Jeremiah 20:16 NKJV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

What is the meaning of this? Does there proceed out of the same mouth blessing and cursing? Could he that said so cheerfully (Jer. 20:13), Sing unto the Lord, praise you the Lord, say so passionately (Jer. 20:14), Cursed be the day wherein I was born? How shall we reconcile these? What we have in these verses the prophet records, I suppose, to his own shame, as he had recorded that in the foregoing verses to God's glory. It seems to be a relation of the ferment he had been in while he was in... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 20:16

And let that man be as the cities which the Lord overthrew ,.... In his fury, as the Targum and Septuagint add. Meaning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, who were utterly destroyed, and were never recovered: and repented not ; whose sentence God never repented of, nor revoked: this was very severe and uncharitable, to wish for so sore a destruction upon an innocent person; and let him hear the cry in the morning, and the shouting at noontide ; as soon as he is up in the morning, the... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 20:16

And let him hear the cry - Let him be in continual alarms. read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 20:16

Verse 16 And he adds, Who with joy made him joyful We see, as it is commonly said, how he mingles heaven and earth; for had it been in his power, when this frenzy possessed his mind, he would have certainly disturbed all the elements. But more grievous and more inordinate is what follows, Let that man be like the cities which God destroyed without repentance Why did he imprecate on an innocent man the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah? and then he speaks not of temporal punishment, but devotes... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:7-18

The sorrow and joy of God's servant. There are many such photographs of the inner heart-life of God's people. It is the touch of nature which brings them near to us. The words and work of Jeremiah become more living and influential when we witness his spiritual struggles. I. THE SPIRITUAL NECESSITY OF HIS POSITION IS ALTERNATELY COMPLAINED OF AND ACQUIESCED IN . The saint cannot always continue amidst his highest experiences. There are ups and downs, not only... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

Jeremiah curses the day of his birth. The passage is a further development of the complaint in Jeremiah 15:10 , and stands in no connection with the consolatory close of the preceding passage. There is a very striking parallel in Job 3:3-12 , and the question cannot be evaded, Which is the original? It is difficult to believe that Jeremiah copied from an earlier poem. Deep emotion expresses itself in language suggested by the moment; and, even after retouching his discourses, Jeremiah... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

Jeremiah cursing the day of his birth. I. TROUBLE MAY LEAD A GOOD MAN TO THE VERGE OF DESPAIR . Jeremiah was a prophet, a good man, a man of faith, a man of prayer. Yet he cursed the day of his birth. Jeremiah was not without precedents for his conduct. Not to mention Jonah, whose character is by no means exemplary, the patient Job and the courageous Elijah had both regarded existence as a curse, and cried passionately for death. Jeremiah had great provocations to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

Is life worth living? Here is one who evidently thought it was not. How bitterly he grieves over the fact that he was ever brought into existence! It is an illustration, as has been pointed out, of the maddening force of suffering.. It drives a man to the use of wild language. For great sufferings generate great passions in the soul. They rouse the whole man into action. And these great passions thus roused often become irrepressible. Many men of no ordinary meekness and self-control are... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

The prophet cursing the day of his birth. It is very perplexing to find these words following so closely upon the confidences expressed in Jeremiah 20:11-13 . And yet the perplexity is to some extent removed when we recollect how largely man is the creature of his moods. That he is bright and confident today may not hinder him from being in the depths of despair tomorrow. It is well for us to see how low a real and faithful prophet of God can sink. One is reminded at once of the similar... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:16

As the cities which the Lord overthrow . It is, so to speak, the "technical term" for the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah which Jeremiah employs. So deeply imprinted was the tradition on the Hebrew mind, that a special word was appropriated to it, which at once called up thoughts of the awful justice of God (see Genesis 19:25 ; Isaiah 1:7 (?); Isaiah 13:19 ; Amos 4:11 ; Deuteronomy 29:23 (22) ; Jeremiah 49:18 ; Jeremiah 50:40 ). The cry … the shouting. The cry of the... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 20:16

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 20:16

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 20:16

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:7-18

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:14-18

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 20:16

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