It came also in the days of King Jehoiakim son of Josiah of Judah, and until the end of the eleventh year of King Zedekiah son of Josiah of Judah, until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month.
Jeremiah's Call and Commission

Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.”

But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy’; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you,

Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.”

Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me, “Now I have put my words in your mouth.

See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”

The word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see a branch of an almond tree.”

Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.”

The word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see a boiling pot, tilted away from the north.”

Then the Lord said to me: Out of the north disaster shall break out on all the inhabitants of the land.

For now I am calling all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north, says the Lord ; and they shall come and all of them shall set their thrones at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all its surrounding walls and against all the cities of Judah.

And I will utter my judgments against them, for all their wickedness in forsaking me; they have made offerings to other gods, and worshiped the works of their own hands.

But you, gird up your loins; stand up and tell them everything that I command you. Do not break down before them, or I will break you before them.

And I for my part have made you today a fortified city, an iron pillar, and a bronze wall, against the whole land—against the kings of Judah, its princes, its priests, and the people of the land.

They will fight against you; but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, says the Lord , to deliver you.

The Babylonian Captivity Foretold

The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of King Jehoiakim son of Josiah of Judah (that was the first year of King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon),

which the prophet Jeremiah spoke to all the people of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem:

For twenty-three years, from the thirteenth year of King Josiah son of Amon of Judah, to this day, the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken persistently to you, but you have not listened.

And though the Lord persistently sent you all his servants the prophets, you have neither listened nor inclined your ears to hear

when they said, “Turn now, everyone of you, from your evil way and wicked doings, and you will remain upon the land that the Lord has given to you and your ancestors from of old and forever;

do not go after other gods to serve and worship them, and do not provoke me to anger with the work of your hands. Then I will do you no harm.”

Yet you did not listen to me, says the Lord , and so you have provoked me to anger with the work of your hands to your own harm.

Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: Because you have not obeyed my words,

I am going to send for all the tribes of the north, says the Lord , even for King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants, and against all these nations around; I will utterly destroy them, and make them an object of horror and of hissing, and an everlasting disgrace.

And I will banish from them the sound of mirth and the sound of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp.

This whole land shall become a ruin and a waste, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.

Then after seventy years are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, says the Lord , making the land an everlasting waste.

I will bring upon that land all the words that I have uttered against it, everything written in this book, which Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations.

For many nations and great kings shall make slaves of them also; and I will repay them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.
The Cup of God's Wrath

For thus the Lord , the God of Israel, said to me: Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it.

They shall drink and stagger and go out of their minds because of the sword that I am sending among them.

So I took the cup from the Lord 's hand, and made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it:

Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, its kings and officials, to make them a desolation and a waste, an object of hissing and of cursing, as they are today;

Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his officials, and all his people;

all the mixed people; all the kings of the land of Uz; all the kings of the land of the Philistines—Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod;

Edom, Moab, and the Ammonites;

all the kings of Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the coastland across the sea;

Dedan, Tema, Buz, and all who have shaven temples;

all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of the mixed peoples that live in the desert;

all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of Media;

all the kings of the north, far and near, one after another, and all the kingdoms of the world that are on the face of the earth. And after them the king of Sheshach shall drink.

Then you shall say to them, Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Drink, get drunk and vomit, fall and rise no more, because of the sword that I am sending among you.

And if they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts: You must drink!

See, I am beginning to bring disaster on the city that is called by my name, and how can you possibly avoid punishment? You shall not go unpunished, for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth, says the Lord of hosts.

You, therefore, shall prophesy against them all these words, and say to them: The Lord will roar from on high, and from his holy habitation utter his voice; he will roar mightily against his fold, and shout, like those who tread grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.

The clamor will resound to the ends of the earth, for the Lord has an indictment against the nations; he is entering into judgment with all flesh, and the guilty he will put to the sword, says the Lord.

Thus says the Lord of hosts: See, disaster is spreading from nation to nation, and a great tempest is stirring from the farthest parts of the earth!

Those slain by the Lord on that day shall extend from one end of the earth to the other. They shall not be lamented, or gathered, or buried; they shall become dung on the surface of the ground.

Wail, you shepherds, and cry out; roll in ashes, you lords of the flock, for the days of your slaughter have come—and your dispersions, and you shall fall like a choice vessel.

Flight shall fail the shepherds, and there shall be no escape for the lords of the flock.

Hark! the cry of the shepherds, and the wail of the lords of the flock! For the Lord is despoiling their pasture,

and the peaceful folds are devastated, because of the fierce anger of the Lord.

Like a lion he has left his covert; for their land has become a waste because of the cruel sword, and because of his fierce anger.

Restoration Promised for Israel and Judah

The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord :

Thus says the Lord , the God of Israel: Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you.

For the days are surely coming, says the Lord , when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, says the Lord , and I will bring them back to the land that I gave to their ancestors and they shall take possession of it.

These are the words that the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah:

Thus says the Lord : We have heard a cry of panic, of terror, and no peace.

Ask now, and see, can a man bear a child? Why then do I see every man with his hands on his loins like a woman in labor? Why has every face turned pale?

Alas! that day is so great there is none like it; it is a time of distress for Jacob; yet he shall be rescued from it.

On that day, says the Lord of hosts, I will break the yoke from off his neck, and I will burst his bonds, and strangers shall no more make a servant of him.

But they shall serve the Lord their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.

But as for you, have no fear, my servant Jacob, says the Lord , and do not be dismayed, O Israel; for I am going to save you from far away, and your offspring from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease, and no one shall make him afraid.

For I am with you, says the Lord , to save you; I will make an end of all the nations among which I scattered you, but of you I will not make an end. I will chastise you in just measure, and I will by no means leave you unpunished.

