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Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am ready to perform My word.”
Jeremiah 1:12 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Then Yahweh said to me, “You have seen well; for I watch over my word to perform it.”
  • KJV Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.
  • BSB “You have observed correctly,” said the LORD, “for I am watching over My word to accomplish it.”
  • NASB Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over My word to perform it.”
  • NLT And the Lord said, “That’s right, and it means that I am watching, and I will certainly carry out all my plans.”

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

God affirms Jeremiah's sight and pledges to watch over His word to fulfill it. God guarantees that His word will come to pass.

Overview

Through the almond-branch pun, Yahweh declares He is watching to perform His word. The vision assures Jeremiah that every prophecy will surely be carried out, however long it takes. This certainty undergirds all of Scripture, for God's word never returns empty but accomplishes His purpose.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 11

  • Ezek 12:28“Therefore tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh: “None of my words shall be deferred any more, but the word which I speak will be performed,” says the Lord Yahweh.’”
  • Ezek 12:25For I am Yahweh. I will speak, and the word that I speak will be performed. It will be no more deferred; for in your days, rebellious house, I will speak the word, and will perform it,” says the Lord Yahweh.’”
  • Ezek 12:22–23“Son of man, what is this proverb that you have in the land of Israel, saying, ‘The days are prolonged, and every vision fails?’
  • Luke 10:28He said to him, “You have answered correctly. Do this, and you will live.”
  • Amos 8:2He said, “Amos, what do you see?” I said, “A basket of summer fruit.” Then Yahweh said to me, “The end has come on my people Israel. I will not again pass by them any more.
  • Deut 5:28Yahweh heard the voice of your words, when you spoke to me; and Yahweh said to me, “I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken to you. They have well said all that they have spoken.
  • Deut 32:35Vengeance is mine, and recompense, at the time when their foot slides; for the day of their calamity is at hand. Their doom rushes at them.”
  • Deut 18:17Yahweh said to me, “They have well said that which they have spoken.
  • Jer 52:1–34Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign. He reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
  • Jer 39:1–18When Jerusalem was taken, (in the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem, and besieged it.
  • Luke 20:39Some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you speak well.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Jeremiah videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Jeremiah 1:12YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JeremiahMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.

How Jeremiah 1:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.