Worshiping Other Gods Is Worthless
1A message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. The Lord said, 2“Stand at the gate of my house. Announce my message to the people there. Say,
“ ‘Listen to the Lord’s message, all you people of Judah. You always come through these gates to worship the Lord. 3The God of Israel is speaking to you. He is the Lord who rules over all. He says, “Change the way you live and act. Then I will let you live in this place. 4Do not trust in lies. Do not say, ‘This is the temple of the Lord! This is the temple of the Lord! This is the temple of the Lord!’ 5You must really change the way you live and act. Treat one another fairly. 6Do not treat outsiders or widows badly in this place. Do not take advantage of children whose fathers have died. Do not kill those who are not guilty of doing anything wrong. Do not worship other gods. That will only bring harm to you. 7If you obey me, I will let you live in this place. It is the land I gave your people of long ago. It was promised to them for ever and ever. 8But look! You are trusting in worthless lies.
9“ ‘ “You continue to steal and commit murder. You commit adultery. You tell lies in court. You burn incense to Baal. You worship other gods you didn’t know before. 10Then you come and stand in front of me. You keep coming to this house where I have put my Name. You say, ‘We are safe.’ You think you are safe when you do so many things I hate. 11My Name is in this house. But you have made it a den for robbers! I have been watching you!” announces the Lord.
12“ ‘ “Go now to the town of Shiloh. Go to the place where I first made a home for my Name. See what I did to it because of the evil things my people Israel were doing. 13I spoke to you again and again,” announces the Lord. “I warned you while you were doing all these things. But you did not listen. I called out to you. But you did not answer. 14So what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house where my Name is. It is the temple you trust in. It is the place I gave to you and your people of long ago. 15But I will throw you out of my land. That is exactly what I did to the people of Ephraim. And they are your relatives.” ’
16“Jeremiah, do not pray for these people. Do not make any appeal or request for them. Do not beg me. I will not listen to you. 17Don’t you see what they are doing? They are worshiping other gods in the towns of Judah. They are offering sacrifices to them in the streets of Jerusalem. 18The children go out and gather wood. The fathers light the fire. The women mix the dough. They make flat cakes of bread to offer to the female god called the Queen of Heaven. They pour out drink offerings to other gods. That makes me very angry. 19But am I the one they are hurting?” announces the Lord. “Aren’t they only harming themselves? They should be ashamed of it.”
20So the Lord and King says, “I will pour out my burning anger on this place. It will strike people and animals alike. It will destroy the trees in the fields and the crops in your land. It will burn, and no one will be able to put it out.”
21The Lord who rules over all is the God of Israel. He says, “Go ahead! Add your burnt offerings to your other sacrifices. Eat the meat yourselves! 22When I brought your people out of Egypt, I spoke to them. But I did not just give them commands about burnt offerings and sacrifices. 23I also gave them another command. I said, ‘Obey me. Then I will be your God. And you will be my people. Live the way I command you to live. Then things will go well with you.’ 24But they did not listen. They refused to pay any attention to me. Instead, they did what their stubborn and evil hearts wanted them to do. They went backward and not forward. 25Again and again I sent my servants the prophets to you. They came to you day after day. They prophesied from the time your people left Egypt until now. 26But your people of long ago did not listen. They refused to pay any attention to me. They were stubborn. They did more evil things than their people who lived before them.
27“Jeremiah, when you tell them all this, they will not listen to you. When you call out to them, they will not answer. 28So say to them, ‘You are a nation that has not obeyed the Lord your God. You did not pay attention when you were corrected. Truth has died out. You do not tell the truth anymore.’ ”
29The Lord says to the people of Jerusalem, “Cut off your hair. Throw it away. Sing a song of sadness on the bare hilltops. I am very angry with you. I have turned my back on you. I have deserted you.
