Also I spake to the priests and to all this people, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Hearken not to the words of your prophets that prophesy unto you, saying, Behold, the vessels of the LORD'S house shall now shortly be brought again from Babylon: for they prophesy a lie unto you.

JEREMIAH 27:16KJV
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Jeremiah 27:16 (KJV)

What does Jeremiah 27:16 mean?

Jeremiah 27:16 warns the priests and the people not to listen to prophets who claim that the sacred objects taken from the temple will soon be returned from Babylon, because these prophets are not telling the truth. The verse shows Jeremiah delivering a message from the LORD, exposing false promises about a quick restoration.

Jeremiah is speaking directly to the religious leaders (the priests) and the general population during a time when many items from the temple in Jerusalem had been taken by the Babylonians. Some prophets were telling the people that these temple vessels would come back soon, giving them false hope. Jeremiah makes it clear that these messages are lies, and urges the people not to be misled by them.

The Hebrew behind Jeremiah 27:16

  • "Hearken" (שָׁמַע, shamaʿ) means to listen or pay close attention. Jeremiah is not just telling the people to hear words, but to be discerning about what they accept as true.
  • "Prophets" (נָבִיא, naviʾ) refers to those claiming to speak for God. Here, the word highlights that not everyone who claims to be a prophet is genuinely sent by the LORD.
  • "Prophesy a lie" (כָּזָב, kazav) uses a word for deliberate falsehood. Jeremiah is not accusing these prophets of being mistaken, but of intentionally misleading the people.

Why Jeremiah 27:16 matters

  • This verse helps clear up the confusion between true and false prophecy, showing that not all religious messages—especially those that sound comforting—are from God.
  • Jeremiah 27:16 highlights the danger of wishful thinking in times of crisis, especially when leaders promise an easy way out that God has not actually offered.
  • The verse connects to the larger message of Jeremiah 27, where the prophet urges submission to Babylon as God's will for the time, rather than chasing after false hopes of immediate deliverance.

Where else these words appear

“shortly” Hebrew H4120 · used in 20 verses

  • Numbers 16:46 And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the LORD; the plague is begun.
  • 1 Samuel 20:38 And Jonathan cried after the lad, Make speed, haste, stay not. And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master.
  • Psalms 37:2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.

“prophesy” Hebrew H5012 · used in 102 verses

  • Numbers 11:25 And the LORD came down in a cloud, and spake unto him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy elders: and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and did not cease.
  • Jeremiah 20:1 Now Pashur the son of Immer the priest, who was also chief governor in the house of the LORD, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things.
  • Ezekiel 13:16 To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord GOD.

“lie” Hebrew H8267 · used in 109 verses

  • Exodus 5:9 Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein; and let them not regard vain words.
  • Psalms 144:8 Whose mouth speaketh vanity, and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
  • Jeremiah 7:9 Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not;