Jeremiah 1

New International Version

1 The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth^(A) in the territory of Benjamin. ²The word of the Lord came^(B) to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah^(C) son of Amon king of Judah, ³and through the reign of Jehoiakim^(D) son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah^(E) son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.^(F)

The Call of Jeremiah

⁴The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

⁵“Before I formed you in the womb^(G) I knew^[a]^(H) you,
before you were born^(I) I set you apart;^(J)
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.^(K)”

⁶“Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak;^(L) I am too young.”^(M)

⁷But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. ⁸Do not be afraid^(N) of them, for I am with you^(O) and will rescue^(P) you,” declares the Lord.^(Q)

⁹Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched^(R) my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth.^(S) ¹⁰See, today I appoint you over nations^(T) and kingdoms to uproot^(U) and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”^(V)

¹¹The word of the Lord came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?”^(W)

“I see the branch of an almond tree,” I replied.

¹²The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching^[b]^(X) to see that my word is fulfilled.”

¹³The word of the Lord came to me again: “What do you see?”^(Y)

“I see a pot that is boiling,” I answered. “It is tilting toward us from the north.”

¹⁴The Lord said to me, “From the north^(Z) disaster will be poured out on all who live in the land. ¹⁵I am about to summon all the peoples of the northern kingdoms,” declares the Lord.

“Their kings will come and set up their thrones
    in the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem;
they will come against all her surrounding walls
    and against all the towns of Judah.^(AA)
¹⁶I will pronounce my judgments^(AB) on my people
    because of their wickedness^(AC) in forsaking me,^(AD)
in burning incense to other gods^(AE)
    and in worshiping^(AF) what their hands have made.^(AG)

¹⁷“Get yourself ready! Stand up and say^(AH) to them whatever I command you. Do not be terrified^(AI) by them, or I will terrify you before them. ¹⁸Today I have made you^(AJ) a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land—against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests and the people of the land. ¹⁹They will fight against you but will not overcome^(AK) you, for I am with you^(AL) and will rescue^(AM) you,” declares the Lord.

Footnotes

Jeremiah 1:5 Or chose
Jeremiah 1:12 The Hebrew for watching sounds like the Hebrew for almond tree.

Psalm 112

New International Version

Psalm 112^[a]

¹Praise the Lord.^[b]^(A)

Blessed are those^(B) who fear the Lord,^(C)
who find great delight^(D) in his commands.

²Their children^(E) will be mighty in the land;
    the generation of the upright will be blessed.
³Wealth and riches^(F) are in their houses,
    and their righteousness endures^(G) forever.
⁴Even in darkness light dawns^(H) for the upright,
    for those who are gracious and compassionate and righteous.^(I)
⁵Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely,^(J)
    who conduct their affairs with justice.

⁶Surely the righteous will never be shaken;^(K)
    they will be remembered^(L) forever.
⁷They will have no fear of bad news;
    their hearts are steadfast,^(M) trusting in the Lord.^(N)
⁸Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear;^(O)
    in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.^(P)
⁹They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor,^(Q)
    their righteousness endures^(R) forever;
    their horn^[c] will be lifted^(S) high in honor.

¹⁰The wicked will see^(T) and be vexed,
they will gnash their teeth^(U) and waste away;^(V)
the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.^(W)

Footnotes

Psalm 112:1 This psalm is an acrostic poem, the lines of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
Psalm 112:1 Hebrew Hallelu Yah
Psalm 112:9 Horn here symbolizes dignity.