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Jeremiah 20:7-18
New International Version
Jeremiah 20:7-18
New International Version
Jeremiah’s Complaint
7 You deceived[a](A) me, Lord, and I was deceived[b];
you overpowered(B) me and prevailed.
I am ridiculed(C) all day long;
everyone mocks(D) me.
8 Whenever I speak, I cry out
proclaiming violence and destruction.(E)
So the word of the Lord has brought me
insult and reproach(F) all day long.
9 But if I say, “I will not mention his word
or speak anymore in his name,”(G)
his word is in my heart like a fire,(H)
a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;(I)
indeed, I cannot.
10 I hear many whispering,
“Terror(J) on every side!
Denounce(K) him! Let’s denounce him!”
All my friends(L)
are waiting for me to slip,(M) saying,
“Perhaps he will be deceived;
then we will prevail(N) over him
and take our revenge(O) on him.”
11 But the Lord(P) is with me like a mighty warrior;
so my persecutors(Q) will stumble and not prevail.(R)
They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced;(S)
their dishonor will never be forgotten.
12 Lord Almighty, you who examine the righteous
and probe the heart and mind,(T)
let me see your vengeance(U) on them,
for to you I have committed(V) my cause.
13 Sing(W) to the Lord!
Give praise to the Lord!
He rescues(X) the life of the needy
from the hands of the wicked.(Y)
14 Cursed be the day I was born!(Z)
May the day my mother bore me not be blessed!
15 Cursed be the man who brought my father the news,
who made him very glad, saying,
“A child is born to you—a son!”
16 May that man be like the towns(AA)
the Lord overthrew without pity.
May he hear wailing(AB) in the morning,
a battle cry at noon.
17 For he did not kill me in the womb,(AC)
with my mother as my grave,
her womb enlarged forever.
18 Why did I ever come out of the womb(AD)
to see trouble(AE) and sorrow
and to end my days in shame?(AF)
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 20:7 Or persuaded
- Jeremiah 20:7 Or persuaded
Jeremiah 20:7-18
King James Version
Jeremiah 20:7-18
King James Version
7 O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived; thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me.
8 For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the Lord was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily.
9 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.
10 For I heard the defaming of many, fear on every side. Report, say they, and we will report it. All my familiars watched for my halting, saying, Peradventure he will be enticed, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge on him.
11 But the Lord is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten.
12 But, O Lord of hosts, that triest the righteous, and seest the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them: for unto thee have I opened my cause.
13 Sing unto the Lord, praise ye the Lord: for he hath delivered the soul of the poor from the hand of evildoers.
14 Cursed be the day wherein I was born: let not the day wherein my mother bare me be blessed.
15 Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, saying, A man child is born unto thee; making him very glad.
16 And let that man be as the cities which the Lord overthrew, and repented not: and let him hear the cry in the morning, and the shouting at noontide;
17 Because he slew me not from the womb; or that my mother might have been my grave, and her womb to be always great with me.
18 Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see labour and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame?
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Jeremiah 20:7-18
New Living Translation
Jeremiah 20:7-18
New Living Translation
Jeremiah’s Complaint
7 O Lord, you misled me,
and I allowed myself to be misled.
You are stronger than I am,
and you overpowered me.
Now I am mocked every day;
everyone laughs at me.
8 When I speak, the words burst out.
“Violence and destruction!” I shout.
So these messages from the Lord
have made me a household joke.
9 But if I say I’ll never mention the Lord
or speak in his name,
his word burns in my heart like a fire.
It’s like a fire in my bones!
I am worn out trying to hold it in!
I can’t do it!
10 I have heard the many rumors about me.
They call me “The Man Who Lives in Terror.”
They threaten, “If you say anything, we will report it.”
Even my old friends are watching me,
waiting for a fatal slip.
“He will trap himself,” they say,
“and then we will get our revenge on him.”
11 But the Lord stands beside me like a great warrior.
Before him my persecutors will stumble.
They cannot defeat me.
They will fail and be thoroughly humiliated.
Their dishonor will never be forgotten.
12 O Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
you test those who are righteous,
and you examine the deepest thoughts and secrets.
Let me see your vengeance against them,
for I have committed my cause to you.
13 Sing to the Lord!
Praise the Lord!
For though I was poor and needy,
he rescued me from my oppressors.
14 Yet I curse the day I was born!
May no one celebrate the day of my birth.
15 I curse the messenger who told my father,
“Good news—you have a son!”
16 Let him be destroyed like the cities of old
that the Lord overthrew without mercy.
Terrify him all day long with battle shouts,
17 because he did not kill me at birth.
Oh, that I had died in my mother’s womb,
that her body had been my grave!
18 Why was I ever born?
My entire life has been filled
with trouble, sorrow, and shame.
Jeremiah 20:7-18
Amplified Bible
Jeremiah 20:7-18
Amplified Bible
Jeremiah’s Complaint
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.
8
For 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.
9
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].
10
For 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.”
11
But 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.
12
But, O Lord of hosts, You who examine the righteous,
Who see the heart and the mind,
Let me see Your vengeance on them;
For to You I have committed my cause.
13
Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord!
For He has rescued the life of the needy one
From the hand of evildoers.
14
Cursed be the day on which I was born;
Do not bless the day on which my mother gave birth to me!
15
Cursed be the man who brought the news
To my father, saying,
“A son has been born to you!”
Making him very glad.
16
And let that man be like the cities
Which the Lord overthrew without regret.
Let him hear an outcry in the morning
And a shout of alarm at noon;
17
Because he did not kill me before my birth,
So that my mother might have been my grave,
And her womb always pregnant.
18
Why did I come out of the womb
To see trouble and sorrow,
So that my days have been filled with shame?
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Amplified Bible (AMP) 
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.