Jeremiah 20

1 Pashhur, the son of Immer, was a priest who supervised the temple guards. He heard those things that I had prophesied.

Now Pashur, the son of Immer, the priest, who was also chief overseer in the house of Jehovah, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things.

2 [So he arrested me]. Then he [commanded guards to] whip me and fasten my feet in (stocks/a wooden frame) at the Benjamin Gate of Yahweh’s temple.

Then Pashur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks, that were at the high gate of Benjamin, which was in the house of Jehovah.

3 The next day, when Pashhur released me, I said to him, “Pashhur, Yahweh is giving you a new name. From now on, your name will be ‘Surrounded by Terror’,

And on the next day Pashur took Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then said Jeremiah to him, Jehovah calleth thee, not Pashur, but Magor-missabib [[not Safety on every side, but Terror on every side]].

4 because Yahweh says this [to you]: ‘I will cause you and your friends to be terrified. You will watch them being killed by your enemies’ swords. I will enable the [army of the] king of Babylon to capture the people of Judah. Those soldiers will take some of the people to Babylon, and they will kill others with their swords.

For thus saith Jehovah: Behold, I am about to make thee a terror to thyself and to all thy friends; and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, thine eyes looking on; and all Judah will I give into the hand of the king of Babylon, who shall carry them captive to Babylon, and shall smite them with the sword.

5 And I will enable their soldiers to take away [other things in] Jerusalem. They will take to Babylon all the very valuable things that belonged to your kings.

And I will give all the wealth of this city, and all its possessions, and all its precious things, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah will I give, into the hand of their enemies, and they shall spoil them, and take them and carry them to Babylon.

6 And [as for] you, Pashhur, they will take you and all your family to Babylon. You and your family and all your friends who have prophesied things that are lies will die there and be buried there.’”

And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thy house, shall go into captivity; thou shalt go to Babylon, and there shalt thou die, and there shalt thou be buried, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied falsely.

7 [One day I said this to Yahweh]: “Yahweh, [when you chose me to be a prophet, ] deceived me, and I allowed you to deceive me. You insisted that I [become a prophet] and you are stronger than I am. And now everyone [HYP] ridicules me. They make fun of me all the day.

Thou didst persuade me, O Jehovah, and I was persuaded; Thou wast stronger than I, and didst prevail. But I am in derision daily, Every one mocketh me.

8 When I tell [people your messages], I shout saying, ‘[Yahweh is going to cause you to experience] violence and destruction!’ So because I tell them those messages from you, they insult me and scoff at me all day long.

For whenever I speak, I cry out on account of violence, And complain of oppression; For the word of Jehovah bringeth upon me reproach, And daily derision.

9 But if I would say, ‘I will never mention Yahweh or say anything about him, [MTY]’ [it would be as though] your message would burn in my inner being like [SIM] a fire; it would be like a fire in my bones. Sometimes I try to remain silent and not proclaim your messages, but I am not able to do that.

So I say, I will no more make mention of him, Nor speak any more in his name; But his word is in my heart like a burning fire, shut up in my bones, And I am weary with forbearing, And I cannot refrain.

10 I hear many people whispering [about me], saying ‘[He is the man who proclaims that there will be things that cause us to] be terrified everywhere. We must tell [the authorities what he is saying]! We must denounce him!’ [Even] my best friends are waiting for me to say something that is wrong. [They are saying], ‘Perhaps we can cause him to say something wrong, and if he does, we will be able to discredit him.’

For I hear the slander of many, terror on every side; “Tell us something against him, and we will denounce him.” All my familiar friends, they who leave not my side, [[say, ]] “Perhaps he will be enticed, So that we may prevail against him, And take our revenge on him.”

11 But [you], Yahweh, are helping me like [SIM] a strong warrior, so [it is as though] you will cause those who persecute me to stumble, and they will not defeat me. They will be completely disgraced because of being unable to defeat me; and other people will never forget that they were disgraced.

But Jehovah is on my side, like a mighty champion, Therefore shall my persecutors stumble, and not prevail; They shall be covered with shame, because they act not wisely, —With everlasting shame, that shall not be forgotten.

12 Commander of the armies of angels, you examine [all] those who are righteous; you know [all that is in] their inner beings and what they think. Allow me to see you getting revenge on those [who want to harm me], because I trust that you will do for me what is right.”

O Jehovah of hosts, thou that provest the righteous, That seest the reins and the heart, Let me see thy vengeance on them, For to thee have I laid open my cause!

13 Sing to Yahweh! Praise Yahweh! He rescues [poor and] needy people, from those [SYN] who are wicked.

Sing to Jehovah! Praise ye Jehovah! For he delivereth the oppressed From the hand of evil-doers.

14 But I hope/desire that the day that I was born will be cursed. I do not want [anyone to] celebrate that day.

Cursed be the day on which I was born; Let not the day on which my mother bore me be blessed!

15 And [as for] that man who brought to my father the news, and caused him to be very happy, by saying “[You wife] has given birth to a son for you”, I hope/desire that he [also] will be cursed.

Cursed be the man who brought the tidings to my father, Saying, “A son is born to thee,” making him very glad!

16 Allow him to be destroyed like the cities that Yahweh destroyed [long ago], without acting mercifully [toward them]. Cause that man to hear the people wailing in the morning, and [to hear the enemy soldiers shout their] battle cries at noon.

Let that man be like the cities which Jehovah overthrew, and relented not; Let him hear an outcry in the morning, And an alarm at noontide;

17 [I want that to happen to him] because he did not kill me before I was born. I wish that I had died in my mother’s womb, and that my mother’s body would have been [like] [MET] my grave.

Because he slew me not before I saw the light, So that my mother might have been my grave, And her womb have been great with me forever!

18 I have continually experienced much trouble and sorrow, and I am disgraced now when I am about to die; why was it necessary [RHQ] for me to me born?

Wherefore came I forth from the womb, to see weariness and sorrow, And that my days might be consumed in shame?