Jeremías 34

1 Palabra de Yavé que vino a Jeremías cuando Nabucodonosor, rey de Babilonia, todo su ejército, todos los reyes de la tierra que estaban bajo el dominio de su mano y todos los pueblos combatían contra Jerusalén y sus ciudades:

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came with the armies of all the kingdoms that he ruled, and they fought against Jerusalem and the other towns [in Judah]. At that time, Yahweh gave me this message:

2 Yavé ʼElohim de Israel dice: Vé y habla a Sedequías, rey de Judá: Yavé dice: Yo entrego esta ciudad al rey de Babilonia para que la incendie.

“Go to Zedekiah the King of Judah, and say to him, ‘This is what Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship], says: “I am about to enable the army of the King of Babylon to capture this city, and they will burn it down.

3 Tú no escaparás de su mano, sino serás apresado y caerás en su mano. Tus ojos verán los ojos del rey de Babilonia y te hablará cara a cara. Entrarás en Babilonia.

You will not escape from them; they will capture you and take you to the king of Babylon. And [then] they will take you to Babylon.”’

4 Sin embargo, oh Sedequías, rey de Judá, escucha la Palabra de Yavé. Yavé dice respecto a ti: No morirás a espada.

But King Zedekiah, listen to this that Yahweh has promised: ‘You will not be killed in a battle [MTY];

5 En paz morirás. Como quemaron especias por tus antepasados, los que fueron reyes antes de ti, las quemarán por ti. Te lamentarán y dirán: ¡Ay, ʼadon! Porque Yo hablé la Palabra, dice Yavé.

you will die peacefully. [When you die], people will burn incense to honor/remember you just as they did for your ancestors who were kings before you became king. They will mourn for you, crying, “We are very sad that our king is dead!” I, Yahweh, promise that will happen.’”

6 El profeta Jeremías dijo esto a Sedequías, rey de Judá, en Jerusalén,

[So] I took that message to King Zedekiah.

7 cuando el ejército del rey de Babilonia luchaba contra Jerusalén y el resto de las ciudades de Judá: Laquis y Azeca, las dos ciudades fortificadas de Judá que quedaban.

At that time the army of Babylonia had surrounded Jerusalem and Lachish and Azekah. Those [three] cities were the only cities in Judah that had high walls around them that still had not been captured.

8 La Palabra de Yavé que vino a Jeremías después que Sedequías pactó con el pueblo en Jerusalén y les proclamó libertad,

King Zedekiah had decreed that the people must free their slaves.

9 para que cada uno dejara libre a su esclavo y su esclava hebreos y que ninguno utilizara a sus hermanos judíos como esclavos.

[He decreed that] the people must free their Hebrew slaves, [both the] men slaves and the women [slaves]. No one would be allowed to force a fellow Jew to [continue to] be his slave.

10 Cuando todos los magistrados y todo el pueblo oyeron que en el pacto se convino dejar libre cada uno a su esclavo y a su esclava, y que ninguno volvería a utilizarlos como esclavos, obedecieron y los dejaron en libertad.

The officials and the rest of the people had obeyed [what the king decreed],

11 Pero después cambiaron de parecer y obligaron a regresar a los esclavos y esclavas que habían dejado en libertad y los sometieron como esclavos y esclavas.

but later they changed their minds. They forced the men and women whom they had freed to become their slaves again.

12 Entonces la Palabra de Yavé vino a Jeremías:

[So] Yahweh gave me this message [to tell to them]:

13 Yavé ʼElohim de Israel dice: El día cuando los saqué de Egipto, de casa de esclavitud, Yo pacté con sus antepasados y dije:

“I, Yahweh, the God whom you Israelis [say you belong to], (made an agreement with/gave this command to) your ancestors [long ago], when I rescued them from being slaves in Egypt.

14 Al fin de siete años cada uno de ustedes dejará en libertad a su hermano hebreo que te fue vendido. Seis años le servirá, y lo dejarás ir libre. Pero sus antepasados no me escucharon ni inclinaron su oído.

I told them that they must free all their Hebrew slaves after the slaves had worked for them for six years. But your ancestors did not pay any attention to what I said.

15 Hoy ustedes cambiaron de parecer e hicieron lo recto ante mis ojos, al anunciar cada uno libertad a su prójimo, y concertar un pacto en mi Presencia, en la Casa en la cual es invocado mi Nombre.

Recently, you obeyed my command and stopped doing what was wrong and did what was right. You made a solemn agreement at my temple [that you would free your slaves], and [then] you freed them.

16 Pero se volvieron atrás y profanaron mi Nombre al hacer regresar cada uno a su esclavo y a su esclava, a quienes por su propia voluntad habían dejado en libertad, y los volvieron a someter para que les sean esclavos y esclavas.

But now you have disregarded what you solemnly promised, and you have shown contempt for what I [MTY] said by taking back the women and men whom you had freed and said they could live wherever they wanted to. [Now] you have forced them to be your slaves again.

17 Por tanto, Yavé dice: Ustedes no me obedecieron al no proclamar cada uno la libertad para su hermano y su prójimo. Miren, dice Yavé, Yo proclamo la libertad para la espada, la pestilencia y el hambre. Los pondré como espanto ante todos los reinos de la tierra.

Therefore, this is what [I], Yahweh, say: ‘Because you have not obeyed me by freeing your fellow Israelis, I will free you to [be destroyed by] the swords [of your enemies] and by famines and diseases. All the nations of the earth will be horrified because of [what happens to] you.

18 Entregaré a los hombres que traspasaron mi Pacto, que no cumplieron las palabras del pacto que celebraron en mi Presencia cuando cortaron en dos partes el becerro y pasaron por en medio de ellas:

Because you have disregarded what I said in my agreement with you, I will do to you just like you did to the calves that you cut in half to show that you would surely do what you solemnly promised that you would do. I will [enable your enemies to] cut you into pieces, you officials of Judah and you officials of Jerusalem, and you officials in the palace, and you priests and all you common people. I will do that because you have disregarded what you solemnly promised [about freeing your slaves].

19 a los magistrados de Judá, a los magistrados de Jerusalén, a los servidores del palacio, a los sacerdotes y a todo el pueblo de la tierra, los cuales pasaron entre las partes del becerro.

20 Los entregaré en mano de sus enemigos y de los que buscan su vida. Sus cadáveres serán comida para las aves del cielo y los animales de la tierra.

I will enable your enemies to capture you, and they will kill you. And your bodies will be food for vultures and wild animals.

21 Entregaré a Sedequías, rey de Judá, y a sus magistrados en mano de sus enemigos, de los que buscan su vida, y del ejército del rey de Babilonia, quien se retiró de ustedes.

I will enable the army of the king of Babylon to capture King Zedekiah and his officials. Although the king of Babylon and his army have left Jerusalem [for a short time],

22 Ciertamente Yo daré orden, dice Yavé, y los devolveré a esta ciudad. Lucharán contra ella, la tomarán y la incendiarán. Convertiré en una desolación las ciudades de Judá hasta que no quede habitante.

I will summon them back again. [This time], they will fight against this city and capture it and burn it down. I will make [sure] that all the towns in Judah are destroyed, [with the result that] no one will live there [any more].’”