Jeremiah 1:5 (ASV)

Passage

Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee; I have appointed thee a prophet unto the nations.

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 1:3 It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

Jeremiah 1:4 Now the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,

Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee; I have appointed thee a prophet unto the nations.

Jeremiah 1:6 Then said I, Ah, Lord Jehovah! behold, I know not how to speak; for I am a child.

Jeremiah 1:7 But Jehovah said unto me, Say not, I am a child; for to whomsoever I shall send thee thou shalt go, and whatsoever I shall command thee thou shalt speak.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "before", "formed", "thee", "belly", "knew", and "thou". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "before" and "formed", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "Now the word of Jehovah came unto..." into verse 6's "Then said I Ah Lord Jehovah behold...", so "before" and "formed" belong inside that flow. In Jeremiah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "before" and "formed" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.