Israel ta kumaidwa e lidilulule
1 “Okwa tiwa, omulumenhu ngeenge ta henge po omukainhu waye, ndele ta di po puye, ndele omukainhu ta hombolwa komulumenhu umwe, omulumenhu ota dulu tuu okushuna vali kuye? Oshilongo itashi nyatekwa mbela koshinima shi fike apa? Ndele oove, nande wa haelwa kookaume voye vahapu, alukila kwaame, Omwene osho ta ti! 2 Lyaamena koikulundudu ove u tale. Openi ino nangalelwa ko? Owe va kalela omutumba peendjila ngaashi Omuarabi mombuwa, noshilongo osha nyatekwa koipala nokoulunde woye. 3 Nodula oya kelelwa ko, nodula yokulombo inai uya, ndele ove owa li u nomesho ombwada, ove ino hala okufya ohoni. 4 Ndele nande ngaha, ove oto ifana nge paife ndele to ti: ‘Tate! Oove kaume kounyasha wange! 5 Alushe tuu ye ota ka kala nokuhandukila nge? Ta diinine ehandu laye fiyo fiyo?’ Tala, osho wa popya, ndele ho kala nokulonga owii, heeno, wa nyonauna shili.” 6 Ndele Omwene okwa lombwela nge pomafiku ohamba Josia: “Ove ou wete ko tuu, omuliteeki Israel nhumbi a ninga? Okwa londa keemhunda adishe dile nokwa ya koshi yomiti adishe ditalala nokwa nangalwa naye kwinya. 7 Ndele oinima ei aishe eshi e i ninga, Ame onda tya: ‘Aluka u uye kwaame!’ Ndelenee ye ina aluka. Nomumwaina Juda, ou e liteeka nge okwa mona okunyona kwaye. 8 Nonda koneka, nande nda henga Israel omolwoluhaelo laye noku mu pa ombapila yehengo, omumwaina Juda, ou e liteeka nge, ina tila, ndelenee okwa ya ndele ta haelwa ngaashi winya. 9 Noshilongo okwe shi nyatekifa kokuhaelwa kwaye itaku kwafa sha, a haelwa nokemanya nokoshiti. 10 Ndele nande opa li ngaha, omumwaina Juda, ou e liteeka nge, ina aluka e uye kwaame nomutima waye aushe, ndelenee okwa li e noipupulu yaye. Omwene osho ta ti.”
Omwene okwa hala okuxupifa Israel
11 Opo nee Omwene okwa lombwela nge: “Omwenyo womuliteeki Israel ou nouyuki u dule wanakuliteeka nge Juda. 12 Eendjovo edi inda u ke di ingidile lwokoumbangalanhu ove u tye:
‘Aluka! Akutu oove nakuliteeka nge, Israel, Omwene ta ti;
Ame itandi ke mu didivala vali,
osheshi Aame omunanghenda, Omwene osho ta ti;
Ame itandi ka kala nda handuka fiyo alushe.
13 Shimwe ashike, kala wa koneka oulunde woye
nokutya, ove owe liteeka Omwene Kalunga koye,
ndele wa lotokela kombinga nombinga kovanailongo,
koshi yomiti adishe ditalala,
ndelenee ino pwilikina ondaka yange, Omwene osho ta ti.
14 “ ‘Alukeni! Akutu nye, ovana oonakuliteeka nge, Omwene osho ta ti, osheshi Ame nde mu tambula. Ndele Ame ohandi mu ile umwe moshilando shimwe noovavali mepata limwe, nohandi ke mu twala kuSion. 15 Ndele Ame ohandi mu pe ovafita, ngaashi omutima wange wa hala, vo ve ke mu life neendunge nounongo. 16 Ndele otapa ningwa, nge mwa hapupala notamu kala mu noludalo moshilongo opomafiku enya, Omwene ta ti, opo nee itapa tiwa vali: “Oshikefa shehangano lOmwene.” Nokape na ou te shi diladila vali momutima waye, nongaashi itamu shi dimbulukwa vali noitamu shi pula vali noitashi hongululwa vali. 17 Mefimbo linya Jerusalem otashi lukwa olukalwapangelo lOmwene. Noiwana aishe otai ka ongala kusho omolwedina lOmwene. Ndele vo itava ka kala vali nokushikula oukukutu womitima davo dii. 18 Pomafiku enya eumbo laJuda otali ende neumbo laIsrael, taa di pamwe kedu lokoumbangalanhu, tae uya kedu nde li pa ooxekulu yavo efyuululo.
