Jeremiah 1
1
1These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests from the town of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. 2The Lord first gave messages to Jeremiah during the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah.#1:2 The thirteenth year of Josiah’s reign was 627 b.c. 3The Lord’s messages continued throughout the reign of King Jehoiakim, Josiah’s son, until the eleventh year of the reign of King Zedekiah, another of Josiah’s sons. In August#1:3 Hebrew In the fifth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. A number of events in Jeremiah can be cross-checked with dates in surviving Babylonian records and related accurately to our modern calendar. The fifth month in the eleventh year of Zedekiah’s reign occurred within the months of August and September 586 b.c. Also see 52:12 and the note there. of that eleventh year the people of Jerusalem were taken away as captives.
Jeremiah’s Call and First Visions
4The Lord gave me this message:
5“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.
Before you were born I set you apart
and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”
6“O Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I can’t speak for you! I’m too young!”
7The Lord replied, “Don’t say, ‘I’m too young,’ for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you. 8And don’t be afraid of the people, for I will be with you and will protect you. I, the Lord, have spoken!” 9Then the Lord reached out and touched my mouth and said,
“Look, I have put my words in your mouth!
10Today I appoint you to stand up
against nations and kingdoms.
Some you must uproot and tear down,
destroy and overthrow.
Others you must build up
and plant.”
11Then the Lord said to me, “Look, Jeremiah! What do you see?”
And I replied, “I see a branch from an almond tree.”
12And the Lord said, “That’s right, and it means that I am watching,#1:12 The Hebrew word for “watching” (shoqed) sounds like the word for “almond tree” (shaqed). and I will certainly carry out all my plans.”
13Then the Lord spoke to me again and asked, “What do you see now?”
And I replied, “I see a pot of boiling water, spilling from the north.”
14“Yes,” the Lord said, “for terror from the north will boil out on the people of this land. 15Listen! I am calling the armies of the kingdoms of the north to come to Jerusalem. I, the Lord, have spoken!
“They will set their thrones
at the gates of the city.
They will attack its walls
and all the other towns of Judah.
16I will pronounce judgment
on my people for all their evil—
for deserting me and burning incense to other gods.
Yes, they worship idols made with their own hands!
17“Get up and prepare for action.
Go out and tell them everything I tell you to say.
Do not be afraid of them,
or I will make you look foolish in front of them.
18For see, today I have made you strong
like a fortified city that cannot be captured,
like an iron pillar or a bronze wall.
You will stand against the whole land—
the kings, officials, priests, and people of Judah.
19They will fight you, but they will fail.
For I am with you, and I will take care of you.
I, the Lord, have spoken!”
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Jeremiah 1: NLT
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Jeremiah 1
1
Jeremiah
1This book is the account of what was said by Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests of the town of Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. 2#2 Kgs 22.3—23.27; 2 Chr 34.8—35.19The LORD spoke to Jeremiah in the thirteenth year that Josiah son of Amon was king of Judah, 3#2 Kgs 23.36—24.7; 18.1—25.21; 2 Chr 36.5–8; 11.21and he spoke to him again when Josiah's son Jehoiakim was king. After that, the LORD spoke to him many times, until the eleventh year of the reign of Zedekiah son of Josiah. In the fifth month of that year the people of Jerusalem were taken into exile.
The Call of Jeremiah
4The LORD said to me, 5“I chose you before I gave you life, and before you were born I selected you to be a prophet to the nations.”
6I answered, “Sovereign LORD, I don't know how to speak; I am too young.”
7But the LORD said to me, “Do not say that you are too young, but go to the people I send you to, and tell them everything I command you to say. 8Do not be afraid of them, for I will be with you to protect you. I, the LORD, have spoken!”
9Then the LORD stretched out his hand, touched my lips, and said to me, “Listen, I am giving you the words you must speak. 10Today I give you authority over nations and kingdoms to uproot and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”
Two Visions
11The LORD asked me, “Jeremiah, what do you see?”
I answered, “A branch of an almond tree.”
12“You are right,” the LORD said, “and I am watching#1.12 watching: This word in Hebrew sounds like the Hebrew for “almond”. to see that my words come true.”
13Then the LORD spoke to me again. “What else do you see?” he asked.
I answered, “I see a pot boiling in the north, and it is about to tip over this way.”
14He said to me, “Destruction will boil over from the north on all who live in this land, 15because I am calling all the nations in the north to come. Their kings will set up their thrones at the gates of Jerusalem and round its walls, and also round the other cities of Judah. 16I will punish my people because they have sinned; they have abandoned me, have offered sacrifices to other gods, and have made idols and worshipped them. 17Get ready, Jeremiah; go and tell them everything I command you to say. Do not be afraid of them now, or I will make you even more afraid when you are with them. 18-19Listen, Jeremiah! Everyone in this land — the kings of Judah, the officials, the priests, and the people — will be against you. But today I am giving you the strength to resist them; you will be like a fortified city, an iron pillar, and a bronze wall. They will not defeat you, for I will be with you to protect you. I, the LORD, have spoken.”
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.