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Jeremiah 15

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1 καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρός με ἐὰν στῇ Μωυσῆς καὶ Σαμουηλ πρὸ προσώπου μου οὐκ ἔστιν ἡ ψυχή μου πρὸς αὐτούς ἐξαπόστειλον τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον καὶ ἐξελθέτωσαν 2 καὶ ἔσται ἐὰν εἴπωσιν πρὸς σέ ποῦ ἐξελευσόμεθα καὶ ἐρεῖς πρὸς αὐτούς τάδε λέγει κύριος ὅσοι εἰς θάνατον εἰς θάνατον καὶ ὅσοι εἰς μάχαιραν εἰς μάχαιραν καὶ ὅσοι εἰς λιμόν εἰς λιμόν καὶ ὅσοι εἰς αἰχμαλωσίαν εἰς αἰχμαλωσίαν 3 καὶ ἐκδικήσω ἐ{P'} αὐτοὺς τέσσαρα εἴδη λέγει κύριος τὴν μάχαιραν εἰς σφαγὴν καὶ τοὺς κύνας εἰς διασπασμὸν καὶ τὰ θηρία τῆς γῆς καὶ τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ εἰς βρῶσιν καὶ εἰς διαφθοράν 4 καὶ παραδώσω αὐτοὺς εἰς ἀνάγκας πάσαις ταῖς βασιλείαις τῆς γῆς διὰ Μανασση υἱὸν Εζεκιου βασιλέα Ιουδα περὶ πάντων ὧν ἐποίησεν ἐν Ιερουσαλημ 5 τίς φείσεται ἐπὶ σοί Ιερουσαλημ καὶ τίς δειλιάσει ἐπὶ σοί ἢ τίς ἀνακάμψει εἰς εἰρήνην σοι 6 σὺ ἀπεστράφης με λέγει κύριος ὀπίσω πορεύσῃ καὶ ἐκτενῶ τὴν χεῖρά μου καὶ διαφθερῶ σε καὶ οὐκέτι ἀνήσω αὐτούς 7 καὶ διασπερῶ αὐτοὺς ἐν διασπορᾷ ἐν πύλαις λαοῦ μου ἠτεκνώθησαν ἀπώλεσαν τὸν λαόν μου διὰ τὰς κακίας αὐτῶν 8 ἐπληθύνθησαν χῆραι αὐτῶν ὑπὲρ τὴν ἄμμον τῆς θαλάσσης ἐπήγαγον ἐπὶ μητέρα νεανίσκου ταλαιπωρίαν ἐν μεσημβρίᾳ ἐπέρριψα ἐ{P'} αὐτὴν ἐξαίφνης τρόμον καὶ σπουδήν 9 ἐκενώθη ἡ τίκτουσα ἑπτά ἀπεκάκησεν ἡ ψυχὴ αὐτῆς ἐπέδυ ὁ ἥλιος αὐτῇ ἔτι μεσούσης τῆς ἡμέρας κατῃσχύνθη καὶ ὠνειδίσθη τοὺς καταλοίπους αὐτῶν εἰς μάχαιραν δώσω ἐναντίον τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτῶν

1 But it was thus the Lord answered me: Though Moses himself and Samuel made intercession for them, neither love nor liking would I have for this people of mine; banish them from my presence, to go where they will. 2 If they ask whither, give them this message from the Lord: Whom the plague beckons, to the plague; whom the sword, to the sword; whom famine, to famine; whom exile, to exile. 3 Escort they shall have of four kinds, the Lord says; the sword to slay and the dogs to tear them, birds in air and beasts on earth to devour and make an end of them. 4 All the kingdoms of the world shall be in a ferment[1] over them; so will I punish the ill deeds done in Jerusalem by Manasses, son of Ezechias, when he was king of Juda. 5 Nay, Jerusalem, who shall pity or bemoan thee, who shall turn aside, as he passes, to wish thee well? 6 Thou hast forsaken me, the Lord says, and wouldst journey with me no more; now my hand is raised to strike, and make an end of thee; I am weary of wooing thee. 7 Over the threshold of the land I blow my people away like chaff, bereaved, diminished, and unrepentant still. 8 Widows there be, countless as the sea-sand; where is now the warrior son? In broad daylight I send the roving spoiler to strike terror into their cities. 9 Sick at heart and faint she lies, that seven sons had borne; her noon is night, her hopes and her pride gone; and all that she has left, the Lord says, shall fall a prey to the sword in battle.

