¹Shoko, rakasvika kuna Jeremiya, richibva kuna Jehovha, panguva iyo Nebhukadhinezari mambo weBhabhironi, nehondo yake yose, noushe hwose bwenyika hwakanga hwakabatwa naye, namarudzi ose, vachirwa neJerusaremu namaguta ose aro, richiti,

¹The word which came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth that were under his dominion, and all the peoples, were fighting against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of it, saying:

²Zvanzi naJehovha, Mwari waIsiraeri, Enda, undotaura naZedhekia mambo waJudha; uti kwaari, Zvanzi naJehovha, tarira, ndichaisa guta rino muruoko rwamambo weBhabhironi, iye ucharipisa nomoto;

²Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, Go, and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him, Thus says Yahweh, Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire:

³newe haungapukunyuki paruoko rwake, asi zvirokwazvo uchabatwa, nokuiswa muruoko rwake; meso ako achaona meso amambo weBhabhironi, muchataurirana nemiromo yenyu, iwe uchaenda Bhabhironi.

³and you shall not escape out of his hand, but shall surely be taken, and delivered into his hand; and your eyes shall see the eyes of the king of Babylon, and he shall speak with you mouth to mouth, and you shall go to Babylon.

⁴Asi chinzwa shoko raJehovha, iwe Zedhekia mambo waJudha, zvanzi naJehovha pamusoro pako, iwe haungaurawi nomunondo;

⁴Yet hear the word of Yahweh, O Zedekiah king of Judah: thus says Yahweh concerning you, You shall not die by the sword;

⁵iwe uchafa norugare; sezvavakapisira madzimababa ako, iwo madzimambo akare akakutangira, saizvozvo vachakupisirawo; vachakuchema vachiti, Haiwa ishe! nekuti ndini ndakataura shoko iro, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha.

⁵you shall die in peace; and with the burnings of your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so shall they make a burning for you; and they shall lament you, saying, Ah Lord! for I have spoken the word, says Yahweh.

⁶Ipapo muporofita Jeremiya akataura mashoko aya ose kuna Zedhekia mambo waJudha paJerusaremu,

⁶Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem,

⁷nenguva yakarwa hondo yamambo weBhabhironi neJerusaremu uye namaguta ose aJudha akanga asara, neRakishi neAzeka, nekuti ndiyo yakanga yasara pamaguta aJudha, ari maguta akakombwa norusvingo.

⁷when the king of Babylon’s army was fighting against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and against Azekah; for these alone remained of the cities of Judah as fortified cities.

⁸Shoko, rakasvika kuna Jeremiya, richibva kuna Jehovha, mambo Zedhekia aita sungano navanhu vose vakanga vari Jerusaremu, achivaparidzira kuti vakasunungurwa,

⁸The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, after that the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty to them;

⁹kuti mumwe nomumwe unofanira kutendera muranda wake, nomumwe nomumwe mushandiri wake, waiva muHebheru, murume kana mukadzi, kuti aende hake; kuti kurege kuva nomuJudha unoita hama yake muranda.

⁹that every man should let his male servant, and every man his female servant, who is a Hebrew or a Hebrewess, go free; that none should make bondservants of them, of a Jew his brother.

¹⁰Machinda ose navanhu vose vakateerera, ivo vakanga vatenda sungano, kuti mumwe nomumwe atendere muranda wake nomumwe nomumwe mushandiri wake kuti vaende havo, kuti kurege kuzova nomunhu unovaita varanda; vakateerera, vakavatendera kuenda.

¹⁰All the princes and all the people obeyed, who had entered into the covenant, that everyone should let his male servant, and everyone his female servant, go free, that none should make bondservants of them any more; they obeyed, and let them go:

¹¹Asi pashure vakashanduka, vakadzosa varanda navashandiri, vavakanga vambotendera kuenda, vakavamanikidzazve kuti vave varanda navashandiri.

