Jeremiah

11Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for eleven years.

Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem.

12He did what was evil in the eyes of the LORD his God. He would not listen humbly to Jeremiah, a prophet who spoke the words God gave him.

And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the LORD.

13Zedekiah also turned against King Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar had made him promise in God's name. But Zedekiah was stubborn and hard inside. He would not turn back to the LORD, the God of Israel.

And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart from turning unto the LORD God of Israel.

NotePromising in God's name means making a very serious promise with God listening. The old words say Zedekiah stiffened his neck. It is a picture of an animal that will not turn its head.

14The leaders of the priests and the people were unfaithful again and again. They copied the disgusting things the other nations did. They spoiled the LORD's house in Jerusalem, which God had set apart for himself.

Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the people, transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen; and polluted the house of the LORD which he had hallowed in Jerusalem.

NotePriests were men whose job was to lead worship at God's house. Set apart means the house was kept only for God and nothing else.

15The LORD, the God of their fathers, kept sending messages to them. He sent his messengers again and again. He did this because he cared about his people and about his house.

And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place:

NoteThe messengers were prophets. A prophet was someone who told people what God said.

16But they laughed at God's messengers. They ignored his words and made fun of his prophets. At last the LORD became angry with his people. By then nothing could fix it.

But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.

17So God brought the king of the Chaldeans, that is Babylon, against them. That king killed their young men with swords, even inside the holy house. He showed no pity for young men or young women. He showed no pity for old people or those bent over with age. God handed them all over to him.

Therefore he brought upon them the king of the Chaldees, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion upon young man or maiden, old man, or him that stooped for age: he gave them all into his hand.

NoteThe holy house was the temple. People thought it was the safest place of all.

18He carried everything off to Babylon. He took all the things from God's house, big and small. He took the treasures of the LORD's house, and of the king and his officials.

And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king, and of his princes; all these he brought to Babylon.

NoteOfficials were the king's helpers who ran the country for him.

19They burned God's house down. They broke down the wall around Jerusalem. They burned all its palaces and destroyed everything of value.

And they burnt the house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof.

NoteCities had a high wall all around to keep enemies out. Once the wall was broken down, the city could not keep anyone out.

20The people who lived through the fighting were taken away to Babylon. There they had to serve the king and his sons. That lasted until Persia became the ruling kingdom.

And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia:

NoteWhen people are taken from home to live in another country, it is called exile. The people of Judah had to live in Babylon, far away.

21This happened just as the LORD had said through Jeremiah. The land finally got its sabbaths, its times of rest. It lay empty and rested for seventy years.

To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.

NoteA sabbath is a rest day. God's law also said farmers should let their fields rest every seventh year. Now the empty land got all its rest at once.

1Cyrus was the king of Persia. In his first year as king, God moved his heart. This made true what God had said long ago through Jeremiah, a man who told people God's words. Cyrus sent a message all through his kingdom. He also wrote it down. This is what it said:

Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,

NoteLong before this, the people of Judah were taken from home. Enemy soldiers marched them far away to Babylon. This chapter begins when a new king lets them go home. Persia was a large, strong country far to the east of Jerusalem.

2"King Cyrus of Persia says this. The LORD, the God of heaven, gave me every kingdom on earth. He has told me to build him a house in Jerusalem, a city in Judah.

Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

Note"The LORD" in capital letters is God's own name. A "house" for God means a temple. A temple is a special building where people worship God.

3Are any of God's people here? May God be with each one. Let him go to Jerusalem in Judah. Let him build the house of the LORD, the God of Israel. He is the God whose house is in Jerusalem.

Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the LORD God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem.

NoteIsrael was the name of God's whole family of people. Jerusalem sits high on a hill. So people always said they would "go up" to it.

4Some of God's people are still left in other places. Wherever one of them lives, the neighbors there should help him. Give him silver, gold, goods, and farm animals. Give gifts for God's house in Jerusalem too."

And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts, beside the freewill offering for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.

NoteA freewill offering is a gift nobody makes you give. You give it because you want to.

