestors did.”

27 “Sɛ moka yeinom nyinaa kyerɛ wɔn a, wɔrentie mo; sɛ mofrɛ wɔn a wɔrennye so.

[Then Yahweh said to me], “When you tell all this to my people, they will not listen to you. When you call to them, they will not answer.

28 Ɛno enti monka nkyerɛ wɔn sɛ, ‘Yei ne ɔman a ɔnyɛɛ ɔsetie mmaa Awurade, ne Onyankopɔn, na ɔmfaa ntenesoɔ. Nokorɛ asa, na afiri wɔn ano.

Say to them, ‘You people [of Judah] have not obeyed Yahweh, your God; you have not accepted it when he tried to correct you. No one among you is truthful; you do not say anything that is true; [you speak only lies].’

29 Monyi mo tirinwi na monto ngu, montwa agyaadwoɔ wɔ nkokoɔ no so, ɛfiri sɛ Awurade apo, na wagyae saa awoɔ ntoatoasoɔ yi a wɔwɔ na abufuhyeɛ no ase akyi di.

[So, tell them to] cut off their hair [to show that they are mourning]; tell them to go up into the hills and sing a sad funeral song, because I have completely rejected [DOU] this generation [of people] who have made me angry.”

30 “‘Yudafoɔ ayɛ bɔne mʼani so, sɛdeɛ Awurade seɛ nie. Wɔde ahoni a, ɛyɛ akyiwadeɛ asisi efie a me Din da so de agu ho fi.

Yahweh says this: “The people of Judah have done many things that I say are evil. They have set up their disgusting idols in my temple, causing it to become an unacceptable [place to worship me].

31 Wɔasisi Tofet sorɔnsorɔmmea wɔ Ben Hinom bɔnhwa mu ɛhɔ na wɔhye wɔn mmammarima ne wɔn mmammaa. Adeɛ a manhyɛ wɔn na amma mʼadwene mu nso.

They have built altars at Topheth in Ben-Hinnom Valley [outside Jerusalem], and they sacrifice their sons and daughters on those altars. I never commanded them to do that; I never even thought that anyone would do that.

32 Ɛno enti, monhwɛ yie na nna no reba, Awurade na ɔseɛ, a wɔremfrɛ hɔ Tofet anaa Hinom Bɔnhwa bio, na mmom, wɔbɛfrɛ no Okum Bɔnhwa, ɛfiri sɛ wɔbɛsie awufoɔ wɔ Tofet kɔsi sɛ ɛhɔ bɛyɛ ma.

So they should beware! There will be a time when that place will no longer be called Topheth or the Hinnom Valley; instead, it will be called the Valley of Slaughter. There will be a huge number of people who will be buried there, with the result that there will be no space to bury more bodies.

33 Na afei saa nnipa yi afunu bɛyɛ aduane ama ewiem nnomaa ne asase so mmoa, na ɛrenka obiara wɔ hɔ a ɔbɛpam wɔn.

The corpses of my people that are [not buried and are] left on the ground will be eaten by vultures and wild animals, and there will be no one to shoo/chase them away.

34 Mede ahosɛpɛ ne anigyeɛ nnyegyeɛ, ayeforɔ ne ayeforɔkunu nne a ɛwɔ Yuda nkuro ne Yerusalem mmɔntene so, bɛba awieeɛ ɛfiri sɛ asase no bɛda mpan.’”

There will be no one singing and laughing any more in the streets of Jerusalem; there will be no more joyful voices of bridegrooms and brides in Judah, because the land will be completely destroyed.”