Jeremiah 20:18

Jeremiah 20:18 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see labour and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame?
• New International Version (NIV)Why did I ever come out of the womb to see trouble and sorrow and to end my days in shame?
• English Standard Version (ESV)Why did I come out from the womb to see toil and sorrow, and spend my days in shame?
• New King James Version (NKJV)Why did I come forth from the womb to see labor and sorrow, That my days should be consumed with shame?

Context of Jeremiah 20:18

16May that man be like the cities that the Lord destroyed without pity. May he hear a cry of alarm in the morning and a battle cry at noon. 17If only he had killed me while I was in the womb. Then my mother would have been my grave, and she would have always been pregnant. Why did I come out of the womb? All I’ve seen is trouble and grief. I will finish my days in shame.

Jeremiah 20:18 word by word

לָ֤מָּה זֶּה֙ מֵרֶ֣חֶם יָצָ֔אתִי לִרְא֥וֹת עָמָ֖ל וְיָג֑וֹן וַיִּכְל֥וּ בְּבֹ֖שֶׁת יָמָֽי׃ פRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Wherefore came I forthיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: produceH3318
• out of the wombרֶ֫חֶםrechem · wombH7358
• to seeרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• labourעָמָל‛âmâl · troubleH5999
• and sorrowיָגוֹןyâgôn · sorrowH3015
• that my daysיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• should be consumedכָּלָהkâlâh · to end: expendH3615
• with shameבֹּ֫שֶׁתbôsheth · shameH1322

Cross-references for Jeremiah 20:18

• Job 3:20“Why give light to one in misery and life to those who find it so bitter,
• Job 14:1“A person who is born of a woman is short-lived and is full of trouble.
• Lamentations 3:1“I am the man who has experienced suffering under the rod of God’s fury.
• Jeremiah 8:18Sorrow has overwhelmed me. I am sick at heart!
• Genesis 3:16He said to the woman, “I will increase your pain and your labor when you give birth to children. Yet, you will long for your husband, and he will rule you.”
• Psalms 90:10Each of us lives for 70 years— or even 80 if we are in good health. But the best of them ⌞bring⌟ trouble and misery. Indeed, they are soon gone, and we fly away.
• Lamentations 1:12“Doesn’t this affect all of you who pass by? Look and see if there’s any pain like the pain that the Lord has caused me, like the pain that he has made me suffer on the day of his fierce anger.
• John 16:20I can guarantee this truth: You will cry because you are sad, but the world will be happy. You will feel pain, but your pain will turn to happiness.
• Hebrews 10:36You need endurance so that after you have done what God wants you to do, you can receive what he has promised.
• Psalms 69:19You know that I have been insulted, put to shame, and humiliated. All my opponents are in front of you.
• Isaiah 1:6From the bottom of your feet to the top of your head there is no healthy spot left on your ⌞body⌟— only bruises, sores, and fresh wounds. They haven’t been cleansed, bandaged, or soothed with oil.
• Isaiah 61:7You will receive a double measure of wealth instead of your shame. You will sing about your wealth instead of being disgraced. That is why you will have a double measure of wealth in your land. You will have everlasting joy.
• Acts 5:41The apostles left the council room. They were happy to have been considered worthy to suffer dishonor for speaking about Jesus.
• 1 Corinthians 4:9As I see it, God has placed us apostles last in line, like people condemned to die. We have become a spectacle for people and angels to look at.
• 2 Timothy 1:12For this reason I suffer as I do. However, I’m not ashamed. I know whom I trust. I’m convinced that he is able to protect what he had entrusted to me until that day.
• Hebrews 11:36Some were made fun of and whipped, and some were chained and put in prison.

Commentaries on Jeremiah 20:18

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18Wherefore came I forth - It would have been well had I never been born, as I have neither comfort in my life, nor comfort in my work.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. 14-18Verses 14-18 When grace has the victory, it is good to be ashamed of our folly, to admire the goodness of God, and be warned to guard our spirits another time. See how strong the temptation was, over which the prophet got the victory by Divine assistance! He is angry that his first breath was not his last. While we remember that these wishes are not recorded for us to utter the like, we may learn good lessons from them. See how much those who think they…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17-18Jeremiah felt his life had no purpose.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 14-1814-18. The contrast between the spirit of this passage and the preceding thanksgiving is to be explained thus: to show how great was the deliverance (Jr 20:13), he subjoins a picture of what his wounded spirit had been previous to his deliverance; I had said in the time of my imprisonment, "Cursed be the day"; my feeling was that of Job (Job 3:3, 10, 11, whose words Jeremiah therefore copies). Though Jeremiah's zeal had been stirred up, not so much for…Read the comment

Topics related to Jeremiah 20:18

• Birthday
• Jeremiah
• Life
• Murmuring

In the dictionaries

• Derision
• Familiar
• Genesis
• Jeremiah (2)
• Job, Book of
• Shame
• Uriah; Uruah

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