Jeremiah and Pashhur

20 When the priest Pashhur son of Immer,v the officialw in charge of the temple of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things, 2 he had Jeremiah the prophet beatenx and put in the stocksy at the Upper Gate of Benjaminz at the Lord’s temple. 3 The next day, when Pashhur released him from the stocks, Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord’s namea for you is not Pashhur, but Terror on Every Side.b 4 For this is what the Lord says: ‘I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; with your own eyesc you will see them fall by the sword of their enemies. I will gived all Judah into the hands of the king of Babylon, who will carrye them away to Babylon or put them to the sword. 5 I will deliver all the wealthf of this city into the hands of their enemies—all its products, all its valuables and all the treasures of the kings of Judah. They will take it awayg as plunder and carry it off to Babylon. 6 And you, Pashhur, and all who live in your house will go into exile to Babylon. There you will die and be buried, you and all your friends to whom you have prophesiedh lies.’ ”

Jeremiah’s Complaint

7 You deceiveda i me, Lord, and I was deceivedb;

you overpoweredj me and prevailed.

I am ridiculedk all day long;

everyone mocksl me.

8 Whenever I speak, I cry out

proclaiming violence and destruction.m

So the word of the Lord has brought me

insult and reproachn all day long.

9 But if I say, “I will not mention his word

or speak anymore in his name,”o

his word is in my heart like a fire,p

a fire shut up in my bones.

I am weary of holding it in;q

indeed, I cannot.

10 I hear many whispering,

“Terrorr on every side!

Denounces him! Let’s denounce him!”

All my friendst

are waiting for me to slip,u saying,

“Perhaps he will be deceived;

then we will prevailv over him

and take our revengew on him.”

11 But the Lordx is with me like a mighty warrior;

so my persecutorsy will stumble and not prevail.z

They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced;a

their dishonor will never be forgotten.

12 Lord Almighty, you who examine the righteous

and probe the heart and mind,b

let me see your vengeancec on them,

for to you I have committedd my cause.

13 Singe to the Lord!

Give praise to the Lord!

He rescuesf the life of the needy

from the hands of the wicked.g

14 Cursed be the day I was born!h

May the day my mother bore me not be blessed!

15 Cursed be the man who brought my father the news,

who made him very glad, saying,

“A child is born to you—a son!”

16 May that man be like the townsi

the Lord overthrew without pity.

May he hear wailingj in the morning,

a battle cry at noon.

17 For he did not kill me in the womb,k

with my mother as my grave,

her womb enlarged forever.

18 Why did I ever come out of the wombl

to see troublem and sorrow

and to end my days in shame?n

God Rejects Zedekiah’s Request

21 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiaho sent to him Pashhurp son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniahq son of Maaseiah. They said: 2 “Inquirer now of the Lord for us because Nebuchadnezzara s king of Babylont is attacking us. Perhaps the Lord will perform wondersu for us as in times past so that he will withdraw from us.”

3 But Jeremiah answered them, “Tell Zedekiah, 4 ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to turnv against you the weapons of war that are in your hands, which you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Babyloniansb who are outside the wall besiegingw you. And I will gather them inside this city. 5 I myself will fightx against you with an outstretched handy and a mighty armz in furious anger and in great wrath. 6 I will strikea down those who live in this city—both man and beast—and they will die of a terrible plague.b 7 After that, declares the Lord, I will give Zedekiahc king of Judah, his officials and the people in this city who survive the plague,d sword and famine, into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylone and to their enemiesf who want to kill them.g He will put them to the sword;h he will show them no mercy or pity or compassion.’i

8 “Furthermore, tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: See, I am setting before you the way of lifej and the way of death. 9 Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague.k But whoever goes out and surrendersl to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; they will escape with their lives.m 10 I have determined to do this city harmn and not good, declares the Lord. It will be given into the handso of the king of Babylon, and he will destroy it with fire.’p

11 “Moreover, say to the royal houseq of Judah, ‘Hear the word of the Lord. 12 This is what the Lord says to you, house of David:

“ ‘Administer justicer every morning;

rescue from the hand of the oppressors

the one who has been robbed,

or my wrath will break out and burn like firet

because of the evilu you have done—

burn with no one to quenchv it.

13 I am againstw you, Jerusalem,

you who live above this valleyx

on the rocky plateau, declares the Lord—

you who say, “Who can come against us?

Who can enter our refuge?”y

14 I will punish you as your deedsz deserve,

declares the Lord.

I will kindle a firea in your forestsb

that will consume everything around you.’ ”