Jeremiah 23

1 Woe unto the shepherds that destroy and scatter the flocks of my pasture! saith the Lord.

A curse is on the keepers who are causing the destruction and loss of the sheep of my field, says the Lord.

2 Therefore thus hath said the Lord the God of Israel concerning the shepherds that feed my people, Ye have scattered my flocks, and driven them away, and have not taken care of them: now, behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the Lord.

So this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, has said against the keepers who have the care of my people: You have let my flock be broken up, driving them away and not caring for them; see, I will send on you the punishment for the evil of your doings, says the Lord.

3 And I will indeed gather the remnant of my flock together out of all the countries whither I have driven them; and I will bring them back again to their folds: and they shall be fruitful and multiply.

And I will get the rest of my flock together from all the countries where I have sent them, and will make them come back again to their resting-place; and they will have offspring and be increased.

4 And I will raise up over them shepherds who shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, and none of them shall be missing, saith the Lord.

And I will put over them keepers who will take care of them: never again will they be overcome with fear or be troubled, and there will not be the loss of one of them, says the Lord.

5 Behold, days are coming, saith the Lord, when I will raise up unto David a righteous sprout, and he shall reign as king, and prosper, and he shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth.

See, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will give to David a true Branch, and he will be ruling as king, acting wisely, doing what is right, and judging uprightly in the land.

6 In his days shall Judah be helped, and Israel shall dwell in safety: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, The Lord is our righteousness.

In his days Judah will have salvation and Israel will be living without fear: and this is the name by which he will be named, The Lord is our righteousness.

7 Therefore, behold, days are coming, saith the Lord, when they shall no more say, As the Lord liveth, who hath brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;

And so, truly, the days are coming when they will say no longer, By the living Lord, who took the children of Israel up out of the land of Egypt;

8 But, As the Lord liveth, who hath brought up and who hath led forth the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and out of all countries whither I had driven them: and they shall dwell in their own land.

But, By the living Lord, who took up the seed of Israel, and made them come out of the north country, and from all the countries where I had sent them; and they will be living in the land which is theirs.

9 To the prophets—Broken is my heart within me; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a person whom wine hath overcome, because of the Lord, and because of his holy words.

About the prophets. My heart is broken in me, all my bones are shaking; I am like a man full of strong drink, like a man overcome by wine; because of the Lord, and because of his holy words.

10 For of adulterers is the land full; for because of false swearing mourneth the land, dried up are the pastures in the wilderness; because their course was for evil, and their strength was for injustice.

For the land is full of men who are untrue to their wives; because of the curse the land is full of grief; the green fields of the waste land have become dry; and they are quick to do evil, their strength is for what is not right.

11 For both prophet and priest are hypocrites: yea, in my own house have I found their wickedness, saith the Lord.

For the prophet as well as the priest is unclean; even in my house I have seen their evil-doing, says the Lord.

12 Therefore shall their way be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness; they shall be pushed forward, and fall thereon; for I will bring upon them evil, the year of their punishment, saith the Lord.

For this cause their steps will be slipping on their way: they will be forced on into the dark and have a fall there: for I will send evil on them in the year of their punishment, says the Lord.

13 And on the prophets of Samaria have I seen absurdity: they prophesied by Ba'al, and misled my people Israel.

And I have seen ways without sense in the prophets of Samaria; they became prophets of the Baal, causing my people Israel to go wrong.

14 But on the prophets of Jerusalem have I seen a horrible thing; they commit adultery, and walk in falsehood; and they strengthen the hands of evil-doers, so that not one of these doth return from his wickedness: they are become unto me all of them as Sodom, and its inhabitants as Gomorrah.

And in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a shocking thing; they are untrue to their wives, walking in deceit, and they make strong the hands of evil-doers, so that a man may not be turned back from his evil-doing: they have all become like Sodom to me, and its people like Gomorrah.

15 Therefore thus hath said the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets, Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink poison-water; for from the prophets of Jerusalem is hypocrisy gone forth over all the land.

So this is what the Lord of armies has said about the prophets: See, I will give them a bitter plant for their food, and bitter water for their drink: for from the prophets of Jerusalem unclean behaviour has gone out into all the land.

16 Thus hath said the Lord of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you, they bring you unto vanity: a vision of their own heart do they ever speak, not out of the mouth of the Lord.

This is what the Lord of armies has said: Do not give ear to the words which the prophets say to you: they give you teaching of no value: it is from themselves that their vision comes, and not out of the mouth of the Lord.

17 They say indeed unto those that incense me, The Lord hath spoken, Peace shall ye have; and unto every one that walketh in the stubbornness of his own heart, they said, There shall come no evil upon you.

They keep on saying to those who have no respect for the word of the Lord, You will have peace; and to everyone who goes on his way in the pride of his heart, they say, No evil will come to you.

18 For who hath stood in the secret counsel of the Lord, that he could perceive and hear his word? who hath listened to his word and heard it?

For which of them has knowledge of the secret of the Lord, and has seen him, and given ear to his word? which of them has taken note of his word and given attention to it?

