Jeremiah 14:14

14 But the Lord replied, "The prophets are telling lies in my name; I did not send them, nor did I give them any orders or speak one word to them. The visions they talk about have not come from me; their predictions are worthless things that they have imagined.

Jeremiah 14:14 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 14:14

Then said the Lord unto me
In reply to the above excuse, in favour of the people: the prophets prophesy lies in my name;
it is a wicked thing to tell lies; it is more so to foretell them, and that in the name of the Lord; pretending they have his authority, and are under the influence and guidance of his Spirit; and it was sinful in the people to give credit to them, and the more so in that they were forewarned of these prophets and their lies, and had the reverse told them by a true prophet of the Lord, and therefore were inexcusable. I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spoke unto
them;
all which are requisite to a prophet, or to a man's prophesying in the name of the Lord; he ought to have his mission from him, and his commission from him; his orders and credentials from him, and the things themselves which he delivers; neither of which those prophets had; nor were they able to make out those things to the people, of which they should have had satisfaction before they believed them, and therefore were highly to blame in giving heed unto them. They prophecy unto you a false vision;
or, "a vision of falsehood" ^F13; pretending they had a vision from the Lord, when they had none: and divination;
soothsaying or astrology, as some interpret it, as Kimchi observes; foretelling things by the stars: and a thing of nought;
which is good for nothing, and comes to nothing: and the deceit of their hearts;
which flows from their deceitful hearts and vain imaginations, and by no means to be depended upon.

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FOOTNOTES:

F13 (rqv Nwzx) "visionem mendacii", Schmidt; "visionem falsitatis", Montanus.

Jeremiah 14:14 In-Context

12 Even if they fast, I will not listen to their cry for help; and even if they offer me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not be pleased with them. Instead, I will kill them in war and by starvation and disease."

13 Then I said, "Sovereign Lord, you know that the prophets are telling the people that there will be no war or starvation, because you have promised, they say, that there will be only peace in our land."

14 But the Lord replied, "The prophets are telling lies in my name; I did not send them, nor did I give them any orders or speak one word to them. The visions they talk about have not come from me; their predictions are worthless things that they have imagined.

15 I, the Lord, tell you what I am going to do to those prophets whom I did not send but who speak in my name and say war and starvation will not strike this land - I will kill them in war and by starvation.

16 The people to whom they have said these things will be killed in the same way. Their bodies will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem, and there will be no one to bury them. This will happen to all of them - including their wives, their sons, and their daughters. I will make them pay for their wickedness."