3. The Lord also spoke to Jeremiah while Jehoiakim son of Josiah was king of Judah and during the eleven years that Zedekiah son of Josiah was king of Judah. In the fifth month of his last year, the people of Jerusalem were taken away as captives.
4. The Lord spoke his word to me, saying:
5. “Before I made you in your mother’s womb, I chose you.Before you were born, I set you apart for a special work.I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
6. Then I said, “But Lord God, I don’t know how to speak. I am only a boy.”
7. But the Lord said to me, “Don’t say, ‘I am only a boy.’ You must go everywhere I send you, and you must say everything I tell you to say.
8. Don’t be afraid of anyone, because I am with you to protect you,” says the Lord.