The words of aJeremiah the son of Hilkiah, one of the priests who were in 1bAnathoth in the land of Benjamin,Jeremiah’s hometown, two or three miles north of Jerusalem.2 Chr 35:25; 36:12, 21, 22; Ezra 1:1; Dan 9:2; Matt 2:17; 16:14; 27:9Josh 21:18; 1 Kin 2:26; 1 Chr 6:60; Is 10:30; Jer 11:21; 32:7 2 to whom the word of the LORD came during the athirteenth year (627 B.C.) of the reign of bJosiah the son of cAmon, king of Judah.Jer 25:31 Kin 13:2; 2 Kin 21:24; 22:3; 2 Chr 34:1; Jer 3:6; 36:22 Kin 21:18, 24 3 It came to Jeremiah also in the days of aJehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, continuing until the end of the eleventh year of bZedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, and continuing until the exile of the people of Jerusalem in the fifth month (July-August, 586 B.C.). 2+@Kin 25:8-112 Kin 23:34; 1 Chr 3:15; 2 Chr 36:5-8; Jer 25:12 Kin 24:17; 1 Chr 3:15; 2 Chr 36:11-13; Jer 39:2
4 Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
5 “Before I aformed you in the womb I knew you and approved of you as My chosen instrument,And bbefore you were born I consecrated you to Myself as My own;I chave appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” Ex 33:12; Is 49:1, 5; Rom 8:29Ps 139:15, 16Is 49:1, 5; Luke 1:15Jer 1:10; 25:15-266 Then aI said, “Ah, Lord GOD!Behold, I do not know how to speak,For bI am only a young man.” Ex 4:10; 6:12, 30; 1+@Kin 3:7Ex 4:101 Kin 3:77 But the LORD said to me,“Do not say, ‘I am only a young man,’aBecause everywhere I send you, you shall go,And bwhatever I command you, you shall speak.Ezek 2:3, 4Num 22:20; Jer 1:178 “aDo not be afraid of them or their hostile faces,For bI am with you always to protect you and deliver you,” says the LORD.Ex 3:12; Deut 31:6; Josh 1:5; Jer 15:20Ezek 2:6 9 Then the LORD stretched out His hand and atouched my mouth, and the LORD said to me,“Behold (hear Me) , I have bput My words in your mouth.Is 6:7; Mark 7:33-35Ex 4:11-16; Deut 18:18; Is 51:16
10 “See, aI have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms,bTo uproot and break down,To destroy and to overthrow,cTo build and to plant.”Rev 11:3-6Jer 18:7-10; Ezek 32:18; 2 Cor 10:4Is 44:26-28; Jer 24:6; 31:28, 40 11 The word of the LORD came to me, saying, “aJeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see the branch of an 1almond tree.”The almond tree was known as the “awake tree” because it was the first tree to bud in the new year (late January). It was the symbol of watchfulness.Jer 24:3; Amos 7:8 12 Then the LORD said to me, “You have seen well, for aI am actively watching over My word to fulfill it.”Jer 31:28
13 The word of the LORD came to me a second time, saying, “aWhat do you see?” And I said, “I see a boiling bpot, tilting away from the north its mouth about to pour out on the south, on Judea.”Zech 4:2Ezek 11:3, 7 14 Then the LORD said to me, “aOut of the north the evil which the prophets foretold as the result of national sin will reveal itself and spill out on all the people of the land.Is 41:25; Jer 4:6; 10:22 15 For, behold, I will call aall the tribes of the kingdoms of the north,” says the LORD; “and they will come and each one will bset his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all its surrounding walls, and against all the ccities of Judah as My judicial act, the consequence of Judah’s deliberate disobedience.Jer 25:9Is 22:7; Jer 39:3Jer 4:16; 9:11 16 I will speak My judgments against them for all the wickedness of those who have aabandoned (rejected) Me, boffered sacrifices or burned incense to other gods, and worshiped the idolatrous cworks of their own hands.Deut 28:20Jer 7:9; 19:4; 44:17Is 2:8; 37:19; Jer 10:3-5 17 But you Jeremiah, 1agird up your loins in preparation! Get up and tell them all which I command you. bDo not be distraught and break down at the sight of their hostile faces, or I will bewilder you before them and allow you to be overcome.Gird up your loins, a phrase often found in the Bible, may be an urgent call to get ready for immediate action, or it may be a call to prepare for a coming action or event. The phrase is related to the type of clothing worn in ancient times. To keep from impeding the wearer during any vigorous activity, e.g. battle, exercise, strenuous work, etc., the loose ends of a garment (tunic, cloaks, mantle, etc.) had to be gathered up and tucked into the girdle. The girdle was a band about six inches wide that had fasteners in front. It was worn around the loins (the midsection of the body between the lower ribs and the hips) and was normally made of leather.1 Kin 18:46; Job 38:3Ezek 2:6; 3:16-18 18 Now behold, I have made you today like a fortified city and like an iron pillar and like bronze walls against the whole land—against the successive kings of Judah, against its leaders, against its priests, and against the people of the land giving you divine strength which no hostile power can overcome. Is 50:7; 54:17; Jer 6:27; 15:20; Luke 21:15; Acts 6:10 19 They will fight against you, but they will not ultimately prevail over you, for aI am with you always to protect you and deliver you,” says the LORD.Num 14:9; Jer 1:8; 20:11