Jeremiah 20:7-10
Legacy Standard Bible
Jeremiah Curses the Day He Was Born
7 O Yahweh, You have enticed me, and I was enticed;
You were (A)stronger than I, and You prevailed.
I have become a (B)laughingstock all day long;
Everyone (C)mocks me.
8 For each time I speak, I cry aloud;
I (D)call out violence and devastation
Because for me the (E)word of Yahweh has [a]resulted
In reproach and derision all day long.
9 But if I say, “I will not (F)remember Him
Or speak anymore in His name,”
Then in (G)my heart it becomes like a burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
And I am weary of holding it in,
And (H)I cannot prevail.
10 For (I)I have heard the bad report of many,
“(J)Terror on every side!
(K)Denounce him; yes, let us denounce him!”
[b]All my (L)trusted friends,
Keeping watch for my fall, say:
“Perhaps he will be [c]deceived, so that we may (M)prevail against him
And take our revenge on him.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 20:8 Lit become
- Jeremiah 20:10 Lit Every man of my peace
- Jeremiah 20:10 Or persuaded
Jeremiah 20:7-10
Evangelical Heritage Version
Jeremiah’s Confession
7 You persuaded me, Lord, and I agreed to it.[a]
You are stronger than I am, and you won out.
I have become a laughingstock all day long,
and everyone is mocking me.
8 Whenever I speak, I cry out.
I cry out, “Violence and destruction!”
But the word of the Lord has brought scorn on me.
I am mocked all day long.
9 If I say, “I will not mention him
or speak in his name anymore,”
then there is a burning fire in my heart,
shut up in my bones,
and I am weary of holding it in.
I cannot!
10 I hear many whispering,
“Terror on every side!”
All my close friends,
those who are watching for my fall, say,
“Denounce him! Let’s denounce him.
Perhaps he can be pressured into making a mistake.
Then we will have the upper hand against him,
and we will take our revenge on him.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 20:7 Or, more literally, you pressured me, and I was pressured. The Hebrew verb (patah) is the same in both halves of the line, but it has different connotations when applied to God and to Jeremiah. You deceived me and I was deceived is probably too strong a word to express Jeremiah’s accusation against the Lord, but Jeremiah is claiming that the Lord had led him to believe that being a prophet was going to be a great thing. It is hard to find any evidence to justify Jeremiah’s accusation if you read Jeremiah 1–3. The same Hebrew verb occurs again in verse 10.
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