Jeremiah
Chapter 20
When the priest Pashur, son of Immer, who was the chief officer in the house of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying like this,
he ordered his people to beat Jeremiah and put him in chains at the Gate of Benjamin, the upper gate at the house of the Lord.
The next day, after Pashur ordered Jeremiah’s release, Jeremiah told Pashur: “The Lord has already changed your name. It is no longer Pashur but ‘Terror on every side.’”
For the Lord says: I will hand you over to terror, your friends included. They will fall by the sword of their enemies while you watch. I will deliver the people of Judah into the hands of the king of Babylon, who will exile them to Babylon or kill them by the sword.
I will also permit the enemies to loot this city’s wealth. All the possessions and treasures of the kings of Judah will be taken and carried away to Babylonia.
As for you, Pashur, you and your entire family will be taken captive to Babylon, where you will die and be buried—you and all your friends whom you deceived with lies.
Jeremiah’s Confessions: End
O Lord, you have deceived me, and I allowed myself to be deceived. You have taken me by force and overcome me. I am a laughingstock all day long; people mock me,
because every time I speak, I have to shout: “Violence! Devastation!” The Lord’s word has brought me insult and ridicule all day long.
So I decided to forget about him and stop speaking in his name. But his word in my heart becomes like a fire, burning deep within my bones. I try so hard to hold it in, but I just can’t do it.
I hear many people whispering: “Terror is all around! Denounce him! Yes, denounce him!” All my friends watch me to see if I will slip: “Perhaps he can be deceived,” they say; “then we can get the better of him and have our revenge.”
But the Lord, a mighty warrior, is with me. My persecutors will stumble and will not prevail; their failure will be their shame, and their disgrace will never be forgotten.
The Lord, God of Hosts, you test the just and probe the heart and mind. Let me see your revenge on them, for to you I have committed my cause.
Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord and say: he has rescued the poor from the grasp of the wicked!
Cursed be the day I was born! Bless not the day my mother brought me into light!
Cursed be the man who broke the news to my father: ‘It’s a boy!’ making him very glad!
Let him resemble the towns that the Lord destroyed without mercy. Let him hear a warning shout in the morning and a battle cry at noon!
For he did not kill me in the womb, that my mother would have been my grave, and have carried me forever.
Why did I ever leave the womb to face trouble and sorrow, and spend my days in shame?
Commentaries
Jeremiah’s Confessions: End.
Jeremiah feels betrayed by God, who had enticed him with beautiful promises. Now he finds himself abandoned before a hostile crowd, enduring mockery and scorn. In this distress, the prophet recognizes that the Word of the Lord is deeply engraved on his heart and must be proclaimed (8-9), and that his God, even in his failure, is with him (11), as he had promised (1:8). The prophet is a man of God’s Word. His faithfulness to it brings rejection and suffering. It is from this place of deep pain that his song of victory and praise emerges (11-13).