Jeremiah's Letter to the Jews in Babylonia
1 I wrote a letter to the priests, the prophets, the leaders of the people, and to all the others whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken away as prisoners from Jerusalem to Babylonia. 2 I wrote it after King Jehoiachin, his mother, the palace officials, the leaders of Judah and of Jerusalem, the engravers, and the skilled workers had been taken into exile. 3 I gave the letter to Elasah son of Shaphan and to Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah was sending to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia. It said:
4 “The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those people whom he allowed Nebuchadnezzar to take away as prisoners from Jerusalem to Babylonia: 5 ‘Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat what you grow in them. 6 Marry and have children. Then let your children get married, so that they also may have children. You must increase in numbers and not decrease. 7 Work for the good of the cities where I have made you go as prisoners. Pray to me on their behalf, because if they are prosperous, you will be prosperous too. 8 I, the Lord, the God of Israel, warn you not to let yourselves be deceived by the prophets who live among you or by any others who claim they can predict the future. Do not pay any attention to their dreams. 9 They are telling you lies in my name. I did not send them. I, the Lord Almighty, have spoken.’
10 “The Lord says, ‘When Babylonia's seventy years are over, I will show my concern for you and keep my promise to bring you back home. 11 I alone know the plans I have for you, plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster, plans to bring about the future you hope for. 12 Then you will call to me. You will come and pray to me, and I will answer you. 13 You will seek me, and you will find me because you will seek me with all your heart. 14 Yes, I say, you will find me, and I will restore you to your land. I will gather you from every country and from every place to which I have scattered you, and I will bring you back to the land from which I had sent you away into exile. I, the Lord, have spoken.’
15 “You say that the Lord has given you prophets in Babylonia. 16 Listen to what the Lord says about the king who rules the kingdom that David ruled and about the people of this city, that is, your relatives who were not taken away as prisoners with you. 17 The Lord Almighty says, ‘I am bringing war, starvation, and disease on them, and I will make them like figs that are too rotten to be eaten. 18 I will pursue them with war, starvation, and disease, and all the nations of the world will be horrified at what they see. Everywhere I scatter them, people will be shocked and terrified at what has happened to them. People will make fun of them and use their name as a curse. 19 This will happen to them because they did not obey the message that I kept on sending to them through my servants the prophets. They refused to listen. 20 All of you whom I sent into exile in Babylonia, listen to what I, the Lord, say.’
21 “The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, has spoken about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are telling you lies in his name. He has said that he will hand them over to the power of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia, who will put them to death before your eyes. 22 When the people who were taken away as prisoners from Jerusalem to Babylonia want to bring a curse on someone, they will say, ‘May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylonia roasted alive!’ 23 This will be their fate because they are guilty of terrible sins—they have committed adultery and have told lies in the Lord's name. This was against the Lord's will; he knows what they have done, and he is a witness against them. The Lord has spoken.”
The Letter of Shemaiah
24-25 The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, gave me a message for Shemaiah of Nehelam, who had sent a letter in his own name to all the people of Jerusalem and to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah and to all the other priests. In this letter Shemaiah wrote to Zephaniah:
26 “The Lord made you a priest in place of Jehoiada, and you are now the chief officer in the Temple. It is your duty to see that every crazy person who pretends to be a prophet is placed in chains with an iron collar around the neck. 27 Why haven't you done this to Jeremiah of Anathoth, who has been speaking as a prophet to the people? 28 He must be stopped because he told the people in Babylonia that they would be prisoners there a long time and should build houses, settle down, plant gardens, and eat what they grow.”