1These are the words of Jeremiah. His father was Hilkiah. Jeremiah was one of the priests, the men who served God, in the town of Anathoth. Anathoth was in the land of Benjamin.

The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin:

NoteA priest was a man with a special job at God's house. Priests helped people bring gifts to God. Anathoth was a small town a few miles from Jerusalem. Benjamin was one of the family groups of God's people, and this was their land.

2The LORD spoke his word to Jeremiah. This happened when Josiah was king of Judah. Josiah's father was Amon. It was the thirteenth year that Josiah had been king.

To 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.

NoteThe LORD in big letters stands for God's own special name. Judah was the small land where God's people lived. It had a king of its own.

3God kept speaking to Jeremiah when Jehoiakim, son of Josiah, was king of Judah. God spoke to him until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah, another son of Josiah. In the fifth month of that year, the people of Jerusalem were taken away as prisoners.

It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

NoteJeremiah kept telling people God's words for about forty years. In that time three different kings ruled Judah. At the end, soldiers from far away took the people away from their homes. This is called being taken captive.

4Then the LORD spoke his word to me. He said:

Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

5"Before I made you inside your mother, I knew you. Before you were born, I set you apart for myself. I chose you to be a prophet, someone who tells people what God says, for all the nations."

Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

NoteA prophet was someone who listened to God and told people what God said. Nations are big groups of people, like countries. To set someone apart means to pick them for one special job.

6Then I said, "Oh, Lord GOD! I do not know how to speak. I am only a child."

Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.

NoteJeremiah felt too young for this job. Back then, people did not often listen to someone young.

7But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a child.' You must go to everyone I send you to. You must say everything I tell you to say."

But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.

8"Do not be afraid of them. I am with you, and I will keep you safe," says the LORD.

Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.

9Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth. The LORD said to me, "Look. I have put my words in your mouth."

Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.

NoteTouching his mouth was a sign anyone could see. It showed the words would come from God, not from Jeremiah himself.

10"See, today I have put you over nations and kingdoms. You will pull up and tear down. You will wreck and knock over. You will also build and plant."

See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.

NoteA kingdom is a land ruled by a king. Jeremiah would not knock down cities with his hands. He would say what God was going to do, and it would happen.

11The LORD spoke his word to me again. He asked, "Jeremiah, what do you see?" I said, "I see a branch from an almond tree."

Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree.

NoteIn Jeremiah's language, the word for almond tree sounds almost the same as the word for watching. God's answer in the next verse plays with those two words. An almond tree is also the first tree to bloom each spring.

12Then the LORD said to me, "You saw that right. I am watching over my word to make it happen."

Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.

13The LORD spoke his word to me a second time. He asked, "What do you see?" I said, "I see a pot of boiling water. It is tipping toward us from the north."

And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.

NoteArmies coming to attack Judah traveled the road from the north. A big pot of boiling water tipping over would spill on anyone standing near.

14Then the LORD said to me, "Trouble will come from the north. It will pour out on everyone who lives in this land."

Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.

15"Listen. I am going to call all the families and kingdoms of the north," says the LORD. "They will come. Each king will set up his seat at the gates of Jerusalem. They will attack the walls all around the city. They will attack all the other towns of Judah."

For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah.

NoteA king would put his chair at a city gate to show he was in charge there. The gate was the only way in through the wall around a city.

16"I will tell the people how I judge them for all the wrong they did. They walked away from me. They burned incense, a sweet-smelling smoke, to other gods. They bowed down to things they made with their own hands."

And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.

NoteIncense is a sweet-smelling smoke made by burning special tree sap. People burned it as a gift for God. Here they were burning it for statues instead.

17"So get yourself ready. Stand up. Tell them everything I command you. Do not let them scare you. If you do, I will make you afraid in front of them."

Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.

NoteThe King James says "gird up thy loins." Men then wore long robes. They tucked the robe up into their belt so they could walk fast or work hard. It means get ready to go.

18"Look. Today I have made you strong, like a city with thick walls. You are like a post made of iron and walls made of bronze. You will stand against the whole land. That means the kings of Judah, its leaders, its priests, and its people."

For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.

