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Ordinary Time · Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time · Year A

Jeremiah 20:7-9

Jeremiah's Complaint; A Burning Fire

August 30, 2026

God Addressing Jeremiah, the opening initial of Jeremiah, Winchester Bible
God Addressing Jeremiah, the opening initial of Jeremiah, Winchester Bible, c. 1160–1175Winchester Cathedral Library
From the largest surviving twelfth-century English Bible, written by one scribe and illuminated by at least six artists over decades. It was never finished.O Lord, you have enticed me, and I was enticed … within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones … But the Lord is with me like a dread warrior.Winchester BibleNot a painter but a book: the largest twelfth-century English Bible, written out by a single scribe and illuminated by several artists over decades, and never finished.Winchester Cathedral LibraryOne of the oldest book rooms in England, holding the Winchester Bible, which has never left the cathedral.Winchester Cathedral Library
Roman Lectionary
GospelMatt. 16:21-27Mt 16:21-27
Second ReadingRom. 12:1-2Rom 12:1-2
First ReadingJer. 20:7-9Jer 20:7-9
Responsorial PsalmPs. 63:2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9 (2b)Ps 63:2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9 (2b)

Overview & Insights

"If I say, 'I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,' then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot." (Jeremiah 20:9)

Jeremiah laments the mockery and persecution his prophetic calling brings, feeling deceived and overpowered by God. Yet God's word burns within him so that he cannot keep silent, and he trusts that the Lord will deliver him from his persecutors.

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Commentary

Jeremiah 20: The Prophet's ComplaintJer 20: The Prophet's Complaint Enduring Word · David Guzik

David Guzik's verse by verse evangelical commentary on the whole chapter.

Jeremiah 20 CommentaryJer 20 Commentary Precept Austin

A deep gathering of quotations, word studies, and cross references worked verse by verse.

Jeremiah 20:7 CommentariesJer 20:7 Commentaries BibleHub

Aggregates classic commentaries on the fire in the prophet's bones in one place.

Barnes' Notes on Jeremiah 20Barnes' Notes on Jer 20 StudyLight

Albert Barnes' notes on the whole chapter of Jeremiah 20.

Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A): Readings Agape Bible Study

A Catholic reading study that ties Jeremiah's burning word to the cost of following Christ.

Background & Word Study

Jeremiah 20 in HebrewJer 20 in Hebrew Sefaria

The Hebrew text with English alongside and classical Jewish commentaries.

Jeremiah 20:7 Hebrew InterlinearJer 20:7 Hebrew Interlinear BibleHub

Hebrew word by word with parsing and Strong's numbers for the prophet's complaint.

The Church Fathers

Catena on Jeremiah 20Catena on Jer 20 Catena

Patristic comments gathered verse by verse on the fire shut up in the prophet's bones.

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