29 Zephaniah read the letter to me, 30 and then the Lord told me 31-32 to send to all the prisoners in Babylon this message about Shemaiah: “I, the Lord, will punish Shemaiah and all of his descendants. I did not send him, but he spoke to you as if he were a prophet, and he made you believe lies. He will have no descendants among you. He will not live to see the good things that I am going to do for my people, because he told them to rebel against me. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
Jeremiab sîǂkhanis Babiloniab ǃnâ hâ Jodeǁîn ǃoa
1 Nēdi ge mîdi kēbo-aob Jeremiab ge Jerusalemsa xu, ûiǃgau ge ǂgaeǂgui-aon ǃkhōsis din, pristergu, kēbo-aogu tsî hoaraga khoen Nebukadnesari ge Jerusalemsa xu Babilonias ǃoa ūǃgû-ū, ǃoa xoa sîǂkhanis dide. 2 Nēs ge gao-aob Jexonjab tsî ǁîb îs, hoaraga mûǂamaogu gao-ommi digu, Judab tsî Jerusalems gaoǀgôagu, haikuru-aogu tsî ǂnūǀuriǂnau-aogu ge Jerusalemsa xu ǃgûs khaoǃgâsa. 3 Nē sîǂkhanis ge Elasab, Safanni ôab, tsî Gamariab, Hilkiab ôab hâkha ǀkha Sedekiab Judab gao-aob xa, Nebukadnesari, Babilons gao-aob ǁga ge sîhekha ge māhe, mî rase:
4 “Nētib ge ǃKhūb Hoaǀgaixab, Israeli Eloba hoaraga khoen ǃhūsis ǃnâ ta ge tita Jerusalemsa xu Babilonias ǃoa sîn ǃoa ra mî: 5 ‘Omde ǂnubibasen. ǃHanaga ǂgābasen, î ǁîgu ǂûtaniba xu ǂû. 6 ǃGame, î ǀgôana ǁora. An sa ôana ǃgame tsî ǁîn tsîna ǀgôana hō; ǁnāpa ǃgôab ǃnâ ǀarosen, î du tā ǀoro. 7 ǁNā ǃās ǁîs ǃoa ta ǃkhōsase ra sî dus di ǂkhîba ôa. ǁÎna ǀgoreba, ǁîn ga ǃgâiǃgâxa o du sadu ona nî ǃgâiǃgâxa xuige.’ 8 Nētib ge ǃKhūb Hoaǀgaixab, Israeli Eloba ra mî: Tā du sadu ǁaegu ǁan hâ kēbo-aogu tamas ka io ǁnān ǃgoaxaǁaeban aimûǀgaru ǁkhā ti ra mîn xa ǂgaeǂhapu kaisen. Tā ǁîn di ǁhapode ǃgâ. 9 Ti ǀons ǃnâ gu ra kēbo ti gu ra ǂhumi xuige. ǁÎgu ge tita xa sîhe tama hâ”
tib ge ǃKhūb, Hoaǀgaixaba ra mî.10 Nētib ge ǃKhūba ra mî xuige: “Babilonias di hûdisi kurigu ga ǃkharu, o ta ge nî sari du. Ti mîmâisa dīǀoaǀoa tsî ta ge sado nî oahā-ū. 11 Tita ge ǁnā ǂâidi sadu xa ta ra ǂâide a ǂan xui-ao, ǂâidi ǂkhîb didi tsî ǂkhabab di tamade, î ta ǁnā ǃgoaxaǁaeb ǁîba du gere ǃâubasenna mā du”
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.12 “O du ge tita ǂgaiǀî tsî hā tsî tita ǃoa nî ǀgore, o ta ge nî ǁnâu-am du. 13 Tsî du ge tita ôa tsî nî hō, sadu ǂgaob hoab ǀkha du ga ôa teo. 14 O ta ge tita sadu xa nîra hōkaisen, o ta ge tita sadu ǃkhōsisa dī-unu tsî nîra ǀhaoǀhao du ǁaedi hoade xu tsî ǁnā ǃādi, ǁîdi ǃoa ta ge doeǁgabē du di hoade xu. ǁKhāti ta ge tita ǁnā ǃās ǁîsa xu ta ge sado ǃkhōsabese ǂgaeǂguibē kais ǃoa ǁkhawa nîra ūhā du”
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.15 Sadu ǃKhūb ge kēbo-aoga Babilons tawa ge ǂkhaiǂkhaiba da ti ra mî amaga.
