Jeremiah Chapter 20

Jeremiah and Pashur

¹ When Pashhur Ben-Immer, the priest in charge of Yahveh’s Temple, heard Jeremiah prophesying that, ² he had him beaten and put in stocks at the upper Benjamin Gate of the Temple. ³ The next day, when Pashhur released him from the stocks, Jeremiah told him,

“Yahveh doesn’t call you Pashhur, but The Man Surrounded by Terror. ⁴ He says, ‘I’m going to make you a terror to yourself and your friends. While you watch, they’ll fall by their enemies’ sword. I’ll turn Judah over to the king of Babylon to carry away and kill. ⁵ I’ll turn over this city’s wealth, its produce, its expensive things, the treasures of Judah’s kings to take to Babylon. ⁶ Pashhur, you, everybody in your house, and the friends you’ve falsely prophesied for will go into captivity and be buried in Babylon.’”      Jer 20:1-6           

Jeremiah’s Complaint

⁷ “Yahveh, you’ve deceived me;

      you’re stronger than I am and have prevailed.

I’m a laughingstock all day long;

      everybody makes fun of me.

⁸ When I speak, I cry out

       violence and destruction.

Because of me your message has led

      to constant disgrace and derision.

⁹ But if I say, ‘I won’t remember him

      or speak in his name anymore,’

      my heart burns inside me

            like fire in my bones.

I get tired of trying to hold it in;

      I can’t endure it.                                                              

Jer 20:7-9

¹⁰ I’ve heard many whispering,

      ‘There’s terror everywhere!

      Denounce him; let’s denounce him!’

My trusted friends watch for my downfall and say,

      ‘Maybe he’ll make a mistake

      so we can take revenge on him.’

¹¹ But you’re with me like a dreaded warrior,

      so the ones that persecute me will trip and fall.

They’ll be totally ashamed because they’ll fail

      with a disgrace people won’t forget.

¹² Yahveh of Hosts, you that test the godly,

            who see the heart and mind,

      let me watch you take revenge on them

            because I’ve turned my concerns over to you.”        

¹³ Sing praise to Yahveh;

      he delivers the poor from their oppressors.                     

Jer 20:10-13

¹⁴ Curse the day I was born;

      don’t celebrate the day my mother bore me!

¹⁵ Curse the one that told my father,

         “You have a baby!” and made him so happy.

¹⁶ Let that man be like the cities

      Yahveh overthrew without restraint.

Terrify him with a morning battle cry,

            a shout of alarm at noon,

         ¹⁷because he didn’t kill me before I was born

            and make my mother my tomb—

            make her womb pregnant forever.

¹⁸ Why was I ever born

      to see trouble, sorrow, and shame?

Jer 20:14-18