For thus says the Lord : Your hurt is incurable, your wound is grievous.

There is no one to uphold your cause, no medicine for your wound, no healing for you.

All your lovers have forgotten you; they care nothing for you; for I have dealt you the blow of an enemy, the punishment of a merciless foe, because your guilt is great, because your sins are so numerous.

Why do you cry out over your hurt? Your pain is incurable. Because your guilt is great, because your sins are so numerous, I have done these things to you.

Therefore all who devour you shall be devoured, and all your foes, everyone of them, shall go into captivity; those who plunder you shall be plundered, and all who prey on you I will make a prey.

For I will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal, says the Lord , because they have called you an outcast: “It is Zion; no one cares for her!”

Thus says the Lord : I am going to restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob, and have compassion on his dwellings; the city shall be rebuilt upon its mound, and the citadel set on its rightful site.

Out of them shall come thanksgiving, and the sound of merrymakers. I will make them many, and they shall not be few; I will make them honored, and they shall not be disdained.

Their children shall be as of old, their congregation shall be established before me; and I will punish all who oppress them.

Their prince shall be one of their own, their ruler shall come from their midst; I will bring him near, and he shall approach me, for who would otherwise dare to approach me? says the Lord.

And you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

Look, the storm of the Lord! Wrath has gone forth, a whirling tempest; it will burst upon the head of the wicked.

The fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back until he has executed and accomplished the intents of his mind. In the latter days you will understand this.

The Scroll Read in the Temple

In the fourth year of King Jehoiakim son of Josiah of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord :

Take a scroll and write on it all the words that I have spoken to you against Israel and Judah and all the nations, from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josiah until today.

It may be that when the house of Judah hears of all the disasters that I intend to do to them, all of them may turn from their evil ways, so that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.

Then Jeremiah called Baruch son of Neriah, and Baruch wrote on a scroll at Jeremiah's dictation all the words of the Lord that he had spoken to him.

And Jeremiah ordered Baruch, saying, “I am prevented from entering the house of the Lord ;

so you go yourself, and on a fast day in the hearing of the people in the Lord 's house you shall read the words of the Lord from the scroll that you have written at my dictation. You shall read them also in the hearing of all the people of Judah who come up from their towns.

It may be that their plea will come before the Lord , and that all of them will turn from their evil ways, for great is the anger and wrath that the Lord has pronounced against this people.”

And Baruch son of Neriah did all that the prophet Jeremiah ordered him about reading from the scroll the words of the Lord in the Lord 's house.

In the fifth year of King Jehoiakim son of Josiah of Judah, in the ninth month, all the people in Jerusalem and all the people who came from the towns of Judah to Jerusalem proclaimed a fast before the Lord.

Then, in the hearing of all the people, Baruch read the words of Jeremiah from the scroll, in the house of the Lord , in the chamber of Gemariah son of Shaphan the secretary, which was in the upper court, at the entry of the New Gate of the Lord 's house.
The Scroll Read in the Palace

When Micaiah son of Gemariah son of Shaphan heard all the words of the Lord from the scroll,

he went down to the king's house, into the secretary's chamber; and all the officials were sitting there: Elishama the secretary, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the officials.

And Micaiah told them all the words that he had heard, when Baruch read the scroll in the hearing of the people.

Then all the officials sent Jehudi son of Nethaniah son of Shelemiah son of Cushi to say to Baruch, “Bring the scroll that you read in the hearing of the people, and come.” So Baruch son of Neriah took the scroll in his hand and came to them.

And they said to him, “Sit down and read it to us.” So Baruch read it to them.

When they heard all the words, they turned to one another in alarm, and said to Baruch, “We certainly must report all these words to the king.”

Then they questioned Baruch, “Tell us now, how did you write all these words? Was it at his dictation?”

Baruch answered them, “He dictated all these words to me, and I wrote them with ink on the scroll.”

Then the officials said to Baruch, “Go and hide, you and Jeremiah, and let no one know where you are.”
Jehoiakim Burns the Scroll

Leaving the scroll in the chamber of Elishama the secretary, they went to the court of the king; and they reported all the words to the king.

Then the king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and he took it from the chamber of Elishama the secretary; and Jehudi read it to the king and all the officials who stood beside the king.

Now the king was sitting in his winter apartment (it was the ninth month), and there was a fire burning in the brazier before him.

As Jehudi read three or four columns, the king would cut them off with a penknife and throw them into the fire in the brazier, until the entire scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier.

Yet neither the king, nor any of his servants who heard all these words, was alarmed, nor did they tear their garments.

Even when Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen to them.

And the king commanded Jerahmeel the king's son and Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to arrest the secretary Baruch and the prophet Jeremiah. But the Lord hid them.
Jeremiah Dictates Another

Now, after the king had burned the scroll with the words that Baruch wrote at Jeremiah's dictation, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:

Take another scroll and write on it all the former words that were in the first scroll, which King Jehoiakim of Judah has burned.

And concerning King Jehoiakim of Judah you shall say: Thus says the Lord , You have dared to burn this scroll, saying, Why have you written in it that the king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land, and will cut off from it human beings and animals?

Therefore thus says the Lord concerning King Jehoiakim of Judah: He shall have no one to sit upon the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat by day and the frost by night.

And I will punish him and his offspring and his servants for their iniquity; I will bring on them, and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and on the people of Judah, all the disasters with which I have threatened them—but they would not listen.

Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to the secretary Baruch son of Neriah, who wrote on it at Jeremiah's dictation all the words of the scroll that King Jehoiakim of Judah had burned in the fire; and many similar words were added to them.