Jeremiah 23

Chapter 23

The Righteous Descendant

1 “What sorrow awaits the leaders of my people—the shepherds of my sheep—for they have destroyed and scattered the very ones they were expected to care for,” says the LORD.
2 Therefore, this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says to these shepherds: “Instead of caring for my flock and leading them to safety, you have deserted them and driven them to destruction. Now I will pour out judgment on you for the evil you have done to them.3 But I will gather together the remnant of my flock from the countries where I have driven them. I will bring them back to their own sheepfold, and they will be fruitful and increase in number.

4 Then I will appoint responsible shepherds who will care for them, and they will never be afraid again. Not a single one will be lost or missing. I, the LORD, have spoken!
5 “For the time is coming,”
says the LORD,
“when I will raise up a righteous descendantt
from King David’s line.
He will be a King who rules with wisdom.
He will do what is just and right throughout the land.6 And this will be his name:
‘The LORD Is Our Righteousness.’t
In that day Judah will be saved,
and Israel will live in safety.7 “In that day,” says the LORD, “when people are taking an oath, they will no longer say, ‘As surely as the LORD lives, who rescued the people of Israel from the land of Egypt.’

8 Instead, they will say, ‘As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the people of Israel back to their own land from the land of the north and from all the countries to which he had exiled them.’ Then they will live in their own land.”

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.25 “I have heard these prophets say, ‘Listen to the dream I had from God last night.’ And then they proceed to tell lies in my name.26 How long will this go on? If they are prophets, they are prophets of deceit, inventing everything they say.

27 By telling these false dreams, they are trying to get my people to forget me, just as their ancestors did by worshiping the idols of Baal.
28 “Let these false prophets tell their dreams,
but let my true messengers faithfully proclaim my every word.
There is a difference between straw and grain!29 Does not my word burn like fire?”
says the LORD.
“Is it not like a mighty hammer
that smashes a rock to pieces?30 “Therefore,” says the LORD, “I am against these prophets who steal messages from each other and claim they are from me.31 I am against these smooth-tongued prophets who say, ‘This prophecy is from the LORD!’

32 I am against these false prophets. Their imaginary dreams are flagrant lies that lead my people into sin. I did not send or appoint them, and they have no message at all for my people. I, the LORD, have spoken!

False Prophecies and False Prophets

33 “Suppose one of the people or one of the prophets or priests asks you, ‘What prophecy has the LORD burdened you with now?’ You must reply, ‘You are the burden!t The LORD says he will abandon you!’
34 “If any prophet, priest, or anyone else says, ‘I have a prophecy from the LORD,’ I will punish that person along with his entire family.35 You should keep asking each other, ‘What is the LORD’s answer?’ or ‘What is the LORD saying?’

36 But stop using this phrase, ‘prophecy from the LORD.’ For people are using it to give authority to their own ideas, turning upside down the words of our God, the living God, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
37 “This is what you should say to the prophets: ‘What is the LORD’s answer?’ or ‘What is the LORD saying?’38 But suppose they respond, ‘This is a prophecy from the LORD!’ Then you should say, ‘This is what the LORD says: Because you have used this phrase, “prophecy from the LORD,” even though I warned you not to use it,39 I will forget you completely.t I will expel you from my presence, along with this city that I gave to you and your ancestors.

40 And I will make you an object of ridicule, and your name will be infamous throughout the ages.’”

JEREMIAH 23

A Message of Hope

The [Lord] said:

1  t You leaders of my people are like shepherds that kill and scatter the sheep.

2 You were supposed to take care of my people, but instead you chased them away. So now I'll punish you severely and make you pay for your crimes!
3 I will bring the rest of my people home from the lands where I have scattered them, and they will grow into a mighty nation.

4 I promise to choose leaders who will care for them like real shepherds. All of my people will be there, and they will never again be frightened.

5  t Someday I will appoint
an honest king
from the family of David,
a king who will be wise
and rule with justice.

6 As long as he is king,
Israel will have peace,
and Judah will be safe.
The name of this king will be
“The [Lord] Gives Justice.”
7 A time will come when you will again worship me. But you will no longer call me the Living God who rescued Israel from Egypt.

