כֹּה אָמַר יְהוָה הָלֹוךְ וְקָנִיתָ בַקְבֻּק יֹוצֵר חָרֶשׂ וּמִזִּקְנֵי הָעָם וּמִזִּקְנֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים׃   19:1

Jere. 19:1   Thus said the Lord: “Go and get a potter’s flask of earthenware, and from the elders of the people and the elders of the priests.”

וְיָצָאתָ אֶל־גֵּיא בֶן־הִנֹּם אֲשֶׁר פֶּתַח שַׁעַר (הַחֲרָסוּת) [הַחַרְסִית] וְקָרָאתָ שָּׁם אֶת־הַדְּבָרִים   19:2            אֲשֶׁר־אֲדַבֵּר אֵלֶיךָ׃

Jere. 19:2   “Then you shall go out to the Valley of the Son of Hinnom that is the entrance of the gate of Harsith, and proclaim the words there that I shall speak to you.”

The word in parentheses translated as Harsith is misspelled.  The correction in the brackets substitutes a yad for the vav. 

Of greater significance is the reference to the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, a small narrow valley to the southwest of old Jerusalem.  There the Jews would burn sacrifices to a fire god.  The name of the valley also morphed to Gehenna, which became synonomous with hell.

וְאָמַרְתָּ שִׁמְעוּ דְבַר־יְהוָה מַלְכֵי יְהוּדָה וְיֹשְׁבֵי יְרוּשָׁלִָם כֹּה־אָמַר יְהוָה צְבָאֹות אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל   19:3         הִנְנִי מֵבִיא רָעָה עַל־הַמָּקֹום הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר כָּל־שֹׁמְעָהּ תִּצַּלְנָה אָזְנָיו׃

Jere. 19:3   “And you shall say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, O kings of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem!  Thus says the Lord of hosts, God of Israel:  ‘Behold, I am bringing evil upon this place, which, whoever hears of it his ears shall tingle,

עַן אֲשֶׁר עֲזָבֻנִי וַיְנַכְּרוּ אֶת־הַמָּקֹום הַזֶּה וַיְקַטְּרוּ־בֹו לֵאלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יְדָעוּם הֵמָּה   19:4 וַאֲבֹותֵיהֶם וּמַלְכֵי יְהוּדָה וּמָלְאוּ אֶת־הַמָּקֹום הַזֶּה דַּם נְקִיִּם׃

Jere. 19:4   for the reason that they have forsaken Me and profaned this place and sacrificed in it to other gods that they did not know -- they, nor their fathers, nor the kings of Judah -- and filled this place with the blood of innocents,

וּבָנוּ אֶת־בָּמֹות הַבַּעַל לִשְׂרֹף אֶת־בְּנֵיהֶם בָּאֵשׁ עֹלֹות לַבָּעַל אֲשֶׁר לֹא־צִוִּיתִי וְלֹא דִבַּרְתִּי וְלֹא   19:5       עָלְתָה עַל־לִבִּי׃

Jere. 19:5   and have built the high places of Baal to burn their children in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal, which I did not command or declare; nor did it spring up on My ‘mind.’’

לָכֵן הִנֵּה־יָמִים בָּאִים נְאֻם־יְהוָה וְלֹא־יִקָּרֵא לַמָּקֹום הַזֶּה עֹוד הַתֹּפֶת וְגֵיא בֶן־הִנֹּם כִּי אִם־גֵּיא   19:6 הַהֲרֵגָה׃

Jere. 19:6   ‘Therefore, behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘when this place will not be called Topheth any more, nor the Valley of the Son of Hinnom but instead the Valley of Slaughter.’

This verse is a sort of reprise of Jere. 7:32.

וּבַקֹּתִי אֶת־עֲצַת יְהוּדָה וִירוּשָׁלִַם בַּמָּקֹום הַזֶּה וְהִפַּלְתִּים בַּחֶרֶב לִפְנֵי אֹיְבֵיהֶם וּבְיַד מְבַקְשֵׁי   19:7        נַפְשָׁם וְנָתַתִּי אֶת־נִבְלָתָם לְמַאֲכָל לְעֹוף הַשָּׁמַיִם וּלְבֶהֱמַת הָאָרֶץ׃

Jere. 19:7   ‘And I shall make the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem empty in this place, and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies and by the hand of the seekers of their life. And I will permit their carcasses to be food for the fowl of the skies and for the beasts of the earth,

וְשַׂמְתִּי אֶת־הָעִיר הַזֹּאת לְשַׁמָּה וְלִשְׁרֵקָה כֹּל עֹבֵר עָלֶיהָ יִשֹּׁם וְיִשְׁרֹק עַל־כָּל־מַכֹּתֶהָ׃   19:8

Jere. 19:8   and I will make this city to be a horror and a hissing:  Anyone passing by it shall be appalled and will whistle because of all its plagues.’

