Jeremiah 1:2

The Lord ¹  began to speak to him ²  in the thirteenth year that Josiah son of Amon ruled over Judah.

The word of the LORD came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah,

to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.

The LORD first gave messages to Jeremiah during the thirteenth year of King Josiah’s reign in Judah.

GOD's Message began to come to him during the thirteenth year that Josiah son of Amos reigned over Judah.

To whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his rule.

to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of King Josiah son of Amon of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.

to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.

The Lord ¹  began to speak to him ²  in the thirteenth year that Josiah son of Amon ruled over Judah.

¹ sn The translation reflects the ancient Jewish tradition of substituting the word for “Lord” for the proper name for Israel’s God which is now generally agreed to have been Yahweh. Jewish scribes wrote the consonants YHWH but substituted the vowels for the word “Lord.” The practice of calling him “Lord” rather than using his proper name is also reflected in the Greek translation which is the oldest translation of the Hebrew Bible. The meaning of the name Yahweh occurs in Exod 3:13-14 where God identifies himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and tells Moses that his name is “I am” (אֶהְיֶה, ’ehyeh). However, he instructs the Israelites to refer to him as YHWH (“Yahweh” = “He is”); see further Exod 34:5-6.

² tn Heb “to whom the word of the Lord came.” The present translation is more in keeping with contemporary English idiom. The idea of “began to speak” comes from the context where the conclusion of his speaking is signaled by the phrases “until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah” and “until the people of Jerusalem were taken into exile” in v. 3.