NoteTowns then had thick walls around them to keep enemies out. Bronze is a strong metal made by mixing copper and tin. God is saying Jeremiah will be hard to knock down.

19"They will fight against you. But they will not beat you. I am with you, and I will keep you safe," says the LORD.

And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.

1This is the message that came to Jeremiah from the LORD. God said:

The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

NoteThe LORD in capital letters is God's special name. Jeremiah was a prophet, a man who told people what God said.

2"Go stand at the gate of the LORD's house. Say this message out loud there. Say: Listen to the word of the LORD, all you people of Judah. You come in through these gates to worship the LORD.

Stand in the gate of the LORD’s house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.

NoteThe LORD's house was the temple in Jerusalem, God's special building. Jeremiah stood at its gate so the crowds going in would hear. Judah was the land where these people lived. To worship is to sing and pray to show God is great.

3This is what the LORD of Heaven's Armies, the God of Israel, says. Change your ways and the things you do. Then I will let you keep living in this place.

Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.

Note"The LORD of Heaven's Armies" is a name for God. It means he leads great armies of angels.

4Do not trust words that are not true. Do not keep chanting, 'This is the LORD's temple, the LORD's temple, the LORD's temple.' The temple was the special house where people came to worship God.

Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.

NoteThe people said these words over and over, like a magic saying. They thought the building by itself would keep them safe.

5You must really change your ways and the things you do. You must be fair to each other.

For if ye throughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye throughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbour;

6Stop being unkind to foreigners, to children with no father, and to women whose husbands have died. Stop killing people who have done nothing wrong here. Stop following other gods, which only brings you harm.

If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt:

NoteLong ago, foreigners, children without fathers, and widows had no one to protect them. God told his people to take special care of them.

7If you do all that, I will let you keep living in this place. It is the land I gave to your fathers long ago, forever and ever.

Then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever.

8But look at you. You keep trusting words that are not true. Those words cannot help you at all.

Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit.

9Will you steal, and kill, and break your marriage promises? Will you lie when you promise to tell the truth? Will you burn incense to Baal, a false god? Will you follow other gods you do not even know?

Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not;

NoteIncense is a sweet-smelling gum that people burn as a gift. Baal was a god that other nations prayed to. They believed he sent rain to make crops grow.

10Then will you come and stand in front of me in this house? This house is called by my name. Will you say, 'We are safe,' so you can keep doing these terrible things?

And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations?

NoteA house "called by my name" is a house that belongs to God. The people thought that just standing there kept them safe.

11Do you think this house, called by my name, is a hideout for robbers? I have seen what you do, says the LORD.

Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD.

NoteRobbers hid in caves with the things they stole. A cave felt like a safe hideout. God says they treat his house that way.

12Go now to Shiloh, the place where I first put my name. Look at what I did to it. I did it because my people Israel did wicked things.

But go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel.

NoteShiloh was a town in Israel. Long before the temple was built, God's special worship tent stood there. Enemies came and wrecked the place.

13You have done all these things, says the LORD. I spoke to you again and again, but you would not listen. I called to you, but you did not answer.

And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not;

14So I will do to this house what I did to Shiloh. This house is called by my name, and you trust in it. I will do the same to this place I gave to you and to your fathers.

Therefore will I do unto this house, which is called by my name, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh.

15I will send you away from me. I did the same thing to your relatives, all the people of Ephraim.

And I will cast you out of my sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim.

NoteEphraim was the northern part of Israel. Enemy soldiers had already carried those people far away from home.

18Then some people said, "Come, let's make plans against Jeremiah. We will still have priests to teach God's law. We will still have wise people to give advice. We will still have prophets to speak. Let's hurt him with our words. Let's not listen to anything he says."

Then said they, Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.

NoteA priest was a man who served God at the temple and taught God's law. "Smite him with the tongue" means hurt him by saying bad things about him.

19Jeremiah prayed: LORD, please listen to me. Hear what the people who fight me are saying.

Give heed to me, O LORD, and hearken to the voice of them that contend with me.

20Should good be paid back with evil? They have dug a pit to trap me. Remember, I stood before you and spoke up for them. I asked you not to be angry with them.

