Jeremiah 20

1 And Pashhur, the son of Immer, the priest who had been appointed leader in the house of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying these words.

Pashhur son of Immer the priest—he was a leading officer—heard Jeremiah prophesying these words before Yahweh's house.

2 And Pashhur struck the prophet Jeremiah, and he sent him to the stocks, which were at the upper gate of Benjamin at the house of the Lord.

So Pashhur beat Jeremiah the prophet and then placed him in the stocks that were at the Upper Gate of Benjamin in Yahweh's house.

3 And when it had become light on the next day, Pashhur led Jeremiah from the stocks. And Jeremiah said to him: “The Lord has not called your name: ‘Pashhur,’ but instead: ‘Fear all around.’”

It happened on the next day that Pashhur brought Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then Jeremiah said to him, “Yahweh has not called your name Pashhur, but you are Magor Missabib.

4 For thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will give you over to fear, you and all your friends, and they will fall by the sword of their enemies, and your eyes will see it. And I will give all of Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon. And he will lead them away to Babylon, and he will strike them with the sword.

For Yahweh says this, 'Look, I will make you an object of horror, you and all of your loved ones, for they will fall by the sword of their enemies and your eyes will see it. I will give all of Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon. He will make them captives in Babylon or attack them with the sword.

5 And I will give away the entire substance of this city, and all its labor, and every precious thing. And I will give all the treasures of the kings of Judah into the hands of their enemies. And they will plunder them, and take them away, and lead them into Babylon.

I will give him all the wealth of this city and all of its riches, all of its precious items and all the treasures of the kings of Judah. I will place these things in the hand of your enemies, and they will seize them. They will take them and bring them to Babylon.

6 But you, Pashhur, and all the inhabitants of your house, will go into captivity. And you will go to Babylon. And there you shall die. And there you shall be buried, you and all your friends, to whom you have prophesied a lie.”

But you, Pashhur, and all the inhabitants of your house will go into captivity. You will go to Babylon and die there. You and all of your loved ones to whom you prophesied deceitful things will be buried there.'”

7 “You have led me away, O Lord, and I have been led away. You have been stronger than I, and you have prevailed. I have become a derision all day long; everyone mocks me.

“Yahweh, you deceived me, and I was deceived. You are stronger than I, and you overpowered me. I have become a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me.

8 For I speak now as I have long spoken: crying out against iniquity and proclaiming devastation. And the word of the Lord has been made into a reproach against me and a derision, all day long.

For whenever I have spoken, I have called out and proclaimed, 'Violence and destruction.' Then Yahweh's word has become for me reproach and mocking every day.

9 Then I said: I will not call him to mind, nor will I speak any longer in his name. And my heart became like a raging fire, enclosed within my bones. And I became weary of continuing to bear it.

If I say, 'I will not think about Yahweh anymore. I will not speak any longer in his name.' Then it is like a fire in my heart, held within my bones. So I struggle to contain it but I cannot.

10 For I heard the insults of many, and terror all around: ‘Persecute him!’ and, ‘Let us persecute him!’ from all the men who had been at peace with me and who had kept watch by my side. ‘If only there were some way that he might be deceived, and we might prevail against him and obtain vengeance from him!’

I have heard rumors of terror from many people all around. 'Report! We must report it!' Those who are close to me watch to see if I will fall. 'Perhaps he can be tricked. If so, we can overpower him and take our revenge on him.'

11 But the Lord is with me, like a strong warrior. For this reason, those who persecute me will fall, and they will be ineffective. They will be greatly confounded. For they have not understood the everlasting disgrace that will never be wiped away.

But Yahweh is with me like a powerful warrior, so the ones pursuing me will stagger. They will not defeat me. They will be greatly ashamed, because they will not succeed. They will have unending shame, it will never be forgotten.

12 And you, O Lord of hosts, the Tester of the just, who sees the temperament and the heart: I beg you to let me see your vengeance upon them. For I have revealed my case to you.

But Yahweh of hosts, you examine the righteous and see the mind and the heart. Let me see your vengeance on them for I have committed my cause to you.

13 Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord! For he has freed the soul of the poor from the hand of the wicked.

Sing to Yahweh! Praise Yahweh! For he has rescued the lives of those who are oppressed from the hand of evildoers.

14 Cursed is the day on which I was born! The day on which my mother gave birth to me: let it not be blessed!

Let the day when I was born be cursed. Do not let the day that my mother bore me be blessed.

15 Cursed is the man who announced it to my father, saying, ‘A male child has been born to you,’ causing him to rejoice with gladness.

Let the man who informed my father be cursed, the one who said, 'A male child has been born to you,' causing great joy.

16 Let that man be like the cities that the Lord has overthrown without regret. Let him hear an outcry in the morning, and wailing at the time of midday!

Let that man be like the cities that Yahweh overthrew and he did not have compassion on them. Let him hear a cry for help in the dawn, a battle cry at noontime,

17 So let him be, who did not put me to death from the womb, so that my mother would have been my sepulcher, and her womb would have been my eternal resting place!

because he did not kill me in the womb, making my mother to be my tomb, a womb that was pregnant forever.

18 Why did I depart from the womb, so that I would see hardship and sorrow, and so that my days would be consumed by trouble?”

Why is it that I came out from the womb to see troubles and agony, so that my days are filled with shame?”