1 T hus saith Jehovah: Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word,

The Lord says, “Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak this word there.

2 a nd say, Hear the word of Jehovah, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people who enter in through these gates.

Say, ‘Hear the Word of the Lord, O king of Judah, who sits on David’s throne, you and your servants and your people who come through these gates.

3 T hus saith Jehovah: Execute judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor; and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place.

The Lord says, “Do what is right and fair and good, and take the one who has been robbed away from the power of the one who has made it hard for him. Do not hurt or do wrong to the stranger, the one whose parents have died, or the woman whose husband has died. And do not kill those who are not guilty in this place.

4 F or if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in through the gates of this house kings sitting in the place of David upon his throne, riding in chariots and on horses,—he, and his servants, and his people.

For if you will obey this word, then kings will come through the gates of this house and sit on the throne of David. They will be in war-wagons and on horses, together with their servants and their people.

5 B ut if ye will not hear these words, I have sworn by myself, saith Jehovah, that this house shall become a waste.

But if you will not obey these words, I promise by Myself,” says the Lord, “that this house will be destroyed.”’”

6 F or thus saith Jehovah concerning the house of the king of Judah: Thou art a Gilead unto me, the summit of Lebanon: verily I will make thee a wilderness, cities not inhabited.

For the Lord says about the house of the king of Judah: “You are like Gilead to Me, or like the top of Lebanon. Yet I will be sure to make you like a desert, like cities without people.

7 A nd I will prepare destroyers against thee, every one with his weapons; and they shall cut down the choice of thy cedars, and cast into the fire.

I will send destroyers against you, each with his things for fighting. And they will cut down your best cedar trees and throw them on the fire.

8 A nd many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall say every man to his neighbour, Wherefore hath Jehovah done thus unto this great city?

Many nations will pass by this city, and they will say to one another, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?’

9 A nd they shall say, Because they have forsaken the covenant of Jehovah their God, and worshipped other gods, and served them.

And they will answer, ‘Because they did not keep the agreement of the Lord their God. They worshiped other gods and served them.’” Words about Shallum

10 W eep not for the dead, neither bemoan him; weep sore for him that goeth away, for he shall return no more, nor see his native country.

Do not cry for the one who is dead or have sorrow for him. But cry all the time for the one who goes away, for he will never return or see the land of his birth again.

11 F or thus saith Jehovah concerning Shallum the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, who went forth out of this place: He shall not return thither any more;

For the Lord says about Shallum the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who ruled in the place of Josiah his father, and who left this place: “He will never return.

12 f or he shall die in the place whither they have led him captive, and shall see this land no more.

He will die in the place where they took him, and he will not see this land again.” Words about Jehoiakim

13 W oe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his upper chambers by injustice; that taketh his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not his earning;

“It is bad for him who builds his house by wrong-doing, and his upper rooms by not being fair, who has his neighbor serve him for nothing and does not pay him,

14 t hat saith, I will build me a wide house, and spacious upper chambers; and he cutteth out for himself windows; and it is wainscoted with cedar, and painted with vermilion.

who says, ‘I will build myself a big house with large upper rooms. I will cut out its windows, cover it with cedar and color it bright red.’

15 S halt thou reign, because thou viest with the cedar? Did not thy father eat and drink, and do judgment and justice? Then it was well with him.

Do you become a king by trying to build better houses of cedar? Did not your father eat and drink? He did what was right and fair and good, so all went well with him.

16 H e judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Was not this to know me? saith Jehovah.

He spoke strong words in the cause of the poor and those in need, and so all went well. Is not that what it means to know Me?” says the Lord.

17 B ut thine eyes and thy heart are only on thine extortion, and on the blood of the innocent, to shed it, and on oppression and on violence, to do it.

“But your eyes and heart are set only on what you can get by wrong-doing, and on killing those who are not guilty, and on making it hard for people and on hurting others.”

18 T herefore thus saith Jehovah concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, the king of Judah: They shall not lament for him, Ah, my brother! or, Ah, sister! They shall not lament for him, Ah, lord! or Ah, his glory!

So the Lord says about Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, “They will not cry in sorrow for him, saying, ‘It is bad, my brother!’ or, ‘It is bad, my sister!’ They will not cry in sorrow for him, saying, ‘O lord!’ or, ‘O, how great he was!’

19 H e shall be buried with the burial of an ass, dragged along and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.

He will be buried like they bury a donkey, pulled away and thrown out on the other side of the gates of Jerusalem. The Future of Jerusalem

20 G o up to Lebanon, and cry; and give forth thy voice in Bashan, and cry from Abarim: for all thy lovers are destroyed.

“Go up to Lebanon and cry out. And let your voice be heard in Bashan. Cry out from Abarim also. For all your lovers have been destroyed.

21 I spoke unto thee in thy prosperity; thou saidst, I will not hear. This hath been thy way from thy youth, that thou hearkenedst not unto my voice.

I spoke to you when things were going well for you, but you said, ‘I will not listen!’ This has been your way since you were young. You have not obeyed My voice.

22 T he wind shall feed on all thy shepherds, and thy lovers shall go into captivity; surely, then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded for all thy wickedness.

The wind will take away all your shepherds, and your lovers will be taken away in chains. Then you will be ashamed and troubled because of all your sin.

23 T hou inhabitress of Lebanon, that makest thy nest in the cedars, how pitiful shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee, pain as of a woman in travail!

O you people of Lebanon, who make your nest among the cedars, how you will cry inside yourselves when pain comes upon you! It will be pain like a woman giving birth.” Words against Coniah

24 I live, saith Jehovah, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, were a signet upon my right hand, yet will I pluck thee thence;

“As I live,” says the Lord, “even if Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were a marking ring on My right hand, I would still pull you off.

25 a nd I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them before whom thou art afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.

I will give you over to those who want to kill you, to those whom you fear. I will give you to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and to the Babylonians.

26 A nd I will cast thee out, and thy mother that bare thee, into another country, where ye were not born; and there shall ye die.

I will throw you and your mother who gave birth to you into another country where you were not born, and there you will die.

27 A nd into the land whereunto they lift up their souls to return, thither shall they not return.

You will want to return to this land again but you will not return.”

28 I s this man Coniah a despised broken vase? a vessel wherein is no delight? Wherefore are they thrown out, he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not?

Is this man Coniah a hated, broken jar? Is he a pot that no one cares for? Why have he and his children been thrown out into a land that they had not known?

29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of Jehovah!

O land, land, land, hear the Word of the Lord!

30 T hus saith Jehovah: Write this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days; for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah.

The Lord says, “Write this man down as one who has no children, a man who will not do well in his days. For none of his children or children’s children will do well sitting on the throne of David or ruling again in Judah.”