Shall evil be recompensed for good? for they have digged a pit for my soul. Remember that I stood before thee to speak good for them, and to turn away thy wrath from them.

NoteHunters dug a deep hole and hid it with sticks and leaves. An animal walking over it fell in. Here it means a secret plan to trap a person.

21So let their children go hungry. Let swords cut them down. Let their wives lose their children and their husbands. Let their men die. Let their young men be killed in battle.

Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, and pour out their blood by the force of the sword; and let their wives be bereaved of their children, and be widows; and let their men be put to death; let their young men be slain by the sword in battle.

22Let crying be heard from their houses when you suddenly bring soldiers against them. They dug a pit to catch me. They hid traps for my feet.

Let a cry be heard from their houses, when thou shalt bring a troop suddenly upon them: for they have digged a pit to take me, and hid snares for my feet.

NoteA snare is a loop of rope hidden on the ground. It catches an animal by the leg when it steps in.

23LORD, you know all their secret plans to kill me. Do not forgive the wrong they did. Do not wipe their sin away. Let them be brought down in front of you. Deal with them when you are angry.

Yet, LORD, thou knowest all their counsel against me to slay me: forgive not their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from thy sight, but let them be overthrown before thee; deal thus with them in the time of thine anger.

1This is what the LORD said. "Go and buy a clay jar from a potter, a person who makes pots. Take some of the older leaders of the people with you. Take some of the leading priests too."

Thus saith the LORD, Go and get a potter’s earthen bottle, and take of the ancients of the people, and of the ancients of the priests;

NoteJeremiah was a prophet. A prophet was someone who told people what God said. A potter shaped wet clay into jars and pots. When you see LORD in big letters, it stands for God's own special name. Priests are the men who serve God at his house.

2"Then go out to the Valley of Ben-hinnom, near the gate where broken pots were thrown out. Say there the words I tell you to say."

And go forth unto the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is by the entry of the east gate, and proclaim there the words that I shall tell thee,

NoteA valley is low ground lying between hills. This valley was just outside the city wall of Jerusalem. Broken pots and trash were dumped there. Ben-hinnom means "son of Hinnom," and Hinnom was probably a man who once owned the land.

3"Say this: Listen to the word of the LORD, kings of Judah and people of Jerusalem. This is what the LORD of Heaven's Armies says. He is the God of Israel. I am going to bring something terrible on this place. Everyone who hears about it will have ringing ears."

And say, Hear ye the word of the LORD, O kings of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem; Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, the which whosoever heareth, his ears shall tingle.

NoteJudah was the land where God's people lived. Jerusalem was its biggest and most important city. The King James calls God "the LORD of hosts." Hosts was an old word for armies.

4"They have left me. They have made this place a place for strangers. Here they burned incense to other gods. They did not know those gods. Their fathers did not know them, and neither did the kings of Judah. They have filled this place with the blood of people who did nothing wrong."

Because they have forsaken me, and have estranged this place, and have burned incense in it unto other gods, whom neither they nor their fathers have known, nor the kings of Judah, and have filled this place with the blood of innocents;

NoteIncense is a sweet-smelling stuff that people burned like a candle. The smoke rose up, and burning it was a way of saying thank you to a god. The King James says the people "forsaken" God. Forsaken means they walked away and left him behind.

5"They also built altars on the hills for the god Baal. There they burned their own children in the fire as gifts to Baal. I never told them to do this. I never even spoke of it. It never came into my mind."

They have built also the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings unto Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it into my mind:

NoteBaal was a god that people nearby prayed to. They believed he sent rain to make their crops grow. An altar is a special table where gifts were given to a god. People often built altars on hilltops, which the King James calls "high places."

6"So the days are coming, says the LORD, when this place will get a new name. It will not be called Topheth or the Valley of Ben-hinnom anymore. It will be called the Valley of Killing."

Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that this place shall no more be called Tophet, nor The valley of the son of Hinnom, but The valley of slaughter.

NoteTopheth was the name of one spot inside that valley. It was where the fires for these offerings were made. The King James calls the new name "The valley of slaughter." Slaughter is an old word for killing many.