¹¹but afterwards they turned, and caused the servants and the handmaids, whom they had let go free, to return, and brought them into subjection for servants and for handmaids.

¹²Ipapo shoko raJehovha rakasvika kuna Jeremiya richibha kuna Jehovha, richiti,

¹²Therefore the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying,

¹³Zvanzi naJehovha, Mwari waIsiraeri, Ndakaita sungano namadzibaba enyu, panguva yandakavabudisa munyika yeEgipita, muimba youranda, ndichiti,

¹³Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel: I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying,

¹⁴Kana makore manomwe apera, munofanira mumwe nomumwe kutendera hama yake muHebheru kuti aende hake, iye wakange akatengeswa kwauri, akakubatira makore matanhatu, unofanira kumutendera kuti aende hake, abve kwauri; asi madzibaba enyu haana kunditeerera, kana kurerekera nzeve dzavo.

¹⁴At the end of seven years you shall let go every man his brother who is a Hebrew, who has been sold to you, and has served you six years, you shall let him go free from you: but your fathers didn’t listen to me, neither inclined their ear.

¹⁵Zvino imwi makanga madzoka henyu, mukaita zvakarurama pamberi pangu, zvamakaparidzira mumwe nomumwe hama yake kuti ungasunungurwa; makanga maita sungano pamberi pangu muimba panodamwa zita rangu.

¹⁵You had now turned, and had done that which is right in my eyes, in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbor; and you had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name:

¹⁶Asi makadzoka, mukamhura zita rangu, mukadzosa mumwe nomumwe muranda wake nomumwe nomumwe mushandiri wake, vamakanga matendera kuti vaende havo nokuda kwavo, mukavamanikidzazve kuti vave varanda navashandiri venyu.

¹⁶but you turned and profaned my name, and caused every man his servant, and every man his handmaid, whom you had let go free at their pleasure, to return; and you brought them into subjection, to be to you for servants and for handmaids.

¹⁷Naizvozvo zvanzi naJehovha, Hamuna kunditeerera, mukaparidzira mumwe nomumwe hama yake nomumwe nomumwe wokwake kuti ungasunungurwa hake; tarirai, ini ndinokuparidzirai kuti muchasunungurirwa munondo, nehosha yakaipa, nenzara, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha; ndichakuitai chinhu chinotyisa ushe hwose bwenyika.

¹⁷Therefore thus says Yahweh: you have not listened to me, to proclaim liberty, every man to his brother, and every man to his neighbor: behold, I proclaim to you a liberty, says Yahweh, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth.

¹⁸Varume vakadarika sungano yangu, vakasaita mashoko esungano yavakaita neni, ndichavaita semhuru yavakagura napakati vakapfuura napakati penhindi dzayo;

¹⁸I will give the men who have transgressed my covenant, who have not performed the words of the covenant which they made before me, when they cut the calf in two and passed between its parts;

¹⁹machinda aJudha, namachinda eJerusaremu, navaranda vavo, navapristi, navanhu vose venyika, vakapfuura napakati penhindi dzemhuru,

¹⁹the princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, who passed between the parts of the calf;

²⁰ivo ndichavaisa mumaoko avavengi vavo, nomumaoko avanotsvaka kuvauraya, zvitunha zvavo zvichava zvokudya zveshiri dzokudenga nezvezvikara zvenyika.

²⁰I will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life; and their dead bodies shall be for food to the birds of the sky, and to the animals of the earth.

²¹Naiye Zedhekia mambo waJudha namachinda ake ndichavaisa mumaoko avavengi vavo nomumaoko ehondo yamambo weBhabhironi, vakaenda vachibva kwamuri.

²¹Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon’s army, who have gone away from you.

²²Tarirai, ndichavaraira nokuvadzosera kuguta rino, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha; vacharwa naro, nokurikunda, nokuripisa nomoto; ndichaita maguta aJudha matongo, asina vanogaramo.

²²Behold, I will command, says Yahweh, and cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire: and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.