Jeremia 23:21

21 Ich sandte die Propheten nicht, doch liefen sie; ich redete nicht zu ihnen, doch weissagten sie

Jeremia 23:21 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 23:21

I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran
They might be sent of men, and be encouraged by them; but they were not sent of God: it is not only necessary that men employed in religious affairs should have an external call, in an orderly way, from the church of God; but also an internal call from the Lord himself; he qualifying them with gifts, putting his word into their mouths, and inclining their hearts to publish it; see ( Hebrews 5:4 Hebrews 5:5 ) ; but these false prophets had no mission nor commission from the Lord, nor were they sent on any errand, or with any message from him; and yet they ran;
showed great diligence and zeal, and made haste to tell the people what the Lord had never said to them, but what were the warm imaginations of their own heads and hearts; they ran a race or course of ministry, but it was not good, as in ( Jeremiah 23:10 ) . The Targum adds,

``to do evil:''

I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied;
wherefore what they prophesied was not the word of the Lord, but what they themselves devised; and so was what was false, as the Targum adds: it is a sad character of men when they speak in public neither by the will of God, nor according to the word of God.

Jeremia 23:21 In-Context

19 Siehe, es wird ein Wetter des HERRN mit Grimm kommen und ein schreckliches Ungewitter den Gottlosen auf den Kopf fallen

20 Und des HERRN Zorn wird nicht nachlassen, bis er tue und ausrichte, was er im Sinn hat; zur letzten Zeit werdet ihr's wohl erfahren.

21 Ich sandte die Propheten nicht, doch liefen sie; ich redete nicht zu ihnen, doch weissagten sie

22 Denn wo sie bei meinem Rat geblieben wären und hätten meine Worte meinem Volk gepredigt, so hätten sie dasselbe von seinem bösen Wesen und von seinem bösen Leben bekehrt.

23 Bin ich nur ein Gott, der nahe ist, spricht der HERR, und nicht auch ein Gott von ferneher?