Jeremiah 1:1–12

The words of Jeremiah, ^athe son of Hilkiah, one of the priests living in Anathoth ^bin the territory of Benjamin. ²The word of the Lord came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah ^cson of Amon, king of Judah. ³It also came throughout the days of Jehoiakim ^dson of Josiah, king of Judah, until the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah ^eson of Josiah, king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.

The Call of Jeremiah

⁴The word of the Lord came to me:

⁵I chose you before I formed you in the womb;

I set you apart before you were born. ^f

I appointed you a prophet to the nations. ^g

⁶But I protested, “Oh no, Lord, God! Look, I don’t know how to speak ^hsince I am only a youth.” ⁱ

⁷Then the Lord said to me:

Do not say, “I am only a youth,” ^j

for you will go to everyone I send you to

and speak whatever I tell you. ^k

⁸Do not be afraid of anyone, ^l

for I will be with you to deliver you. ^m

This is the Lord’s declaration.

⁹Then the Lord reached out His hand, touched my mouth, ⁿand told me:

I have now filled your mouth with My words. ^o

¹⁰See, I have appointed you today

over nations and kingdoms

to uproot and tear down,

to destroy and demolish, ^p

to build and plant. ^q

Two Visions

¹¹Then the word of the Lord came to me, asking, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” ^r

I replied, “I see a branch of an almond tree.”

¹²The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I watch over My word to accomplish it.” ^s