7"In this place I will ruin the plans of Judah and Jerusalem. I will make them fall by the sword in front of their enemies. Those enemies want them dead. I will give their dead bodies to the birds and the wild animals for food."

And I will make void the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this place; and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies, and by the hands of them that seek their lives: and their carcases will I give to be meat for the fowls of the heaven, and for the beasts of the earth.

Note"Fall by the sword" means to be killed in a war. In those days a body left outside, with no grave, was a very sad and shameful thing.

8"I will make this city empty and ruined. People will look down on it. Everyone who walks past will be shocked. They will hiss at how badly the city is hurt."

And I will make this city desolate, and an hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished and hiss because of all the plagues thereof.

NotePeople long ago made a hissing sound to show they were shocked. It was a bit like booing. Seeing the ruined city would make travelers do that.

9"I will make them eat the flesh of their sons and daughters. They will eat one another's flesh too. This will happen when enemy armies surround the city and shut them in. Those enemies want them dead, and they will squeeze the city hard."

And I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and they shall eat every one the flesh of his friend in the siege and straitness, wherewith their enemies, and they that seek their lives, shall straiten them.

NoteWhen armies attacked a city, they camped all around its walls. Nobody could go in or out, so no food could get in. That is what the King James means by "siege." People inside grew terribly hungry.

10"Then break the jar while the men who came with you are watching."

Then shalt thou break the bottle in the sight of the men that go with thee,

11"Say to them: This is what the LORD of Heaven's Armies says. I will break this people and this city in the same way. A potter's jar breaks and can never be mended again. They will bury the dead in Topheth until there is no room left to bury anyone."

And shalt say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Even so will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter’s vessel, that cannot be made whole again: and they shall bury them in Tophet, till there be no place to bury.

12"That is what I will do to this place and to the people who live here, says the LORD. I will make this city like Topheth."

Thus will I do unto this place, saith the LORD, and to the inhabitants thereof, and even make this city as Tophet:

13"The houses of Jerusalem will become unclean, just like that place called Topheth. So will the houses of the kings of Judah. On the flat roofs of those houses people burned incense to the sun, the moon, and the stars. They also poured out wine as gifts to other gods."

And the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses of the kings of Judah, shall be defiled as the place of Tophet, because of all the houses upon whose roofs they have burned incense unto all the host of heaven, and have poured out drink offerings unto other gods.

14Then Jeremiah came back from Topheth. The LORD had sent him there to tell the people God's message. Jeremiah stood in the courtyard of the LORD's house. He spoke to all the people.

Then came Jeremiah from Tophet, whither the LORD had sent him to prophesy; and he stood in the court of the LORD’s house; and said to all the people,

15He said, "This is what the LORD of Heaven's Armies says. He is the God of Israel. I am going to bring on this city every bad thing I said would come. I will bring it on all the towns around it too. This is because they have been stubborn and would not listen to my words."

Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon all her towns all the evil that I have pronounced against it, because they have hardened their necks, that they might not hear my words.

1Pashur was a priest, a man who served God at the temple. He was also the chief officer in the LORD's house. He heard Jeremiah telling people these things from God.

Now Pashur the son of Immer the priest, who was also chief governor in the house of the LORD, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things.

NoteThe LORD's house means the temple in Jerusalem. The temple was a big building where people came to worship God. Pashur was the chief officer there, so he kept order in it.

2So Pashur hit Jeremiah, who was a prophet, a person who told people what God said. Then Pashur shut him in the stocks at the high Benjamin Gate, next to the LORD's house.

Then Pashur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the high gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the LORD.

NoteStocks were a wooden frame that locked around a person's arms and legs. It held the person bent over and still, and it hurt. Anyone walking past could stop and laugh at them.

3The next day Pashur let Jeremiah out of the stocks. Jeremiah said to him, "The LORD does not call you Pashur. He calls you Magor-missabib."

And it came to pass on the morrow, that Pashur brought forth Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then said Jeremiah unto him, The LORD hath not called thy name Pashur, but Magormissabib.

NoteMagor-missabib is a name that means "scary things all around." Back then a name often said something true about a person. Jeremiah is saying that fear is what Pashur's life will be.

