Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, December 31st, 2025
the Wednesday after Christmas
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Read the Bible

Good News Translation

Jeremiah 23:13

I have seen the sin of Samaria's prophets: they have spoken in the name of Baal and have led my people astray.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Baal;   Scofield Reference Index - Israel;   Thompson Chain Reference - Leaders;   Ministers;   Religious;   The Topic Concordance - Evil;   Prophecy and Prophets;   Sending and Those Sent;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Prophecy;   Prophets, False;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Prophecy, prophet;   Samaria, samaritans;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - False Prophet;   Immorality, Sexual;   Holman Bible Dictionary - False Prophet;   Jeremiah;   Lamentations, Book of;   Prophecy, Prophets;   Samaria, Samaritans;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Err;   Fool;   Micaiah;   Samaria, City of;   Samaria, Country of;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Among the prophets of SamariaI saw something disgusting:They prophesied by Baaland led my people Israel astray.
Hebrew Names Version
I have seen folly in the prophets of Shomron; they prophesied by Ba`al, and caused my people Yisra'el to err.
King James Version
And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
English Standard Version
In the prophets of Samaria I saw an unsavory thing: they prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel astray.
New American Standard Bible
"Moreover, among the prophets of Samaria I saw an offensive thing: They prophesied by Baal and led My people Israel astray.
New Century Version
"I saw the prophets of Samaria do something wrong. Those prophets prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel away.
Amplified Bible
"And I have seen a foolish and an offensive thing in the prophets of Samaria: They prophesied by Baal and caused My people Israel to go astray.
World English Bible
I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied by Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And I haue seene foolishnesse in the prophets of Samaria, that prophecied in Baal, & caused my people Israel to erre.
Legacy Standard Bible
"Moreover, among the prophets of Samaria I saw an offensive thing:They prophesied by Baal and led My people Israel astray.
Berean Standard Bible
"Among the prophets of Samaria I saw an offensive thing: They prophesied by Baal and led My people Israel astray.
Contemporary English Version
The prophets in Samaria were disgusting to me, because they preached in the name of Baal and led my people astray.
Complete Jewish Bible
"I have seen inappropriate conduct in the prophets of Shomron — they prophesied by Ba‘al and led my people Isra'el astray.
Darby Translation
And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria: they prophesied by Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
Easy-to-Read Version
"I saw the prophets of Samaria doing wrong things. I saw them prophesy in the name of the false god Baal. They led the people of Israel away from me.
George Lamsa Translation
And I have seen falsehood in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied by Baal and caused my people Israel to err.
Lexham English Bible
"Now in the prophets of Samaria I saw a disgusting thing. They prophesied by Baal and they caused my people Israel to err.
Literal Translation
And I have seen frivolity among the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied by Baal and led astray My people Israel.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
I haue sene foly amonge the prophetes of Samaria, yt they preched for Baal, ad disceaued my people off Israel.
American Standard Version
And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied by Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
Bible in Basic English
And I have seen ways without sense in the prophets of Samaria; they became prophets of the Baal, causing my people Israel to go wrong.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And I have seen unseemliness in the prophets of Samaria: they prophesied by Baal, and caused My people Israel to err.
King James Version (1611)
And I haue seene folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophecied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to erre.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
I haue seene folly among the prophetes of Samaria, that preached for Baal, and deceaued my people of Israel.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And in the prophets of Samaria I have seen lawless deeds; they prophesied by Baal, and led my people Israel astray.
English Revised Version
And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied by Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And in the profetis of Samarie Y siy fonnednesse, and thei profesieden in Baal, and disseyueden my puple Israel.
Update Bible Version
And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied by Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
Webster's Bible Translation
And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
New English Translation
The Lord says, "I saw the prophets of Samaria doing something that was disgusting. They prophesied in the name of the god Baal and led my people Israel astray.
New King James Version
"And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria: They prophesied by Baal And caused My people Israel to err.
New Living Translation
"I saw that the prophets of Samaria were terribly evil, for they prophesied in the name of Baal and led my people of Israel into sin.
New Life Bible
"In Samaria I have seen a very bad thing among the men of Samaria who tell what is going to happen in the future. They speak for the false god Baal, and have led My people into sin.
New Revised Standard
In the prophets of Samaria I saw a disgusting thing: they prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel astray.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Even among the prophets of Samaria, had I seen a foolish thing, - They prophesied by Baal, And led astray my people Israel.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria: they prophesied in Baal and deceived my people Israel.
Revised Standard Version
In the prophets of Sama'ria I saw an unsavory thing: they prophesied by Ba'al and led my people Israel astray.
Young's Literal Translation
And in prophets of Samaria I have seen folly, They have prophesied by Baal, And cause my people -- Israel -- to err.
THE MESSAGE
"Over in Samaria I saw prophets acting like silly fools—shocking! They preached using that no-god Baal for a text, messing with the minds of my people. And the Jerusalem prophets are even worse—horrible!— sex-driven, living a lie, Subsidizing a culture of wickedness, and never giving it a second thought. They're as bad as those wretches in old Sodom, the degenerates of old Gomorrah."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Moreover, among the prophets of Samaria I saw an offensive thing: They prophesied by Baal and led My people Israel astray.