The Valley of Death
30“The people of Judah have done what is evil in my eyes,” announces the Lord. “They have set up statues of their gods. They have worshiped them in the house where my Name is. They have made my house ‘unclean.’ I hate those statues. 31The people have built the high places of Topheth in the Valley of Ben Hinnom. There they worship other gods. And there they sacrifice their children in the fire. That is something I did not command. It did not even enter my mind. 32So watch out!” announces the Lord. “The days are coming when people will not call it Topheth anymore. And they will not call it the Valley of Ben Hinnom either. Instead, they will call it the Valley of Death. They will bury the dead bodies of some people in Topheth. But they will run out of room. 33Then they will not be able to bury the bodies of other people there. So the bodies will become food for birds and wild animals. And no one will scare them away. 34I will put an end to the sounds of joy and gladness. The voices of brides and grooms will not be heard anymore. There will be no sounds of joy in the towns of Judah. And there will be no joy in the streets of Jerusalem. The land will become a desert.
Atorɔ Nyamesom Ho Nni Mfasoɔ
1Yei ne asɛm a ɛfiri Awurade hɔ baa Yeremia nkyɛn: 2“Gyina Awurade asɔredan no ɛpono ano, na ka saa asɛm yi:
“ ‘Montie Awurade asɛm, mo nnipa a mo wɔ Yuda nyinaa a mofa apono yi ano kɔsom Awurade. 3Yei ne deɛ Asafo Awurade, Israel Onyankopɔn no seɛ: Monsesa mo akwan ne mo nneyɛɛ, na mɛma mo atena ha. 4Mommfa mo ho nto nnaadaasɛm so na monnka sɛ, “Yei ne Awurade asɔredan, Awurade asɔredan, Awurade asɔredan!” 5Sɛ mosesa mo akwan ne mo nneyɛɛ nokorɛm, na mone mo ho mo ho di no tenenee mu, 6sɛ moanhyɛ ɔhɔhoɔ, awisiaa anaa okunafoɔ so, na moanhwie mogya a ɛdi bem angu wɔ ha, na moanni anyame foforɔ akyi ankɔ mo ara ɔsɛeɛ mu a, 7ɛnneɛ mɛma mo atena ha, asase a mede maa mo agyanom afebɔɔ no. 8Nanso monhwɛ, mode mo ho ato nnaadaa nsɛm a ɛho nni mfasoɔ so.
9“ ‘Mobɛbɔ korɔno na moadi awu, mobɛbɔ adwaman na moadi adansekurumu, mobɛhye nnuhwam ama Baal na moadi anyame foforɔ a monnim wɔn akyi, 10na afei, moaba abɛgyina mʼanim wɔ efie a medin da so na moaka sɛ, “Yɛnni ɔhaw,” sɛ moyɛ akyiwadeɛ yi nyinaa a na monni ɔhaw anaa? 11Na efie a medin da soɔ yi, abɛyɛ adwotwafoɔ tu ama mo anaa? Nanso megu so rehyɛ! Awurade na ɔseɛ.
12“ ‘Na afei monkɔ Silo, beaeɛ bi a, medii ɛkan bɔɔ atenaeɛ de me Din too so, na monhwɛ deɛ meyɛɛ no ɛsiane me nkurɔfoɔ Israelfoɔ amumuyɛ enti. 13Ɛberɛ a moreyɛ yeinom nyinaa, Awurade na ɔseɛ, mekasa kyerɛɛ mo mpɛn bebree, nanso moantie; mefrɛɛ mo, nanso moannye so. 14Ɛno enti, sɛdeɛ meyɛɛ Silo no, mede bɛyɛ efie a me Din da so no, asɔredan a mode mo ho to so, beaeɛ a mede maa mo ne mo agyanom. 15Mɛpam mo afiri mʼanim sɛdeɛ meyɛɛ mo nuanom Efraimfoɔ no.’
16“Enti mommmɔ mpaeɛ mma saa nnipa yi, monnsrɛ na monni mma wɔn nso; monnsrɛ me ɛfiri sɛ merentie mo. 17Monhunu deɛ wɔreyɛ wɔ Yuda nkuro no mu ne Yerusalem mmɔntene so anaa? 18Mmɔfra boaboa anyina ano, na agyanom sɔ ogya no ano, mmaa fɔtɔ asikyiresiam de to burodo ma Ɔsoro Hemmaa. Na wɔgu nsã ma anyame foforɔ de hyɛ me abufuo. 19Na ɛyɛ me na wɔrehyɛ me abufuo anaa? Awurade na ɔseɛ. Na ɛnyɛ wɔn mmom na wɔreha wɔn ho, hyɛ wɔn ho aniwuo anaa?
