Jeremiah 23

1 Alas for the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture Declareth Yahweh.

“Woe to shepherds destroying, And scattering the flock of My pasture,” A declaration of YHWH.

2 Therefore, Thus, saith Yahweh God of Israel, Concerning the shepherds who are tending my people, —Ye have scattered my flock and have driven them away, and have not visited them, —Behold me! visiting upon you the wickedness of your doings Declareth Yahweh.

Therefore, thus said YHWH, God of Israel, Against the shepherds who feed My people: “You have scattered My flock, and drive them away, And have not inspected them, Behold, I am charging on you the evil of your doings,” A declaration of YHWH.

3 I myself, therefore will gather the remnant of my flock, out of all the lands whither I have driven them, —And will bring them back unto their own fold, And they shall be fruitful and multiply;

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

4 And I will raise up over them shepherds who will tend them, —So shall they not be afraid any more, nor be dismayed nor be missing, Declareth Yahweh.

And I have raised shepherds for them, And they have fed them, And they no longer fear, nor are frightened, Nor are they lacking,” A declaration of YHWH.

5 Lo! days are coming, Declareth Yahweh, when I will raise up to David A righteous Bud, And he shall reign as king, and prosper, And shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

“Behold, days are coming,” A declaration of YHWH, “And I have raised a righteous shoot to David, And a king has reigned and acted wisely, And done judgment and righteousness in the earth.

6 In his days, Shall Judah be saved, And Israel abide securely, —And, this, is his name whereby he shall be called Yahweh, our Righteousness.

Judah is saved in His days, and Israel dwells confidently, And this [is] His Name that YHWH proclaims Him: Our Righteousness.

7 Therefore, lo! days are coming, Declareth Yahweh, When it shall not be said any more As Yahweh liveth, who brought up the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt;

Therefore, behold, days are coming,” A declaration of YHWH, “And they no longer say, YHWH lives who brought up The sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt,

8 but—As Yahweh liveth who hath brought up and who hath brought in the seed of the house of Israel out of the land of the North, and out of all the lands whither I have driven them, —And they shall remain upon their own soil.

But—YHWH lives, 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 to where I drove them, And they have dwelt on their own ground!”

9 As for the prophets, —Broken is my heart within me Trembled have all my bones, I have become as a drunken man, And as a strong man whom wine hath overcome, —Because of Yahweh, And because of his holy words.

In reference to the prophets: My heart has been broken in my midst, All my bones have fluttered, I have been as a man—a drunkard, And as a man—wine has passed over him, Because of YHWH, and of His holy words.

10 For with adulterers, is the land filled, Yea because of cursing, doth the land mourn, Dried up are the oases of the desert, —And, their oppression hath become wicked, And, their might is not right.

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

11 For both prophet and priest, are profane, —Even in my house, have I found their wickedness, Declareth Yahweh.

“For both prophet and priest have been profane, Indeed, I found their wickedness in My house,” A declaration of YHWH.

12 Therefore, shall their way become to them like slippery places in darkness, They shall be driven on and shall fall therein, —For I will bring in upon them calamity—The year of their visitation, Declareth Yahweh.

“Therefore their way is as slippery places to them, They are driven into thick darkness, And they have fallen in it, For I bring in calamity against them, The year of their inspection,” A declaration of YHWH.

13 Even among the prophets of Samaria, had I seen a foolish thing, —They prophesied by Baal, And led astray my people Israel.

“And I have seen folly in prophets of Samaria, They have prophesied by Ba‘al, And cause My people—Israel—to err.

14 But among the prophets of Jerusalem, have I seen a horrible thing, —Committing adultery, And walking in falsehood, And so strengthening the hands of doers of wickedness, not to return any man from his wickedness: They have all of them become to me as Sodom, And her inhabitants as Gomorrah.

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

15 Therefore, Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts Concerning the prophets, —Behold me! Feeding them with wormwood, And I will cause them to drink poisoned water, —For from the prophets of Jerusalem, hath there gone forth profanity unto all the land.

Therefore, thus said YHWH of Hosts, concerning the prophets: “Behold, I am causing them to eat wormwood, And have caused them to drink water of gall, For from prophets of Jerusalem Profanity has gone forth to all the land.”

16 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, —Do not hearken unto the words of the prophets who are prophesying unto you, They are filling you, with vain hopes, —The vision of their own hearts, do they speak, Not from the mouth of Yahweh!

Thus said YHWH of Hosts: “You do not listen to the words Of the prophets who are prophesying to you, They are making you vain things, They speak a vision of their own heart, Not from the mouth of YHWH.

17 They keep on saying to them who despise me, Yahweh, hath spoken, saying, Prosperity, shall ye have! And to every one who is going on in the stubbornness of his own heart, have they said, There shall come on you, no calamity

Diligently saying to those despising, The word of YHWH: Peace is for you, And [to] everyone walking in the stubbornness of his heart, they have said: Evil does not come to you.”

18 For who hath stood in the council of Yahweh, that he should see and hear his word? Who hath given ear to his word and heard it?

For who has stood in the counsel of YHWH, And sees and hears His word? Who has regarded My word, and listens?

