Jeremiah 1:11

11 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ¹“Jeremiah, what do you see? ” And I said, “I see an almond^[a] branch. ”

Jeremiah 1:11 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 1:11

Moreover, the word of the Lord came unto me
At the same time as before: saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou?
The Septuagint version leaves out the word "Jeremiah": and I said, I see a rod of an almond tree;
a dry stick, without leaves or fruit upon it, and yet he knew it to be an almond tree stick; though some think it had leaves and fruit on it, by which it was known. The Targum is,

``and I said, a king hastening to do evil I see;''

meaning Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, hastening to bring destruction upon the Jews.

Jeremiah 1:11 In-Context

9 Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me, “Behold, 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. ”

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

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

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

Cross References

• 1. 1:11 [Amos 7:8]

Footnotes

• [a] 1:11 'Almond' sounds like the Hebrew for 'watching' (compare verse 12)