Bible Strands
Jeremiah 5:12
They have lied about the LORD and said: “He will not do anything; harm will not come to us; we will not see sword or famine.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD speaks through Jeremiah to the house of Israel and Judah at a moment of confirmed national apostasy, directly following a declaration of their complete unfaithfulness.
The words — כִּֽחֲשׁוּ (ki.cha.Shu) translates literally as “they have denied” or “they have lied,” and תָב֤וֹא (ta.Vo') means “it will come.” These terms anchor the verse’s claim that the people falsely assert Yahweh will remain inactive and that no disaster will approach them.
The thread — This pattern of false reassurance appears in Deuteronomy 29:19, where a hardened heart claims “I will have peace,” and is historically fulfilled in 2 Chronicles 36:16, where mocking God’s messengers brings wrath.
Why it lands — The text requires readers to confront the danger of declaring God silent while living in open rebellion, and to recognize that such claims are self-deception rather than prophecy.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
They have belied the Lord, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine:
Cross-references
- 2 Chronicles 36:16 But they mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against His people was stirred up beyond remedy.
- Deuteronomy 29:19 because when such a person hears the words of this oath, he invokes a blessing on himself, saying, ‘I will have peace, even though I walk in the stubbornness of my own heart.’ This will bring disaster on the watered land as well as the dry.
- 1 Samuel 6:9 but keep watching it. If it goes up the road to its homeland, toward Beth-shemesh, it is the LORD who has brought on us this great disaster. But if it does not, then we will know that it was not His hand that punished us and that it happened by chance.”
- Psalms 10:6 He says to himself, “I will not be moved; from age to age I am free of distress.”
- Isaiah 28:14 Therefore hear the word of the LORD, O scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem.
- Jeremiah 5:31 The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own authority. My people love it so, but what will you do in the end?
- Jeremiah 14:13 “Ah, Lord GOD!” I replied, “Look, the prophets are telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine, but I will give you lasting peace in this place.’”
- Jeremiah 23:14 And among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing: They commit adultery and walk in lies. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns his back on wickedness. They are all like Sodom to Me; the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”
- Jeremiah 28:4 And I will restore to this place Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, along with all the exiles from Judah who went to Babylon,’ declares the LORD, ‘for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.’”
- Jeremiah 28:15 Then the prophet Jeremiah said to the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah! The LORD did not send you, but you have persuaded this people to trust in a lie.