Jeremiah 1

¹The words of Jeremiah , the son of Hilkiah , one of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin ,

²to whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon , king of Judah , in the thirteenth year of his reign .

³It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah , king of Judah , and until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah , the son of Josiah , king of Judah , until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month .

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

⁵Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations .

⁶Then I said , Ah , Lord God! Behold , I do not know how to speak , for I am only a youth .

⁷But the Lord said to me, Do not say , I am only a youth ; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go , and whatever I command you, you shall speak .

⁸Do not be afraid of them , for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord.

⁹Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth . And the Lord said to me, Behold , I have put my words in your mouth .

¹⁰See , I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms , to pluck up and to break down , to destroy and to overthrow , to build and to plant .

¹¹And the word of the Lord came to me, saying , Jeremiah , what do you see ? And I said , I see an almond branch .

¹²Then the Lord said to me, You have seen well , for I am watching over my word to perform it.

¹³The word of the Lord came to me a second time , saying , What do you see ? And I said , I see a boiling pot , facing away from the north .

¹⁴Then the Lord said to me, Out of the north disaster shall be let loose upon all the inhabitants of the land .

¹⁵For behold , I am calling all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north , declares the Lord, and they shall come , and every one shall set his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem , against all its walls all around and against all the cities of Judah .

¹⁶And I will declare my judgments against them, for all their evil in forsaking me. They have made offerings to other gods and worshiped the works of their own hands .

¹⁷But you, dress yourself for work; arise , and say to them everything that I command you. Do not be dismayed by them , lest I dismay you before them.

¹⁸And I , behold , I make you this day a fortified city , an iron pillar , and bronze walls , against the whole land , against the kings of Judah , its officials , its priests , and the people of the land .

¹⁹They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the Lord, to deliver you.