Jeremiah 23

1 “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” declares the LORD.

Woe to shepherds destroying, And scattering the flock of My pasture, An affirmation of Jehovah.

2 Therefore this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the shepherds who tend My people: “You have scattered My flock and driven them away, and have not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your deeds, declares the LORD.

Therefore, thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, Against the shepherds who feed My people, Ye have scattered My flock, and drive them away, And have not inspected them, Lo, I am charging on you the evil of your doings, An affirmation of Jehovah.

3 Then I Myself will gather the remnant of My flock from all the lands to which I have banished them, and I will return them to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and multiply.

And I do gather the remnant of My flock Out of all the lands whither I drove them, And have brought them back unto their fold, And they have been fruitful, and multiplied.

4 I will raise up shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or dismayed, nor will any go missing, declares the LORD.

And I have raised for them shepherds, And they have fed them, And they fear no more, nor are affrighted, Nor are they lacking — an affirmation of Jehovah.

5 Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and He will reign wisely as King and will administer justice and righteousness in the land.

Lo, days are coming — an affirmation of Jehovah, And I have raised to David a righteous shoot, And a king hath reigned and acted wisely, And done judgment and righteousness in the earth.

6 In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is His name by which He will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.

In his days is Judah saved, and Israel dwelleth confidently, And this his name that Jehovah proclaimeth him, 'Our Righteousness.'

7 So behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when they will no longer say, ‘As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the Israelites up out of the land of Egypt.’

Therefore, lo, days are coming, An affirmation of Jehovah, And they do not say any more, Jehovah liveth who brought up The sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt,

8 Instead they will say, ‘As surely as the LORD lives, who brought and led the descendants of the house of Israel up out of the land of the north and all the other lands to which He had banished them.’ Then they will dwell once more in their own land.”

But — Jehovah liveth, who brought up, And who brought in, the seed of the house of Israel, From the land of the north, And from all the lands whither I drove them, And they have dwelt on their own ground!

9 As for the prophets: My heart is broken within me, and all my bones tremble. I have become like a drunkard, like a man overcome by wine, because of the LORD, because of His holy words.

In reference to the prophets: Broken hath been my heart in my midst, Fluttered have all my bones, I have been as a man — a drunkard, And as a man — wine hath passed over him, Because of Jehovah, and of His holy words.

10 For the land is full of adulterers— because of the curse, the land mourns and the pastures of the wilderness have dried up— their course is evil and their power is misused.

For of adulterers hath the land been full, For because of these hath the land mourned, Dried up hath been the pleasant places of the wilderness, And their course is evil, and their might — not right.

11 “For both prophet and priest are ungodly; even in My house I have found their wickedness,”

For both prophet and priest have been profane, Yea, in My house I found their wickedness, An affirmation of Jehovah.

12 “Therefore their path will become slick; they will be driven away into the darkness and fall into it. For I will bring disaster upon them in the year of their punishment,”

Therefore is their way to them as slippery places, Into thick darkness they are driven, And they have fallen in it, For I bring in against them evil, The year of their inspection, An affirmation of Jehovah.

13 “Among the prophets of Samaria I saw an offensive thing: They prophesied by Baal and led My people Israel astray.

And in prophets of Samaria I have seen folly, They have prophesied by Baal, And cause my people — Israel — to err.

14 And among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing: They commit adultery and walk in lies. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns his back on wickedness. They are all like Sodom to Me; the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”

And in prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing, Committing adultery, and walking falsely, Yea, they strengthened the hands of evil doers, So that they have not turned back Each from his wickedness, They have been to me — all of them — as Sodom, And its inhabitants as Gomorrah.

15 Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts says concerning the prophets: “I will feed them wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink, for from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has spread throughout the land.”

Therefore, thus said Jehovah of Hosts, concerning the prophets: Lo, I am causing them to eat wormwood, And have caused them to drink water of gall, For, from prophets of Jerusalem Hath profanity gone forth to all the land.

16 This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They are filling you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD.

Thus said Jehovah of Hosts: Ye do not hearken unto the words Of the prophets who are prophesying to you, They are making you vain things, A vision of their own heart they speak, Not from the mouth of Jehovah.

17 They keep saying to those who despise Me, ‘The LORD says that you will have peace,’ and to everyone who walks in the stubbornness of his own heart, ‘No harm will come to you.’

Saying diligently to those despising The word of Jehovah: Peace is for you, And [to] every one walking in the stubbornness of his heart they have said: Evil doth not come in unto you.

18 But which of them has stood in the council of the LORD to see and hear His word? Who has given heed to His word and obeyed it?

For who hath stood in the counsel of Jehovah, And seeth and heareth His word? Who hath regarded My word, and hearkeneth?

19 Behold, the storm of the LORD has gone out with fury, a whirlwind swirling down upon the heads of the wicked.

Lo, a whirlwind of Jehovah — Fury hath gone out, even a piercing whirlwind, On the head of the wicked it stayeth.

20 The anger of the LORD will not turn back until He has fully accomplished the purposes of His heart. In the days to come you will understand this clearly.

