Jeremiah 8:10
Therefore will I give their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall inherit them: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
Study Note
Study Note
The condemnation paralleling 6:13 — that 'from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness; from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely' — reinforces Jeremiah's accusation that false prophecy was not an isolated phenomenon but a systemic failure of Israel's leadership institutions. The phrase 'they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly' (8:11) employs medical metaphor: prophets and priests have offered superficial diagnosis and treatment when the disease was terminal. The sociological significance of a religious establishment's vested interest in optimistic oracles is a perennial concern that makes this passage perennially relevant as a critique of court prophecy, civil religion, and comfortable theology. Walter Brueggemann's analysis of Jeremiah as the paradigmatic prophetic imagination draws heavily on this passage.
Other Translations
Therefore will I give their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall possess them: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness; from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
Therefore, I give their wives to others, Their fields to dispossessors, For from the least even unto the greatest, Every one is gaining dishonest gain, From prophet even unto priest, every one is dealing falsely.
So I will give their wives to others, and their fields to those who will take them for themselves: for everyone, from the least to the greatest, is given up to getting money; from the priest even to the prophet, everyone is false.
Cross References
Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build an house, and thou shalt …
Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing …
But they also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way; the priest and the …
His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving …
Come ye, say they, I will fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and to morrow shall …
The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: …
And their houses shall be turned unto others, with their fields and wives together: for I will stretch out my …
For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness; and from …
For both prophet and priest are profane; yea, in my house have I found their wickedness, saith the Lord.
They say still unto them that despise me, The Lord hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto …