Jeremiah 14 13

Jeremiah 14:13 kjv

Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place.

Jeremiah 14:13 nkjv

Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, the prophets say to them, 'You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.' "

Jeremiah 14:13 niv

But I said, "Alas, Sovereign LORD! The prophets keep telling them, 'You will not see the sword or suffer famine. Indeed, I will give you lasting peace in this place.'?"

Jeremiah 14:13 esv

Then I said: "Ah, Lord GOD, behold, the prophets say to them, 'You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.'"

Jeremiah 14:13 nlt

Then I said, "O Sovereign LORD, their prophets are telling them, 'All is well ? no war or famine will come. The LORD will surely send you peace.'"

Jeremiah 14 verses

Jeremiah 14 13 Meaning

Jeremiah, acting as an intercessor, reports to the Lord the prevalent message of false prophets who assured the people of Judah that divine judgment, in the form of war ("sword") and economic devastation ("famine"), would not befall them. Instead, these prophets deceptively promised lasting security and well-being ("assured peace") for the land. This verse highlights the profound conflict between God's announced judgments through His true prophet Jeremiah and the comforting but ultimately destructive lies of the false prophets, illustrating the people's preference for pleasant falsehoods over difficult truths.

Jeremiah 14 13 Context

Jeremiah 14 details a severe drought, leading to widespread famine and despair throughout Judah. The prophet lament for his people, calling upon God (14:1-9). God responds, rejecting their prayers due to their persistent sin and promising further judgment by "sword, famine, and pestilence" (14:10-12). This verse (14:13) immediately follows God's declaration, highlighting Jeremiah's attempt to explain why the people remain in their sinful, unrepentant state despite the obvious calamities and divine warnings: they are being deceived by false prophets.

Historically, Judah in Jeremiah's time (late 7th/early 6th century BCE) faced the looming threat of Babylonian invasion. Despite God's repeated warnings through Jeremiah to submit to Babylon and repent of idolatry and social injustice, the ruling elite, influenced by false prophets, fostered a sense of invincibility, relying on international alliances and a misplaced confidence in the Temple's presence in Jerusalem. This context reveals a nation living in a state of self-deception, preferring convenient spiritual lies over the uncomfortable truth.

Jeremiah 14 13 Word analysis

• Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD!
  • Then said I: Introduces Jeremiah's plea and intercession. It signifies his immediate, anguished response to God's firm pronouncement of judgment in the preceding verses.
  • Ah (אָהּ, ʼāh): An exclamation conveying deep lament, anguish, or desperation. It expresses Jeremiah's emotional distress at the dire spiritual state of his people.
  • Lord GOD (אֲדֹנָי יְהוָה, ʼĂḏōnāy Yahweh): A reverent address combining "Sovereign Lord" and the covenant name of God, "Yahweh." This highlights Jeremiah's appeal to God's ultimate authority and covenant faithfulness, even amidst his sorrow.
• behold, the prophets say unto them,
  • behold (הִנֵּה, hinnê): An interjection used to draw urgent attention, often to something significant or surprising. Here, it underscores the critical reality of the widespread false prophecy.
  • the prophets (הַנְּבִיאִים, hannəḇîʼîm): Although literally "the prophets," in this context, it unequivocally refers to false prophets who were actively contradicting God's true message. These individuals falsely claimed divine inspiration and office.
  • say unto them: Indicates the direct, popular, and pervasive nature of the false message being disseminated to the people.
• Ye shall not see the sword,
  • Ye shall not see: A strong denial of impending national catastrophe. To "see the sword" means to experience warfare, invasion, and the violence of battle.
  • the sword (חֶרֶב, ḥereḇ): A primary instrument of divine judgment against disobedient nations, signifying war, destruction, and conquest.
• neither shall ye have famine;
  • neither shall ye have: Another absolute denial, directly refuting the reality of the ongoing drought and the famine God declared.
  • famine (רָעָב, raʻab): A consequence of drought and siege, symbolizing scarcity, starvation, and economic collapse. It was a common form of divine punishment.
• but I will give you assured peace in this place.
  • but I will give you: The false prophets speak as if with divine authority, arrogating to themselves God's power to grant outcomes. This "I" refers to their own imagined divine voice.
  • assured peace: The Hebrew reads "peace of truth" (שְׁלֹום אֱמֶת, šālôm ʼĕmeṯ), which implies a genuine, stable, and true state of well-being, security, and prosperity. However, in their mouth, it is a profoundly ironic and deceptive promise. They assure them a šālôm (peace, wholeness, safety) that God has already declared impossible under the circumstances. The irony lies in claiming "truthful peace" while uttering a lie.
  • in this place: Refers to Judah and especially Jerusalem, the presumed locus of divine protection, further feeding the people's false security in the Temple's presence.

Jeremiah 14 13 Bonus section

• The stark contrast between Jeremiah's unpopular message (repent, judgment is coming) and the false prophets' popular message (peace, no judgment) reveals a deep-seated human tendency to seek comfort and assurance over truth, especially when truth demands repentance and sacrifice.
• The phrase "assured peace" (šālôm ʼĕmeṯ) is ironic. The false prophets claimed a "peace of truth," but their words were utterly devoid of truth, promising a reality that contradicted God's explicit declarations. This highlights how easily sacred terminology can be twisted for deceitful purposes, obscuring God's actual will.
• The prevalence of false prophecy often signals a broader spiritual apostasy in a nation. When a people no longer desire the true Word of God, God allows them to be given over to deceptive voices, fulfilling a principle seen across Scripture where those who reject light are given over to darkness (Rom 1:28).

Jeremiah 14 13 Commentary

Jeremiah 14:13 serves as a pivotal point, unveiling the deep spiritual disease that afflicts Judah: the rejection of God's uncomfortable truth in favor of comforting lies from false prophets. Jeremiah, overcome with the gravity of the situation, laments to God, expressing not defiance, but the people's misplaced faith in these deceiving voices. The false prophets promised 'shalom' – wholeness, safety, and prosperity – claiming divine authority, directly contradicting God's declared judgments of sword and famine. Their message was not born of God's Spirit but derived from their own desires to please the people or their mercenary motives. This preference for palatable falsehoods insulated the people from recognizing their sin and blocked any call to genuine repentance, leading them further down a path of self-deception and impending doom. The verse thus illustrates the profound danger of leaders who prioritize popular sentiment over divine revelation, and a populace that willingly accepts delusion when faced with inconvenient truths, ultimately setting them on a collision course with God's certain judgment. This dynamic underscores the critical role of discernment in identifying authentic prophecy and clinging to the unchanging Word of God, no matter how difficult its message.