Times of Trouble Are Coming
1A message from the Lord came to me. He said, 2“Jeremiah, you must not get married. You must not have any sons or daughters in this land.” 3Here is the Lord’s message about the children born in this place. He says about them and their parents, 4“Some of them will die of deadly sicknesses. No one will mourn for them. Their bodies will not be buried. Instead, they will be like human waste lying there on the ground. Others will die because of war and hunger. Their bodies will not be buried. Instead, they will become food for the birds and the wild animals.”
5The Lord says, “Jeremiah, suppose a meal is being served because someone has died. Do not enter any house where that is happening. Do not go there to mourn or to comfort the family. I will not bless these people anymore. I have taken my love and pity away from them,” announces the Lord. 6“Important and unimportant people alike will die in this land. Their bodies will not be buried. No one will mourn for them. No one will cut themselves or shave their head for the dead. 7No one will offer food or drink to comfort those who mourn for the dead. No one will do this even if someone’s father or mother has died.
8“Do not enter a house where a feast is being held. Do not sit down there to eat and drink. 9I am the Lord who rules over all. I am the God of Israel. I am telling you, ‘In your days I will judge your people. You will see it with your own eyes. I will put an end to the sounds of joy and gladness here in Jerusalem. The voices of brides and grooms will not be heard anymore.’
10“Tell these people all these things. They will ask you, ‘Why has the Lord decided to send so much trouble on us? We haven’t done anything wrong. We haven’t committed any sins against the Lord our God.’ 11When they say this, here is what you should tell them. ‘I did it because your people of long ago deserted me,’ announces the Lord. ‘They followed other gods. They served them and worshiped them. They deserted me. They did not obey my law. 12But you have done more evil things than they did. All of you are doing what your stubborn and evil hearts want you to do. You are not obeying me. 13So I will throw you out of this land. I will send you away to another land. Neither you nor your people of long ago have known about it. There you will serve other gods day and night. And I will not give you any help.’
14“But a new day is coming,” announces the Lord. “At that time here is what people will no longer say. ‘As sure as he is alive, the Lord brought the Israelites up out of Egypt.’ 15Instead, they will say, ‘The Lord brought the Israelites up out of the land of the north. He gathered them out of all the countries where he had forced them to go. And that’s just as sure as he is alive.’ I will bring them back to the land I gave their people of long ago.
16“But now I will send for many fishermen,” announces the Lord. “They will catch some of these people. After that, I will send for many hunters. They will hunt down the others on every mountain and hill. They will bring them out of the cracks in the rocks. 17My eyes see everything these people do. What they do is not hidden from me. I always see their sin. 18I will pay them back double for their sin and the evil things they have done. They have made my land ‘unclean.’ They have set up lifeless statues of their evil gods. They have filled my land with them. I hate those gods.”
19Lord, you give me strength.
You are like a fort to me.
When I’m in trouble,
I go to you for safety.
The nations will come to you
from one end of the earth to the other.
They will gather together and say,
“Our people of long ago didn’t own anything
except statues of gods.
The statues were worthless.
They didn’t do them any good.
20Do human beings really make their own gods?
Yes. But they aren’t really gods at all!”
21The Lord says, “So I will teach them about myself.
This time I will show them
how powerful and mighty I am.
Then they will know
that I am the Lord.
Olunaku olw’Akabi
1Ekigambo kya Mukama ne kinzijira nga kigamba nti, 216:2 1Ko 7:26-27“Towasa, kuzaalira balenzi na bawala mu kifo kino. 316:3 Yer 6:21Kubanga kino Mukama ky’agamba ku balenzi n’abawala abazaalibwa mu nsi eno era ne ku bakazi ba nnyaabwe ne ku basajja ba kitaabwe. 416:4 a Yer 25:33 b Zab 83:10; Yer 9:22 c Zab 79:1-3; Yer 15:3; 34:20Balifa endwadde ez’akabi. Tebalibakungubagira wadde okuziikibwa naye balibeera ng’ebisaaniko ebisuuliddwa ku ttaka. Balizikirira na kitala era balifa njala; n’emirambo gyabwe girifuuka mmere ya binyonyi eby’omu bbanga n’ebisolo eby’omu nsiko.”
5Kubanga bw’ati bw’ayogera Mukama nti, “Toyingira mu nnyumba we balya emmere y’olumbe, togenda kukungubaga wadde okubasaasira kubanga nziggyewo omukisa gwange n’okwagala kwange era n’okusaasira kwange ku bantu bano,” bw’ayogera Mukama. 616:6 a Ez 9:5-6 b Lv 19:28 c Yer 41:5; 47:5Bonna ab’ekitiibwa n’abakopi baakufiira mu nsi eno. Tebajja kuziikibwa wadde okukungubagirwa era tewali ajja kwesala misale wadde okumwa omutwe ku lwabwe. 716:7 Ez 24:17; Kos 9:4Tewaliba n’omu aliwaayo mmere okuliisa abakungubagira abafiiriddwa, ne bwaliba kitaabwe oba nnyaabwe nga kwe kuli afudde; tewaliba n’omu alibawaayo wadde ekyokunywa okubakubagiza.
