Jeremiah 6:13

13 "Everyone, from the least important to the greatest, is greedy for money. Even the prophets and priests all tell lies.

Jeremiah 6:13 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 6:13

For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them,
&c.] From the least in age to the oldest among them; or rather, from persons of the lowest class of life, and in the meanest circumstances, to those that are in the highest places of trust and honour, and are in the greatest affluence of riches and wealth; so that as men of every age and station had sinned, old and young, high and low, rich and poor, it was but just and right that they should all share in the common calamity: everyone is given to covetousness;
which is mentioned particularly, and instead of other sins, it being the root of evil, and was the prevailing sin among them: from the prophet even unto the priest everyone dealeth falsely;
the false prophet, as Kimchi interprets it, and so the Septuagint and other versions; and the priest of Baal, as the same interpreter; both acted deceitfully; the one in prophesying lies to the people, the other in drawing them off from the pure worship of God. The Targum is,

``from the scribe to the priest;''

from the lowest order of teachers to the highest in ecclesiastical office. The whole shows a most general and dreadful corruption.

Jeremiah 6:13 In-Context

11 But I am full of the anger of the Lord, and I am tired of holding it in. "Pour out my anger on the children who play in the street and on the young men gathered together. A husband and his wife will both be caught in his anger, as will the very old.

12 Their houses will be turned over to others, along with their fields and wives, because I will raise my hand and punish the people of Judah," says the Lord.

13 "Everyone, from the least important to the greatest, is greedy for money. Even the prophets and priests all tell lies.

14 They tried to heal my people's serious injuries as if they were small wounds. They said, 'It's all right, it's all right.' But really, it is not all right.

15 They should be ashamed of the terrible way they act, but they are not ashamed at all. They don't even know how to blush about their sins. So they will fall, along with everyone else. They will be thrown to the ground when I punish them," says the Lord.