19 Behold, the storm-wind of the Lord is gone forth in fury, yea, a whirling storm: upon the head of the wicked shall it fall grievously.

See, the storm-wind of the Lord, even the heat of his wrath, has gone out, a rolling storm, bursting on the heads of the evil-doers.

20 The anger of the Lord will not return, until he have executed, and until he have fulfilled the purposes of his heart: in the end of days shall ye understand this fully.

The wrath of the Lord will not be turned back till he has done, till he has put into effect, the purposes of his heart: in days to come you will have full knowledge of this.

21 I had not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I had not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.

I did not send these prophets, but they went running: I said nothing to them, but they gave out the prophet's word.

22 But if they had stood in my secret counsel, they should have announced my words to my people, and have caused them to turn back from their evil way, and from the wrongfulness of their doings.

But if they had been in my secret, then they would have made my people give ear to my words, turning them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.

23 Am I a God for those near at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God for those who are afar off?

Am I only a God who is near, says the Lord, and not a God at a distance?

24 If a man should hide himself in secret places should I not then see him? saith the Lord. Do I not fill the heavens and the earth? saith the Lord.

In what secret place may a man take cover without my seeing him? says the Lord. Is there any place in heaven or earth where I am not? says the Lord.

25 I have heard what the prophets have said, that prophesy falsely in my name, saying, I have dreamt, I have dreamt.

My ears have been open to what the prophets have said, who say false words in my name, saying, I have had a dream, I have had a dream, I have had a dream,

26 How long shall it be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy falsehood? yea, the prophets of the deceit of their own heart, —

Is (my word) in the hearts of the prophets who give out false words, even the prophets of the deceit of their hearts?

27 [How long] do they think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they relate every man to his neighbor, as their fathers forgot my name for the sake of Ba'al?

Whose purpose is to take away the memory of my name from my people by their dreams, of which every man is talking to his neighbour, as their fathers gave up the memory of my name for the Baal.

28 The prophet that hath had a dream, let him relate his dream; and he that hath received my word, let him speak my word of truth. What hath the straw to do with the corn? saith the Lord.

If a prophet has a dream, let him give out his dream; and he who has my word, let him give out my word in good faith. What has the dry stem to do with the grain? says the Lord.

29 Is not thus my word, like the fire? saith the Lord, and like a hammer that shivereth the rock?

Is not my word like fire? says the Lord; and like a hammer, smashing the rock to bits?

30 Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that steal my words every one from his neighbor.

For this cause I am against the prophets, says the Lord, who take my words, every one from his neighbour.

31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their own word, and say, [The Lord] saith.

See, I am against the prophets, says the Lord, who let their tongues say, He has said.

32 Behold, I am against those that prophesy with false dreams, saith the Lord, and do relate them, and mislead my people by their falsehoods, and by their vain boasting: while I have not sent them, nor commanded them; and they cannot bring the least profit to this people, saith the Lord.

See, I am against the prophets of false dreams, says the Lord, who give them out and make my people go out of the way by their deceit and their uncontrolled words: but I did not send them or give them orders; and they will be of no profit to this people, says the Lord.

33 And if this people, or the prophet, or a priest, should ask thee, saying, What is the message of the Lord? then shalt thou say unto them, Because of this “What is the message?” will I even cast you off, saith the Lord.

And if this people, or the prophet, or a priest, questioning you, says, What word of weight is there from the Lord? then you are to say to them, You are the word, for I will not be troubled with you any more, says the Lord.

34 And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people, that will say, “A message of the Lord,” I will even inflict punishment on that man and on his house.

And as for the prophet and the priest and the people who say, A word of weight from the Lord! I will send punishment on that man and on his house.

35 Thus shall ye say every one to his neighbor, and every one to his brother, What hath the Lord answered? and, What hath the Lord spoken?

But this is what you are to say, every man to his neighbour and every man to his brother, What answer has the Lord given? and, What has the Lord said?

36 But “A message of the Lord” shall ye not mention any more; for the message cometh indeed to the man of his [prophetic] word; but ye pervert the words of the living God, of the Lord of hosts our God.

And you will no longer put people in mind of the word of weight of the Lord: for every man's word will be a weight on himself; for the words of the living God, of the Lord of armies, our God, have been twisted by you.

37 Thus shalt thou say to the prophet, What hath the Lord answered thee? and, What hath the Lord spoken?

This is what you are to say to the prophet, What answer has the Lord given to you? and, What has the Lord said?

38 But if ye will say, “A message of the Lord,” then thus saith the Lord, Because ye say this word, “A message of the Lord,” and I have sent unto you, saying, Ye shall not say, “A message of the Lord:”

But if you say, The word of weight of the Lord; this is what the Lord has said: Because you say, The weight of the Lord, and I have sent to you, saying, You are not to say, The weight of the Lord;

39 Therefore, behold, I am here, and I will tear you completely away, and I will cast you off, and the city that I have given to you and to your fathers, out of my presence;

For this reason, truly, I will put you completely out of my memory, and I will put you, and the town which I gave to you and to your fathers, away from before my face:

40 And I will lay upon you an everlasting disgrace, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.

And I will give you a name without honour for ever, and unending shame which will never go from the memory of men.