Jeremiah 23:11-13

23:11 Moreover, 1  the Lord says, 2 

“Both the prophets and priests are godless.

I have even found them doing evil in my temple!

23:12 So the paths they follow will be dark and slippery.

They will stumble and fall headlong.

For I will bring disaster on them.

A day of reckoning is coming for them.” 3 

The Lord affirms it! 4 

23:13 The Lord says, 5  “I saw the prophets of Samaria 6 

doing something that was disgusting. 7 

They prophesied in the name of the god Baal

and led my people Israel astray. 8 

1 tn The particle כִּי (ki) which begins this verse is parallel to the one at the beginning of the preceding verse. However, the connection is too distant to render it “for.” “Moreover” is intended to draw the parallel. The words “the Lord says” (Heb “Oracle of the Lord”) have been drawn up to the front to introduce the shift in speaker from Jeremiah, who describes his agitated state, to God, who describes the sins of the prophets and priests and his consequent judgment on them.

2 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

3 tn For the last two lines see 11:23 and the notes there.

4 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

5 tn The words “The Lord says” are not in the text, but it is clear from the content that he is the speaker. These words are supplied in the translation for clarity.

6 map For location see Map2-B1; Map4-D3; Map5-E2; Map6-A4; Map7-C1.

7 tn According to BDB 1074 s.v. תִּפְלָּה this word means “unseemly, unsavory.” The related adjective is used in Job 6:6 of the tastelessness of something that is unseasoned.

8 tn Heb “by Baal.”

sn Prophesying in the name of the god Baal was a clear violation of Mosaic law and punishable by death (see Deut 13:1-5). For an example of the apostasy encouraged by prophets of Baal in the northern kingdom of Israel see 1 Kgs 18:16-40.