Why did I ever come out of the womb

    to see trouble and sorrow
    and to end my days in shame? Jeremiah 20:18

            We see some people in the Bible (Jeremiah, Job) wish they weren’t born because of the extreme pain they dealt with in their lives.  It’s a response we can understand as one feels crushed on all sides and wishes for relief, grasping for possibilities.  Not being born would be the first possible answer to that request.

            The wish is okay if it’s an emotional outburst.  The person knows the wish cannot be granted because he’s alive at the moment.   It’s really just a way of saying “If only things were different…”

            Crying out for the end of one’s life comes from a different, more frightening, place and should be handled more seriously. 

Jeremiah in this chapter despises the sorrow he has to deal with, but also praised God and knew that God was his mighty warrior.  Sorrow and praise, hope and hopelessness are mixed in this passage, showing his emotional turmoil, grasping for answers as he cries out loud.