The Evil Leaders of Judah

23 “·How terrible it will be for [Woe to] ·those [^Lthe shepherds; ^Cthe leaders of Judah] who are scattering and destroying ·my people [^Lthe sheep of my pasture],” says the Lord.

² They are ·responsible for the people [^Lthe shepherds who shepherd my people; Num. 27:7; Ps. 78:70–72; Ezek. 34], so the Lord, the God of Israel, says to them: “You have scattered my ·people [flock] and forced them away and not taken care of them. So I will ·punish [take care of] you for the evil things you have done,” says the Lord. ³ “But I will gather ·those who are left alive [^Lthe remnant of my flock] from all the lands where I have driven them and bring them back to their own ·country [flock]. Then they will ·have many children and grow in number [be fruitful and multiply]. ⁴ I will ·place [raise up] ·new leaders over my people, who will take care of them [^Lshepherds who will shepherd them]. And my people will not be afraid or terrified again, and none of them will be lost,” says the Lord.

The Good Branch Will Come

⁷ “So the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when people will not say again: ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought Israel out of Egypt….’ ⁸ But people will say something new: ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the ·descendants of Israel [^Lseed of the house of Israel] from the land of the north [^CBabylon] and from all the countries where he had ·sent [driven] them away….’ Then the people of Israel will live in their own land [16:14–15].”

False Prophets Will Be Punished

⁹ A message to the prophets:

¹⁵ So this is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts] says about the prophets:

¹⁶ This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts] says:

²⁵ “I have heard the prophets who prophesy lies in my name. They say, ‘I have had a dream! I have had a dream!’ ²⁶ How long will this continue in the ·minds [^Lhearts] of these lying prophets? They prophesy from their own ·wishful thinking [^Ldeceitful hearts]. ²⁷ They are trying to make the people of Judah forget ·me [^Lmy name] by telling each other these dreams. In the same way, their ·ancestors [fathers] forgot ·me [^Lmy name] ·and worshiped [^Lfor] Baal. ²⁸ ·Is straw the same thing as [^LWhat has straw in common with] wheat?” says the Lord. “If a prophet wants to tell about his dreams, let him! But let the person who hears my message speak it truthfully! ²⁹ Isn’t my message like a fire?” says the Lord. “Isn’t it like a hammer that smashes a rock?

³⁰ “So I am against the prophets [^Cfalse prophets],” says the Lord. “They keep stealing words from each other [^Cand say they are from God]. ³¹ I am against the prophets [^Cfalse prophets],” says the Lord. “They use their own ·words [^Ltongues] and ·pretend it is a message from me [^Lsay, ‘Says the Lord’]. ³² I am against the prophets who prophesy false dreams,” says the Lord. “They mislead my people with their lies and ·false teachings [recklessness]! I did not send them or command them to do anything for me. They can’t help the people of Judah at all,” says the Lord.

The Sad Message from the Lord

³³ “Suppose this people [^Cof Judah], a prophet, or a priest asks you [^CJeremiah]: ‘What is the ·message [oracle; burden] from the Lord?’ You will answer them and say, ‘You are a heavy ·load [burden] to the Lord, and I will throw you down, says the Lord.’ ³⁴ A prophet or a priest or one of the people might say, ‘This is a ·message [oracle; burden] from the Lord.’ I will punish him [^Cfor lying that he has a message from God] and his whole family. ³⁵ This is what you will say to each other: ‘What did the Lord answer?’ or ‘What did the Lord say?’ ³⁶ But you will never again ·say [mention; remember], ‘The ·message [oracle; burden] of the Lord,’ because the only ·message [oracle; burden] you speak is your own words. You have ·changed [overturned; perverted] the words of our God, the living God, the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts]. ³⁷ This is how you should speak to the prophets: ‘What answer did the Lord give you?’ or ‘What did the Lord say?’ ³⁸ But don’t say, ‘The ·message [oracle; burden] from the Lord.’ If you use these words, this is what the Lord says: Because you called it a ‘·message [oracle; burden] from the Lord,’ though I told you not to use those words, ³⁹ I will pick you up and ·throw [cast] you away from me, along with the city [^CJerusalem], which I gave to your ·ancestors [fathers] and to you. ⁴⁰ And I will ·make a disgrace of [give shame to] you forever; your shame will never be forgotten.”