1 T hus says the Lord: “Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and there speak this word,

Thus said Jehovah, `Go down the house of the king of Judah, and thou hast spoken there this word, and hast said,

2 a nd say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, you who sit on the throne of David, you and your servants and your people who enter these gates!

Hear a word of Jehovah, O king of Judah, who art sitting on the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people, who are coming in at these gates,

3 T hus says the Lord: “Execute judgment and righteousness, and deliver the plundered out of the hand of the oppressor. Do no wrong and do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.

Thus said Jehovah: Do ye judgment and righteousness, And deliver the plundered from the hand of the oppressor, And sojourner, orphan, and widow, ye do not oppress nor wrong, And innocent blood ye do not shed in this place.

4 F or if you indeed do this thing, then shall enter the gates of this house, riding on horses and in chariots, accompanied by servants and people, kings who sit on the throne of David.

For, if ye certainly do this thing, Then come in by the gates of this house Have kings sitting for David on his throne, Riding on chariot, and on horses, He, and his servants, and his people.

5 B ut if you will not hear these words, I swear by Myself,” says the Lord, “that this house shall become a desolation.”’”

And if ye do not hear these words, By myself I have sworn -- an affirmation of Jehovah, That this house is for a desolation.

6 F or thus says the Lord to the house of the king of Judah: “You are Gilead to Me, The head of Lebanon; Yet I surely will make you a wilderness, Cities which are not inhabited.

For thus said Jehovah, Concerning the house of the king of Judah: Gilead thou to Me -- head of Lebanon, If not -- I make thee a wilderness, Cities not inhabited.

7 I will prepare destroyers against you, Everyone with his weapons; They shall cut down your choice cedars And cast them into the fire.

And I have separated for thee destroyers, Each with his weapons, And they have cut down the choice of thy cedars, And have cast them on the fire.

8 A nd many nations will pass by this city; and everyone will say to his neighbor, ‘Why has the Lord done so to this great city?’

And many nations have passed by this city, And they have said, each to his neighbour, For what hath Jehovah done thus to this great city?

9 T hen they will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God, and worshiped other gods and served them.’”

And they have said, `Because that they have forsaken The covenant of Jehovah their God, And bow themselves to other gods, and serve them.'

10 W eep not for the dead, nor bemoan him; Weep bitterly for him who goes away, For he shall return no more, Nor see his native country. Message to the Sons of Josiah

Ye do not weep for the dead, nor bemoan for him, Weep ye sore for the traveller, For he doth not return again, Nor hath he seen the land of his birth.

11 F or thus says the Lord concerning Shallum the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, who went from this place: “He shall not return here anymore,

For thus said Jehovah concerning Shallum son of Josiah king of Judah, who is reigning instead of Josiah his father, who hath gone forth from this place: He doth not turn back hither again;

12 b ut he shall die in the place where they have led him captive, and shall see this land no more.

For in the place whither they have removed him he dieth, And this land he doth not see again.

13 “ Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness And his chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor’s service without wages And gives him nothing for his work,

Wo to him who is building his house by unrighteousness, And his upper chambers by injustice, On his neighbour he layeth service for nought, And his wage he doth not give to him.

14 W ho says, ‘I will build myself a wide house with spacious chambers, And cut out windows for it, Paneling it with cedar And painting it with vermilion.’

Who is saying, `I build for myself a large house, And airy upper chambers,' And he hath cut out for himself its windows, Ceiled with cedar, and painted with vermillion.

15 “ Shall you reign because you enclose yourself in cedar? Did not your father eat and drink, And do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him.

Dost thou reign, because thou art fretting thyself in cedar? Thy father -- did he not eat and drink? Yea, he did judgment and righteousness, Then well with him.

16 H e judged the cause of the poor and needy; Then it was well. Was not this knowing Me?” says the Lord.

He decided the cause of the poor and needy, Then well -- is it not to know Me? An affirmation of Jehovah.

17 “ Yet your eyes and your heart are for nothing but your covetousness, For shedding innocent blood, And practicing oppression and violence.”

But thine eyes and thy heart are not, Except on thy dishonest gain, And on shedding of innocent blood, And on oppression, and on doing of violence.

18 T herefore thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah: “They shall not lament for him, Saying, ‘Alas, my brother!’ or ‘Alas, my sister!’ They shall not lament for him, Saying, ‘Alas, master!’ or ‘Alas, his glory!’

Therefore, thus said Jehovah concerning Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: They do not lament for him, Ah, my brother, and Ah, sister, They do not lament for him, Ah, lord, and Ah, his honour.

19 H e shall be buried with the burial of a donkey, Dragged and cast out beyond the gates of Jerusalem.

The burial of an ass -- he is buried, Dragged and cast out thence to the gates of Jerusalem.

20 “ Go up to Lebanon, and cry out, And lift up your voice in Bashan; Cry from Abarim, For all your lovers are destroyed.

Go up to Lebanon, and cry, And in Bashan give forth thy voice, And cry from Abarim, For destroyed have been all loving thee.

21 I spoke to you in your prosperity, But you said, ‘I will not hear.’ This has been your manner from your youth, That you did not obey My voice.

I have spoken unto thee in thine ease, Thou hast said, `I do not hearken,' This thy way from thy youth, For thou hast not hearkened to My voice.

22 T he wind shall eat up all your rulers, And your lovers shall go into captivity; Surely then you will be ashamed and humiliated For all your wickedness.

All thy friends consume doth wind, And thy lovers into captivity do go, Surely then thou art ashamed, And hast blushed for all thy wickedness.

23 O inhabitant of Lebanon, Making your nest in the cedars, How gracious will you be when pangs come upon you, Like the pain of a woman in labor? Message to Coniah

O dweller in Lebanon, making a nest among cedars, How gracious hast thou been when pangs come to thee, Pain -- as of a travailing woman.

24 “ As I live,” says the Lord, “though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were the signet on My right hand, yet I would pluck you off;

I live -- an affirmation of Jehovah, Though Coniah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah Were a seal on My right hand, Surely thence I draw thee away,

25 a nd I will give you into the hand of those who seek your life, and into the hand of those whose face you fear—the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the hand of the Chaldeans.

And I have given thee into the hand of those seeking thy life, And into hands of which thou art afraid, Into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, And into the hand of the Chaldeans.

26 S o I will cast you out, and your mother who bore you, into another country where you were not born; and there you shall die.

And I have cast thee, And thy mother who bore thee, unto another country, Where ye were not born, and there do ye die.

27 B ut to the land to which they desire to return, there they shall not return.

And to the land whither they are lifting up their soul to return, Thither they do not return.

28 “ Is this man Coniah a despised, broken idol— A vessel in which is no pleasure? Why are they cast out, he and his descendants, And cast into a land which they do not know?

A grief -- a despised broken thing -- is this man Coniah? A vessel in which there is no pleasure? Wherefore have they been cast up and down, He and his seed, Yea, they were cast on to a land that they knew not?

29 O earth, earth, earth, Hear the word of the Lord!

Earth, earth, earth, hear a word of Jehovah,

30 T hus says the Lord: ‘Write this man down as childless, A man who shall not prosper in his days; For none of his descendants shall prosper, Sitting on the throne of David, And ruling anymore in Judah.’”

Thus said Jehovah: Write ye this man childless, A man -- he doth not prosper in his days, For none of his seed doth prosper, Sitting on the throne of David, And ruling again in Judah!