8 Instead, you will call me the Living God who rescued you from the land in the north and from all the other countries where I had forced you to go. And you will once again live in your own land.

Jeremiah Thinks about //Unfaithful Prophets

9 When I think of the prophets,
I am shocked, and I tremblet
like someone drunk,
because of the [Lord]
and his sacred words.

10 Those unfaithful prophets
misuse their power
all over the country.
So God turned the pasturelands
into scorching deserts.t

The [Lord] Will Punish //Unfaithful Prophets

11 The [Lord] told me to say:
You prophets and priests
think so little of me, the [Lord],
that you even sin
in my own temple!

12 Now I will punish you
with disaster,
and you will slip and fall
in the darkness.
I, the [Lord], have spoken.

13 The prophets in Samaria
were repulsive to me,
because they preached
in the name of Baal
and led my people astray.

14  t And you prophets in Jerusalem
are even worse.
You're unfaithful in marriaget
and never tell the truth.t
You even lead others to sin
instead of helping them
turn back to me.
You and the people of Jerusalem
are evil like Sodom
and Gomorrah.t

15 You prophets in Jerusalem
have spread evil everywhere.
That's why I, the [Lord], promise
to give you bitter poison
to eat and drink.

The [Lord] Gives a Warning

The [Lord] said:

16 Don't listen to the lies
of these false prophets,
you people of Judah!
The message they preach
is something they imagined;
it did not come from me,
the [Lord] All-Powerful.

17 These prophets go to people
who refuse to respect me
and who are stubborn
and do whatever they please.
The prophets tell them,
“The [Lord] has promised
everything will be fine.”

18 But I, the [Lord], tell you
that these prophets
have never attended a meeting
of my council in heavent
or heard me speak.

19 They are evil! So in my anger
I will strike them
like a violent storm.

20 I won't calm down,
until I have finished
what I have decided to do.
Someday you will understand
exactly what I mean.

21 I did not send these prophets
or speak to them,
but they ran to find you
and to preach their message.

22 If they had been in a meeting
of my council in heaven,
they would have told
you people of Judah
to give up your sins
and come back to me.

23 I am everywhere—
both near and far,

24  t in heaven and on earth.
There are no secret places
where you can hide from me.
25 These unfaithful prophets claim that I have given them a dream or a vision, and then they tell lies in my name. 26 But everything they say comes from their own twisted minds. How long can this go on? 27 They tell each other their dreams and try to get my people to reject me, just as their ancestors left me and worshiped Baal. 28 Their dreams and my truth are as different as straw and wheat. But when prophets speak for me, they must say only what I have told them.

29 My words are a powerful fire; they are a hammer that shatters rocks.

30-32 These unfaithful prophets claim I give them their dreams, but it isn't true. I didn't choose them to be my prophets, and yet they babble on and on, speaking in my name, while stealing words from each other. And when my people hear these liars, they are led astray instead of being helped. So I warn you that I am now the enemy of these prophets. I, the [Lord], have spoken.

News and Nuisance

The [Lord] said to me:

33 Jeremiah, when a prophet or a priest or anyone else comes to you and asks, “Does the [Lord] have news for us?” tell them, “You people are a nuisancet to the [Lord], and het will get rid of you.”
34 If any of you say, “Here is news from the [Lord],” I will punish you and your families, even if you are a prophet or a priest. 35 Instead, you must ask your friends and relatives, “What answer did the [Lord] give?” or “What has the [Lord] said?”

36 It seems that you each have your own news! So if you say, “Here is news from the [Lord],” you are twisting my words into a lie. Remember that I am your God, the [Lord] All-Powerful.
37 If you go to a prophet, it's all right to ask, “What answer did the [Lord] give to my question?” or “What has the [Lord] said?” 38 But if you disobey me and say, “Here is news from the [Lord],” 39 I will pick you upt and throw you far away. And I will abandon this city of Jerusalem that I gave to your ancestors. 40 You will never be free from your shame and disgrace.