Jeremiah 1
1 The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, —of the priests who were in Anathoth, in the land of Benjamin:
The word of God which came to Jeremias the [son] of Chelcias, of the priests, who lived in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin:
2 unto whom came the word of Yahweh, in the days of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah, —in the thirteenth year of his reign;
[accordingly] as the word of God came to him in the days of Josias son of Amos king of Juda, in the thirteenth year of his reign.
3 it came also in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, —as far as the carrying away of Jerusalem captive, in the fifth month.
And it was in the days of Joakim, son of Josias king of Juda, until the eleventh year of Sedekias king of Juda, [even] until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month.
4 So then, the word of Yahweh came unto me, saying:
And the word of the Lord came to him, [saying],
5 Before I formed thee at thy birth, I took knowledge of thee, And before thy nativity, I hallowed thee, —A prophet to the nations, I appointed thee.
Before I formed you in the belly, I knew you; and before you came forth from the womb, I sanctified you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.
6 Then said I—Ah! My Lord Yahweh! Lo! I know not how to speak, —For a child, am I!
And I said, O Lord, you that are supreme Lord, behold, I know not [how] to speak, for I am a child.
7 Then said Yahweh unto me, Do not say, A child, am, I,—For against whomsoever I send thee, shalt thou go, And whatsoever I command thee, shalt thou speak:
And the Lord said to me, Say not, I am a child: for you shall go to all to whoever I shall send you, and according to all [the words] that I shall command you, you shall speak.
8 Be not afraid of their faces, For with thee, am I, to deliver thee Declareth Yahweh.
Be not afraid before them: for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.
9 Then Yahweh put forth his hand, and touched my mouth, —and Yahweh said unto me, Lo! I have put my words in thy mouth.
And the Lord stretched forth his hand to me, and touched my mouth: and the Lord said to me, Behold, I have put my words into your mouth.
10 See! I have set thee in charge this day, over the nations and over the kingdoms, To uproot and to break down, and to destroy and to tear in pieces, —To build and to plant.
Behold, I have appointed you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to rebuild, and to plant.
11 Moreover the Word of Yahweh came unto me saying, What canst thou see Jeremiah? And I said, A twig of an almond-tree, can I see.
And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, What see you? And I said, A rod of an almond tree.
12 Then said Yahweh unto me—Thou hast rightly seen, —for keeping watch, am I over my word to perform it.
And the Lord said to me, You have well seen: for I have watched over my words to perform them.
13 And the word of Yahweh came unto me a second time saying, What canst thou see? And I said, A boiling caldron, can I see, with, the front thereof, on the North.
And the word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying, What see you? And I said, A cauldron on the fire; and the face of it is towards the north.
14 Then said Yahweh unto me, —Out of the North, shall break forth calamity, against all the inhabitants of the land.
And the Lord said to me, From the north shall flame forth evils upon all the inhabitants of the land.
15 For behold me! calling for all the families of the kingdoms of the North, Declareth Yahweh, —and they shall come, and set every one his throne at the opening of the gates of Jerusalem and against all her walls round about, and against all the cities of Judah!
For, behold, I call together all the kingdoms of the earth from the north, says the Lord; and they shall come, and shall set each one his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls round about her, and against all the cities of Juda.
16 Then will I pronounce my judgments against them, concerning all their wickedness, —in that they have forsaken me and have burned incense unto other gods, and have bowed down to the works of their own hands,
And I will speak to them in judgement, concerning all their iniquity, [forasmuch] as they have forsaken me, and sacrificed to strange gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.
17 Thou, therefore, shalt gird thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them, all that, I, command thee, —be not dismayed because of them, lest I dismay thee before their face.
And do you gird up your loins, and stand up, and speak all [the words] that I shall command you: be not afraid of their face, neither be you alarmed before them; for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.
18 I, therefore—lo! I have set thee to-day as a fortified city, and as a pillar of iron and as walls of bronze, over all the land, —against the kings of Judah, against her princes, against her priests and against the people of the land.
Behold, I have made you this day as a strong city, and as a brazen wall, strong [against] all the kings of Juda, and the princes thereof, and the people of the land.
19 And they will fight against thee but shall not prevail against thee, —for with thee, am I, Declareth Yahweh, to deliver thee.
And they shall fight against you; but they shall by no means prevail against you; because I am with you, to deliver you, says the Lord.
