Jeremiah 20

Modern

Literal

Pashhur Persecutes Jeremiah

¹When Pashhur the priest, the son of Immer and the chief official in the house of the LORD, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things,

¹And Pashhur son of Immer the priest heard (and he was governor chief in the house of YHWH) Jeremiah prophesying these things.

²he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten and put in the stocks at the Upper Gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the LORD.

²And Pashhur struck Jeremiah the prophet, and he put him in the stocks that were in the high gate of Benjamin, that was at the house of YHWH.

³The next day, when Pashhur released Jeremiah from the stocks, Jeremiah said to him, “The LORD does not call you Pashhur, but Magor-missabib.^a

³And it came to pass on the next day, that Pashhur brought out Jeremiah from the stocks, and Jeremiah said to him, “YHWH has not called your name Pashhur, but rather Magor-missabib.

⁴For this is what the LORD says: ‘I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends. They will fall by the sword of their enemies before your very eyes. And I will hand Judah over to the king of Babylon, and he will carry them away to Babylon and put them to the sword.

⁴For thus says YHWH: ‘Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends, and they will fall by the sword of their enemies, and your eyes will see it! And I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will carry them off to Babylon and strike them with the sword.

⁵I will give away all the wealth of this city—all its products and valuables, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah—to their enemies. They will plunder them, seize them, and carry them off to Babylon.

⁵And I will give all the wealth of this city, and all its produce, and all its precious things, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah—I will give it into the hand of their enemies, and they will plunder them and seize them and bring them to Babylon.

⁶And you, Pashhur, and all who live in your house, will go into captivity. You will go to Babylon, and there you will die and be buried—you and all your friends to whom you have prophesied these lies.’”

⁶And you, Pashhur, and all those dwelling in your house, shall go into captivity; and to Babylon you will go, and there you will die, and there you will be buried—you and all you love, whom you have prophesied to them lies!’”

Jeremiah’s Complaint

⁷You have deceived me, O LORD, and I was deceived.

You have overcome me and prevailed.

I am a laughingstock all day long;

everyone mocks me.

⁷You have persuaded me O YHWH, and I was persuaded; You are stronger than I, and You have prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all the day, and everyone is mocking at me.

⁸For whenever I speak, I cry out;

I proclaim violence and destruction.

For the word of the LORD has become to me

a reproach and derision all day long.

⁸For whenever I speak, I cry out, I shout, ‘Violence and destruction!’ For the word of YHWH has become to me as a reproach and as a derision all the day.

⁹If I say, “I will not mention Him

or speak any more in His name,”

His message becomes a fire burning in my heart,

shut up in my bones,

and I become weary of holding it in,

and I cannot prevail.

⁹And I said, “I will not mention Him and I will not speak anymore in His name. And it is in my heart burning like a fire, shut up in my bones, and I become weary of containing it, and I cannot prevail.

¹⁰For I have heard the whispering of many:

“Terror is on every side!

Report him; let us report him!”

All my trusted friends

watch for my fall:

“Perhaps he will be deceived

so that we may prevail against him

and take our vengeance upon him.”

¹⁰For I heard the whispering of many, terror from every side: “Report, and let us report him! Every man close to me was watching for my stumbling, “Perhaps he can be persuaded, so that we may prevail against him, and we will take our vengeance on him!

¹¹But the LORD is with me like a fearsome warrior.

Therefore, my persecutors will stumble and will not prevail.

Since they have not succeeded, they will be utterly put to shame,

with an everlasting disgrace that will never be forgotten.

¹¹And YHWH is with me as a mighty awesome one! For thus my pursuers will stumble, and will not prevail. They will be greatly ashamed; indeed they will not succeed—everlasting disgrace will not be forgotten.

¹²O LORD of Hosts, who examines the righteous,

who sees the heart^a and mind,

let me see Your vengeance upon them,

for to You I have committed my cause.

¹²And YHWH of Hosts, the One testing the righteous, the One seeing the kidneys and mind, let me see Your vengeance on them! For to you I have uncovered my dispute.

¹³Sing to the LORD!

Praise the LORD!

For He rescues the life of the needy

from the hands of evildoers.

¹³Sing to YHWH! Praise YHWH! For He has delivered the soul of the needy from the hand of evildoers.

¹⁴Cursed be the day I was born!

May the day my mother bore me never be blessed.

¹⁴Cursed be the day in which I was born, the day that my mother bore me—do not let it be blessed!

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

saying, “A son is born to you,”

bringing him great joy.

¹⁵Cursed be the man who brought news to my father, saying, “A male child has been born to you, bringing him great joy.

¹⁶May that man be like the cities

that the LORD overthrew without compassion.

May he hear an outcry in the morning

and a battle cry at noon,

¹⁶And let that man be like the cities that YHWH overthrew, and did not relent; and let him hear an outcry in the morning, and a battle cry at noon!

¹⁷because he did not kill me in the womb

so that my mother might have been my grave,

and her womb forever enlarged.

¹⁷Because he did not kill me from the womb, that my mother might have been my grave, and her womb pregnant forever.

¹⁸Why did I come out of the womb

to see only trouble and sorrow,

and to end my days in shame?

¹⁸Why is this—that from the womb I came forth to see trouble and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame?