1 N ow Pashhur son of Immer, the priest, who was chief officer in the house of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things.

Now Pashhur the religious leader, the son of Immer, was the head leader in the house of the Lord. When he heard Jeremiah saying these things,

2 T hen Pashhur beat Jeremiah the prophet and put him in the stocks that were at the upper Benjamin Gate by the house of the Lord.

Pashhur had Jeremiah the man of God beaten. Then he put him in chains at the upper Benjamin Gate by the house of the Lord.

3 A nd the next day Pashhur brought Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then Jeremiah said to him, The Lord does not call your name Pashhur, but Magor-missabib.

On the next day, when Pashhur set Jeremiah free from the chains, Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord does not call you Pashhur, but Fear Everywhere.

4 F or thus says the Lord: Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; they will fall by the sword of their enemies while you look on. And I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon; he will carry them captive to Babylon and will slay them with the sword.

For the Lord says, ‘See, I am going to make you a fear to yourself and to all your friends. They will fall by the sword of those who hate them while you look on. I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon. And he will carry them away in chains to Babylon and will kill them with the sword.

5 M oreover, I will deliver all the riches of this city—all the results of its labors, all its precious things, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah—into the hand of their enemies, who will make them a prey and plunder them and seize them and carry them to Babylon.

I will give over all the riches of this city, all that its people have worked for, and all its things of much worth. Even all the riches of the kings of Judah I will give to those who hate them. They will take their things, and take hold of them, and carry them to Babylon.

6 A nd you, Pashhur, and all who dwell in your house shall go into captivity; you shall go to Babylon, and there you shall die and be buried, you and all your friends to whom you have prophesied falsely.

And you, Pashhur, and all who live in your house will be taken away in chains. You will go to Babylon, and there you will die, and there you will be buried, you and all your friends to whom you have told lies.’” Jeremiah’s Complaint to the Lord

7 O Lord, You have persuaded and deceived me, and I was persuaded and deceived; You are stronger than I am and You have prevailed. I am a laughingstock all the day; everyone mocks me.

O Lord, You have lied to me and I was fooled. You are stronger than I, and have had power over me. I have been laughed at all day. Everyone makes fun of me.

8 F or whenever I speak, I must cry out and complain; I shout, Violence and destruction! For the word of the Lord has become to me a reproach and a derision and has brought me insult all day long.

For whenever I speak, I cry out. I tell of fighters and destroyers. For the Word of the Lord has become a shame and a cause of laughing at me all day long.

9 I f I say, I will not make mention of or speak any more in His name, in my mind and heart it is as if there were a burning fire shut up in my bones. And I am weary of enduring and holding it in; I cannot.

But if I say, “I will not remember Him or speak any more in His name,” then in my heart it is like a burning fire shut up in my bones. I am tired of holding it in, and I cannot do that.

10 F or I have heard many whispering and defaming, terror on every side! Denounce him! Let us denounce him! Say all my familiar friends, they who watch for my fall, Perhaps he will be persuaded and deceived; then we will prevail against him, and we will get our revenge on him.

For I have heard many speaking in secret, saying, “Fear and trouble is on every side! Speak against him! Yes, let us speak against him!” All my trusted friends, watching for my fall, say, “It may be that he will be fooled. Then we can get power over him and punish him.”

11 B ut the Lord is with me as a mighty and terrible One; therefore my persecutors will stumble, and they will not overcome. They will be utterly put to shame, for they will not deal wisely or prosper; their eternal dishonor will never be forgotten.

But the Lord is with me like a powerful one who causes fear. So those who make it hard for me will fall and not have power over me. They will be put to much shame, because their plans have not gone well. Their shame will last forever and will not be forgotten.

12 B ut, O Lord of hosts, You Who try the righteous, Who see the heart and the mind, let me see Your vengeance on them, for to You have I revealed and committed my cause.

O Lord of All, You test those who are right and good. You see the mind and the heart. Let me see You punish them, for I have given my cause to You.

13 S ing to the Lord! Praise the Lord! For He has delivered the life of the poor and needy from the hands of evildoers.

Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord! For He has taken the soul of the one in need from the hand of the sinful.

14 C ursed be the day on which I was born! Let not the day on which my mother bore me be blessed!

Cursed is the day when I was born! Let the day not be honored when my mother gave birth to me!

15 C ursed be the man who brought the tidings to my father, saying, A son is born to you!—making him very glad.

Cursed be the man who brought the news to my father, saying, “A baby boy has been born to you!” and made him very happy.

16 A nd let that man be like the cities which the Lord overthrew, and did not relent. Let him hear the cry in the morning and the shouting of alarm at noon,

Let that man be like the cities which the Lord destroyed without pity. Let him hear a cry in the morning and a call of danger at noon.

17 B ecause he did not slay me in the womb, so that my mother might have been my grave, and her womb always great.

For he did not kill me before I was born, so that my mother’s body would have been my grave.

18 W hy did I come out of the womb to see labor and sorrow, that my days should be consumed in shame?

Why was I ever born to see trouble and sorrow, and spend my days in shame?