Jeremiah 5:13

13 And the prophets are like wind, and the word [is] not in them.' Thus it will be done to them."

Jeremiah 5:13 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 5:13

And the prophets shall become wind
Their prophecies shall vanish into air; they shall become of no effect; they shall never be accomplished: and the word is not in them;
not the word of the Lord; he never spoke by them; they speak of themselves; they never were inspired or commissioned by him to say what they do: thus shall it be done unto them; the same evils they say shall befall us shall come upon them; they shall perish by the sword or famine; we have reason to believe that our predictions are as good as theirs, and will be fulfilled: or, "thus let it be done to them" ^F25; as they have prophesied shall be done to us; and so are an imprecation. The Targum interprets the whole of the false prophets, as if they were the words of the Lord concerning them, which is,

``but the false prophets shall be for nothing, and their false prophecy shall not be confirmed; this revenge shall be taken of them;''

and so Kimchi interprets it of the prophets that prophesied peace to them, and said that the above mentioned should not come upon them; and Jarchi takes the last clause to be the words of the prophet to them that say the above words; namely, that thus it shall be done to them, what the Lord has said.

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FOOTNOTES:

F25 (Mhl hvey hk) "sic fiat illis"; so some in Vatablus; "sic eveniat ipsis", Cocceius.

Jeremiah 5:13 In-Context

11 For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt utterly treacherously with me," {declares} Yahweh.

12 "They have denied Yahweh, and have said, 'Not he, {for} evil will not come on us, we will see neither sword nor famine.

13 And the prophets are like wind, and the word [is] not in them.' Thus it will be done to them."

14 {Therefore} thus says Yahweh, the God of hosts, "Because you have spoken this word, look, I [am] making my words in your mouth like a fire, and this people wood, and it will devour them.

15 Look, I [am] about to bring on you a nation from afar, [O] house of Israel," {declares} Yahweh. "It [is] an enduring nation, it [is] {an ancient nation}. A nation whose language you do not know, and you cannot understand what they speak.