Bible Strands
Jeremiah 1:6
“Ah, Lord GOD,” I said, “I surely do not know how to speak, for I am only a child!”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jeremiah addresses Yahweh immediately following his commission in Jeremiah 1:5. He voices his reluctance at the precise moment of prophetic appointment.
The words — The text emphasizes לֹא־ יָדַ֖עְתִּי (lo'- ya.Da'.ti), literally "not I know," to state the claim "I do not know how to speak." It also records אֲדֹנָ֣י יְהֹוִ֔ה (a.do.Nai Yah.weh), directly naming the addressee as "O Lord Yahweh."
The thread — This pattern of unqualified speech recurs in Exodus 4:10 where Moses cites his lack of eloquence, Exodus 6:12 where he questions his capacity to be heard, and 1 Kings 3:7 where Solomon calls himself a little child.
Why it lands — The verse records a direct statement of inability before a divine mandate. It requires the reader to note the explicit gap between personal limitation and the command to go and speak.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.
Cross-references
- Exodus 4:10 “Please, Lord,” Moses replied, “I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since You have spoken to Your servant, for I am slow of speech and tongue.”
- Exodus 6:12 But in the LORD’s presence Moses replied, “If the Israelites will not listen to me, then why would Pharaoh listen to me, since I am unskilled in speech?”
- 1 Kings 3:7 And now, O LORD my God, You have made Your servant king in my father David’s place. But I am only a little child, not knowing how to go out or come in.
- Jeremiah 32:17 “Oh, Lord GOD! You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for You!
- Exodus 4:1 Then Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to my voice? For they may say, ‘The LORD has not appeared to you.’”
- Exodus 6:30 But in the LORD’s presence Moses replied, “Since I am unskilled in speech, why would Pharaoh listen to me?”
- Jeremiah 14:13 “Ah, Lord GOD!” I replied, “Look, the prophets are telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine, but I will give you lasting peace in this place.’”
- Jeremiah 4:10 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD, how completely You have deceived this people and Jerusalem by saying, ‘You will have peace,’ while a sword is at our throats.”
- Isaiah 6:5 Then I said: “Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips dwelling among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts.”