Jeremiah Is Held Prisoner in a Dry Well
1 One day, Shephatiah, Gedaliah, Jehucal, and Pashhur heard me tell the people of Judah 2-3 that the Lord had said, “If you stay here in Jerusalem, you will die in battle or from disease or hunger, and the Babylonian army will capture the city anyway. But if you surrender to the Babylonians, they will let you live.”
4 So the four of them went to the king and said, “You should put Jeremiah to death, because he is making the soldiers and everyone else lose hope. He isn't trying to help our people; he's trying to harm them.”
5 Zedekiah replied, “Do what you want with him. I can't stop you.”
6 Then they took me back to the courtyard of the palace guards and let me down with ropes into the well that belonged to Malchiah, the king's son. There was no water in the well, but I sank down in the mud.
7-8 Ebedmelech from Ethiopia was an official at the palace, and he heard what they had done to me. So he went to speak with King Zedekiah, who was holding court at Benjamin Gate. 9 Ebedmelech said, “Your Majesty, Jeremiah is a prophet, and those men were wrong to throw him into a well. And when Jerusalem runs out of food, Jeremiah will starve to death down there.”
10 Zedekiah answered, “Take 30 of my soldiers and pull Jeremiah out before he dies.”
11 Ebedmelech and the soldiers went to the palace and got some rags from the room under the treasury. He used ropes to lower them into the well. 12 Then he said, “Put these rags under your arms so the ropes won't hurt you.” After I did, 13 the men pulled me out. And from then on, I was kept in the courtyard of the palace guards.
King Zedekiah Questions Jeremiah
14 King Zedekiah had me brought to his private entrance to the temple, and he said, “I'm going to ask you something, and I want to know the truth.”
15 “Why?” I replied. “You won't listen, and you might even have me killed!”
16 He said, “I swear in the name of the living Lord our Creator that I won't have you killed. No one else can hear what we say, and I won't let anyone kill you.”
17 Then I told him that the Lord had said: “Zedekiah, I am the Lord God All-Powerful, the God of Israel. I promise that if you surrender to King Nebuchadnezzar's officers, you and your family won't be killed, and Jerusalem won't be burned down. 18 But if you don't surrender, I will let the Babylonian army capture Jerusalem and burn it down, and you will be taken prisoner.”
19 Zedekiah answered, “I can't surrender to the Babylonians. I'm too afraid of the people of Judah who have already joined them. The Babylonians might hand me over to them, and they would torture me.”
20 I said, “If you will just obey the Lord, the Babylonians won't hand you over to those Jews. You will be allowed to live, and all will go well for you. 21 But the Lord has shown me that if you refuse to obey, 22 then the women of your palace will be taken prisoner by Nebuchadnezzar's officials. And those women will say to you:
Friends you trusted led you astray.
Now you're trapped in mud,
and those friends you trusted
have all turned away.
23 The Babylonian army will take your wives and children captive, you will be taken as a prisoner to the King of Babylonia, and Jerusalem will be burned down.”
24 Zedekiah said, “Jeremiah, if you tell anyone what we have talked about, you might lose your life. 25 And I'm sure that if my officials hear about our meeting, they will ask you what we said to each other. They might even threaten to kill you if you don't tell them. 26 So if they question you, tell them you were begging me not to send you back to the prison at Jonathan's house, because going back there would kill you.”
27 The officials did come and question me about my meeting with the king, and I told them exactly what he had ordered me to say. They never spoke to me about the meeting again, since no one had heard us talking.
28 I was held in the courtyard of the palace guards until the day Jerusalem was captured.
Jeremia mondjombo ndja pwira
1 Sefatia, omuzandu wa Matan, na Gedalja, omuzandu wa Pashuri, na Jukal, omuzandu wa Selemja, na Pashur, omuzandu wa Malkija, va zuva kutja ami ee raere otjiwaṋa kutja 2 Muhona wa tjere nai: “Ngamwa auhe ngu ma kara motjihuro ma ṱu movita poo ma ṱu i ondjara poo i omutjise omuzeu. Nungwari ngamwa auhe ngu ma piti ne keriyandja omuini kOvababilon ke nokuṱa; eye, tjiri, ma yama omuinyo we.” 3 Ami wina mbe ve raera kutja Muhona wa tjere nai: “Otjihuro hi matji yandjewa mouvara wotjimbumba tja Babilon tjovita, notjo matji tji kambura.”
4 Ovahongore arire tji va i kombara ave katja: “Omurumendu ngwi nga ṱe. Mokuhungira nai eye ma mumaparisa ovarwe wovita mbe ri motjihuro, nu ma tjiti otjiṋa tjingetjo ku ngamwa auhe ngwa sewa motjihuro. Eye ke nokukondja okuvatera otjiwaṋa; ma vanga okutjiyandeka uriri.”
5 Ombara Sidkija wa zira a tja: “Osemba uri! Tjiteye ku ye otja pu mamu vanga, ami hi nokumutjaera.” 6 Otji ve ndji toora nave ndji raurire nongoze mondjombo yohivirikwa Malkija, ndja ri morupanda rwondjuwo youhona. Mu yo kamwa ri omeva, mwa ri omunoko porwe, nami arire tji mba ṱomwine momunoko mbwi.
