Jeremiah 1:18 (DBY)

Passage

And I, behold, I appoint thee this day as a strong city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls, against the whole land; against the kings of Judah, against its princes, against its priests, and against the people of the land.

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 1:16 and I will pronounce my judgments against them for all their wickedness, in that they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.

Jeremiah 1:17 Thou, therefore, gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I shall command thee: be not dismayed at them, lest I cause thee to be dismayed before them.

Jeremiah 1:18 And I, behold, I appoint thee this day as a strong city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls, against the whole land; against the kings of Judah, against its princes, against its priests, and against the people of the land.

Jeremiah 1:19 And they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee, saith Jehovah, to deliver thee.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "behold", "appoint", "thee", "strong", "city", "iron", "pillar", and "brazen". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "behold" and "appoint", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "Thou therefore gird up thy loins and..." into verse 19's "And they shall fight against thee but...", so "behold" and "appoint" 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 "behold" and "appoint" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.