Jeremiah 20:1-6
Those who oppose the word of God and persecute His messenger ultimately place themselves under the judgment they sought to suppress.
1 Now Pashhur, the son of Immer the priest, who was chief officer in Yahweh’s house, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things.
2 Then Pashhur struck Jeremiah the prophet and put him in the stocks that were in the upper gate of Benjamin, which was in Yahweh’s house.
3 On the next day, Pashhur released Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then Jeremiah said to him, “Yahweh has not called your name Pashhur, but Magormissabib.
4 For Yahweh says, ‘Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends. They will fall by the sword of their enemies, and your eyes will see it. I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will carry them captive to Babylon, and will kill them with the sword.
5 Moreover I will give all the riches of this city, and all its gains, and all its precious things, yes, I will give all the treasures of the kings of Judah into the hand of their enemies. They will make them captives, take them, and carry them to Babylon.
6 You, Pashhur, and all who dwell in your house will go into captivity. You will come to Babylon, and there you will die, and there you will be buried, you, and all your friends, to whom you have prophesied falsely.’ ”
Those who oppose the word of God and persecute His messenger ultimately place themselves under the judgment they sought to suppress.
To record the violent opposition against Jeremiah by the temple official Pashhur and to reveal God’s prophetic response announcing judgment upon him and those who trusted in false security.
Jeremiah 20:1–6 follows Jeremiah’s temple proclamation of judgment in Jeremiah 19. The message provokes an immediate reaction from religious leadership. This narrative marks a turning point where Jeremiah begins to experience intensified persecution for speaking God’s word.
Pashhur, Terror on Every Side, and the Fire Shut Up in Jeremiah’s Bones
The LORD’s word brings Jeremiah persecution, ridicule, and anguish, yet it burns with irresistible force within him, and the LORD remains his mighty warrior against those who oppose the truth.