Jeremiah 1:4-12Ā
English Standard Version (ESV)š
The Call of Jeremiahš
4 Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
5 āBefore 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.ā
6 Then I said, āAh, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.ā 7 But the Lord said to me,
āDo not say, āI am only a youthā;
for to all to whom I send you, you shall go,
and whatever I command you, you shall speak.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,
declares the Lord.ā
9 Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me,
āBehold, I have put my words in your mouth.
10 See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to break down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.ā
11Ā And the word of theĀ LordĀ came to me, saying,Ā āJeremiah, what do you see?ā And I said, āI see an almondĀ branch.āĀ 12Ā Then theĀ LordĀ said to me, āYou have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.āš