Amplified Bible
Jeremiah 20:9
9If I say, “I will not remember Him Or speak His name anymore,” Then my heart becomes a burning fire Shut up in my bones. And I am weary of enduring and holding it in; I cannot endure it [nor contain it any longer].
Jeremiah 20:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.
- New International Version (NIV)But if I say, “I will not mention his word or speak anymore in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.
- English Standard Version (ESV)If I say, "I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name," there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then I said, “I will not make mention of Him, Nor speak anymore in His name.” But His word was in my heart like a burning fire Shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, And I could not.
Context of Jeremiah 20:9
7[Jeremiah said,] O Lord, You have persuaded me and I was deceived; You are stronger than I and You have prevailed. I am a laughingstock all day long; Everyone mocks me. 8For whenever I speak, I must shout out; I shout violence and destruction, Because the word of the Lord has become to me A reprimand and a mockery and has brought me insult all day long. If I say, “I will not remember Him Or speak His name anymore,” Then my heart becomes a burning fire Shut up in my bones. And I am weary of enduring and holding it in; I cannot endure it [nor contain it any longer]. 10For I have heard the whispering and defaming words of many, “Terror on every side! Denounce him! Let us denounce him!” All my familiar and trusted friends, [Those who are] watching for my fall, say, “Perhaps he will be persuaded and deceived; then we will overcome him, And take our revenge on him.” 11But the Lord is with me as a dread champion [one to be greatly feared]; Therefore my persecutors will stumble and not overcome [me]. They will be completely shamed, for they have not acted wisely and have failed [in their schemes]; Their eternal dishonor will never be forgotten.
Read all of Jeremiah 20Jeremiah 20:9 word by word
וְאָמַרְתִּ֣י לֹֽא־אֶזְכְּרֶ֗נּוּ וְלֹֽא־אֲדַבֵּ֥ר עוֹד֙ בִּשְׁמ֔וֹ וְהָיָ֤ה בְלִבִּי֙ כְּאֵ֣שׁ בֹּעֶ֔רֶת עָצֻ֖ר בְּעַצְמֹתָ֑י וְנִלְאֵ֥יתִי כַּֽלְכֵ֖ל וְלֹ֥א אוּכָֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Then I saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- I will not make mentionזָכַרzâkar · to rememberH2142
- of him, nor speakדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
- any more in his nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
- was in mine heartלֵבlêb · heartH3820
- as a burningבָּעַרbâ‛ar · to burn: burnH1197
- fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
- shut upעָצַר‛âtsar · to restrainH6113
- in my bonesעֶ֫צֶם‛etsem · boneH6106
- and I was wearyלָאָהlâ'âh · be wearyH3811
- with forbearingכּוּלkûl · to sustainH3557
- and I couldיָכֹלyâkôl yâkôl · be ableH3201
Cross-references for Jeremiah 20:9
- 1 Kings 19:3And Elijah was afraid and arose and ran for his life, and he came to Beersheba which belongs to Judah, and he left his servant there.
- John 1:2He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God.
- John 4:2(although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were),
- Luke 9:62But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back [to the things left behind] is fit for the kingdom of God.”
- Acts 15:37Now Barnabas wanted to take [his cousin] John, who was called Mark, along with them.
- Jeremiah 6:11But I am full of the wrath (judgment) of the Lord; I am tired of restraining it. “[I will] pour it out on the children in the street And on the young men gathered together; For both the husband and wife shall be taken, The aged and the very old [though full of days they are not exempt from judgment].
- Job 32:18For I am full of words; The spirit within me constrains me.
- Psalms 39:3My heart was hot within me. While I was musing the fire burned; Then I spoke with my tongue:
- Ezekiel 3:14So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went embittered [by the sins of Israel] in the rage of my spirit; and the hand of the Lord was strong on me.
- Acts 4:20for we, on our part, cannot stop telling [people] about what we have seen and heard.”
- Acts 17:16Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was greatly angered when he saw that the city was full of idols.
- Acts 18:5but when Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia (northern Greece), Paul began devoting himself completely to [preaching] the word, and solemnly testifying to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed).
- 1 Corinthians 9:16For if I [merely] preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast about, for I am compelled [that is, absolutely obligated to do it]. Woe to me if I do not preach the good news [of salvation]!
- 2 Corinthians 5:13If we are out of our mind [just unstable fanatics as some critics say], it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for your benefit.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 20:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9I wilt not make mention of him - I will renounce the prophetic office, and return to my house. As a burning fire shut up in my bones - He felt stings of conscience for the hasty and disobedient resolution he had formed; he felt ashamed of his own weakness, that did not confide in the promise and strength of God; and God's word was in him as a strongly raging fire, and he was obliged to deliver it, in order to get rid of the tortures which he felt from…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7-18Verses 7-18 In the rest of the chapter we have an outbreak of deep emotion, of which the first part ends in a cry of hope Jeremiah 20:13, followed nevertheless by curses upon the day of his birth. Was this the result of feelings wounded by the indignities of a public scourging and a night spent in the stocks? Or was it not the mental agony of knowing that his ministry had (as it seemed) failed? He stands indeed before the multitudes with unbending…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-13Verses 7-13 The prophet complains of the insult and injury he experienced. But Jr 20:7 may be read, Thou hast persuaded me, and I was persuaded. Thou wast stronger than I; and didst overpower me by the influence of thy Spirit upon me. So long as we see ourselves in the way of God, and of duty, it is weakness and folly, when we meet with difficulties and discouragements, to wish we had never set out in it. The prophet found the grace of God mighty in him…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-9Jeremiah could not stop speaking God's judgment, even though people mocked him for it (see also Job 32:18–20; Psalm 39:1–3; Acts 4:18–20).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. his word was--or literally, "there was in my heart, as it were, a burning fire," that is, the divine afflatus or impulse to speak was as ... (Job 32:18, 19; Psa 39:3). weary with forbearing, and I could not--"I labored to contain myself, but I could not" (Ac 18:5; compare Jr 23:9; 1Co 9:16, 17).Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 20:9
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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