Table of Contents
Jeremiah 20
Jeremiah 20
1 Now Pashur the son of Immer the priest, who was also chief governor in the house of the Lord, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things.
2 Then Pashur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the high gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the Lord.
3 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Pashur brought forth Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then said Jeremiah unto him, The Lord hath not called thy name Pashur, but Magormissabib.
4 For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will make thee a terror to thyself, and to all thy friends: and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it: and I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive into Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword.
5 Moreover I will deliver all the strength of this city, and all the labours thereof, and all the precious things thereof, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah will I give into the hand of their enemies, which shall spoil them, and take them, and carry them to Babylon.
6 And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thine house shall go into captivity: and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies.
7 O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived; thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me.
8 For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the Lord was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily.
9 Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.
10 For I heard the defaming of many, fear on every side. Report, say they, and we will report it. All my familiars watched for my halting, saying, Peradventure he will be enticed, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge on him.
11 But the Lord is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten.
12 But, O Lord of hosts, that triest the righteous, and seest the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them: for unto thee have I opened my cause.
13 Sing unto the Lord, praise ye the Lord: for he hath delivered the soul of the poor from the hand of evildoers.
14 Cursed be the day wherein I was born: let not the day wherein my mother bare me be blessed.
15 Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, saying, A man child is born unto thee; making him very glad.
16 And let that man be as the cities which the Lord overthrew, and repented not: and let him hear the cry in the morning, and the shouting at noontide;
17 Because he slew me not from the womb; or that my mother might have been my grave, and her womb to be always great with me.
18 Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see labour and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame?
Notes
Cross Reference
Commentary
Rashi
Verse 2
<html><b>and placed him in the prison</b> the name of a place of a prison, and Jonathan rendered: לכיפתא (arvolud in O.F.), a vault.</html>
Verse 3
<html><b>Magor</b> Terror. <b>Not Passhur did the Lord call your name, etc.</b> Your name was not called Pashhur except for this matter, that is to say: פָֹשַח ֹשָחוֹר, cut off and black like “a tree that was cut off (נִפְֹשַח)” (Shevi’ith 4:6, Orlah 1:5). Also (Lam. 3:11), “And He cut me off (וַיִפַֹשְחֵנִי).” And so he said to him, Not Pashhur did He call your name, for the expression of Pashhur means a great man and the son of nobles, Pashhur. ‘Pash’ denotes expansion and ‘hur’ nobility. But for this reason your name was called Pashhur, Pashah shahor. ‘Pashah’ means ‘cut off,’ and ‘shahor’ means ‘black.’ Another explanation. ‘Pashah sehor.’ Many will be around you to slay you. Now according to this explanation, מָגוֹר is an expression of gathering, like (Ezekiel 21:17) “Gathered (מְגוּרֵי) to the sword.”</html>
Verse 5
<html><b>the wealth</b> money.</html>
Verse 7
<html><b>You enticed me</b> to go on your mission. <b>You overcame me</b> You made Your strong hand heavy upon me to go against my will. <b>and You prevailed</b> And You were victorious. <b>everyone</b> All the people mock me.</html>
Verse 8
<html><b>Whenever I speak</b> Every time I speak to them, I must cry out and raise my voice, and I do not proclaim good for them but prophecies of violence and spoil. <b>for the word of the Lord has been…for me</b> Therefore, they spoke to me with scorn, for they scorn me. <b>and mockery</b> for speech. Comp. (Ezekiel 22:4) “and mockery (וְקַלָּסָה).”</html>
Verse 9
<html><b>Should I say: I will not mention Him</b> If my heart said to me not to go on Your mission anymore. <b>it would be in my heart</b> i.e., the prophecy, <b>like a burning fire</b> And against my will I must go. <b>confined in my bones</b> And as if the fire were confined in my bones. <b>to contain</b> To endure the fire.</html>
Verse 10
<html><b>For I heard</b> I said that I would not mention Him because I heard the speech of many, those who whisper about me. <b>a gathering</b> an expression of gathering, and so did Jonathan render it. <b>tell</b> false testimony against him. <b>and let us tell about him</b> and let us testify against him. And Menahem (Machbereth p. 53) explained ונגידֶנוּ like (Deut. 14:1) “You shall not cut yourselves (לא תתגודדוּ).” He also joined (Job 17:5) “For the sake of flattering, he destroys (יגיד) his friends.” This is an expression of destruction. Comp. (Dan. 4:11) “Cut down (גֹדוּ) the trees.” But Dunash (Teshuvoth p. 54) interpreted it as an actual expression of telling, and this is its interpretation: “Tell false things about him and we will tell about him to the king.” And we have like נַגִידֶנוּ, we will tell about him, many words in the Scriptures that cannot be interpreted unless they are divided into two words or three. Comp. (Gen. 37: 4) “And they could not speak with him (דַבְּרוֹ) peacefully.” Also (supra 10:20), “My children have left me (יצאני).” <b>await my destruction</b> Heb. צַלְעֵי <b>Perhaps he will be enticed.</b> to listen to us and to stray after us. and we will prevail against him to bring him to commit idolatry.</html>
Verse 11
<html><b>for they did not succeed</b> They did not succeed with their plan.</html>
Verse 14
<html><b>Cursed be the day in which I was begotten</b> (engendrer or engenrer in O.F.). That is the time of conception, and through compulsion Hilkiah his father performed the marriage act by day, for he was fleeing from before Manasseh, who was slaying the prophets, and he performed the marriage act and fled.</html>
Verse 15
<html><b>making him glad</b> The ‘mem’ is punctuated with a ‘dagesh,’ which is an expression of making others glad, for he made his father glad with his news.</html>
Verse 16
<html><b>like the cities that…overturned</b> Namely Sodom and Gemorrah. <b>and did not repent</b> Since He decreed destruction upon them, he did not think another thought to rescind His decree.</html>
Verse 17
<html><b>That he did not put me to death</b> I.e., that the angel of death did not put me to death from the womb, and this is one of the verses with brief language. <b>a perpetual pregnancy</b> a pregnancy of eternity.</html>
Verse 18
<html><b>toil and grief</b> The destruction of the Temple.</html>