Jeremiah 23:33-40

International Children’s Bible

The Sad Message from the Lord

³³ “The people of Judah, a prophet or a priest may ask you: ‘Jeremiah, what is the message from the Lord?’ You will answer them and say, ‘You are a heavy load to the Lord. And I will throw down this heavy load, says the Lord!’ ³⁴ A prophet or a priest or one of the people might say, ‘This is a message from the Lord!’ That person has lied. So I will punish him 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, ‘The message of the Lord.’ This is because the only message you speak is your own words. You used to change the words of our God. He is the living God, the Lord of heaven’s armies. ³⁷ This is how you speak to the prophets: ‘What answer did the Lord give you?’ or ‘What did the Lord say?’ ³⁸ But don’t say, ‘What was the message from the Lord?’ If you use these words, the Lord will say this to you: You should not have called it a message from the Lord. I told you not to use those words. ³⁹ I will pick you up like a heavy load. And I’ll throw you away from me. I gave the city of Jerusalem to your ancestors and to you. But I will throw you and that city away from me. ⁴⁰ And I will make a disgrace of you forever. You will never forget your shame.”