Jeremiah 16

1The word of Jehovah came also unto me, saying,

1Another message came to me from the LORD.

2Thou shalt not take thee a wife, neither shalt thou have sons or daughters, in this place.

2He said, 'Do not get married or have any sons or daughters in this place.'

3For thus saith Jehovah concerning the sons and concerning the daughters that are born in this place, and concerning their mothers that bare them, and concerning their fathers that begat them in this land:

3This is what the LORD says about the children born here, and about their mothers and fathers in this land:

4They shall die grievous deaths: they shall not be lamented, neither shall they be buried; they shall be as dung upon the face of the ground; and they shall be consumed by the sword, and by famine; and their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the heavens, and for the beasts of the earth.

4They will die of terrible diseases. No one will mourn for them or bury them. They will lie on the ground like fertilizer. They will be killed by war and hunger, and their bodies will be eaten by birds and wild animals.

5For thus saith Jehovah, Enter not into the house of mourning, neither go to lament, neither bemoan them; for I have taken away my peace from this people, saith Jehovah, even lovingkindness and tender mercies.

5This is what the LORD says: 'Do not go into a house where people are mourning. Do not go to cry for them or show sympathy, because I have taken away my blessing, my constant love, and my mercy from these people,' says the LORD.

6Both great and small shall die in this land; they shall not be buried, neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them;

6Both important people and ordinary people will die in this land. They will not be buried or mourned. No one will cut themselves or shave their heads to show grief for them.

7neither shall men break bread for them in mourning, to comfort them for the dead; neither shall men give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or for their mother.

7No one will offer a meal to those who are mourning to comfort them for the dead. No one will offer a cup of wine to comfort someone for the loss of their father or mother.

8And thou shalt not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and to drink.

8Do not even go into a house where people are feasting to sit with them and eat and drink.

9For thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will cause to cease out of this place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.

9For this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: Right here, in front of your eyes and during your own lifetime, I will stop the sounds of joy and gladness. You will no longer hear the happy voices of brides and grooms.

10And it shall come to pass, when thou shalt show this people all these words, and they shall say unto thee, Wherefore hath Jehovah pronounced all this great evil against us? or what is our iniquity? or what is our sin that we have committed against Jehovah our God?

10When you tell the people all these things, they will ask you, 'Why has the LORD decreed such a terrible disaster against us? What have we done wrong? What sin have we committed against the LORD our God?'

11then shalt thou say unto them, Because your fathers have forsaken me, saith Jehovah, and have walked after other gods, and have served them, and have worshipped them, and have forsaken me, and have not kept my law;

11Then you will tell them, 'It is because your ancestors abandoned me,' says the LORD. 'They followed other gods, served them, and worshiped them. They abandoned me and did not obey my law.'

12and ye have done evil more than your fathers; for, behold, ye walk every one after the stubbornness of his evil heart, so that ye hearken not unto me:

12'And you have behaved even worse than your ancestors! Look, every one of you follows your own stubborn, evil heart instead of listening to me.'

13therefore will I cast you forth out of this land into the land that ye have not known, neither ye nor your fathers; and there shall ye serve other gods day and night; for I will show you no favor.

13'So I will throw you out of this land into a country that neither you nor your ancestors have ever known. There you can serve other gods day and night, because I will show you no mercy.'

14Therefore, behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that it shall no more be said, As Jehovah liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;

14'However, the time is coming,' says the LORD, 'when people will no longer swear an oath by saying, "As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the people of Israel up out of the land of Egypt." '

15but, As Jehovah liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the countries whither he had driven them. And I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers.

15'Instead, they will say, "As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the people of Israel back from the land of the north and from all the countries where he had scattered them." For I will bring them back to their own land, the land I gave to their ancestors.'

16Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith Jehovah, and they shall fish them up; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the clefts of the rocks.

16'But now I am sending for many fishermen,' says the LORD, 'and they will catch them. After that, I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them down on every mountain, on every hill, and in the cracks of the rocks.'

17For mine eyes are upon all their ways; they are not hid from my face, neither is their iniquity concealed from mine eyes.

17'For I see everything they do. They cannot hide from me, and their sin is not hidden from my sight.'

18And first I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double, because they have polluted my land with the carcasses of their detestable things, and have filled mine inheritance with their abominations.

18'I will punish them twice as much for their wickedness and their sin, because they have made my land unclean. They have filled my property with their lifeless, disgusting idols and hateful things.'

19O Jehovah, my strength, and my stronghold, and my refuge in the day of affliction, unto thee shall the nations come from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Our fathers have inherited nought but lies, even vanity and things wherein there is no profit.

19O LORD, you are my strength, my fortress, and my place of safety when I am in trouble. Nations from the ends of the earth will come to you and say, 'Our ancestors left us nothing but lies and worthless idols that are of no use at all.'

20Shall a man make unto himself gods, which yet are no gods?

20Can people make their own gods? If they do, those are not really gods!

21Therefore, behold, I will cause them to know, this once will I cause them to know my hand and my might; and they shall know that my name is Jehovah.

21'So I will teach them. This time I will make them understand my power and my might. Then they will know that my name is the LORD.'