816:8 Mub 7:2-4; Yer 15:17Era toyingiranga mu nnyumba muli kinyumu n’otuula okulya n’okunywa. 916:9 a Is 24:8; Ez 26:13; Kos 2:11 b Kub 18:23Kubanga kino Mukama ow’Eggye, Katonda wa Isirayiri, ky’agamba nti, “Nga weerabirako n’amaaso go, mu nnaku z’obulamu bwo, ndikomya eddoboozi ery’essanyu era n’ery’okwesiima ery’abagole omusajja ne mukyala we mu kifo kino.
1016:10 Ma 29:24; Yer 5:19“Bw’oligamba abantu bino byonna ne bakubuuza nti, ‘Lwaki Mukama atutuusizaako akabi kano konna? Kibi ki kye tukoze? Musango ki gwe tuzizza eri Mukama Katonda waffe?’ 1116:11 Ma 29:25-26; 1Bk 9:9; Zab 106:35-43; Yer 22:9Kale bagambe nti, ‘Kubanga bakitammwe bandeka ne batakuuma mateeka gange,’ bw’ayogera Mukama, ‘ne bagoberera bakatonda abalala ne babaweereza ne babasinza. Bandeka ne batakuuma mateeka gange. 1216:12 a Yer 7:26 b Mub 9:3; Yer 13:10Era mweyisizza bubi n’okusinga bakitammwe. Laba buli omu nga bwe yeeyisa ng’akakanyaza omutima gwe ogujjudde ebibi mu kifo ky’okuŋŋondera. 1316:13 a Ma 28:36; Yer 5:19 b Ma 4:28 c Yer 15:5Noolwekyo ndibaggya mu nsi eno ne mbateeka mu nsi mmwe gye mutamanyi wadde bakitammwe gye bataamanya, era nga muli eyo muliweereza bakatonda abalala emisana n’ekiro, era siribakwatirwa kisa.’
1416:14 Ma 15:15; Yer 23:7-8“Naye ennaku zijja,” bw’ayogera Mukama. “Abantu lwe bataliddayo kwogera nti, ‘Ddala nga Katonda bw’ali omulamu eyaggya Isirayiri mu nsi y’e Misiri,’ 1516:15 a Is 11:11; Yer 23:8 b Yer 24:6naye baligamba nti, ‘Ddala nga Mukama bw’ali omulamu eyaggya Abayisirayiri mu nsi ey’omu bukiikakkono era n’okuva mu nsi zonna gye yali abasudde.’ Kubanga ndibakomyawo mu nsi gye nawa bajjajjaabwe.
1616:16 a Am 4:2; Kbk 1:14-15 b Am 9:3; Mi 7:2 c 1Sa 26:20“Naye kaakano leka ntumye abavubi bange,” bw’ayogera Mukama, “era bajja kubavuba. Ng’ekyo kiwedde nzija kutumya abayizzi bange, era bajja kubayigga ku buli lusozi era na buli kasozi na buli lwatika lwonna mu njazi. 1716:17 a 1Ko 4:5; Beb 4:13 b Nge 15:3Amaaso gange galaba buli kye bakola, tebinkwekeddwa wadde obutali butuukirivu bwabwe okuunkwekebwa. 1816:18 a Is 40:2; Kub 18:6 b Kbl 35:34; Yer 2:7Ndibasasula olw’obutali butuukirivu bwabwe n’olw’ekibi kyabwe emirundi ebiri, kubanga boonoonye ensi yange olw’ebintu ebitaliimu bulamu ne bajjuza omugabo gwange ebifaananyi bya bakatonda baabwe abakolerere, eby’emizizo.”
1916:19 a Is 2:2; Yer 3:17 b Zab 4:2Ayi Mukama, amaanyi gange era ekigo kyange,
ekiddukiro kyange mu biro eby’okulabiramu ennaku,
bannaggwanga balijja gy’oli,
okuva ku nkomerero z’ensi bagambe nti,
“Bakitaffe tebaalina kantu okuggyako bakatonda ab’obulimba,
ebifaananyi ebikolerere ebitagasa ebitaabayamba.
2016:20 Zab 115:4-7; Is 37:19; Yer 2:11Abantu beekolera bakatonda baabwe?
Ye, naye si Katonda!
21“Noolwekyo ndibayigiriza,
ku mulundi guno;
ŋŋenda kubalaga amaanyi gange n’obuyinza bwange.
Olwo balyoke bamanye nti
erinnya lyange nze Mukama.”