19 Lo! the tempest of Yahweh! Indignation, hath come forth, Even a tempest whirling along: On the head of the lawless, shall it hurl itself down.

Behold, a whirlwind of YHWH—Fury has gone out, even a piercing whirlwind, It stays on the head of the wicked.

20 The anger of Yahweh, wilt not return, Until he hath executed nor Until he hath established The purposes of his heart, —In the afterpart of the days, shall ye understand it perfectly.

The anger of YHWH does not turn back Until His doing, and until His establishing, The thoughts of His heart, In the latter end of the days You attend to it with understanding.

21 I sent not the prophets yet they, ran, I spake not unto them yet, they, prophesied.

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

22 But if they had stood in my council, Then might they have announced my words unto my people, And have turned them from their wicked way and from the wickedness 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, Demandeth Yahweh, And not a God afar off?

[Am] I a God near,” A declaration of YHWH, “And not a God far off?

24 Can any hide himself in secret places that I, shall not see him? Demandeth Yahweh, —The heavens and the earth, do I not fill? Demandeth Yahweh.

Is anyone hidden in secret places, And I do not see him?” A declaration of YHWH, “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” A declaration of YHWH.

25 I have heard what the prophets have said, who prophesy in my name falsely, saying, —I have dreamed! I have dreamed!

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

26 How long shall it be in the heart of the prophets, To be prophets of falsehood, —And prophets of the deceit of their own heart?

Until when is it in the heart of the prophets? The prophets of falsehood, Indeed, prophets of the deceit of their heart,

27 Who lay a plot to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they relate every man to his neighbour, —Just as their fathers forgat, my name, for Baal.

Who are devising to cause My people To forget My Name by their dreams, That they each recount to his neighbor, As their fathers forgot My Name for Ba‘al.

28 The prophet with whom is a dream, Let him relate it as a dream, And he with whom is my word, Let him speak my word as truth, —What is the chaff to the wheat? Demandeth Yahweh:

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 does the straw [have to do] with the grain?” A declaration of YHWH.

29 Is not my word, like this, Like fire? Demandeth Yahweh, —And like a hammer, that breaketh in pieces a cliff?

“Is it not thus? My word [is] as fire,” A declaration of YHWH. “And as a hammer—it breaks a rock in pieces.

30 Therefore! behold me! against the prophets, Declareth Yahweh, —who steal my words, every man from his neighbour:

Therefore, behold, I [am] against the prophets,” A declaration of YHWH, “Each stealing My words from his neighbor.

31 Behold me! against the prophets, Declareth Yahweh, who presume with their tongue and declare He declareth:

Behold, I [am] against the prophets,” A declaration of YHWH, “Who are making their tongue smooth, And they affirm—an affirmation.

32 Behold me! against such as prophesy the dreams of falsehood, Declareth Yahweh, who have related them and led astray my people, with their falsehoods and with their recklessness, —whereas, I, had not sent them nor commanded them, so that they could be of no, profit, to this people, Declareth Yahweh.

Behold, I [am] against the prophets of false dreams,” A declaration of YHWH, “And they recount them, and cause My people to err, By their falsehoods, and by their instability, And I have not sent them, Nor have I commanded them, And they are not profitable to this people at all,” A declaration of YHWH.

33 But when this people or a prophet or a priest shall ask thee saying What is the oracle of Yahweh? Then shalt thou say unto them Ye, yourselves, are the oracle, Therefore will I reject you Declareth Yahweh;

“And when this people, or the prophet, Or a priest, asks you, saying, What [is] the burden of YHWH? Then you have said to them: You [are] the burden, and I have left you,” A declaration of YHWH.

34 But the prophet, or the priest or the people who shall say—the oracle of Yahweh, I will bring punishment upon that man and upon his house.

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

35 Thus, shall ye say—every man unto his neighbour and every man unto his brother, —What hath Yahweh, answered? or, What hath Yahweh, spoken?

Thus you each say to his neighbor, And each to his brother: What has YHWH answered? And what has YHWH spoken?

36 but the oracle of Yahweh, shall ye not mention, any more, —for, every man’s oracle, shall be his own word, because ye have perverted the words of a Living God, Yahweh of hosts our God.

And you do not mention the burden of YHWH anymore, For the burden to each is His word, And you have overturned the words of the living God, YHWH of Hosts, our God.

37 Thus, shalt thou say unto the prophet, —What hath Yahweh, answered thee? or What hath Yahweh, spoken?

Thus you say to the prophet, What has YHWH answered you? And what has YHWH spoken?

38 But, since ye keep on saying, The Oracle of Yahweh, therefore, Thus saith Yahweh, Because ye have said this word, The oracle of Yahweh, whereas I had sent unto you saying, Ye shall not say, The oracle of Yahweh

And if you say, The burden of YHWH, Therefore, thus said YHWH: Because of your saying this word, The burden of YHWH, And I send to you, saying, You do not say, The burden of YHWH.

39 therefore, behold me! I will lift you up, —and carry you away, and the city which I gave to you and to your fathers from before my face;

Therefore, behold, I have utterly taken you 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 will give unto you reproach age-abiding, —and disgrace age-abiding, which shall not be forgotten.

And I have put continuous reproach on you, And continuous shame that is not forgotten!”