Jeremiah Warns Zedekiah
1 King Nebuchadnezzar had a large army made up of people from every kingdom in his empire. He and his army were attacking Jerusalem and all the nearby towns, when the Lord told me 2 to say to King Zedekiah:
I am the Lord, and I am going to let Nebuchadnezzar capture this city and burn it down. 3 You will be taken prisoner and brought to Nebuchadnezzar, and he will speak with you face to face. Then you will be led away to Babylonia.
4 Zedekiah, I promise that you won't die in battle. 5 You will die a peaceful death. People will mourn when you die, and they will light bonfires in your honor, just as they did for your ancestors, the kings who ruled before you.
6 I went to Zedekiah and told him what the Lord had said. 7 Meanwhile, the king of Babylonia was trying to break through the walls of Lachish, Azekah, and Jerusalem, the only three towns of Judah that had not been captured.
The People Break a Promise
8-10 King Zedekiah, his officials, and everyone else in Jerusalem made an agreement to free all Hebrew men and women who were slaves. No Jew would keep another as a slave. And so, all the Jewish slaves were given their freedom.
11 But those slave owners changed their minds and forced their former slaves back into slavery.
12 That's when the Lord told me to say to the people:
13 I am the Lord God of Israel, and I made an agreement with your ancestors when I brought them out of Egypt, where they had been slaves. 14 As part of this agreement, you must let a Hebrew slave go free after six years of service.
Your ancestors did not obey me, 15-16 but you decided to obey me and do the right thing by setting your Hebrew slaves completely free. You even went to my temple, and in my name you made an agreement to set them free. But you have abused my name, because you broke that agreement and forced your former slaves back into slavery.
17 You have disobeyed me by not giving your slaves their freedom. So I will give you freedom—the freedom to die in battle or from disease or hunger. I will make you disgusting to all other nations on earth.
18 You asked me to be a witness when you made the agreement to set your slaves free. And as part of the ceremony you cut a calf into two parts, then walked between the parts. But you people of Jerusalem have broken that agreement as well as my agreement with Israel. So I will do to you what you did to that calf. 19-20 I will let your enemies take all of you prisoner, including the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the royal officials, the priests, and everyone else who walked between the two parts of the calf. These enemies will kill you and leave your bodies lying on the ground as food for birds and wild animals.
21-22 These enemies are King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia and his army. They have stopped attacking Jerusalem, but they want to kill King Zedekiah and his high officials. So I will command them to return and attack again. This time they will conquer the city and burn it down, and they will capture Zedekiah and his officials. I will also let them destroy the towns of Judah, so that no one can live there any longer.
Ombuze ku Sidkija
1 Muhona wa hungira ku ami, indu Nebukadnesar, ombara ya Babilon, notjimbumba tje tjovita tji tja vaterwa i ovira vyovita vyoviwaṋa nomihoko avihe mbya ri kehi ye, tji va rwisa Jerusalem novirongo vyopopezu na tjo. 2 Muhona, Ndjambi wa Israel, we ndji raera kutja mbi katje nai ku Sidkija, ombara ya Juda: “Ami, Muhona, me yandja otjihuro hi mouvara wombara ya Babilon, noyo mai tji nyosa. 3 Ove komoo poṋa; mo kamburwa no yandjewa momake wayo. Ove mo hakaene na yo omurungu nomurungu, nu mamu hungire kumwe; tjazumba ove otji mo i kObabilon. 4 Sidkija, puratena ku imbi mbi me hungirire ove. Ko nokuṱa motjirwa. 5 Mo ṱu onḓiro yohange, nu otja ovandu punga ava twimisire ovyomoro omuwa, indu tji va paka ooiho mukururume, mba ri ozombara komurungu woye, owo wina opunga amave ku twimisire ovyomoro omuwa momuhingo tjingewo. Mave ku riri amave tja nai: ‘Ombara yetu ya ṱu.’ Ami, ngu mbi ri Muhona, owami ngu mba hungire.”
