ESOCS Devotional 25 February 2025 – Judgment of False Prophets
MEMORY VERSE: “Send to all them of the captivity, saying, Thus saith the Lord concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite; because that Shemaiah hath prophesied unto you, and I sent him not, and he caused you to trust in a lie.” Jeremiah 29:31 KJV
TEXT: JEREMIAH 29:20-32
Therefore hear the word of the Lord, all you of the captivity, whom I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon.
21 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy a lie to you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall slay them before your eyes. 22 And because of them a curse shall be taken up by all the captivity of Judah who are in Babylon, saying, “The Lord make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire”; 23 because they have done disgraceful things in Israel, have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and have spoken lying words in My name, which I have not commanded them. Indeed I know, and am a witness, says the Lord.
24 You shall also speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying, 25 Thus speaks the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: You have sent letters in your name to all the people who are at Jerusalem, to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying, 26 “The Lord has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, so that there should be officers in the house of the Lord over every man who is demented and considers himself a prophet, that you should put him in prison and in the stocks. 27 Now therefore, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth who makes himself a prophet to you? 28 For he has sent to us in Babylon, saying, ‘This captivity is long; build houses and dwell in them, and plant gardens and eat their fruit.’ ”
29 Now Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet. 30 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying: 31 Send to all those in captivity, saying, Thus says the Lord concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, and I have not sent him, and he has caused you to trust in a lie— 32 therefore thus says the Lord: Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his family: he shall not have anyone to dwell among this people, nor shall he see the good that I will do for My people, says the Lord, because he has taught rebellion against the Lord.
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Jeremiah Chapter 29 is all about Jeremiah’s warning of the people against false prophets whom he said God would surely judge. One of such false prophets was Shemaiah whom God did not send, yet he was prophesying to the people. A former letter of Jeremiah to the exiles (the Jews in exile) in Babylon had contradicted the preaching of Shemaiah. As a result, he wrote an angry letter to Zephaniah, a priest in Jerusalem asking that Jeremiah be put in prison. He accused him of being demented, one who had presumptuously made himself a prophet of God.
For the above behaviour by the false prophet Shemaiah, the pronouncement of judgement for his slander was that he would have no descendants who would enjoy the happiness and freedom that God would eventually bring to His people when they return to their homeland (verse 32). God did not send Shemaiah and he caused the people to trust in a lie. False prophet – so he was punished (verse 32).
The ‘Shemaiahs’ are still around today- very plenty in our churches. But we are warned to beware of them (Matthew 7:15). Don’t mind their sweet tongues!
CHALLENGES
- In some cases, it is difficult to identify who the false prophet is.
PRAYER POINT
- Father, rid the body of Christ of false prophets who come to deceive your flock.
FURTHER READING: Jeremiah 23:9- 40; 27; 29; Mark 13:22-23
ESOCS Devotional 25 February 2025