1 Et dixit Dominus ad me:

Si steterit Moyses et Samuel coram me,
non est anima mea ad populum istum:
ejice illos a facie mea, et egrediantur. 2
Quod si dixerint ad te: Quo egrediemur?
dices ad eos: Hæc dicit Dominus:
Qui ad mortem, ad mortem,
et qui ad gladium, ad gladium,
et qui ad famem, ad famem,
et qui ad captivitatem, ad captivitatem. 3
Et visitabo super eos quatuor species, dicit Dominus:
gladium ad occisionem,
et canes ad lacerandum,
et volatilia cæli et bestias terræ
ad devorandum et dissipandum. 4
Et dabo eos in fervorem universis regnis terræ,
propter Manassen filium Ezechiæ regis Juda,
super omnibus quæ fecit in Jerusalem. 5
Quis enim miserebitur tui, Jerusalem,
aut quis contristabitur pro te?
aut quis ibit ad rogandum pro pace tua? 6
Tu reliquisti me, dicit Dominus;
retrorsum abiisti:
et extendam manum meam super te, et interficiam te:
laboravi rogans. 7
Et dispergam eos ventilabro in portis terræ:
interfeci et disperdidi populum meum,
et tamen a viis suis non sunt reversi. 8
Multiplicatæ sunt mihi viduæ ejus super arenam maris:
induxi eis super matrem adolescentis vastatorem meridie:
misi super civitates repente terrorem. 9
Infirmata est quæ peperit septem;
defecit anima ejus:
occidit ei sol cum adhuc esset dies:
confusa est, et erubuit:
et residuos ejus in gladium dabo
in conspectu inimicorum eorum, ait Dominus.

10 οἴμμοι ἐγώ μῆτερ ὡς τίνα με ἔτεκες ἄνδρα δικαζόμενον καὶ διακρινόμενον πάσῃ τῇ γῇ οὔτε ὠφέλησα οὔτε ὠφέλησέν με οὐδείς ἡ ἰσχύς μου ἐξέλιπεν ἐν τοῖς καταρωμένοις με

10 An ill day when thou, my own mother, didst bring me into the world! A world where all for me is strife, all is hostility; neither creditor I nor debtor to any man, yet they curse my name!

10

Væ mihi, mater mea! quare genuisti me,
virum rixæ, virum discordiæ in universa terra?
Non fœneravi, nec fœneravit mihi quisquam:
omnes maledicunt mihi.

11 γένοιτο δέσποτα κατευθυνόντων αὐτῶν εἰ μὴ παρέστην σοι ἐν καιρῷ τῶν κακῶν αὐτῶν καὶ ἐν καιρῷ θλίψεως αὐτῶν εἰς ἀγαθὰ πρὸς τὸν ἐχθρόν 12 εἰ γνωσθήσεται σίδηρος καὶ περιβόλαιον χαλκοῦν

11 But the Lord answered, I promise that thou shalt leave behind thee good service done, and that in all distress and persecution I am coming to thy side, to save thee from thy enemies. 12 What, should iron and bronze be in league with the iron that comes from the north?[2]

11
Dicit Dominus: Si non reliquiæ tuæ in bonum,
si non occurri tibi in tempore afflictionis,
et in tempore tribulationis adversus inimicum. 12
Numquid fœderabitur ferrum ferro ab aquilone, et æs?

13 ἡ ἰσχύς σου καὶ τοὺς θησαυρούς σου εἰς προνομὴν δώσω ἀντάλλαγμα διὰ πάσας τὰς ἁμαρτίας σου καὶ ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ὁρίοις σου 14 καὶ καταδουλώσω σε κύκλῳ τοῖς ἐχθροῖς σου ἐν τῇ γῇ ᾗ οὐκ ᾔδεις ὅτι πῦρ ἐκκέκαυται ἐκ τοῦ θυμοῦ μου ἐ{F'} ὑμᾶς καυθήσεται

13 … (All the riches and treasures of thy land shall be despoiled, in punishment for all its guilt, and to no purpose; 14 I am summoning enemies to attack thee from a land far away; it is your own persons that shall be burnt up in the fires of vengeance my anger has kindled)[3] …

13
Divitias tuas et thesauros tuos in direptionem dabo gratis,
in omnibus peccatis tuis, et in omnibus terminis tuis. 14
Et adducam inimicos tuos de terra quam nescis,
quia ignis succensus est in furore meo:
super vos ardebit.

15 κύριε μνήσθητί μου καὶ ἐπίσκεψαί με καὶ ἀθῴωσόν με ἀπὸ τῶν καταδιωκόντων με μὴ εἰς μακροθυμίαν γνῶθι ὡς ἔλαβον περὶ σοῦ ὀνειδισμὸν 16 ὑπὸ τῶν ἀθετούντων τοὺς λόγους σου συντέλεσον αὐτούς καὶ ἔσται ὁ λόγος σου ἐμοὶ εἰς εὐφροσύνην καὶ χαρὰν καρδίας μου ὅτι ἐπικέκληται τὸ ὄνομά σου ἐ{P'} ἐμοί κύριε παντοκράτωρ 17 οὐκ ἐκάθισα ἐν συνεδρίῳ αὐτῶν παιζόντων ἀλλὰ εὐλαβούμην ἀπὸ προσώπου χειρός σου κατὰ μόνας ἐκαθήμην ὅτι πικρίας ἐνεπλήσθην 18 ἵνα τί οἱ λυποῦντές με κατισχύουσίν μου ἡ πληγή μου στερεά πόθεν ἰαθήσομαι γινομένη ἐγενήθη μοι ὡς ὕδωρ ψευδὲς οὐκ ἔχον πίστιν

