Jeremiah 20:18

18 Why did I come from my mother's body to see pain and sorrow, so that my days might be wasted with shame?

Jeremiah 20:18 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 20:18

Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see labour and
sorrow
"Labour" in performing his work and office as a prophet; and "sorrow" in suffering reproach, contempt, and persecution for it; which to avoid, he wishes he had never been born: a sign of a very fretful and impatient spirit, and of a carnal frame. Jarchi thinks this refers to the destruction of the temple; that my days should be consumed with shame?
through the bad usage of him, the reproach that was cast upon him, and the contempt he was had in for prophesying in the name of the Lord. All this shows that there is sin in the best of men, and what they are when left to themselves; how weak, foolish, and sinful they appear. And Jeremiah recording these his sins and failings, is an argument of the uprightness and sincerity of the man, and of the truth of Scripture.

Jeremiah 20:18 In-Context

16 May that man be like the towns overturned by the Lord without mercy: let a cry for help come to his ears in the morning, and the sound of war in the middle of the day;

17 Because he did not put me to death before my birth took place: so my mother's body would have been my last resting-place, and she would have been with child for ever.

18 Why did I come from my mother's body to see pain and sorrow, so that my days might be wasted with shame?