וְהַאֲכַלְתִּים אֶת־בְּשַׂר בְּנֵיהֶם וְאֵת בְּשַׂר בְּנֹתֵיהֶם וְאִישׁ בְּשַׂר־רֵעֵהוּ יֹאכֵלוּ בְּמָצֹור וּבְמָצֹוק אֲשֶׁר   19:9  יָצִיקוּ לָהֶם אֹיְבֵיהֶם וּמְבַקְשֵׁי נַפְשָׁם׃

Jere. 19:9   ‘And I shall cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and each the flesh of his neighbor they shall eat, in the siege and in the stress with which their enemies will oppress them, and the seekers of their life.’”

וְשָׁבַרְתָּ הַבַּקְבֻּק לְעֵינֵי הָאֲנָשִׁים הַהֹלְכִים אֹותָךְ׃   19:10

Jere. 19:10   “Then you shall break the flask before the eyes of the men walking with you.”

וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵיהֶם כֹּה־אָמַר יְהוָה צְבָאֹות כָּכָה אֶשְׁבֹּר אֶת־הָעָם הַזֶּה וְאֶת־הָעִיר הַזֹּאת כַּאֲשֶׁר   19:11     יִשְׁבֹּר אֶת־כְּלִי הַיֹּוצֵר אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יוּכַל לְהֵרָפֵה עֹוד וּבְתֹפֶת יִקְבְּרוּ מֵאֵין מָקֹום לִקְבֹּור׃

Jere. 19:11   “Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts:  ‘Like so I shall break this people and this city as one can break a vessel of a potter which is not able to be made whole again.  And they shall bury in Topheth, lacking space for burial.’”

כֵּן־אֶעֱשֶׂה לַמָּקֹום הַזֶּה נְאֻם־יְהוָה וּלְיֹושְׁבָיו וְלָתֵת אֶת־הָעִיר הַזֹּאת כְּתֹפֶת׃   19:12

Jere. 19:12   “So will I do to this place,” says the Lord, “and to its inhabitants, also making this city like Topheth.”

וְהָיוּ בָּתֵּי יְרוּשָׁלִַם וּבָתֵּי מַלְכֵי יְהוּדָה כִּמְקֹום הַתֹּפֶת הַטְּמֵאִים לְכֹל הַבָּתִּים אֲשֶׁר קִטְּרוּ   19:13                   עַל־גַּגֹּתֵיהֶם לְכֹל צְבָא הַשָּׁמַיִם וְהַסֵּךְ נְסָכִים לֵאלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים׃

Jere. 19:13   “And the houses of Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah shall be like the place of Topheth, defiled, according to all the houses that they sacrificed upon their roofs to every host of heaven and poured drink offerings to other gods.”

וַיָּבֹא יִרְמְיָהוּ מֵהַתֹּפֶת אֲשֶׁר שְׁלָחֹו יְהוָה שָׁם לְהִנָּבֵא וַיַּעֲמֹד בַּחֲצַר בֵּית־יְהוָה וַיֹּאמֶר   19:14

אֶל־כָּל־הָעָם׃

Jere. 19:14   So Jeremiah came from Topheth where the Lord had sent him there to prophesy, and he stood in the court of the house of the Lord and said to all the people,

כֹּה־אָמַר יְהוָה צְבָאֹות אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הִנְנִי (מֵבִי) [מֵבִיא] אֶל־הָעִיר הַזֹּאת וְעַל־כָּל־עָרֶיהָ אֵת   19:15        כָּל־הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתִּי עָלֶיהָ כִּי הִקְשׁוּ אֶת־עָרְפָּם לְבִלְתִּי שְׁמֹועַ אֶת־דְּבָרָי׃

Jere. 19:15   “Thus says the Lord of hosts, God of Israel:  ‘Behold, I am bringing to this city and upon all its towns all the evil that I have declared against it, because they have made their necks stiff so as not to hear My words.’”

As you may notice, the word in the parentheses, translated as am bringing, is missing an aleph. The correct spelling is in the brackets.

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