4"The LORD says this: I will make you full of fear. Your friends will be afraid too. Enemies will kill them with swords, and you will watch it happen. I will hand all of Judah to the king of Babylon. He will take the people away to Babylon and kill them with the sword."

For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will make thee a terror to thyself, and to all thy friends: and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it: and I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive into Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword.

NoteJudah was the small land where Jeremiah lived. Babylon was a strong country far away to the east. Its army took people from their homes and marched them to Babylon to live.

5"I will give away everything strong and rich in this city. All its goods, all its fine things, and all the treasure of Judah's kings will go to their enemies. The enemies will grab it all and carry it to Babylon."

Moreover I will deliver all the strength of this city, and all the labours thereof, and all the precious things thereof, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah will I give into the hand of their enemies, which shall spoil them, and take them, and carry them to Babylon.

NoteKings kept gold, silver, and other rich things stored up in the city. When an army won, it carried all of that home with it.

6"And you, Pashur, and everyone in your house will be taken away. You will go to Babylon. You will die there, and you will be buried there. So will all your friends, the ones you told lies to while saying the words came from God."

And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thine house shall go into captivity: and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies.

NoteBeing buried far away was a very sad thing to these people. Families wanted to be buried close together in their own land.

7Jeremiah said, "LORD, you tricked me, and I was tricked. You are stronger than I am, and you won. People laugh at me all day. Everyone makes fun of me."

O LORD, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived: thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me.

8"Every time I speak, I have to shout. I warn people that hurting and wrecking are coming. So your message brings me insults and laughter every single day."

For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the LORD was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily.

NoteJeremiah's job was to warn people that an enemy army was coming. Nobody wanted to hear it, so they got angry at him for saying it.

9"So I said, 'I will not talk about him. I will not speak his name again.' But his word was like a fire burning inside me. I grew tired of holding it in. I could not keep it in."

Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.

NoteTo speak in God's name means to say the words God gave you. It is like carrying a message for someone else.

10"I hear many people whispering about me. 'Scary things are all around!' they say. 'Tell on him! Let us tell on him!' Even my close friends watch for me to slip. They say, 'Maybe we can fool him. Then we will beat him and pay him back.'"

For I heard the defaming of many, fear on every side. Report, say they, and we will report it. All my familiars watched for my halting, saying, Peradventure he will be enticed, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge on him.

Note"Tell on him" means going to the leaders to report him. If they did, Jeremiah could be arrested again.

11"But the LORD is with me, like a strong soldier no one wants to face. So the people chasing me will trip and will not win. They will fail, and they will feel great shame. Nobody will ever forget that shame."

But the LORD is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten.

12"LORD of all the armies of heaven, you test people who do right. You see the heart and the deepest thoughts. Let me see you pay them back. I have handed my case over to you."

But, O LORD of hosts, that triest the righteous, and seest the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them: for unto thee have I opened my cause.

NoteThe old words say "LORD of hosts." Hosts is an old word for armies. Long ago people thought of the heart and the insides as the place where thoughts and feelings live. Jeremiah also asks God to be like a judge in a court and decide who is right.

13"Sing to the LORD! Praise the LORD! He saves the life of poor people from those who do evil."

Sing unto the LORD, praise ye the LORD: for he hath delivered the soul of the poor from the hand of evildoers.

14"Let the day I was born be cursed. Let the day my mother had me never be called good."

Cursed be the day wherein I was born: let not the day wherein my mother bare me be blessed.

NoteTo curse something means to wish bad things on it. To bless means to wish good things. Jeremiah feels so sad that he wishes he had never been born.

15"Let the man be cursed who brought my father the news. He said, 'You have a baby boy!' and he made my father very happy."

Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, saying, A man child is born unto thee; making him very glad.

NoteIn those days a man would run to tell the father that his baby was born. A baby boy was happy news, because sons helped with the work and kept the family name going.

16"Let that man be like the towns the LORD knocked down and did not pity. Let him hear crying in the morning and battle shouts at noon."