20“Ɛno enti, deɛ Otumfoɔ Awurade seɛ nie: Wɔbɛhwie mʼabufuo ne mʼabufuhyeɛ agu beaeɛ yi so, agu nnipa ne mmoa, mfuo so nnua ne asase no so aba so, na ɛbɛdɛre a ɛrennum.
21“ ‘Yei ne deɛ Asafo Awurade, Israel Onyankopɔn, seɛ: Monkɔ so, momfa mo ɔhyeɛ afɔrebɔ nka mo afɔrebɔ a aka no ho, na mo ankasa monwe ɛnam no! 22Na ɛberɛ a meyii mo agyanom firii Misraim na mekasa kyerɛɛ wɔn no, manhyɛ wɔn mmara a ɛfa ɔhyeɛ afɔrebɔ ne afɔrebɔ ho nko ara, 23mmom mede saa mmara yi kaa ho: Monyɛ ɔsetie mma me, na mɛyɛ mo Onyankopɔn, na moayɛ me nkurɔfoɔ. Monnante akwan nyinaa a mɛhyɛ mo no so, na asi mo yie. 24Nanso, wɔantie na wɔannyɛ aso; mmom, wɔfiri wɔn akoma bɔne mu yɛɛ asobrakyeɛ. Wɔsane wɔn akyi na wɔankɔ wɔn anim. 25Ɛfiri ɛberɛ a mo agyanom firii Misraim de bɛsi ɛnnɛ yi, da biara da ne ɛberɛ biara mesomaa me nkoa adiyifoɔ baa mo nkyɛn. 26Nanso wɔantie me na wɔanyɛ aso. Wɔde asoɔden yɛɛ bɔne boroo wɔn agyanom deɛ so.’
27“Sɛ moka yeinom nyinaa kyerɛ wɔn a, wɔrentie mo; sɛ mofrɛ wɔn a wɔrennye so. 28Ɛno enti monka nkyerɛ wɔn sɛ, ‘Yei ne ɔman a ɔnyɛɛ ɔsetie mmaa Awurade, ne Onyankopɔn, na ɔmfaa ntenesoɔ. Nokorɛ asa, na afiri wɔn ano. 29Monyi mo tirinwi na monto ngu, montwa agyaadwoɔ wɔ nkokoɔ no so, ɛfiri sɛ Awurade apo, na wagyae saa awoɔ ntoatoasoɔ yi a wɔwɔ na abufuhyeɛ no ase akyi di.
Okum Bɔnhwa No
30“ ‘Yudafoɔ ayɛ bɔne mʼani so, sɛdeɛ Awurade seɛ nie. Wɔde ahoni a, ɛyɛ akyiwadeɛ asisi efie a me Din da so de agu ho fi. 31Wɔasisi Tofet sorɔnsorɔmmea wɔ Ben Hinom bɔnhwa mu ɛhɔ na wɔhye wɔn mmammarima ne wɔn mmammaa. Adeɛ a manhyɛ wɔn na amma mʼadwene mu nso. 32Ɛno enti, monhwɛ yie na nna no reba, Awurade na ɔseɛ, a wɔremfrɛ hɔ Tofet anaa Hinom Bɔnhwa bio, na mmom, wɔbɛfrɛ no Okum Bɔnhwa, ɛfiri sɛ wɔbɛsie awufoɔ wɔ Tofet kɔsi sɛ ɛhɔ bɛyɛ ma. 33Na afei saa nnipa yi afunu bɛyɛ aduane ama ewiem nnomaa ne asase so mmoa, na ɛrenka obiara wɔ hɔ a ɔbɛpam wɔn. 34Mede ahosɛpɛ ne anigyeɛ nnyegyeɛ, ayeforɔ ne ayeforɔkunu nne a ɛwɔ Yuda nkuro ne Yerusalem mmɔntene so, bɛba awieeɛ ɛfiri sɛ asase no bɛda mpan.’ ”
