耶利米受迫害

20 音麦的儿子巴施户珥祭司在耶和华的殿中做总管。他听见耶利米预言这些事, 便下令殴打耶利米先知,把他囚禁在耶和华殿的便雅悯上门处。 第二天,他释放了耶利米,耶利米对他说:“耶和华不再叫你巴施户珥,要叫你玛歌珥·米撒毕[a] 因为耶和华说,‘我要使你和你的朋友都惊慌失措,让你亲眼看见你的朋友死在敌人刀下;我要把犹大人都交在巴比伦王手中,使他们或被杀或被掳到巴比伦; 我要把这城里所有的财富、出产、珍宝,甚至犹大列王的宝物都交给敌人,带到巴比伦作战利品。 你巴施户珥、你所有的家人以及听你说假预言的朋友都要被掳到巴比伦,死在那里,葬在那里。’”

耶利米的抱怨

耶和华啊,
你欺骗我,我被你骗了。
你制服我,胜过我。
如今,我成了人们终日嘲笑、戏弄的对象。
我每次说预言,都大声疾呼:
“暴力和毁灭要来了!”
我因传讲耶和华的话而终日遭受侮辱和讥笑。
有时我打算不再提起耶和华,
不再奉祂的名宣讲,
但祂的话如一团火在我心中燃烧,
憋在我骨头里,
我无法忍住不说。
10 我听见许多人窃窃私语:
“看那个说‘四面有恐怖’的人,
我们告发他!告发他!”
我的好友都盼着我灭亡,说:
“或许他会受骗,
那样我们便能打倒他,
一泄心头之恨。”
11 但耶和华与我同在,
祂像勇猛的战士。
迫害我的人必一败涂地,
羞愧难当,留下永远的耻辱。
12 考验义人、洞悉人心的万军之耶和华啊,
求你让我看见你报应他们,
因为我已向你禀明冤情。

13 你们要歌颂耶和华!
要赞美耶和华!
因为祂从恶人手中救出穷人。

14 愿我出生的那天受咒诅!
愿我母亲生我的那天不蒙祝福!
15 愿那告诉我父亲喜得贵子、
使他欢喜的人受咒诅!
16 愿那人像被耶和华无情毁灭的城!
愿他早晨听见哀鸣,
中午听见战争的呐喊,
17 因为他没有把我杀死在母腹中,
没有使母腹成为我的坟墓,
让我永远留在里面。
18 为什么我要从母胎出来,
经历患难和痛苦,
在羞辱中度过一生呢?

Footnotes

  1. 20:3 玛歌珥·米撒毕”意思是“四面有恐怖”。

Pashhur Arrests Jeremiah

20 Pashhur son of Immer was a priest and the chief of temple security. He heard what I had said, and so he hit me.[a] Then he had me arrested and put in chains[b] at the Benjamin Gate in the Lord's temple.[c] The next day, when Pashhur let me go free, I told him that the Lord had said:

No longer will I call you Pashhur. Instead, I will call you Afraid-of-Everything.[d] You will be afraid, and you will bring fear to your friends as well. You will see enemies kill them in battle. Then I will let the king of Babylonia take everyone in Judah prisoner, killing some and dragging the rest away to Babylonia. He will clean out the royal treasury and take everything else of value from Jerusalem.

Pashhur, you are guilty of telling lies and claiming they were messages from me. That's why I will let the Babylonians take you, your family, and your friends as prisoners to Babylonia, where you will all die and be buried.

Jeremiah Complains to the Lord

You tricked me, Lord,
    and I was really fooled.
You are stronger than I am,
    and you have defeated me.
People never stop sneering
    and insulting me.
You have let me announce
    only injustice and death.
Your message has brought me
nothing but insults
    and trouble.
Sometimes I tell myself
not to think about you, Lord,
    or even mention your name.
But your message burns
in my heart and bones,
    and I cannot keep silent.

10 I heard the crowds whisper,
    “Everyone is afraid.
Now's our chance
    to accuse Jeremiah!”
All of my so-called friends
are just waiting
    for me to make a mistake.
They say, “Maybe Jeremiah
    can be tricked.
Then we can overpower him
    and get even at last.”

11 But you, Lord,
are a mighty soldier,
    standing at my side.
Those troublemakers
will fall down and fail—
    terribly embarrassed,
    forever ashamed.

