Jeremiah 20:16

Listen to Jeremiah 20:16
16 Let that man be like 1the cities that the Lord overthrew without pity; 2let him hear a cry in the morning and an alarm at noon,

Jeremiah 20:16 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 20:16

And let that man be as the cities which the Lord overthrew,
&c.] 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 first thing that salutes his ears, let it be the noise of an enemy invading the city he dwells in; and by noon let him hear the shouting of him, having broke in, and gotten the victory, seizing the plunder.

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Jeremiah 20:16 In-Context

14 Cursed be the day on which I was born! The day when my mother bore me, let it not be blessed!
15 Cursed be the man who brought the news to my father, ā€œA son is born to you, ā€ making him very glad.
16 Let that man be like the cities that the Lord overthrew without pity; let him hear a cry in the morning and an alarm at noon,
17 because he did not kill me in the womb; so my mother would have been my grave, and her womb forever great.
18 Why did I come out from the womb to see toil and sorrow, and spend my days in shame?

Cross References 2

  • 1. 20:16 Gen. 19:25; Isa. 13:19
  • 2. 20:16 ch. 18:22
The Holy Bible, English Standard VersionĀ® (ESVĀ®) Ā© 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2025