The real king and descendant of King David
1The Lord says: ‘The shepherds of my flock of sheep will suffer. These shepherds had to look after the sheep, but the sheep got lost. They destroyed my people. 2That is why I say this to the shepherds who rule my people: I, the Lord, the God of Israel, say: You have chased my sheep away, and you did not take care of them. I will now punish you for the bad things that you did. 3I have sent my people to other lands, but I will bring them back, those who are still_alive. I will bring them back home from the lands where they are. I will bring back all my sheep to their own field where they were before. They will be fertile and there will be more and more of them. 4I will choose shepherds and tell them how to rule over my people. They will not become afraid and get lost again.’ This is what the Lord says.
5The Lord also says: ‘You must know this. I will choose someone and anoint him to be the right king. He will be a descendant of King David. He will be a wise king who will do what is right and he will be fair to all the people in the land. 6When this king rules, the people of Judah will be saved and become free, and the Israelites will live safely. The name of this king will be: “The Lord does what is right.” ’
7The Lord says: ‘That is why I say: People have always said: “As sure as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites out of Egypt.” But later they will not say that anymore. 8They will say: “As sure as the Lord lives, who brought the descendants of Israel out of the land in the north.”
They will come back to their own land. They will come from all the lands where I have sent them.’
Prophets who tell lies
9Now I, Jeremiah, will say something
about the other prophets.
It feels as if my heart is broken,
and my whole body is trembling.
When I think of the Lord,
of the things that He says,
it feels as if I am getting drunk,
as drunk as someone who has had
too much wine to drink and feels sick.
10Because the whole land
is full of people who serve_idols.
Yes, it is their fault
that the land has become dry.
That is why the fields
where the animals must eat
have become a desert.
The prophets are doing things that are bad.
They think they can do what they want
because they are strong leaders.
11The Lord says: ‘The prophets
have made the priests impure too.
I saw them doing those bad things
in my temple.
12That is why I will make them walk
on rocks where they will stumble and fall.
I will push them into dark places
and they will fall. Yes,
I will make them suffer, and I will punish them.
13I saw the prophets of Samaria
doing things that I do not like.
They were prophets_of_Baal,
and they deceived my people.
14But I have seen the prophets of Jerusalem
doing things that were even worse,
doing things that I hate.
They commit_adultery,
they deceive people and they
help people who are doing wrong.
That is why no one wants to stop doing wrong.
Jerusalem and its people became to Me
like Sodom and Gomorrah.’
15The Lord who rules over all
says about these prophets:
‘Because they do this,
I will give them bitter food to eat,
and I will give them poisonous water to drink.
I will do this because the prophets
of Jerusalem have made the whole land impure.’
16The Lord who rules over all says:
‘Don't do what the prophets tell you.
They want you to believe in something
that is not_true,
something that is worthless.
They say that I have given them visions
and shown them what will happen,
but they are telling lies.
They tell their own stories
and lies that they have not heard from Me.
17They keep on saying:
“The Lord said all will be well with you.”
They say that to people who don't
listen to Me and who hate Me.
And they tell everyone who is stubborn
and lives like he wants to:
“You will not have trouble,
and you will not suffer.” ’
18But who was there
when the Lord said that?
Which one of them saw or heard
when the Lord decided that?
Who listened to what He said and did?
19You must know this:
The Lord will send a storm wind.
A strong wind will come
and it will destroy everything.
It will blow over people who are doing wrong.
20The Lord is angry and He will
continue to be angry until He has done
what He has decided to do.
You will understand this later.
21The Lord says:
‘I did not send those prophets,
and I did not talk to them, but they came
and said they brought messages from Me.
22If they had been there when I
decided to do something,
then they would have told my people what I said.
They would have brought my people back
from the wrong way that they were going,
and they would have stopped my people from doing bad things.
23Do you think that I am a God
who can see only things that are near Me?
No, I can also see things that are far away.
24No one can hide where I can not see him.
You must know this:
I am all over and I can see everywhere,
in heaven and on earth.’
This is what the Lord said.
25He says: ‘There are prophets who tell lies and say that I have sent them. I have heard what they have said. They say they have dreamed and they tell people what they have dreamed. 26For how long will there be prophets who tell lies and tell stories that they have thought of themselves? They deceive my people and say that I have sent them. 27They tell each other what they have dreamed. They want my people to forget who I am. They are like their forefathers who served Baal and forgot about Me. 28Their dreams and my truth are not the same. They are as different as straw and wheat. If a prophet says that he has dreamed something, he must say that he has dreamed it. But if I tell a prophet to say something, he must tell exactly what I have said.’
29The Lord says: ‘The things that I say are like fire, or like a hammer that breaks rocks. 30That is why I am against false_prophets who say what other prophets say and then say that it was I who said it. 31I am against false_prophets who tell what they think and then say that it was I who said that. 32I am against people who say that it was I who sent them and then they tell people about dreams that are not_true. They tell them about their dreams and they deceive my people. They tell lies and it does not_matter to them what happens after that. I did not send them. I did not tell them anything. They don't help these people when they tell lies like that, that is sure.’
33The Lord says: ‘Jeremiah, if these people or a prophet or a priest asks you: “What did the Lord say?”
Then you must ask them: “Why do you ask me what the Lord said? The Lord does not want to talk to you anymore.”
34I will punish the prophet and the priest and the people who say that they know what I have said. I will punish any person who says that. I will also punish his family. 35You may ask your friends and family: “What did God answer you? What did He say?”
36But you must never again say you know what I have said, because only someone who says what I have told him may say that.
But you change the words that I have said, the words of the living God, the Lord our God who rules over all. 37You may ask a prophet: “What did the Lord answer? What did the Lord say to you?”
38But if you keep on saying that you know what I said, then I tell you: You said you know what I have said. But I have sent you a message and told you not to say that you know what I have said. 39That is why I will forget you completely. I don't want to talk to you anymore. I will leave this city that I have given to you and your forefathers. 40I will humiliate you forever, and you will never forget it.’