12 Lord All-Powerful,
    you test those who do right,
and you know every heart
    and mind.
I have told you my complaints,
so let me watch you
    take revenge on my enemies.
13 I sing praises to you, Lord.
You rescue the oppressed
    from the wicked.

14 (A) Put a curse on the day I was born!
    Don't bless that day.
15 Put a curse on the man
who told my father, “Good news!
    You have a son.”
16 May that man be like the towns
    you destroyed without pity.
Let him hear shouts of alarm
in the morning
    and battle cries at noon.
17 He deserves to die
for not killing me
    before I was born.
Then my mother's body
    would have been my grave.
18 Why did I have to be born?
Was it just to suffer
    and die in shame?

Footnotes

  1. 20.2 hit me: Or “beat me up” or “had me beaten up.”
  2. 20.2 in chains: Or “in the stocks” (a wooden frame with holes for the hands, neck, or feet of a prisoner) or “in a prison cell.”
  3. 20.2 the Benjamin Gate in the Lord's temple: The Hebrew text has “the upper Benjamin Gate in the temple”; the lower Benjamin Gate may have been the city gate of that name.
  4. 20.3 Afraid-of-Everything: Hebrew “Magor-Missabib.”

Jeremiah and Pashhur

20 When the priest Pashhur son of Immer,(A) the official(B) in charge of the temple of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things, he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten(C) and put in the stocks(D) at the Upper Gate of Benjamin(E) at the Lord’s temple. The next day, when Pashhur released him from the stocks, Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord’s name(F) for you is not Pashhur, but Terror on Every Side.(G) For this is what the Lord says: ‘I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; with your own eyes(H) you will see them fall by the sword of their enemies. I will give(I) all Judah into the hands of the king of Babylon, who will carry(J) them away to Babylon or put them to the sword. I will deliver all the wealth(K) of this city into the hands of their enemies—all its products, all its valuables and all the treasures of the kings of Judah. They will take it away(L) as plunder and carry it off to Babylon. And you, Pashhur, and all who live in your house will go into exile to Babylon. There you will die and be buried, you and all your friends to whom you have prophesied(M) lies.’”

Jeremiah’s Complaint

You deceived[a](N) me, Lord, and I was deceived[b];
    you overpowered(O) me and prevailed.
I am ridiculed(P) all day long;
    everyone mocks(Q) me.
Whenever I speak, I cry out
    proclaiming violence and destruction.(R)
So the word of the Lord has brought me
    insult and reproach(S) all day long.
But if I say, “I will not mention his word
    or speak anymore in his name,”(T)
his word is in my heart like a fire,(U)
    a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;(V)
    indeed, I cannot.
10 I hear many whispering,
    “Terror(W) on every side!
    Denounce(X) him! Let’s denounce him!”
All my friends(Y)
    are waiting for me to slip,(Z) saying,
“Perhaps he will be deceived;
    then we will prevail(AA) over him
    and take our revenge(AB) on him.”

11 But the Lord(AC) is with me like a mighty warrior;
    so my persecutors(AD) will stumble and not prevail.(AE)
They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced;(AF)
    their dishonor will never be forgotten.
12 Lord Almighty, you who examine the righteous
    and probe the heart and mind,(AG)
let me see your vengeance(AH) on them,
    for to you I have committed(AI) my cause.

13 Sing(AJ) to the Lord!
    Give praise to the Lord!
He rescues(AK) the life of the needy
    from the hands of the wicked.(AL)

14 Cursed be the day I was born!(AM)
    May the day my mother bore me not be blessed!
15 Cursed be the man who brought my father the news,
    who made him very glad, saying,
    “A child is born to you—a son!”
16 May that man be like the towns(AN)
    the Lord overthrew without pity.
May he hear wailing(AO) in the morning,
    a battle cry at noon.
17 For he did not kill me in the womb,(AP)
    with my mother as my grave,
    her womb enlarged forever.
18 Why did I ever come out of the womb(AQ)
    to see trouble(AR) and sorrow
    and to end my days in shame?(AS)

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 20:7 Or persuaded
  2. Jeremiah 20:7 Or persuaded

The Word of God to Pashhur

20 Now (A)Pashhur the son of (B)Immer, the priest who was also chief governor in the house of the Lord, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things. Then Pashhur struck Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the high (C)gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the Lord.

