The prophets of Judah prophesied a beautiful message: “Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon! Behold, the vessels of the Lord’s house shall now shortly be brought again from Babylon!” Their message was full of salvation, hope, and joy. Everyone in captivity would return. The vessels of God would be brought back to the temple. The time of God’s wrath was past, for surely the Lord had chastised his people. A new day dawned. The church had a bright future looking forward, and God was with his people for good. There had been some problems in the past. Many bad things had been uncovered, but the people were cleaning up those things, and God was going to turn the captivity of his people and restore his house, which had been stripped of its treasures, and the temple would be a glorious house again. Jehovah had spoken to Judah!

It was a message that the people want to hear. You can see them streaming out of church smiling to one another. They are talking together about what a positive and uplifting message the minister brought that morning. They praise the minister for being so pastoral and for having such a concern for the comfort of the sheep. He does not always preach about sin. They comment about how their souls simply thrill to hear him speak each Sunday. He always seems to know just the right tone to strike, his words are all carefully chosen, and the message is beautifully crafted. They have a very warm feeling inside today. What a gracious God they have!

There were many prophets who preached this beautiful message. And the priests and elders were in favor of that kind of preaching too.

But it was a lie. 

Curious thing! How could the people know who was telling the truth? Those prophets or Jeremiah? Would Jerusalem be sacked or restored? If the prophets’ words came to pass, they were true prophets. That always has been the sign of a true prophet.

Strange sign! Would it not be too late, then? Yes. For the true Word of God carries with it the power of its reception. The true Word of God works faith and has no need of man. The Word comes, and God’s people receive it infallibly and are saved. They bring their necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and they submit to the judgment of God that Jerusalem would go into captivity for seventy years. They are not captivated by the siren songs of the false prophets.

For that word too—the word of the lie—God sent. Oh, he did not send the prophets! They speak in his name, but they are sons of hell and children of the lie with their messages of false grace, hope, and joy. Yet, God did send them in his sovereignty. He sent those prophets with their lying words and their cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive. God said that they prophesy a lie in my name in order that Jehovah drive you out and that ye might perish, ye and the prophets that prophesy unto you. Yes, there was a sovereign and divine purpose in those lying prophets for the people with whom God was not well-pleased and for the false prophets themselves: “Because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2 Thess. 2:10–12).