16 ǁNā-amagab ra ǃKhūba nēti mî ǁnā gao-aob, Davidi trons ai ǂnôab xa tsî ǁnā ǁaes, nē ǃās ǃnâ ǁan hâs hoas xa, ǁnā ǃgâsan âdu, sadu ǀkha ǃkhōsisa xu ǃgûǂoa taman xa. 17 Nētib ge ǃKhūb Hoaǀgaixaba ra mî: “Mû, tita ge gôab tsî ǃâtsūǀkhāb tsî ǂhīǁōb tsîga ǁîn ǁaegu nîra sî tsî tita ge ǁîna ǁnā ǁgaisi ǀnoman, hîa ǁgaorasib ân ǃaroma ǂûhe ǁoan khami nîra dī. 18 Tsî tita ge ǁîna nîra sauruǃgon gôab ǀkha tsî ǃâtsūǀkhāb ǀkha tsî ǂhīǁōb ǀkha. Tsî ta ge ǁîna gaosidi hoade ǃhuriǃhurixūse nîra māǁnâ tsî ǀâxarese tsî burugâse tsî ǃhōxūse tsî ǃharaxūxūse ǁnā ǁaedi, ǁîdi ǃoa ta ǁîna nî doeǁgasīdi hoadi ǁaegu. 19 Ti mîdi ain ge ǃgaoǃgâ tama i amaga, ti ǃgāgu kēbo-aoga ta ge ǁîn ǃoa ǃnauǁgoaga sîo. Xawe sadu ge ǁnâu ǂgao tama ge i”
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.20 “Î du ǁnâi ǁnâu ǃKhūb di mîsa, sadu ǃkhōsase ge ǂgaeǂguibēhedo, tita xa Jerusalemsa xu Babilons ǃoa sîbēhe hâdu hoado.” 21 Nētib ra ǃKhūb Hoaǀgaixab, Israeli Eloba mî Axab Kolajab ôab tsî Sedekiab Maasejab ôab tsîkha, ti ǀons ǃnâ ǂkhabase ra kēboba du kha xa: Mû, tita ge ǁîkha Nebukadnesari Babilons gao-aob ǃomǁae nîra mā, ob ge ǁîba ǁîkha sadu di mûdi aiǃâ nîra ǂnau. 22 Tsî ǁîkha xu i ge ǀâxare-e nîra ūhe, ǃkhōsase Judaba xu ge ǂgaeǂguibēhe hâ in hoan, Babilons, ǃnâ hâ khoen tawa: Ab ǃKhūba dī tsî Sedekiab tsî Axab tsîkha, Babilons gao-aob xa ǀaes ǃnâ ge amhekha khami, tin nî mîs kōse. 23 Gâresi-e kha Israeli ǃnâ gere dī; tsî ǀgūkhoegu âkha di taradi ǀkha kha gere ǀai tsî mîsa kha ti ǀons ǃnâ ǂkhabase gere kēbo amaga, ǁîkha ta mîmā tama khami. Tsî tita ge ǁnā ta, ǁî xūna a ǂan tsî ǁîna ra ǀhûǀguitimî ta,
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.24 Tsî Semajab Nexelamǁîb ǃoats ge ǃhoa tsî nî mî; 25 Nētib ra ǃKhūb Hoaǀgaixab, Israeli Eloba ra mî: ǂKhanidets ge satsa sa ǀons ǃnâ ǁaes Jerusalems ǃnâ hâs hoas ǃoa tsî Sefanjab, Maasejab ôab, pristeri tsî pristergu hoagu ǃoa sî amaga, mî rase:
26 “ǃKhūb ge satsa pristerse ge mâi, pristeri Jojadab di ǃās ǃnâ mûǂamaots nîga, ǃKhūb ommi ǃnâ mâ aob, ǃkhausab tsî kēbo-aose ra dīsenni hoab ǂama, ǁîbats nî ǂnûise ǃkhō-oms ǃnâs kas ǃnaob ǃnâs kas hoasa. 27 Tsî nēsi tarexats kha ǁnâi Jeremiab, Anatotǁîb, ǁî-aitsama sadu tawa kēbo-aose ra dīsenna ǀau tama hâ? 28 ǁNā-amagas ge sida ǁgab Babilons ǃoa ge sîsa mî raǃâ: ‘ǂOmxa nîra, xuige omde ǂnubibasen, î du ǁîdi ǃnâ ǁan, î du ǃhanaga ǂgā, î du ǁîgu ǂûn xa ǂû.’ ” 29 Tsî Sefanjab, pristeri, ge nē ǂkhanisa ge khomai kēbo-aob Jeremiab ǂgaera ǃnâ. 30 ǁNā-amagas ge ǃKhūb di mîsa Jeremiaba hāba tsî ge mî: 31 “Sîsī ǁnān ǃkhōsabese ge ūǃgûbēhen hoan ǃoa, mî raǃâ: ‘Nētib ra ǃKhūba mî Semajab, Nexelamǁîb xa Semajab sado gere kēboba amaga, tita ǁîba sî tama hîa, tsî ǂhumib ai du nî ǂgomaiǂnûi ǃkhaisab ge dī amaga.’ 32 ǁNā-amagab ra ǃKhūba nēti mî: ‘Mû, tita ge nîra ôaǃnâ Semajab, Nexelamǁîb ǂama tsî ǁîb di surib ǂama. ǁÎb ge khoe-i ǁaes ǁaegu nî ǁan-i tsî ǁnā ǃgâib, tita ti ǁaesa nî dī-ūba nî mû-i xare-e ūhâ tide, ǁnāǁgôasi-eb ǁîba ǃKhūb ǃoagu gere ǃhoa xui-ao,’ ”
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.