And let that man be as the cities which the LORD overthrew, and repented not: and let him hear the cry in the morning, and the shouting at noontide;

NoteThis points back to an old story about towns God knocked down. Crying in the morning and battle shouts at noon are the sounds of a town under attack all day long.

17"I say this because he did not kill me before I was born. Then my mother would have been my grave. She would have carried me always."

Because he slew me not from the womb; or that my mother might have been my grave, and her womb to be always great with me.

NoteThe womb is the place inside a mother where a baby grows. A grave is where a dead body is buried.

18"Why was I ever born? All I see is hard work and sadness. My days end in shame."

Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see labour and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame?

1A message came to Jeremiah from the LORD. King Zedekiah had sent two men to him. They were Pashur son of Melchiah, and Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, a priest.

The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, when king Zedekiah sent unto him Pashur the son of Melchiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, saying,

NoteJeremiah was a prophet. A prophet told people what God was saying. Zephaniah was a priest. Priests worked at God's temple and helped people pray. When LORD is written in big letters, it stands for God's own name.

2The men said, "Please ask the LORD about us. Nebuchadrezzar, the king of Babylon, is making war on us. Maybe the LORD will do great wonders like he did long ago. Then the king of Babylon will go away and leave us alone."

Enquire, I pray thee, of the LORD for us; for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon maketh war against us; if so be that the LORD will deal with us according to all his wondrous works, that he may go up from us.

NoteBabylon was a strong country far away. Its king sent an army to take over Jerusalem. King Zedekiah wanted Jeremiah to find out God's answer for him. Long ago God had rescued his people from Egypt. The king hoped God would do something big like that again.

3Then Jeremiah said to them, "Here is what you must tell Zedekiah."

Then said Jeremiah unto them, Thus shall ye say to Zedekiah:

4The LORD, the God of Israel, says this: Look, I will turn your own weapons back against you. You are using them to fight the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans, his army. They have camped all around outside your wall. I will bring that army right into the middle of this city.

Thus saith the LORD God of Israel; Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherewith ye fight against the king of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans, which besiege you without the walls, and I will assemble them into the midst of this city.

NoteThe Chaldeans were the people of Babylon. Their soldiers sat in camps all around the city wall. This was called a siege. No food could get in, and nobody could get out.

5I myself will fight against you. My hand will be stretched out, and my arm will be strong. I will come in anger, in burning anger, and in very great anger.

And I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, and in fury, and in great wrath.

Note"With an outstretched hand and with a strong arm" meant God's full strength. Those same words once told how God saved his people. Here that strength is turned against them.

6I will strike down the people who live in this city, and the animals too. They will die from a terrible sickness that spreads fast.

And I will smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast: they shall die of a great pestilence.

7After that, says the LORD, I will hand over Zedekiah, king of Judah. I will hand over his helpers and the people too. That means the ones still alive after the sickness, the fighting, and the hunger. I will give them to Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon. I will give them to their enemies, who want them dead. He will kill them with the sword. He will not spare them or feel sorry for them at all.

And afterward, saith the LORD, I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, and his servants, and the people, and such as are left in this city from the pestilence, from the sword, and from the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their life: and he shall smite them with the edge of the sword; he shall not spare them, neither have pity, nor have mercy.

Note"The sword" is a way of saying war and killing. The King James calls the hunger "famine." That is when a city runs out of food.

8And you must say this to the people. The LORD says: Look, I am setting two paths in front of you. One path leads to life. One path leads to death.

And unto this people thou shalt say, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death.

9Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, by hunger, or by sickness. But whoever goes out and gives himself up to the Chaldeans outside will live. He will get to keep his own life, and nothing more.

He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth out, and falleth to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be unto him for a prey.

NoteSoldiers who won a battle carried home prizes. The King James calls such a prize a "prey." Here the only thing a person carries away is his own life.

10I have set my face against this city to bring harm, not good, says the LORD. It will be handed over to the king of Babylon. He will burn it down with fire.

For I have set my face against this city for evil, and not for good, saith the LORD: it shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.

NoteTo "set my face against" something meant to decide firmly. God has made up his mind about this city.