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The Words of Yirmeyahu son of Chilqiyahu, from the Kohenim who were in Anatot in the land of Binyamin;
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to whom the Word of Yahuah came in the days of Yoshiyahu son of Amon, sovereign of Yehudah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.
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And it came in the days of Yehoyaqim son of Yoshiyahu, sovereign of Yehudah, until the completion of the eleventh year of Tzidqiyahu son of Yoshiyahu, sovereign of Yehudah— until the exile of Yerushalayim in the fifth new moon.
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And the Word of Yahuah came to me, saying:
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“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you; and before you came forth from the womb, I set you apart. I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
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Then I said, “Ah, Adonai Yahuah! See, I do not know how to speak, for I am a youth.”
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But Yahuah said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’ for to all whom I send you, you shall go; and all that I command you, you shall speak.
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Do not fear before their faces, for I am with you to deliver you,” declares Yahuah.
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Then Yahuah sent forth His hand and touched my mouth. And Yahuah said to me, “See, I have placed My Words in your mouth.
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See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms: to uproot and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”
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And the Word of Yahuah came to me, saying, “What do you see, Yirmeyahu?” And I said, “I see a branch of an almond tree.”
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Then Yahuah said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over My Word to do it.”
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And the Word of Yahuah came to me a second time, saying, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see a boiling pot, and its face is turned from the north.”
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Then Yahuah said to me, “From the north evil shall be opened upon all the inhabitants of the land.
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For see, I am calling all the families of the kingdoms of the north,” declares Yahuah. “And they shall come, and each shall set his throne at the entrance of the gates of Yerushalayim, against all its walls all around, and against all the cities of Yehudah.
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And I shall speak My Judgments against them concerning all their evil— because they forsook Me, burned incense to other elohim, and bowed themselves to the works of their own hands.
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But you, bind up your loins. Rise and speak to them all that I command you. Do not be shattered before their faces, lest I shatter you before their faces.
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For see, I have appointed you this day as a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls against all the land— against the sovereigns of Yehudah, against its rulers, against its Kohenim, and against the people of the land.
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And they shall fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you,” declares Yahuah, “to deliver you.”