Jeremiah 6 14

Jeremiah 6:14 kjv

They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.

Jeremiah 6:14 nkjv

They have also healed the hurt of My people slightly, Saying, 'Peace, peace!' When there is no peace.

Jeremiah 6:14 niv

They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. 'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace.

Jeremiah 6:14 esv

They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, 'Peace, peace,' when there is no peace.

Jeremiah 6:14 nlt

They offer superficial treatments
for my people's mortal wound.
They give assurances of peace
when there is no peace.

Jeremiah 6 verses

Jeremiah 6 14 Meaning

Jeremiah 6:14 conveys the severe indictment of the Lord against false prophets and complacent leaders who offer superficial assurances to His people. They have trivialized the profound spiritual and moral brokenness of Judah, treating it as a minor issue rather than a deep, impending crisis. By repeatedly declaring "Peace, peace," they created a false sense of security and well-being, even though genuine peace—defined by wholeness with God and the absence of divine judgment—was absent due to widespread unrepented sin. This verse underscores the grave danger of misleading spiritual guidance and the profound consequence of ignoring the true state of one's heart and nation before God.

Jeremiah 6 14 Context

Jeremiah chapter 6 details God's impending judgment upon Judah and Jerusalem due to their persistent sin, particularly their spiritual corruption, injustice, and idolatry. The city is likened to a "frying pan" for testing precious metals, where its people are revealed to be dross (v. 27-30). The Lord laments their refusal to hear His warnings, likening them to stubborn children. Amidst prophecies of military invasion from the North, destruction, and desolation, verse 14 highlights a critical cause for Judah's downfall: the failure of its spiritual leadership. This verse, closely mirrored in Jeremiah 8:11, is a direct condemnation of priests and prophets who minimize the gravity of the nation's spiritual sickness. They provided false hope, reassuring the people of peace (shalom) when their actions guaranteed the opposite—war, devastation, and captivity. Historically, this period preceded the Babylonian siege and exile (late 7th and early 6th centuries BCE), a time when Judah desperately needed true repentance and an honest assessment of its condition, not deceptive comfort.

Jeremiah 6 14 Word analysis

• They: This pronoun implicitly refers to the false prophets, priests, and other spiritual or civic leaders in Judah, as evidenced by the broader context of Jeremiah's prophecies (Jer 5:31; 6:13; 8:10). These were the trusted authorities who were expected to guide the people in truth.
• have healed (רָפְאוּ - _raf'u_ from the root רָפָא - _rapha_): The Hebrew verb means to mend, restore, make whole, or cure. Here, it is used with heavy irony. They attempt a healing, but it's a superficial, ineffective treatment. The healing implies a remedy applied to a broken state.
• the wound (שֶׁבֶר - _sheber_): This word denotes a breach, fracture, breaking, or ruin. It signifies a profound, severe injury, not a minor scratch. In this context, it refers to the deep spiritual and moral brokenness of the nation—their sin, idolatry, injustice, and disobedience to God's covenant—as well as the impending national disaster, like military defeat and exile.
• of my people: This phrase highlights God's covenant relationship with Judah. Despite their waywardness, they remain "My people," underscoring God's continued ownership and lament over their condition, even as He pronounces judgment.
• lightly (קַלּוֹת - _qallot_, from the root קַל - _qal_ meaning "light" in weight or significance): This adverb signifies a treatment done superficially, cursorily, insignificantly, or without proper gravity and depth. It indicates a trivialization of the immense problem facing Judah. The leaders didn't genuinely address the root cause, dismissing it as a minor ailment.
• saying: This indicates a vocal proclamation, a public declaration. The deception was not silent but openly spoken and, presumably, widely accepted.
• ‘Peace, peace,’ (שָׁל֤וֹם שָׁל֗וֹם - _shalom shalom_): The repetition of _shalom_ (meaning wholeness, well-being, prosperity, security, health, completeness, harmony, peace with God) intensifies the emphatic and assured nature of their false pronouncement. They were guaranteeing security and divine favor. The repetition in Hebrew can signify emphasis, totality, or certainty. Here, it signifies a strong but delusive assurance.
• when there is no peace: This direct, stark contradiction reveals the complete falsehood of the prophets' message. The reality was one of imminent judgment, war, destruction, and spiritual alienation from God. True _shalom_ cannot exist without righteousness and a right relationship with God.

• Words-Group Analysis:
• "They have healed the wound of my people lightly": This phrase reveals the egregious failure of Judah's spiritual guides. They acknowledged a "wound" or breakage among the people but treated it with casual disregard. Their "healing" was not a deep, transformative work but a superficial patching over of symptoms, thereby delaying true recovery and exacerbating the underlying spiritual disease.
• "saying, ‘Peace, peace,’": This part signifies the false comfort and deceptive reassurance offered. The repetition of "peace" aims to be profoundly convincing, implying complete security and freedom from threat. This was a message the people eagerly desired to hear, regardless of its truth. It spoke of political stability and divine blessing, countering any suggestion of impending judgment.
• "when there is no peace": This stark contrasting clause exposes the hollowness and danger of the previous assurances. It declares that the reality of their situation—deep spiritual corruption, impending war, and God's righteous judgment—made any declaration of "peace" an utter lie. True _shalom_ originates from a reconciled relationship with God through repentance, which was clearly lacking. This phrase underlines the chasm between spiritual pretense and divine reality.

Jeremiah 6 14 Bonus section

This verse encapsulates the very essence of Jeremiah's prophetic struggle: contending with those who offered an easier, more palatable message that bypassed the urgent need for radical repentance. The phrase "no peace" foreshadows the historical reality of Jerusalem's destruction by Babylon, illustrating the direct consequence of accepting false comfort over divine truth. The deeper theological implication is that true peace (shalom) is not merely the absence of conflict but a holistic state of well-being, integrity, and right relationship with God, attainable only through obedience and repentance. The rejection of this true path led to the loss of both external peace and internal spiritual harmony, highlighting God's justice in aligning external circumstances with internal spiritual reality.

Jeremiah 6 14 Commentary

Jeremiah 6:14 is a piercing indictment of superficiality in addressing profound spiritual decay. The false prophets and complacent leaders of Judah offered soothing, but ultimately deceptive, words of peace and security. Their "healing" of the nation's "wound" (a pervasive moral and spiritual brokenness) was done "lightly"—treating a mortal sickness as a minor ailment. This trivialization of sin and God's righteous demands led to a fatal complacency among the people. The repeated cry of "Peace, peace" amplified the illusion of well-being, obscuring the terrifying truth that divine judgment was imminent due to their unrepentant sin and idolatry. This verse serves as a timeless warning against any spiritual guidance that minimizes the gravity of sin, rejects the necessity of genuine repentance, or proclaims comfort when confronting deep-seated brokenness, ultimately preventing true restoration and leading to greater ruin.