Jeremiah 1
Names of God Bible
The Prophet Jeremiah
1 These are the words of Jeremiah, son of Hilkiah. He was one of the priests at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. 2 Yahweh spoke his word to Jeremiah when King Josiah, son of Amon, was in his thirteenth year as king of Judah. 3 Yahweh also spoke when Jehoiakim, son of Josiah, was king of Judah and during the 11 years that Zedekiah, another son of Josiah, was king of Judah. Yahweh continued to speak to Jeremiah until the people of Jerusalem were taken away into captivity in the fifth month of the year.
The Lord Gives Jeremiah a Message for His People
4 Yahweh spoke his word to me,
5 “Before I formed you in the womb,
I knew you.
Before you were born,
I set you apart for my holy purpose.
I appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”
6 I, Jeremiah, said, “Adonay Yahweh, I do not know how to speak. I am only a boy!”
7 But Yahweh said to me, “Don’t say that you are only a boy. You will go wherever I send you. You will say whatever I command you to say. 8 Don’t be afraid of people. I am with you, and I will rescue you,” declares Yahweh.
9 Then Yahweh stretched out his hand and touched my mouth. Yahweh said to me,
“Now I have put my words in your mouth.
10 Today I have put you in charge of nations and kingdoms.
You will uproot and tear down.
You will destroy and overthrow.
You will build and plant.”
11 Again Yahweh spoke his word to me and asked, “Jeremiah, what do you see?”
I answered, “I see a branch of an almond tree.”
12 Then Yahweh said to me, “Right. I am watching to make sure that my words come true.”[a]
13 Again Yahweh spoke his word to me and asked, “What do you see?”
I answered, “I see a boiling pot, and its top is tilted away from the north.”
14 Then Yahweh said to me,
“Disaster will be poured out from the north
on all those who live in the land.
15 I am going to call every family and kingdom from the north,”
declares Yahweh.
“They will come, and they will set up their thrones
at the entrance of Jerusalem’s gates.
They will attack all the walls around the city
and all the cities of Judah.
16 I will pass sentence on my people because of all their wickedness.
They abandoned me,
burned incense to other gods,
and worshiped what their hands have made.
17 Brace yourself, Jeremiah!
Stand up, and say to them whatever I tell you to say.
Don’t be terrified in their presence,
or I will make you even more terrified in their presence.
18 Today I have made you like a fortified city,
an iron pillar, and a bronze wall.
You will be able to stand up to the whole land.
You will be able to stand up to Judah’s kings,
its officials, its priests, and all the common people.
19 They will fight you, but they will not defeat you.
I am with you, and I will rescue you,” declares Yahweh.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 1:12 There is a play on words here between Hebrew shaked (almond tree) and shoked (watching).
Jeremiah 1
Complete Jewish Bible
1 These are the words of Yirmeyahu the son of Hilkiyahu, one of the cohanim living in ‘Anatot, in the territory of Binyamin. 2 The word of Adonai came to him during the days of Yoshiyahu the son of Amon, king of Y’hudah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. 3 It also came during the days of Y’hoyakim the son of Yoshiyahu, king of Y’hudah, continuing until the eleventh year of Tzidkiyahu the son of Yoshiyahu, king of Y’hudah, right up until the time Yerushalayim was carried away captive, in the fifth month.
4 Here is the word of Adonai that came to me:
5 “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you;
before you were born, I separated you for myself.
I have appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”
6 I said, “Oh, Adonai Elohim, I don’t even know how to speak! I’m just a child!” 7 But Adonai said to me, “Don’t say, ‘I’m just a child.’
“For you will go to whomever I send you,
and you will speak whatever I order you.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you, says Adonai,
to rescue you.”
9 Then Adonai put out his hand and touched my mouth, and Adonai said to me,
“There! I have put my words in your mouth.
10 Today I have placed you over nations and kingdoms
to uproot and to tear down,
to destroy and to demolish,
to build and to plant.”
11 The word of Adonai came to me, asking, “Yirmeyahu, what do you see?” I answered, “I see a branch from an almond tree [a]. 12 Then Adonai said to me, “You have seen well, because I am watching [b] to fulfill my word.”
13 A second time the word of Adonai came to me, asking, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a caldron tilted away from the north, over a fire fanned by the wind.” 14 Then Adonai said to me, “From the north calamity will boil over onto everyone living in the land, 15 because I will summon all the families in the kingdoms of the north,” says Adonai,
“and they will come and sit, each one, on his throne
at the entrance to the gates of Yerushalayim,
opposite its walls, all the way around,
and opposite all the cities of Y’hudah.
16 I will pronounce my judgments against them
for all their wickedness in abandoning me,
offering incense to other gods
and worshipping what their own hands made.
17 “But you, dress for action; stand up and tell them
everything I order you to say.
When you confront them, don’t break down;
or I will break you down in front of them!
18 For today, you see, I have made you into
a fortified city, a pillar of iron,
a wall of bronze against the whole land —
against the kings of Y’hudah, against its princes,
against its cohanim and the people of the land.
19 They will fight against you,
but they will not overcome you,
for I am with you,” says Adonai,
“to rescue you.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 1:11 Hebrew: shaked
- Jeremiah 1:12 Hebrew: shoked
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.