Pashhur Persecutes Jeremiah

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

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 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. 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 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 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 shout, ‘Violence and destruction!’

For the word of YHWH has become to me

as a reproach and as a derision all the day.

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 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!

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.

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 YHWH!

Praise YHWH!

For He has delivered the soul of the needy

from the hand of evildoers.

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 news to my father,

saying, “A male child has been born to you,

bringing him great joy.

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 from the womb,

that my mother might have been my grave,

and her womb pregnant forever.

18Why is this—that from the womb I came forth

to see trouble and sorrow,

that my days should be consumed with shame?