6 Tjazumba otji mba yandja ombuze ndji kombara Sidkija mOjerusalem, 7 otjimbumba tjombara ya Babilon tjovita ngunda ama tji rwisa otjihuro Jerusalem. Otjimbumba hi wina aatji rwisa Lakis na Aseka, imbi ovihuro ovikwao mbya pangininwa ovita, nu mbya sewa po mOjuda.
Ovineya mokukutura ovakarere
8 Ombara Sidkija novature va Jerusalem va tjitire omazuvasaneno 9 wokukutura ovakarere vawo Ovaheberi, ovarumendu novakazendu, kokutja ape ha ningi omundu ngu ma kara nOmuisrael omukwao otja omukarere. 10 Otjiwaṋa atjihe novanane vatjo otji va zuvasanene okukutura ovakarere vawo, nokutja kamaave ve isa po ovakarere rukwao. Owo arire tji ve ve kutura. 11 Nungwari kombunda owo va rundurura omerikutiro wawo, ave yarura ovakarere mba mbu va kuturire nave keveṋiṋikiza kutja ve rire ovakarere rukwao.
12 Tjazumba Muhona, 13 Ndjambi wa Israel, we ndji raera kutja mbi tje nai kotjiwaṋa: “Ami mba tjitire omerikutiropamwe nooiho mukururume, indu tji mbe ve yamene kOvaengipte ne ve kutura kouhuura. Ami mbe ve raerere kutja 14 aruhe kombunda yozombura hambombari ve sokukutura omukarere auhe Omuheberi ngwe ve karera oure wozombura hamboumwe. Nungwari ooiho mukururume kave ningire ko na tja na ami, nu kave puratenene ko ku imbi mbi mbe ve raerere. 15 Nambano otjikando hi eṋe mwa rundurura omeripuriro weṋu nu mwa tjita imbi mbyaa vi tjata ku ami. Eṋe amuhe mwa zuvasana okukutura Ovaisrael ovakweṋu, nu mwa tjitira omerikutiropamwe momurungu wandje, mondjuwo yandje ami mu mbi rikotamenenwa. 16 Nungwari tjazumba mwa rundurura omeripuriro weṋu rukwao, namu he ndji raisire ondengero. Eṋe amuhe mwa kotora ovakarere avehe mbu mwa kuturire otja owo pu va zerire okukuturwa, notji mwe ve ṋiṋikiza okurira ovakarere veṋu rukwao. 17 Nambano ami, ngu mbi ri Muhona, otji me tja eṋe kamu karere nonḓuviro ku ami; kamu kuturire Ovaisrael ovakweṋu. Osemba, ami nambano me mu pe ongutukiro ndji: Ongutukiro yokuṱa movita, noyokuṱa i omutjise omuzeu nondjara. Me yandjere kutja oviwaṋa avihe mouye vi yaukisiwe i imbi ami mbi me tjiti ku eṋe. 18-19 Ovahongore va Juda nova Jerusalem, novahongore vondjuwo youhona, novapristeri novanane avehe va tjita omerikutiropamwe na ami mokukawondja pokati kotumbembera tuvari twondana ondume ndji va haṋa pokati. Nungwari owo va teya omerikutiropamwe nave ha ṱakamisa omambo womerikutiropamwe nga. Otji me tjiti kovandu mba ihi owo tji va tjita kondana ondume ndjo. 20 Ami meve yandja momake wovanavita na wo, nowaimba mbu mave vanga okuvezepa; noturova twawo matu riwa i ozonḓera zeyuru novipuka vyokuti. 21 Sidkija, ombara ya Juda, novahongore ve wina meve yandja momake wa imba mbu mave vanga okuvezepa. Meve yandja momake wotjimbumba tja Babilon tjovita tji tja isa nambano nai okumurwisa. 22 Tara, ami me yandja omarakiza, nowo mave kotoka kotjihuro hi. Owo mave tji rwisa, ave tji kambura nave tji nyosa. Ami me tjiti kutja ovirongo vya Juda vi rire ongaango mu mu ha tura omundu. Ami, ngu mbi ri Muhona, owami ngu mba hungire.”
