Jeremiah 20
New Life Version
Jeremiah and the Religious Leader Pashhur
20 Now Pashhur the religious leader, the son of Immer, was the head leader in the house of the Lord. When he heard Jeremiah saying these things, 2 Pashhur had Jeremiah the man of God beaten. Then he put him in chains at the upper Benjamin Gate by the house of the Lord. 3 On the next day, when Pashhur set Jeremiah free from the chains, Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord does not call you Pashhur, but Fear Everywhere. 4 For the Lord says, ‘See, I am going to make you a fear to yourself and to all your friends. They will fall by the sword of those who hate them while you look on. I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon. And he will carry them away in chains to Babylon and will kill them with the sword. 5 I will give over all the riches of this city, all that its people have worked for, and all its things of much worth. Even all the riches of the kings of Judah I will give to those who hate them. They will take their things, and take hold of them, and carry them to Babylon. 6 And you, Pashhur, and all who live in your house will be taken away in chains. You will go to Babylon, and there you will die, and there you will be buried, you and all your friends to whom you have told lies.’”
Jeremiah’s Complaint to the Lord
7 O Lord, You have lied to me and I was fooled. You are stronger than I, and have had power over me. I have been laughed at all day. Everyone makes fun of me. 8 For whenever I speak, I cry out. I tell of fighters and destroyers. For the Word of the Lord has become a shame and a cause of laughing at me all day long. 9 But if I say, “I will not remember Him or speak any more in His name,” then in my heart it is like a burning fire shut up in my bones. I am tired of holding it in, and I cannot do that. 10 For I have heard many speaking in secret, saying, “Fear and trouble is on every side! Speak against him! Yes, let us speak against him!” All my trusted friends, watching for my fall, say, “It may be that he will be fooled. Then we can get power over him and punish him.” 11 But the Lord is with me like a powerful one who causes fear. So those who make it hard for me will fall and not have power over me. They will be put to much shame, because their plans have not gone well. Their shame will last forever and will not be forgotten. 12 O Lord of All, You test those who are right and good. You see the mind and the heart. Let me see You punish them, for I have given my cause to You. 13 Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord! For He has taken the soul of the one in need from the hand of the sinful.
14 Cursed is the day when I was born! Let the day not be honored when my mother gave birth to me! 15 Cursed be the man who brought the news to my father, saying, “A baby boy has been born to you!” and made him very happy. 16 Let that man be like the cities which the Lord destroyed without pity. Let him hear a cry in the morning and a call of danger at noon. 17 For he did not kill me before I was born, so that my mother’s body would have been my grave. 18 Why was I ever born to see trouble and sorrow, and spend my days in shame?
Jeremiah 20
Complete Jewish Bible
20 Now when the cohen Pash’chur son of Immer, chief official in the house of Adonai, heard Yirmeyahu prophesying these things, 2 he had him flogged and put him in the stocks at the Upper Binyamin Gate of the house of Adonai. 3 The following morning, when Pash’chur led Yirmeyahu out of the stocks, Yirmeyahu said to him, “Adonai no longer calls you Pash’chur but Magor-Missaviv [terror on every side]. 4 For this is what Adonai says: ‘I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends. They will fall by the sword of their enemies, while you watch. I will hand over all of Y’hudah to the king of Bavel, and he will carry them off captive to Bavel and put them to the sword. 5 Moreover, I will hand over everything stored in this city, all its valuables, all its wealth, indeed all the treasures of the kings of Y’hudah, to their enemies, who will plunder them, take them and carry them to Bavel. 6 And you, Pash’chur, along with your entire household, will go into captivity; you will go to Bavel, where you will die and be buried — you and all your friends to whom you have prophesied lies.’”
7 You fooled me, Adonai; I have been your dupe.
You overpowered me, and you have prevailed.
All day long I’m a laughingstock;
everyone makes fun of me.
8 Whenever I speak, I have to cry out;
I shout, “Violence!” and “Destruction!”
Thus the word of Adonai becomes for me
the cause of reproach and derision all day!
9 But if I say, “I won’t think about him,
I won’t speak in his name any more,”
then it seems as though a fire
is burning in my heart,
imprisoned in my bones;
I wear myself out
trying to hold it in,
but I just can’t do it.
10 I have heard many whispering their plot:
“‘Terror in every direction’?
Denounce him! Let’s denounce him!”
Even all my close friends
are watching for me to make a false step —
“Maybe he can be tricked,
then we’ll get the better of him,
then we’ll take our revenge on him.”
11 But Adonai is with me like a dreaded warrior;
so my persecutors will stumble, defeated,
greatly ashamed because of their failure;
their lasting disgrace will not be forgotten.
12 Adonai-Tzva’ot, you who test the righteous
and see people’s hearts and thoughts,
let me see you take vengeance on them,
for I have committed my cause to you.
13 Sing to Adonai! Praise Adonai!
For he rescues those in need
from the clutches of evildoers.
14 A curse on the day I was born!
The day my mother gave birth to me —
let it not be blessed!
15 A curse on the man who brought the news
to my father, “A son has been born to you!” —
thus making him very happy.
16 Let that man be like the cities
Adonai overthrew without mercy!
Let him hear cries of alarm in the morning
and the sound of battle at noon,
17 because God did not put me to death in the womb
and let my mother become my grave,
her womb forever filled with me.
18 Why did I have to emerge from the womb,
just to see toil and sorrow,
and end my days in shame?
Copyright © 1969, 2003 by Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.