Jeremiah 1:1–12

The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth^a in the territory of Benjamin. ²The word of the Lord came^b to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah^c son of Amon king of Judah, ³and through the reign of Jehoiakim^d son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah^e son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.^f

The Call of Jeremiah

⁴The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

⁵“Before I formed you in the womb^g I knew^ah you,

before you were bornⁱ I set you apart;^j

I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.^k”

⁶“Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak;^l I am too young.”^m

⁷But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. ⁸Do not be afraidⁿ of them, for I am with you^o and will rescue^p you,” declares the Lord.^q

⁹Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched^r my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth.^{s 10}See, today I appoint you over nations^t and kingdoms to uproot^u and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”^v

¹¹The word of the Lord came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?”^w

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

¹²The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching^bx to see that my word is fulfilled.”