Jeremiah 18:5-6

18:5 Then the Lord said to me, ¹  18:6 “I, the Lord, say: ²  ‘O nation of Israel, can I not deal with you as this potter deals with the clay? ³  In my hands, you, O nation of Israel, are just like the clay in this potter’s hand.’

[18:5]  ¹ tn Heb “Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying.”

[18:6]  ² tn This phrase (literally “Oracle of the Lord”) has been handled this way on several occasions when it occurs within first person addresses where the Lord is the speaker. See, e.g., 16:16; 17:24.

[18:6]  ³ tn The words “deals with the clay” are not in the text. They are part of an elliptical comparison and are supplied in the translation here for clarity.