Yeremia 5:2

5:2 These people make promises in the name of the Lord. ¹ 

But the fact is, ²  what they swear to is really a lie.” ³ 

Yeremia 5:31

5:31 The prophets prophesy lies.

The priests exercise power by their own authority. ⁴ 

And my people love to have it this way.

But they will not be able to help you when the time of judgment comes! ⁵ 

[5:2]  ¹ tn Heb “Though they say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives.” The idea of “swear on oath” comes from the second line.

[5:2]  ² tc The translation follows many Hebrew mss and the Syriac version in reading “surely” (אָכֵן, ’akhen) instead of “therefore” (לָכֵן, lakhen) in the MT.

[5:2]  tn Heb “Surely.”

[5:2]  ³ tn Heb “they swear falsely.”

[5:31]  ⁴ tn Heb “they shall rule at their hands.” Since the word “hand” can be used figuratively for authority or mean “side” and the pronoun “them” can refer to the priests themselves or the prophets, the following translations have also been suggested: “the priests rule under their [the prophets’] directions,” or “the priests rule in league with them [the prophets].” From the rest of the book it would appear that the prophets did not exercise authority over the priests nor did they exercise the same authority over the people that the priests did. Hence it probably mean “by their own hand/power/authority.”

[5:31]  ⁵ tn Heb “But what will you do at its end?” The rhetorical question implies a negative answer: “Nothing!”