Jeremiah 20
20
Jeremiah and Pashhur
1Pashhur son of Immer was a priest. He was the highest officer in the Temple of the Lord. When he heard Jeremiah say those things in the Temple yard, 2he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten. And he had Jeremiah’s hands and feet locked between large blocks of wood. This was at the Upper Gate of Benjamin of the Lord’s Temple. 3The next day Pashhur took Jeremiah out from between the blocks of wood. Then Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord’s name for you is not Pashhur. Now his name for you is ‘Surrounded by Terror.’ 4That is your name because of what the Lord says: ‘I will soon make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends. You will watch enemies killing your friends with swords. I will give all the people of Judah to the king of Babylon. He will take them away to the country of Babylon, and his army will kill the people of Judah with their swords. 5The people of Jerusalem worked hard to build things and become wealthy, but I will give all these things to their enemies. The king in Jerusalem has many treasures, but I will give all the treasures to the enemy. The enemy will take them and carry them away to the country of Babylon. 6And, Pashhur, you and all the people living in your house will be taken away. You will be forced to go and live in the country of Babylon. You will die in Babylon, and you will be buried in that foreign country. You told lies to your friends. You said these things would not happen. But all your friends will also die and be buried in Babylon.’”
Jeremiah’s Fifth Complaint
7Lord, you tricked me, and I certainly was fooled.
You are stronger than I am, so you won.
I have become a joke.
People laugh at me and make fun of me all day long.
8Every time I speak, I shout.
I am always shouting about violence and destruction.
I tell the people about the message that I received from the Lord.
But they only insult me and make fun of me.
9Sometimes I say to myself, “I will forget about him.
I will not speak anymore in his name.”
But when I say that, his message is like a fire burning inside me!
It feels like it is burning deep in my bones!
I get tired of trying to hold his message inside.
And finally, I am not able to hold it in.
10I hear people whispering against me.
Everywhere, I hear things that frighten me.
Even my friends are speaking against me.
People are just waiting for me to make a mistake.
They are saying, “Let us lie and say that he did something bad.
Maybe we can trick Jeremiah.
Then we will have him.
We will finally be rid of him.
Then we will grab him
and take our revenge on him.”
11But the Lord is with me.
He is like a strong soldier.
So those who are chasing me will fall.
They will not defeat me.
They will fail.
They will be disappointed.
They will be ashamed,
and they will never forget that shame.
12Lord All-Powerful, you test good people.
You look deeply into a person’s mind.
I told you my arguments against these people.
So let me see you give them the punishment they deserve.
13Sing to the Lord!
Praise the Lord!
He saves the lives of the poor!
He saves them from the wicked!
Jeremiah’s Sixth Complaint
14Curse the day that I was born!
Don’t bless the day my mother had me.
15Curse the man who told my father the news that I was born.
“It’s a boy!” he said.
“You have a son.”
He made my father very happy
when he told him the news.
16Let that man be like the cities the Lord destroyed.#20:16 cities the Lord destroyed That is, Sodom and Gomorrah. See Gen. 19.
He had no pity on them.
Let him hear shouts of war in the morning;
let him hear battle cries at noontime,
17because he did not kill me
while I was in my mother’s womb.
If he had killed me then,
my mother would have been my grave,
and I would not have been born.
18Why did I have to come out of her body?
All I have seen is trouble and sorrow,
and my life will end in shame.
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Jeremiah 20
20
Jeremiah's Conflict with Pashhur the Priest
1When the priest Pashhur son of Immer, who was the chief officer of the Temple, heard me proclaim these things, 2he ordered me to be beaten and placed in chains near the upper Benjamin Gate in the Temple. 3The next morning, after Pashhur had released me from the chains, I said to him, “The LORD did not name you Pashhur. The name he has given you is ‘Terror Everywhere’. 4The LORD himself has said, ‘I am going to make you a terror to yourself and to your friends, and you will see them all killed by the swords of their enemies. I am going to put all the people of Judah under the power of the king of Babylonia; he will take some away as prisoners to his country and put others to death. 5I will also let their enemies plunder all the wealth of this city and seize all its possessions and property, even the treasures of the kings of Judah, and carry everything off to Babylonia. 6As for you, Pashhur, you and all your family will also be captured and taken off to Babylonia. There you will die and be buried, along with all your friends to whom you have told so many lies.’ ”
Jeremiah Complains to the LORD
7 LORD, you have deceived me,
and I was deceived.
You are stronger than I am,
and you have overpowered me.
Everyone jeers at me;
they mock me all day long.
8Whenever I speak, I have to cry out
and shout, “Violence! Destruction!”
LORD, I am ridiculed and scorned all the time
because I proclaim your message.
9But when I say, “I will forget the LORD
and no longer speak in his name,”
then your message is like a fire
burning deep within me.
I try my best to hold it in,
but can no longer keep it back.
10I hear everybody whispering,
“Terror is everywhere!
So let's report him to the authorities!”
Even my close friends wait for my downfall.
“Perhaps he can be tricked,” they say;
“then we can catch him and get revenge.”
11But you, LORD, are on my side, strong and mighty,
and those who persecute me will fail.
They will be disgraced for ever,
because they cannot succeed.
Their disgrace will never be forgotten.
12But, Almighty LORD, you test people justly;
you know what is in their hearts and minds.
So let me see you take revenge on my enemies,
for I have placed my cause in your hands.
13Sing to the LORD!
Praise the LORD!
He rescues the oppressed from the power of evil people.
14 #
Job 3.1–19
Curse the day I was born!
Forget the day my mother gave me birth!
15Curse the one who made my father glad
by bringing him the news,
“It's a boy! You have a son!”
16May he be like those cities
that the LORD destroyed without mercy.
May he hear cries of pain in the morning
and the battle alarm at noon,
17because he didn't kill me before I was born.
Then my mother's womb would have been my grave.
18Why was I born?
Was it only to have trouble and sorrow,
to end my life in disgrace?
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Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. 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.