Jeremiah 23

1 Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! says the LORD.

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

2 Therefore thus says the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; All of you have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, says 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 And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.

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 And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, says 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 come, says the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.

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 shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall 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 Therefore, behold, the days come, says the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD lives, which brought up the children of Israel 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 But, The LORD lives, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries where I had driven them; and they shall dwell 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 Mine heart within me is broken because of the prophets; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine has overcome, because of the LORD, and because of the words of his holiness.

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; for because of swearing the land mourns; the pleasant places of the wilderness are dried up, and their course is evil, and their force is not right.

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 profane; yea, in my house have I found their wickedness, says the LORD.

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

12 Wherefore their way shall be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness: they shall be driven on, and fall therein: for I will bring evil upon them, even the year of their visitation, says the LORD.

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 And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to go astray.

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

14 I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none does return from his wickedness; they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as 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 thus says the LORD of hosts concerning the prophets; Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall: for from the prophets of Jerusalem is profaneness gone forth into all 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 Thus says the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of 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 say still unto them that despise me, The LORD has said, All of you shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walks after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon 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 For who has stood in the counsel of the LORD, and has perceived and heard his word? who has marked his word, and heard 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, a whirlwind of the LORD is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head 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 shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days all of you shall consider it perfectly.

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 have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they 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 counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.

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 a God at hand, says the LORD, and not a God far off?

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

24 Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? says the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? says 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 what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed.

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

26 How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart;

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

27 Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as their fathers have forgotten my name for 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 The prophet that has a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that has my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? says 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 a fire? says the LORD; and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?

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, I am against the prophets, says the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour.

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

31 Behold, I am against the prophets, says the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He says.

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

32 Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, says the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to go astray by their lies, and by their levity; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, says 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 And when this people, or the prophet, or a priest, shall ask you, saying, What is the burden of the LORD? you shall then say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, says 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 And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people, that shall say, The burden of the LORD, I will even punish that man and his house.

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 Thus shall all of you say every one to his neighbour, and every one to his brother, What has the LORD answered? and, 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 And the burden of the LORD shall all of you mention no more: for every man's word shall be his burden; for all of you have perverted the words of the living God, of 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 shall you 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 since all of you say, The burden of the LORD; therefore thus says the LORD; Because all of you say this word, The burden of the LORD, and I have sent unto you, saying, All of you shall not say, The burden of the LORD;

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, behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I will forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, and cast you out of my presence:

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 an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.

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