15 Thou art my witness, Lord; bethink thee, and come to my defence against my persecutors; hold thy hand no longer, but claim me for thy own;[4] if I have earned an ill name, it was in thy cause. 16 When thy words were found,[5] how greedily I devoured them! Great joy and content those words gave to my heart, heart of a prophet that bears thy name. 17 Not for me the company of the merry-makers, I would not share in their boastfulness; under the threat of thy judgement I sat alone, filled with boding thoughts. 18 Why are those sad thoughts still with me? Is my hurt desperate, beyond all remedy? Did it cheat me, like some empty water-course, my hope in thee?[6]

15
Tu scis, Domine: recordare mei, et visita me,
et tuere me ab his qui persequuntur me.
Noli in patientia tua suscipere me:
scito quoniam sustinui propter te opprobrium. 16
Inventi sunt sermones tui, et comedi eos:
et factum est mihi verbum tuum in gaudium
et in lætitiam cordis mei,
quoniam invocatum est nomen tuum super me,
Domine Deus exercituum. 17
Non sedi in concilio ludentium,
et gloriatus sum a facie manus tuæ:
solus sedebam, quoniam comminatione replesti me. 18
Quare factus est dolor meus perpetuus,
et plaga mea desperabilis renuit curari?
facta est mihi quasi mendacium aquarum infidelium.

19 διὰ τοῦτο τάδε λέγει κύριος ἐὰν ἐπιστρέψῃς καὶ ἀποκαταστήσω σε καὶ πρὸ προσώπου μου στήσῃ καὶ ἐὰν ἐξαγάγῃς τίμιον ἀπὸ ἀναξίου ὡς στόμα μου ἔσῃ καὶ ἀναστρέψουσιν αὐτοὶ πρὸς σέ καὶ σὺ οὐκ ἀναστρέψεις πρὸς αὐτούς 20 καὶ δώσω σε τῷ λαῷ τούτῳ ὡς τεῖχος ὀχυρὸν χαλκοῦν καὶ πολεμήσουσιν πρὸς σὲ καὶ οὐ μὴ δύνωνται πρὸς σέ διότι μετὰ σοῦ εἰμι τοῦ σῴζειν σε 21 καὶ ἐξαιρεῖσθαί σε ἐκ χειρὸς πονηρῶν καὶ λυτρώσομαί σε ἐκ χειρὸς λοιμῶν

19 Draw[7] near to me, the Lord said, and I will draw thee to myself, to wait upon me. When thou hast learned to separate worth from dross, thou shalt be my true spokesman, and thou shalt draw others to thyself, not let thyself be drawn to them. 20 This people of mine shall find thee a stout wall of bronze, impregnable to their attack; am I not at thy side, the Lord says, to protect and deliver thee? 21 Let the wicked be never so powerful, I will engage for thy safety.

19
Propter hoc hæc dicit Dominus:
Si converteris, convertam te,
et ante faciem meam stabis:
et si separaveris pretiosum a vili,
quasi os meum eris:
convertentur ipsi ad te,
et tu non converteris ad eos. 20
Et dabo te populo huic in murum æreum fortem:
et bellabunt adversum te, et non prævalebunt,
quia ego tecum sum ut salvem te, et eruam te, dicit Dominus: 21
et liberabo te de manu pessimorum,
et redimam te de manu fortium.

[1] According to the Hebrew text, ‘in consternation’.

[2] vv. 11, 12. The sense of these two verses is doubtful, and the Latin does not agree well with the Hebrew text in some points. Verse 12 perhaps implies that Jeremias was accused of being hand in glove with the invaders (37.17); how could the ‘pillar of iron’, the ‘wall of bronze’ (1.18) be in league with the iron yoke (28.14) of Babylon?

[3] vv. 13, 14. These verses are repeated, in part, lower down (17.3); they hardly seem to be in place here. The words ‘to no purpose’ perhaps refer to the tribute exacted by Egypt (IV Kg. 23.35), which left the men of Juda with no means of buying off the Chaldeans.

[4] This is the best that can be made of the obscure (and perhaps corrupt) phrase, ‘Do not take me in thy long-suffering’.

[5] ‘When thy words were found’; this is usually taken as referring to prophetic inspiration; but no parallel is adduced for such a forced way of talking. It may be suggested that Jeremias is here referring to his feelings when the Book of the Law was rediscovered under king Josias. The Septuagint Greek reads ‘from those who despise thy words’ (connected with verse 15).

[6] This is the sense of the Hebrew; the Latin asks ‘Did my hurt cheat me?’

[7] Literally, ‘turn’, throughout this verse.

Knox Translation Copyright © 2013 Westminster Diocese
Nihil Obstat. Father Anton Cowan, Censor.
Imprimatur. +Most Rev. Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster. 8th January 2012.
Re-typeset and published in 2012 by Baronius Press Ltd