Jeremiah 23:9-24
Legacy Standard Bible
False Prophets Condemned
9 As for the prophets:
My (A)heart is broken within me;
All my bones tremble;
I have become like a drunken man,
Even like a man overcome with wine,
Because of Yahweh
And because of His holy words.
10 For the land is full of (B)adulterers;
For the land (C)mourns because of the curse.
The (D)pastures of the wilderness have dried up.
Their course also is evil,
And their might is not right.
11 “For (E)both prophet and priest are polluted;
Even in My house I have found their evil,” declares Yahweh.
12 “Therefore their way will be like (F)slippery paths to them;
They will be driven away into the (G)thick darkness and fall down in it;
For I will bring their (H)evil upon them,
The year of their [a]punishment,” declares Yahweh.
13 “Moreover, among the prophets of Samaria I saw an (I)offensive thing:
They (J)prophesied by Baal and (K)led My people Israel astray.
14 Also among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen an (L)appalling thing:
The committing of (M)adultery and walking in lying;
And they strengthen the hands of (N)evildoers,
So that no one has turned back from his evil.
All of them have become to Me like (O)Sodom,
And her inhabitants like Gomorrah.
15 Therefore thus says Yahweh of hosts concerning the prophets,
‘Behold, I am going to (P)feed them wormwood
And make them drink [b]poisoned water,
For from the prophets of Jerusalem
Pollution has gone forth into all the land.’”
16 Thus says Yahweh of hosts,
“(Q)Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you.
They are (R)leading you into vanity;
They speak a (S)vision of their own heart,
Not (T)from the mouth of Yahweh.
17 They keep saying to those who (U)spurn Me,
‘Yahweh has said, “(V)You will have peace”’;
And as for everyone who walks in the (W)stubbornness of his own heart,
They say, ‘(X)Evil will not come upon you.’
18 But (Y)who has stood in the council of Yahweh,
That he should see and hear His word?
Who has given (Z)heed to [c]His word and heard?
19 Behold, the (AA)storm of Yahweh has gone forth in wrath,
Even a whirling storm;
It will whirl down on the head of the wicked.
20 The (AB)anger of Yahweh will not turn back
Until He has (AC)done and established the purposes of His heart;
(AD)In the last days you will clearly understand it.
21 (AE)I did not send these prophets,
But they ran.
I did not speak to them,
But they prophesied.
22 But if they had (AF)stood in My council,
Then they would have (AG)caused My words to be heard by My people
And would have turned them back from their evil way
And from the evil of their deeds.
23 “Am I a God who is (AH)near,” declares Yahweh,
“And not a God far off?
24 Can a man (AI)hide himself in hiding places
So I do not see him?” declares Yahweh.
“(AJ)Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares Yahweh.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 23:12 Or visitation
- Jeremiah 23:15 Or gall
- Jeremiah 23:18 Or My
Jeremiah 23:9-24
New Living Translation
Judgment on False Prophets
9 My heart is broken because of the false prophets,
and my bones tremble.
I stagger like a drunkard,
like someone overcome by wine,
because of the holy words
the Lord has spoken against them.
10 For the land is full of adultery,
and it lies under a curse.
The land itself is in mourning—
its wilderness pastures are dried up.
For they all do evil
and abuse what power they have.
11 “Even the priests and prophets
are ungodly, wicked men.
I have seen their despicable acts
right here in my own Temple,”
says the Lord.
12 “Therefore, the paths they take
will become slippery.
They will be chased through the dark,
and there they will fall.
For I will bring disaster upon them
at the time fixed for their punishment.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
13 “I saw that the prophets of Samaria were terribly evil,
for they prophesied in the name of Baal
and led my people of Israel into sin.
14 But now I see that the prophets of Jerusalem are even worse!
They commit adultery and love dishonesty.
They encourage those who are doing evil
so that no one turns away from their sins.
These prophets are as wicked
as the people of Sodom and Gomorrah once were.”
15 Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says concerning the prophets:
“I will feed them with bitterness
and give them poison to drink.
For it is because of Jerusalem’s prophets
that wickedness has filled this land.”
16 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to his people:
“Do not listen to these prophets when they prophesy to you,
filling you with futile hopes.
They are making up everything they say.
They do not speak for the Lord!
17 They keep saying to those who despise my word,
‘Don’t worry! The Lord says you will have peace!’
And to those who stubbornly follow their own desires,
they say, ‘No harm will come your way!’
18 “Have any of these prophets been in the Lord’s presence
to hear what he is really saying?
Has even one of them cared enough to listen?
19 Look! The Lord’s anger bursts out like a storm,
a whirlwind that swirls down on the heads of the wicked.
20 The anger of the Lord will not diminish
until it has finished all he has planned.
In the days to come
you will understand all this very clearly.
21 “I have not sent these prophets,
yet they run around claiming to speak for me.
I have given them no message,
yet they go on prophesying.
22 If they had stood before me and listened to me,
they would have spoken my words,
and they would have turned my people
from their evil ways and deeds.
23 Am I a God who is only close at hand?” says the Lord.
“No, I am far away at the same time.
24 Can anyone hide from me in a secret place?
Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?”
says the Lord.
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