7 Nungwari Omukusi Ebedmelek, omukarere ohongora wondjuwo youhona, wa zuva kutja owo ve ndji pundisa mondjombo. Moruveze ndo tjandje ombara ya haama pOmuvero wa Benjamin okupangura. 8 Ebedmelek otja ya ngo, na katja nai kombara: 9 “Muhona ombara, otjiṋa ovandu mba tji va tjiti, otjivi. Va pundisa Jeremia mondjombo, eye, tjiri, mu ma kozewa i ondjara, tjinga amu hi novikurya motjihuro.” 10 Tjazumba ombara otji ya rakiza Ebedmelek kutja a toore ovarumendu vetatu, nu ve kendjinane mondjombo, ngunda ambi hiya koka. 11 Ebedmelek otja ya puna ovarumendu vetatu mba ketuwo romapwikiro rondjuwo youhona, a katoora ozombanda nḓa tauka, ne ze raurire ku ami mondjombo kongoze. 12 Eye we ndji raera kutja mbi twe ozombanda nḓa momakwapa, ozongoze aze he ndji hihamisa. Ami mba tjita nao, 13 nowo arire tji ve ndji nana ave ndji pitisa mondjombo. Kombunda yanao otji mba katizirwa morupanda romatjeverero.
Sidkija ma ningire ondunge ku Jeremia
14 Otjikando tjimwe ombara Sidkija otja hinda ombuze yokutja mbi etwe ku ye pomahitiro oyetjatatu wondjuwo ya Muhona; neye wa tja nai ku ami: “Ami me ku pura epuriro, nami me vanga kutja u ndji raere ouatjiri auhe.”
15 Ami mba zira e tja: “Tji mbe ku raere ouatjiri, mo ndji zepa, nu tji mbe ku pe ondunge, komoo kara ko na tja.”
16 Ombara Sidkija otje ndji kwizikira mongumumu na tja: “Tjiri, tjimbe tja Ndjambi omunamuinyo, Ndjambi ngwe tu pa omuinyo, ami hi nokukuzepa, nu hi nokukuyandja momake wovarumendu mbu mave vanga okukuzepa.”
17 Otji mba raera Sidkija kutja Muhona Omunamasaaehe, Ndjambi wa Israel, wa tjere nai: “Tji we riyandja mouvara wovahongore vombara ya Babilon, omuinyo woye mau yamwa, notjihuro hi katji nokunyosiwa. Ove neṱunḓu roye amuhe mamu yamwa. 18 Nungwari tji u hi nokuriyandja mouvara wawo, otjihuro hi matji yandjewa kOvababilon, nowo mave tji nyosa, nove komoo poṋa momake wawo.”
19 Nungwari ombara Sidkija wa zira a tja: “Ami me tira Ovajuda ovakwetu, mba konda rukuru kOvababilon. Ngahino me yandjewa momake wawo, nowo mave ndji tatumisa.”
20 Ami mba zira e tja: “Tjiri, ko nakuyandjewa momake wawo. Me riyarikaṋa kove kutja u kare nonḓuviro kombuze ya Muhona ndji mba hungira; mo kara nawa, nomuinyo woye mau yamwa. 21 Nungwari Muhona we ndji raisire motjirimunikise imbi mbi mavi tjitwa, tji wa panḓa okuriyandja. 22 Motjirimunikise hi ami mba muna mo ovakazendu avehe, mba sewa mondjuwo youhona yombara ya Juda, amave twarewa kovahongore vombara ya Babilon; nowo va kayenda amave ravaere nai:
‘Omapanga wombara wakatjotjiri ye i pukisa,
owo ye i nyengura.
Nambano owo ye i esa,
ozombaze zayo tjinga aza ṱomwina momunoko.’ ”
23 Ami otji mba weza e tja: “Ovakazendu novanatje voye avehe mave twarewa kOvababilon, nove omuini ko nokupoṋa momake wawo. Mave ku kambura nave ku yandja kombara ya Babilon; notjihuro hi matji nyosiwa.”
24 Sidkija wa zira a tja: “Ape ningi umwe ngu ma zuu omahungi nga, tjapo mo tu. 25 Ovahongore tji va zuu kutja ami mba hungire na ove mave ya kove nave ku pura imbi mbi twa hungire. Owo mave ku kwizikire kutja kave nokukuzepa tji we ve serekarerere oviṋa avihe. 26 Ve raera uriri kutja ove we riheke ku ami e he ku yarura kotjovakamburwa kondjuwo ya Jonatan kutja o ha kaṱira ngo.” 27 Tjazumba ovahongore avehe, tjiri, ve ya nave ndji pura; nami mbe ve serekarerera nawanawa otja ombara pu ye ndji raerere okuhungira. Kapa ri otjiṋa tji va sere okutjita, orondu kapa ri umwe ngwa zuva omahungi nga. 28 Nami otji mba ṱizirwa morupanda romatjeverero ngandu meyuva ndi Jerusalem ndi tja kamburwa.
