Jeremiah 20:18

18 Why came I out of the womb, to see labour and sorrow, and that my days should be spent in confusion?

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 Let that man be as the cities which the Lord hath overthrown, and hath not repented: let him hear a cry in the morning, and howling at noontide:

17 Who slew me not from the womb, that my mother might have been my grave, and her womb an everlasting conception.

18 Why came I out of the womb, to see labour and sorrow, and that my days should be spent in confusion?