Yeremia 23:21

23:21 I did not send those prophets.

Yet they were in a hurry to give their message. ¹ 

I did not tell them anything.

Yet they prophesied anyway.

Yeremia 28:2

28:2 “The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ²  says, ‘I will break the yoke of servitude ³  to the king of Babylon.

Yeremia 28:15

28:15 Then the prophet Jeremiah told the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord did not send you! You are making these people trust in a lie! ⁴ 

Yeremia 29:8-9

29:8 “For the Lord God of Israel who rules over all ⁵  says, ‘Do not let the prophets or those among you who claim to be able to predict the future by divination ⁶  deceive you. And do not pay any attention to the dreams that you are encouraging them to dream. 29:9 They are prophesying lies to you and claiming my authority to do so. ⁷  But I did not send them. I, the Lord, affirm it!’ ⁸ 

Yeremia 37:19

37:19 Where now are the prophets who prophesied to you that ⁹  the king of Babylon would not attack you or this land?

[23:21]  ¹ tn Heb “Yet they ran.”

[23:21]  sn The image is that of a messenger bearing news from the king. See 2 Sam 18:19-24; Jer 51:31; Isa 40:9; 52:7; Hab 2:2 (the tablet/scroll bore the message the runner was to read to the intended recipients of his message). Their message has been given in v. 17 (see notes there for cross references).

[28:2]  ² tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.” See the study notes on 2:19 and 7:3 for the explanation of this title.

[28:2]  ³ sn See the study note on 27:2 for this figure. Hananiah is given the same title “the prophet” as Jeremiah throughout the chapter and claims to speak with the same authority (compare v. 2a with 27:21a). He even speaks like the true prophet; the verb form “I will break” is in the “prophetic perfect” emphasizing certitude. His message here is a contradiction of Jeremiah’s message recorded in the preceding chapter (compare especially v. 3 with 27:16, 19-22 and v. 4 with 22:24-28). The people and the priests are thus confronted with a choice of whom to believe. Who is the “true” prophet and who is the “false” one? Only fulfillment of their prophecies will prove which is which (see Deut 18:21-22).

[28:15]  ⁴ tn Or “You are giving these people false assurances.”

[29:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.”

[29:8]  sn See study notes on 2:19 and 7:3 for the explanation of this title.

[29:8]  ⁶ sn See the study notes on 27:9 for this term.

[29:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “prophesying lies to you in my name.”

[29:9]  sn For the significance of “in my name” see the study notes on 14:14 and 23:27.

[29:9]  ⁸ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[37:19]  ⁹ tn Heb “And where are your prophets who prophesied to you, saying, ‘The king of Babylon will not come against you or against this land?’” The indirect quote has been used in the translation because of its simpler, more direct style.