Jeremiah 20:12

12 But, Almighty Lord, you test people justly; you know what is in their hearts and minds. So let me see you take revenge on my enemies, for I have placed my cause in your hands.

Jeremiah 20:12 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 20:12

But, O Lord, that triest the righteous, and seest the reins
and the heart
That tries the cause of the righteous, and vindicates them, rights their wrongs, and does them justice; being the omniscient God, the seer and searcher of the hearts and reins; who knows the uprightness of their hearts, as well as their ways, and the sincerity of their affections: or that tries the faith and patience of the righteous, their constancy and integrity; and upon trial finds that their affections are real, and their souls sincere; let me see thy vengeance on them;
his enemies and persecutors; he does not seek vengeance himself, but desires it of the Lord; he does not ask to see his vengeance, but the Lord's vengeance on them, what he thought was just and proper to inflict on them; he knew that vengeance belonged to the Lord, and therefore left it with him, and prayed for it from him. The Targum is,

``let me see the vengeance of thy judgments on them;''
for unto thee have I opened my cause;
or "revealed", or "made it manifest" F11; this he did in prayer, at this time, when he laid before the Lord his whole case, and appealed and applied to him for justice, who judgeth righteous persons, and judgeth righteously.
FOOTNOTES:

F11 (ybyr ta ytylg) "revelavi causam meam", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. So Schmidt.

Jeremiah 20:12 In-Context

10 I hear everybody whispering, "Terror is everywhere! So let's report him to the authorities!" Even my close friends wait for my downfall. "Perhaps he can be tricked," they say; "then we can catch him and get revenge."
11 But you, Lord, are on my side, strong and mighty, and those who persecute me will fail. They will be disgraced forever, because they cannot succeed. Their disgrace will never be forgotten.
12 But, Almighty Lord, you test people justly; you know what is in their hearts and minds. So let me see you take revenge on my enemies, for I have placed my cause in your hands.
13 Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord! He rescues the oppressed from the power of evil people.
14 Curse the day I was born! Forget the day my mother gave me birth!
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.