Jeremiah 29:8-9
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
What's easily missed is that the "dreams" the people shouldn't listen to aren't just random nighttime visions; they're dreams they cause to be dreamed. This highlights that people actively sought out and encouraged false prophets and comforting lies because they preferred them to the difficult truth of God's word.
For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the LORD.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The people of Judah are in exile in Babylon, and just as false prophets misled them back home, they are now facing similar deception in their foreign land. Jeremiah's letter warns them not to listen to the flattering pronouncements of these self-appointed prophets and dream interpreters who promise a quick return, because God’s Word says the exile will last seventy years.
In exile, the people longed for home. This longing made them vulnerable to anyone promising a quick return, even if it meant ignoring God's truth.
Jeremiah's audience in Babylon was bombarded with comforting but false prophecies. These 'prophets' and 'diviners' preyed on their deep desire to go back to Jerusalem.
The Marketplace of Falsehood
These false prophets weren't just dreamers; they were actively creating a market for comforting lies. As one commentary puts it, 'as long as there was a market for dreams, so long there would be plenty of impostors to supply them.' The people's own desires fueled this deception. They wanted to hear about an immediate return, so these false prophets kept telling them what they wanted to hear.
God's Authority, Their Deception
The verse begins with a powerful reminder: 'For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel.' This is God's direct word, countering the whispers of deception. He is the ultimate authority, and His message, though difficult (70 years of exile), was the truth. The people's willingness to 'listen to the dreams that they dream' was a choice to embrace falsehood over divine revelation.
God speaks, but so do others. How do we discern the voice of truth from the noise of wishful thinking and self-deception?
Jeremiah 29:8 points to a crucial distinction: God's messengers versus those who operate outside His authority. The 'prophets and diviners' in Babylon were offering messages that suited the people's immediate desires, not God's long-term plan.
Ask a follow-up
Divine Commission vs. Popular Appeal
True prophets, like Jeremiah, speak with God's authority. False prophets, however, are often driven by popular demand or their own agenda. The phrase 'dreams which ye cause to be dreamed' is particularly striking. It suggests that the people's own yearning for comfort and their willingness to believe soothing lies created the demand that these false prophets fulfilled. They weren't just dreaming up prophecies; the people were, in essence, 'making them' dream by giving them an eager audience and credibility.
The Root of Deception
This isn't just about external false teachers; it's about our internal willingness to be deceived. When we 'love to have it so,' as Jeremiah 5:31 states, we become partners in our own delusion. God's message in this verse is a call to discernment: test the messages you hear, especially those that feel too good to be true or that conveniently align with your deepest wishes, against the trustworthy Word of God.
Understand the original words
tseba'ot · Hebrew Noun
A title emphasizing God as the Commander of all angelic armies and the universe, highlighting His supreme sovereignty and power over all nations and realms.
nabi · Hebrew Noun
Individuals who claimed to speak for God but lacked divine commission, often leading people astray through false assurances and counterfeit spiritual experiences.
qesem · Hebrew Noun
Individuals who practice forbidden occult arts to predict the future or gain secret knowledge, explicitly condemned in Scripture as an affront to God's sole authority.
nasha' · Hebrew Verb
The act of being misled or seduced by false teachings or idols, causing one to abandon truth and trust in things that do not exist or have no power.
sheqer · Hebrew Noun
In a biblical context, it refers to a falsehood or an idol that lacks substance; it is a direct opposition to the truth and character of God.
The exiles were yearning for home, making them susceptible to comforting lies. Jeremiah's letter, and this warning within it, reveals the tension between the people's desires and God's divine plan for their extended exile and eventual return.
605 BC
First Deportation to Babylon
Under King Jehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon begins deporting Jewish nobles and skilled workers, including Daniel, to Babylon.
597 BC
Second Deportation to Babylon
Following a rebellion, King Jehoiachin and more prominent citizens are exiled to Babylon, intensifying the Jewish presence there.
586 BC
Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple
Nebuchadnezzar conquers Jerusalem, destroying the city and Solomon's Temple, leading to a final, large-scale deportation of the remaining population.
c. 580 BC— this verse
Jeremiah's Letter to the Exiles
Jeremiah, still in or near Jerusalem, sends a letter to the exiles in Babylon, instructing them to settle, build, and pray for their captors, warning them against false prophets.
c. 570 BC
False Prophets Continue to Deceive
Despite Jeremiah's clear message, many false prophets among the exiles are still stirring up hope for a quick return, contradicting God's word.
539 BC
Fall of Babylon to Persia
Cyrus the Great of Persia conquers Babylon, a significant event that eventually leads to the decree allowing the Jews to return to their homeland.
538 BC
Decree of Cyrus
Cyrus issues a decree permitting the Jewish exiles to return to Jerusalem and rebuild their Temple, fulfilling the prophecy of a 70-year exile.
This passage echoes Jeremiah's warning about false prophets, describing how they speak visions from their own minds and tell people smooth things, promising peace when there is no peace, much like the deceptive messages the exiles were hearing.
Deuteronomy 18:21-22This passage provides the standard for discerning true prophecy: if what a prophet says does not come true, then they have spoken falsely. Jeremiah's message to the exiles is a direct application of this principle, urging them to reject prophets whose predictions contradict God's revealed will and timing.
Isaiah 30:9-10Similar to Jeremiah 29:8, Isaiah condemns people who want to hear comforting lies instead of the truth, telling prophets to 'prophesy smooth things' and 'deceits.' This highlights the role of the people's own desires in fueling false prophecy.
Ezekiel 13:6-7Ezekiel explicitly denounces prophets who see false visions and practice divination, claiming they have seen a lie and a lying divination. This parallels Jeremiah's warning in Babylon, where false prophets were also at work, offering misleading hope.
1 John 4:1This New Testament verse urges believers to 'test the spirits' to see if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This principle of testing prophetic messages against God's character and Word is directly relevant to the exiles being warned by Jeremiah.
barnesJeremiah 29:8: "For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed."
Your prophets and your diviners - The evils from which the people had suffered so cruelly at home followed them in their exile. Dreams which ye cause to be dreamed - As long as there was a market for dreams, so long there would be plenty of impostors to supply them.
clarkeJeremiah 29:8: "For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed."
Neither hearken to your dreams - Rather, dreamers; for it appears there was a class of such persons, who not only had acquired a facility of dreaming themselves, but who undertook to interpret the dreams of others.
What's easily missed is that the "dreams" the people shouldn't listen to aren't just random nighttime visions; they're dreams they cause to be dreamed. This highlights that people actively sought out and encouraged false prophets and comforting lies because they preferred them to the difficult truth of God's word.
The people of Judah are in exile in Babylon, and just as false prophets misled them back home, they are now facing similar deception in their foreign land. Jeremiah's letter warns them not to listen to the flattering pronouncements of these self-appointed prophets and dream interpreters who promise a quick return, because God’s Word says the exile will last seventy years.
The people of Judah are in exile in Babylon, and just as false prophets misled them back home, they are now facing similar deception in their foreign land. Jeremiah's letter warns them not to listen to the flattering pronouncements of these self-appointed prophets and dream interpreters who promise a quick return, because God’s Word says the exile will last seventy years.
"For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I d…" — What's easily missed is that the "dreams" the people shouldn't listen to aren't just random nighttime visions; they're dreams they cause to be dreamed. This highlights that people actively sought o…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026