And it happened on the next day that Pashhur brought Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord has not called your name Pashhur, but [a]Magor-Missabib. For thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and your eyes shall see it. I will (D)give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive to Babylon and slay them with the sword. Moreover I (E)will deliver all the wealth of this city, all its produce, and all its precious things; all the treasures of the kings of Judah I will give into the hand of their enemies, who will plunder them, seize them, and (F)carry them to Babylon. And you, Pashhur, and all who dwell in your house, shall go into captivity. You shall go to Babylon, and there you shall die, and be buried there, you and all your friends, to whom you have (G)prophesied lies.’ ”

Jeremiah’s Unpopular Ministry

O Lord, You [b]induced me, and I was persuaded;
(H)You are stronger than I, and have prevailed.
(I)I am [c]in derision daily;
Everyone mocks me.
For when I spoke, I cried out;
(J)I shouted, “Violence and plunder!”
Because the word of the Lord was made to me
A reproach and a derision daily.
Then I said, “I will not make mention of Him,
Nor speak anymore in His name.”
But His word was in my heart like a (K)burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
I was weary of holding it back,
And (L)I could not.
10 (M)For I heard many [d]mocking:
“Fear on every side!”
“Report,” they say, “and we will report it!”
(N)All my acquaintances watched for my stumbling, saying,
“Perhaps he can be induced;
Then we will prevail against him,
And we will take our revenge on him.”

11 But the Lord is (O)with me as a mighty, awesome One.
Therefore my persecutors will stumble, and will not (P)prevail.
They will be greatly ashamed, for they will not prosper.
Their (Q)everlasting confusion will never be forgotten.
12 But, O Lord of hosts,
You who (R)test the righteous,
And see the [e]mind and heart,
(S)Let me see Your vengeance on them;
For I have pleaded my cause before You.

13 Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord!
For (T)He has delivered the life of the poor
From the hand of evildoers.

14 (U)Cursed be the day in which I was born!
Let the day not be blessed in which my mother bore me!
15 Let the man be cursed
Who brought news to my father, saying,
“A male child has been born to you!”
Making him very glad.
16 And let that man be like the cities
Which the Lord (V)overthrew, and did not relent;
Let him (W)hear the cry in the morning
And the shouting at noon,
17 (X)Because he did not kill me from the womb,
That my mother might have been my grave,
And her womb always enlarged with me.
18 (Y)Why did I come forth from the womb to (Z)see [f]labor and sorrow,
That my days should be consumed with shame?

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 20:3 Lit. Fear on Every Side
  2. Jeremiah 20:7 enticed or persuaded
  3. Jeremiah 20:7 Lit. a laughingstock all the day
  4. Jeremiah 20:10 slandering
  5. Jeremiah 20:12 Most secret parts, lit. kidneys
  6. Jeremiah 20:18 toil

20 Now Pashur the son of Immer the priest, who was also chief governor in the house of the Lord, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things.

Then Pashur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the high gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the Lord.

And it came to pass on the morrow, that Pashur brought forth Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then said Jeremiah unto him, The Lord hath not called thy name Pashur, but Magormissabib.

For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will make thee a terror to thyself, and to all thy friends: and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it: and I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive into Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword.

Moreover I will deliver all the strength of this city, and all the labours thereof, and all the precious things thereof, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah will I give into the hand of their enemies, which shall spoil them, and take them, and carry them to Babylon.

And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thine house shall go into captivity: and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies.

O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived; thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me.

For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the Lord was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily.

Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.

10 For I heard the defaming of many, fear on every side. Report, say they, and we will report it. All my familiars watched for my halting, saying, Peradventure he will be enticed, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge on him.

11 But the Lord is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten.

12 But, O Lord of hosts, that triest the righteous, and seest the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them: for unto thee have I opened my cause.

13 Sing unto the Lord, praise ye the Lord: for he hath delivered the soul of the poor from the hand of evildoers.

14 Cursed be the day wherein I was born: let not the day wherein my mother bare me be blessed.

15 Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, saying, A man child is born unto thee; making him very glad.

16 And let that man be as the cities which the Lord overthrew, and repented not: and let him hear the cry in the morning, and the shouting at noontide;

17 Because he slew me not from the womb; or that my mother might have been my grave, and her womb to be always great with me.

18 Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see labour and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame?