The Words of Jeremiah

(2 Kings 24:18-20; 2 Chronicles 36:11-14)

1The words of Jeremiah the son of Helcias, of the priests that were in Anathoth, in the land of Benjamin. 2The word of the Lord which came to him in the days of Josias the son of Amon king of Juda, in the thirteenth year of his reign. 3And which came to him in the days of Joakim the son of Josias king of Juda, unto the end of the eleventh year of Sedecias the son of Josias king of Juda, even unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive, in the fifth month.

The Call of Jeremiah

4And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

5Before I formed thee in the bowels of thy mother, I knew thee: and before thou camest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee, and made thee a prophet unto the nations.

6And I said: Ah, ah, ah, Lord God: behold, I cannot speak, for I am a child.

7And the Lord said to me: Say not: I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee: and whatsoever I shall command thee, thou shalt speak.

8Be not afraid at their presence: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.

9And the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth: and the Lord said to me: Behold I have given my words in thy mouth:

10Lo, I have set thee this day over the nations, and over kingdoms, to root up, and to pull down, and to waste, and to destroy, and to build, and to plant.

11And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I said: I see a rod watching. 12And the Lord said to me: Thou hast seen well: for I will watch over my word to perform it.

13And the word of the Lord came to me a second time saying: What seest thou? And I said: I see a boiling caldron, and the face thereof from the face of the north. 14And the Lord said to me: From the north shall an evil break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. 15For behold I will call together all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the Lord: and they shall come, and shall set every one his throne in the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, and upon all the walls thereof round about, and upon all the cities of Juda. 16And I will pronounce my judgments against them, touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have sacrificed to strange gods, and have adored the work of their own hands. 17Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak to them all that I command thee. Be not afraid at their presence: for I will make thee not to fear their countenance. 18For behold I have made thee this day a fortified city, and a pillar of iron, and a wall of brass, over all the land, to the kings of Juda, to the princes thereof, and to the priests, and to the people of the land. 19And they shall fight against them, and shall not prevail: for I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee.