Jeremiah 23:5-40

5“Behold, the 1days are coming,” declares the Lord, “When I will raise up for David a righteous 23Branch; And He will 4reign as king and 5act wisely And 6do justice and righteousness in the land.6In His days Judah will be saved, And 7Israel will live securely; And this is His 8name by which He will be called, ‘The 9Lord Our Righteousness.’

7“10Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when they will no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought the sons of Israel up from the land of Egypt,’ 811but, ‘As the Lord lives, who 12brought up and led the descendants of the household of Israel back from the north land and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ Then they will live on their own soil.”

9As for the prophets: My 13heart is broken within me, All my bones tremble; I have become like a drunken man, And like a man overcome by wine, Because of the Lord And because of His holy words.10For the land is full of 14adulterers; For the land 15mourns because of the curse. The 16pastures of the wilderness have dried up. Their course is evil And their might is not right.11“For 17both prophet and priest are defiled; Even in My house I have found their wickedness,” declares the Lord.12“Therefore their way will be like 18slippery paths to them, They will be driven away into the 19gloom and fall down in it; For I will bring 20disaster upon them, The year of their punishment,” declares the Lord.

13“Moreover, among the prophets of Samaria I saw an 21offensive thing: They 22prophesied by Baal and 23led My people Israel astray.14Also among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a 24horrible thing: The committing of 25adultery and walking in deceit; And they strengthen the hands of 26evildoers, So that no one has turned back from his wickedness. All of them have become to Me like 27Sodom, And her inhabitants like Gomorrah. 15Therefore this is what the Lord of armies says concerning the prophets: ‘Behold, I am going to 28feed them wormwood And make them drink poisonous water, For from the prophets of Jerusalem Ungodliness has spread into all the land.’”

16This is what the Lord of armies says: “29Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you. They are 30leading you into futility; They tell a 31vision of their own 32imagination, Not 33from the mouth of the Lord.17They keep saying to those who 34despise Me, ‘The Lord has said, “35You will have peace”’; And as for everyone who walks in the 36stubbornness of his own heart, They say, ‘37Disaster will not come on you.’18But 38who has stood in the council of the Lord, That he should see and hear His word? Who has paid 39attention to 40His word and listened?19Behold, the 41storm of the Lord has gone forth in wrath, Even a whirling tempest; It will swirl down on the head of the wicked.20The 42anger of the Lord will not turn back Until He has 43performed and carried out the purposes of His heart; 44In the last days you will clearly understand it.2145I did not send these prophets, But they ran. I did not speak to them, But they prophesied.22But if they had 46stood in My council, Then they would have 47announced My words to 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 48near,” declares the Lord, “And not a God far off?24Can a person 49hide himself in hiding places So that I do not see him?” declares the Lord. “50Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the Lord.

25“I have 51heard what the prophets have said who 52prophesy falsely in My name, saying, ‘I had a 53dream, I had a dream!’ 26How long? Is there anything in the hearts of the prophets who prophesy falsehood, these prophets of the 54deceitfulness of their own heart, 27who intend to 55make My people forget My name by their dreams which they report to one another, just as their fathers 56forgot My name because of Baal? 28The prophet who has a dream may report his dream, but let him who has 57My word speak My word truthfully. 58What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the Lord. 29“Is My word not like 59fire?” declares the Lord, “and like a 60hammer which shatters a rock? 30Therefore behold, 61I am against the prophets,” declares the Lord, “who steal My words from each other. 31Behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the Lord, “who 62use their tongues and declare, ‘The Lord declares!’ 32Behold, I am against those who have prophesied 63false dreams,” declares the Lord, “and reported them and led My people astray by their lies and 64reckless boasting; yet 65I did not send them nor command them, nor do they 66provide this people the slightest benefit,” declares the Lord.

33“Now when this people or the prophet or a priest asks you, saying, ‘What is the 6768pronouncement of the Lord?’ then you shall say to them, ‘What 69pronouncement?’ The Lord declares, ‘I will 70abandon you.’ 34Then as for the prophet or the priest or the people who say, ‘The 71pronouncement of the Lord,’ I will bring punishment upon that person and his household. 35This is what each one of you will say to his neighbor and to his brother: ‘72What has the Lord answered?’ or, ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 36For you will no longer remember the pronouncement of the Lord, because every person’s own word will become the pronouncement, and you have 73perverted the words of the 74living God, the Lord of armies, our God. 37This is what you will say to that prophet: ‘What has the Lord answered you?’ and, ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 38And if you say, ‘The pronouncement of the Lord!’ for that reason the Lord says this: ‘Because you said this word, “The pronouncement of the Lord!” I have also sent word to you, saying, “You shall not say, ‘The pronouncement of the Lord!’”’ 39Therefore behold, 75I will certainly forget you and thrust you away from My presence, along with the city which I gave you and your fathers. 40I will put an everlasting 76disgrace on you and an everlasting humiliation which will not be forgotten.”