Contextual Overview

9 My heart is crushed, and I am trembling. Because of the Lord , because of his holy words, I am like a man who is drunk, someone who has had too much wine. 10 The land is full of people unfaithful to the Lord ; they live wicked lives and misuse their power. Because of the Lord 's curse the land mourns and the pastures are dry. 11 The Lord says, "The prophets and the priests are godless; I have caught them doing evil in the Temple itself. 12 The paths they follow will be slippery and dark; I will make them stumble and fall. I am going to bring disaster on them; the time of their punishment is coming. I, the Lord , have spoken. 13 I have seen the sin of Samaria's prophets: they have spoken in the name of Baal and have led my people astray. 14 But I have seen the prophets in Jerusalem do even worse: they commit adultery and tell lies; they help people to do wrong, so that no one stops doing what is evil. To me they are all as bad as the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. 15 "So then, this is what I, the Lord Almighty, say about the prophets of Jerusalem: I will give them bitter plants to eat and poison to drink, because they have spread ungodliness throughout the land." 16 The Lord Almighty said to the people of Jerusalem, "Do not listen to what the prophets say; they are filling you with false hopes. They tell you what they have imagined and not what I have said. 17 To the people who refuse to listen to what I have said, they keep saying that all will go well with them. And they tell everyone who is stubborn that disaster will never touch them." 18 I said, "None of these prophets has ever known the Lord 's secret thoughts. None of them has ever heard or understood his message, or ever listened or paid attention to what he said.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

folly: or, an absurd thing, Heb. unsavoury

prophets: Hosea 9:7, Hosea 9:8

prophesied: Jeremiah 2:8, 1 Kings 18:18-21, 1 Kings 18:25-28, 1 Kings 18:40

and: 2 Chronicles 33:9, Isaiah 9:16

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 18:20 - the prophet Proverbs 13:17 - wicked Isaiah 28:7 - err in Isaiah 56:10 - they are all dumb Jeremiah 36:2 - against Israel Ezekiel 13:10 - seduced Amos 2:4 - and their Matthew 7:15 - false Matthew 7:22 - have we

Cross-References

Genesis 23:5
They answered,
Genesis 23:8
and said, "If you are willing to let me bury my wife here, please ask Ephron son of Zohar
2 Samuel 24:24
But the king answered, "No, I will pay you for it. I will not offer to the Lord my God sacrifices that have cost me nothing." And he bought the threshing place and the oxen for fifty pieces of silver.
Acts 20:35
I have shown you in all things that by working hard in this way we must help the weak, remembering the words that the Lord Jesus himself said, ‘There is more happiness in giving than in receiving.'"
Romans 13:8
Be under obligation to no one—the only obligation you have is to love one another. Whoever does this has obeyed the Law.
Colossians 4:5
Be wise in the way you act toward those who are not believers, making good use of every opportunity you have.
Hebrews 13:5
Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, "I will never leave you; I will never abandon you."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria,.... The ten tribes of Israel, among whom, in Ahab's time there were many false prophets, Baal's prophets, even four hundred and fifty; whose "folly" the Lord had formerly taken notice of; even their idolatry and impiety for giving into which the ten tribes had been carried captive years ago. The word r here used signifies that which is "unsavoury": something very unsavoury in their doctrines, and in their lives; they were as salt which has lost its savour and is good for nothing; to which bad ministers are compared, Matthew 5:13. These words are to be read in connection with the following, and may be rendered, "indeed I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria"; of Israel in times past; "but I have seen in the prophets of Jerusalem" s that which is far worse; and therefore they must not expect to escape; or, as the Syriac version, "as I have seen in the prophets of Samaria--so have I seen in the prophets of Jerusalem", c. so that here is a comparison run between them and the latter are represented as worse than the former, though they were bad enough; as follows: for

they prophesied in Baal; in the name of Baal, whose prophets they were; so the Targum,

"they prophesied in the name of idols:''

or, "they prophesied by Baal", as the Septuagint version t; they pretended to be inspired by him, and to receive their prophecies from him: or, "they prophesied concerning Baal"; what he would do for them, for those that worshipped him. The Arabic version is, "they prophesied in my name to Baal"; which seems to be foreign from the sense of the place:

and caused my people Israel to err; by following their directions and instructions, and worshipping Baal.

r תפלה "insulsitatem", Junius Tremellius, Piscator, Schmidt "intulsa", Pagninus; "insulsam rem", Munster, Vatablus; "insulsum", Montanus, Cocceius. s So Schmidt. t בבעל, δια τον βααλ, Sept. "per Baalem", Schmidt. So Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And I have seen folly ... - Rather, “Also I have seen.” The prophet contrasts the prophets of Samaria with those of Jerusalem. In the conduct of the former God saw folly (literally that which is insipid, as being unsalted). It was stupidity to prophesy by Baal, an idol.

In Baal - i. e., in the name of Baal.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Jeremiah 23:13. I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria — This was not to be wondered at, for their religion was a system of corruption.


 
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