19 “ ‘Ame onda li nda diladila: “Akutu, onda hala oku ku nangeka mokati koludalo lange, ndi ku pe edu liwa linyenye li ninge efyuululo la wapala, li dule oilongo aishe mokati koiwana aishe.” Ndele onda diladila yo: “Oto kala nokwiifana nge: Tate! Ndele ito ka efa okushikula nge.” 20 Ndelenee ngaashi omukainhu ohombo te liteeka komulumenhu waye, akutu, osho nanye Ovaisraeli mwa ninga moipupulu yeni, Omwene ta ti.’ ”
21 Okoikulundudu yomamanya onakuhadiinina okwa udika ekweno neilikano lovana vaIsrael, osheshi ova puka mondjila yavo ndele va dimbwa Omwene Kalunga kavo: 22 “Alukeni, akutu nye ounona oonakuliteeka nge, Ame ohandi velula okuliteeka kweni.”
Ndele nye tamu ti: “Tala, ohatu uya kwoove, osheshi Oove Omwene Kalunga ketu. 23 Oshili, elilaano lokeemhunda la udika, olo oipupulu. Oshili, mOmwene, Kalunga ketu omu nexupifo laIsrael. 24 Ndelenee oshikalunga shohoni osha lya po eliko lootatekulu nghee twa dja mounyasha wetu, eedi neehove davo, ovamati noukadona. 25 Natu nangaleni mohoni yetu, nodino yetu nai tu tuvikile. Osheshi otwa nyona kOmwene Kalunga ketu, fye nootatekulu, nghee twa dja mounyasha wetu fiyo onena eli, nongaashi inatu dulika kondaka yOmwene Kalunga ketu.”
Sin and Shame
1 The Lord said to the people of Israel:
If a divorced woman marries,
can her first husband
ever marry her again?
No, because this
would pollute the land.
But you have more gods
than a prostitute has lovers.
Why should I take you back?
2 Just try to find one hilltop
where you haven't gone
to worship other gods
by having sex.
You sat beside the road
like a robber in ambush,
except you offered yourself
to every passerby.
Your sins of unfaithfulness
have polluted the land.
3 So I, the Lord, refused
to let the spring rains fall.
But just like a prostitute,
you still have no shame
for what you have done.
4 You call me your father
or your long-lost friend;
5 you beg me to stop being angry,
but you won't stop sinning.
The Lord Asks Israel To Come Back to Him
6 When Josiah was king, the Lord said:
Jeremiah, the kingdom of Israel was like an unfaithful wife who became a prostitute on the hilltops and in the shade of large trees. 7-8 I knew that the kingdom of Israel had been unfaithful and committed many sins, yet I still hoped she might come back to me. But she didn't, so I divorced her and sent her away.
Her sister, the kingdom of Judah, saw what happened, but she wasn't worried in the least, and I watched her become unfaithful like her sister. 9 The kingdom of Judah wasn't sorry for being a prostitute, and she didn't care that she had made both herself and the land unclean by worshiping idols of stone and wood. 10 And worst of all, the people of Judah pretended to come back to me. 11 Even the people of Israel were honest enough not to pretend.
12 Jeremiah, shout toward the north:
Israel, I am your Lord—
come back to me!
You were unfaithful
and made me furious,
but I am merciful,
and so I will forgive you.
13 Just admit that you rebelled
and worshiped foreign gods
under large trees everywhere.
14 You are unfaithful children,
but you belong to me.
Come home!
I'll take one or two of you
from each town and clan
and bring you to Zion.
15 Then I'll appoint wise rulers
who will obey me,
and they will care for you
like shepherds.
16 You will increase in numbers,
and there will be no need
to remember the sacred chest
or to make a new one.
17 The whole city of Jerusalem
will be my throne.
All nations will come here
to worship me,
and they will no longer follow
their stubborn, evil hearts.
18 Then, in countries to the north,
you people of Judah and Israel
will be reunited,
and you will return to the land
I gave your ancestors.
19 I have always wanted
to treat you as my children
and give you the best land,
the most beautiful on earth.
I wanted you to call me “Father”
and not turn from me.
20 But instead, you are like a wife
who broke her wedding vows.
You have been unfaithful to me.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
The People Confess Their Sins
The Lord said:
21 Listen to the noise
on the hilltops!
It's the people of Israel,
weeping and begging me
to answer their prayers.
They forgot about me
and chose the wrong path.
22 I will tell them, “Come back,
and I will cure you
of your unfaithfulness.”
They will answer,
“We will come back, because you
are the Lord our God.
23 On hilltops, we worshiped idols
and made loud noises,
but it was all for nothing—
only you can save us.
24 Since the days of our ancestors
when our nation was young,
that shameful god Baal has taken
our crops and livestock,
our sons and daughters.
25 We have rebelled against you
just like our ancestors,
and we are ashamed of our sins.”
