Jeremiah 29:31

31 "Send [a message] to all the exiles, saying: This is what the Lord says concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite. Because Shemaiah prophesied to you, though I did not send him, and made you trust a lie,^[a]

Jeremiah 29:31 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 29:31

Send to all them of the captivity
Another letter; not to Shemaiah, but to the people, that they might all know that he was a false prophet; and how his lies were resented by the Lord; and what punishment should be inflicted on him and his, on account of them: saying, thus saith the Lord concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite;
the letter, though written by the prophet, must be sent in the name of the Lord, declaring what he would do with the person mentioned, and the reason of it; which follows: because that Shemaiah hath prophesied unto you, and I sent him not,
and he caused you to trust in a lie;
that they should in a very little time return from their captivity to Jerusalem.

Jeremiah 29:31 In-Context

29 Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet.

30 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:

31 "Send [a message] to all the exiles, saying: This is what the Lord says concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite. Because Shemaiah prophesied to you, though I did not send him, and made you trust a lie,

32 this is what the Lord says: I am about to punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants. There will not be even one of his [descendants] living among these people, nor will any ever see the good that I will bring to My people"-[this is] the Lord's declaration-"for he has preached rebellion against the Lord."

Footnotes

• [a]. Jr 27:10,14-16; 28:15; 29:9,21,23