Jeremiah 22

¹ God tell me make I go to palace of king of Judah, the descendant of David,

² and for there make I tell the king, him officials, and people of Jerusalem make dem hear wetin God don talk:

³ “I, the LORD, command una make una do wetin dey just and right. Make una protect the person wey dem dey cheat, from person wey dey cheat him. Make una no maltreat or oppress foreigner, orphan, or widow; and make una no kill innocent people for this holy place.

⁴ If una really do as I don command, then descendant of David go continue to be king. And them, together with their official and their people, go continue to dey pass through the gate inside chariot and on top horse.

⁵ But if una no obey my command, then I swear to una say this palace go destroy. I, the LORD, don talk.

⁶ “To me, royal palace of Judah dey beautiful like land of Gilead and like Lebanon Mountains; but I go make am empty place where nobody dey live.

⁷ I dey send men make dem destroy am. All of them go bring their axes, dem go cut down hin beautiful cedar pillar, and throw them for fire.

⁸ “After that, plenty foreigners go pass by and ask one another why I, the LORD, don do this kind thing to this great city.

⁹ Then dem go answer say na because una don abandon una covenant with me, una God, and una don worship and serve other gods.”

¹⁰ People of Judah, make una no cry for king Josiah; make una no mourn him death. But make una mourn bitterly for him son, Joahaz; dem dey take him away, he no go come back again, he no go see the land wey dem born him again.

¹¹ God talk about Joahaz son of Josiah, wey become king of Judah after him father, “He don go away from here; he no go come back again.

¹² He go die for the country wey dem carry am go, and he no go see this land again.”

¹³ The man wey build him house with injustice and enlarge am by telling lie don enter trouble; he dey make him country men work for him for nothing and he no dey gree pay their wages.

¹⁴ That one wey talk say “I go build fine house for myself wey go get big room for upstairs” don enter trouble. So he put window for him house, cover am with cedar, and paint am red.

¹⁵ If you build house with cedar wey fine pass other people own, shey e make you better king? Your father don enjoy full life. He dey always do good, and he prosper in everything wey he do.

¹⁶ He dey give poor fair case and all better for him. Na wetin e mean to know God be that.

¹⁷ But you dey only see wetin concern you; you dey kill the innocent and you dey oppress your people with violence. God don talk.

¹⁸ So, God talk about Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah say, “No one go mourn him death or talk say, ‘How terrible, my friend, how terrible!’ Nobody go weep or cry for him say, ‘My lord! My king!’

¹⁹ The people of Judah go bury him like donkey. Dem go drag away him body and throw am outside gate of Jerusalem.”

²⁰ People of Jerusalem, make una go Lebanon and shout, make una go land of Bashan and cry; make una cry out from mountains of Moab, because dem don defeat all una partners.

²¹ God follow una talk when una dey do well, but una no gree listen. Na wetin una don use all una life do be that; una no dey gree obey God.

²² Wind go blow una leader away, dem go take una partners as prisoners of war, disgrace and shame go catch una city because of all the evil wey una don do.

²³ Una think say cedar wey dem bring from Lebanon dey protect una; but una go dey sad when pain strike una, pain like those women in labour.

²⁴ God tell King Jehoiachin, son of King Jehoiakim of Judah say, “As long as I be the living God, even if you be the ring wey get design for my right-hand, I go remove you

²⁵ And give you to the people wey you dey fear, people wey wan kill you. I go carry you give king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia and him soldier.

²⁶ I go force you and your mother go strange land. Una go commot go country where dem no born any of una, and the two of una go die for there.

²⁷ Una go wan see this country again, but una no go ever come back.”

²⁸ I talk say, “Shey king Jehoiachin don be like bottle wey don break wey dem don throw away and wey nobody want? Shey na why dem don carry him and him children go foreign land wey dem no know anything about?”

²⁹ O land, land, land! Make una hear wetin God don say:

³⁰ He don condemn this man make he lose him children, make he be man wey no go make am. He no go get descendant wey go rule for Judah as successor of David. I, the LORD, don talk.”