The anger of Jehovah doth not turn back Till His doing, and till His establishing, The thoughts of His heart, In the latter end of the days ye attend to it With understanding.

21 I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied.

I have not sent the prophets, and they have run, I have not spoken unto them, and they have prophesied.

22 But if they had stood in My council, they would have proclaimed My words to My people and turned them back from their evil ways and deeds.”

But — if they stood in My counsel, Then they cause My people to hear My words, And they turn them back from their evil way, And from the evil of their doings.

23 “Am I only a God nearby,” declares the LORD, “and not a God far away?”

A God near [am] I — an affirmation of Jehovah, And not a God afar off?

24 “Can a man hide in secret places where I cannot see him?” declares the LORD. “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the LORD.

Is any one hidden in secret places, And I see him not? an affirmation of Jehovah, Do not I fill the heavens and the earth? An affirmation of Jehovah.

25 “I have heard the sayings of the prophets who prophesy lies in My name: ‘I had a dream! I had a dream!’

I have heard that which the prophets said, Who prophesy in My name falsehood, saying, 'I have dreamed, I have dreamed.'

26 How long will this continue in the hearts of these prophets who prophesy falsehood, these prophets of the delusion of their own minds?

Till when is it in the heart of the prophets? The prophets of falsehood, Yea, prophets of the deceit of their heart,

27 They suppose the dreams that they tell one another will make My people forget My name, just as their fathers forgot My name through the worship of Baal.

Who are devising to cause My people To forget My name by their dreams, That they recount each to his neighbour, As their fathers forgot my name for Baal.

28 Let the prophet who has a dream retell it, but let him who has My word speak it truthfully. For what is straw compared to grain?” declares the LORD.

The prophet with whom [is] a dream, Let him recount the dream, And he with whom [is] My word, Let him truly speak My word. What — to the straw with the corn? An affirmation of Jehovah.

29 “Is not My word like fire,” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer that smashes a rock?”

Is it not thus? My word [is] as a fire, An affirmation of Jehovah. And as a hammer — it breaketh in pieces a rock.

30 “Therefore behold,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who steal from one another words they attribute to Me.”

Therefore, lo, I [am] against the prophets, An affirmation of Jehovah, Stealing My words each from his neighbour.

31 “Yes,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and proclaim, ‘The LORD declares it.’”

Lo, I [am] against the prophets, An affirmation of Jehovah, Who are making smooth their tongue, And they affirm — an affirmation.

32 “Indeed,” declares the LORD, “I am against those who prophesy false dreams and retell them to lead My people astray with their reckless lies. It was not I who sent them or commanded them, and they are of no benefit at all to these people,” declares the LORD.

Lo, I [am] against the prophets of false dreams, An affirmation of Jehovah, And they recount them, and cause my people to err, By their falsehoods, and by their instability, And I — I have not sent them, Nor have I commanded them, And they are not at all profitable to this people, An affirmation of Jehovah.

33 “Now when this people or a prophet or priest asks you, ‘What is the burden of the LORD?’ you are to say to them, ‘What burden? I will forsake you, declares the LORD.’

And when this people, or the prophet, Or a priest, doth ask thee, saying, What [is] the burden of Jehovah? Then thou hast said unto them: Ye [are] the burden, and I have left you, An affirmation of Jehovah.

34 As for the prophet or priest or anyone who claims, ‘This is the burden of the LORD,’ I will punish that man and his household.

And the prophet, and the priest, and the people, That saith, The burden of Jehovah, I have seen after that man, and after his house.

35 This is what each man is to say to his friend and to his brother: ‘What has the LORD answered?’ or ‘What has the LORD spoken?’

Thus do ye say each unto his neighbour, And each unto his brother: What hath Jehovah answered? And what hath Jehovah spoken?

36 But refer no more to the burden of the LORD, for each man’s word becomes the burden, so that you pervert the words of the living God, the LORD of Hosts, our God.

And the burden of Jehovah ye do not mention any more, For the burden to each is — His word, And ye have overturned the words of the living God, Jehovah of Hosts, our God.

37 Thus you are to say to the prophet: ‘What has the LORD answered you?’ and ‘What has the LORD spoken?’

Thus dost thou say unto the prophet What hath Jehovah answered thee? And what hath Jehovah spoken?

38 But if you claim, ‘This is the burden of the LORD,’ then this is what the LORD says: Because you have said, ‘This is the burden of the LORD,’ and I specifically told you not to make this claim,

And if the burden of Jehovah ye say, Therefore thus said Jehovah: Because of your saying this word, The burden of Jehovah, And I do send unto you, saying, Ye do not say, The burden of Jehovah.

39 therefore I will surely forget you and will cast you out of My presence, both you and the city that I gave to you and your fathers.

Therefore, lo, I — I have taken you utterly away, And I have sent you out, And the city that I gave to you, And to your fathers, from before My face,

40 And I will bring upon you everlasting shame and perpetual humiliation that will never be forgotten.”

And I have put on you reproach age-during, And shame age-during that is not forgotten!