How long will this continue in the hearts of these prophets who prophesy falsehood, these prophets of the delusion of their own minds?
Parallel translations
- WEB How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies, even the prophets of the deceit of their own heart?
- KJV How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart;
- NKJV How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeed they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart,
- NASB How long? Is there anything in the hearts of the prophets who prophesy falsehood, these prophets of the deceitfulness of their own heart,
- NLT How long will this go on? If they are prophets, they are prophets of deceit, inventing everything they say.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God asks how long these prophets will keep prophesying lies that spring from the deceit of their own hearts. Their false words originate in self-deception, not in Him.
Overview
The LORD presses the question of how long such deception will persist among the prophets. Their lies flow from hearts bent on deceit rather than from God's word. The verse exposes the root problem as the corrupt human heart (cf. Jer 17:9), a malady only the new heart promised in the gospel can cure.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- 1 Tim 4:1–2Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,
- Jer 14:14“The prophets are prophesying lies in My name,” replied the LORD. “I did not send them or appoint them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a false vision, a worthless divination, the futility and delusion of their own minds.
- 2 Tim 4:3For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires.
- 2 Th 2:9–11The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the working of Satan, with every kind of power, sign, and false wonder,
- 2 Pet 2:13–16The harm they will suffer is the wages of their wickedness. They consider it a pleasure to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deception as they feast with you.
- Acts 13:10and said, “O child of the devil and enemy of all righteousness, you are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery! Will you never stop perverting the straight ways of the Lord?
- Jer 4:14Wash the evil from your heart, O Jerusalem, so that you may be saved. How long will you harbor wicked thoughts within you?
- Jer 13:27Your adulteries and lustful neighings, your shameless prostitution on the hills and in the fields—I have seen your detestable acts. Woe to you, O Jerusalem! How long will you remain unclean?”
- Hos 8:5He has rejected your calf, O Samaria. My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of innocence?
- Ps 4:2How long, O men, will my honor be maligned? How long will you love vanity and seek after lies? Selah
- Jer 17:9The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
- Isa 30:10They say to the seers, “Stop seeing visions!” and to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us the truth! Speak to us pleasant words; prophesy illusions.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
How Jeremiah 23:26 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.