(Jeremiah 23:28) “Let the prophet who has a dream tell his dream, but let the one who has My Word speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain” declares the LORD?
Introduction:
God always warns His spiritually backslidden unrepentant people before He sends judgement. This is consistent with both the Old and the New Testament.
Jeremiah was God’s prophet in the very last days of the Kingdom of Judah. As the Babylonians were on the move towards the Southern Kingdom of Judah the people of Judah and Jerusalem were listening to the many false prophets who were themselves ‘prophesying’ falsely and into dreams and visions big time!
The people of Jerusalem and Judah by and large were swallowing their ‘prophecies’ with exuberant anticipation, having ‘itching ears’ to hear what they wanted to hear, and not what they needed to hear.
The false prophets were like the expelling of wind with no substance and the Word of God was not in them, so their words carried no wait and would bring about their own downfall (Jeremiah 5:13).
Not only the prophets, but the priests who should have had spiritual oversight, were Lording it over the people with heavy shepherding and God’s people loved it this way. To the LORD this was a horrible and shocking thing to be happening to His people
However, when “the axe was being laid to the root” of the kingdom of Judah because of their unrepentant attitude concerning their sins, the end would be a disaster and the corrupt prophets and priests would not escape (Jeremiah 5:30-31).
Jeremiah also tells us for the most part the people from the king’s throne down to the citizens of Jerusalem were all greedy for gain, prophets and priests alike, all practicing deceit.
The false prophets were dressing the spiritual problems of His people with ‘band aids’ as it were, but not dealing with the root cause of their sinful spiritual condition. The prophets and the priests were not treating the people’s sin as serious and prophesying and installing into them a false sense of peace. In effect the prophets and priests were comforting the people in their sins.
These false prophets and priests were unashamed of their loathsome conduct and did not even know how to blush at the sinful practices of the people of God that had spiritually backslidden, and they, together with the false prophets and priests, would most certainly perish at the hands of the Babylonians (Jeremiah 6:13-15).
These false prophets were prophesying to the people a false vision, a worthless occult divination, and the futility and delusions of their own minds.
They were telling the people laden down with unconfessed, un-renounced sin that the whole land of Judah would not see the sword or famine, and that God would give them as His people lasting peace. They were prophesying lies in His name. The LORD had not sent them or appointed them to speak to His people.
These same prophets would perish by sword and famine and the people of Jerusalem thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword (Jeremiah 14:13-16).
The prophets and priests were following an evil course, using their power unjustly, showing partiality and godlessness, even practicing their wickedness in the Temple.
They would slide down a slippery path having been banished from God’s presence to darkness and punishment for their spiritual deception perpetrated on the people (Jeremiah 23:10b-12).
The false prophets were filling the people laden down with their sins, a steady diet of false hopes, speaking the visions of their own making and not from the mouth of the LORD.
They kept saying to those who were despising the LORD, who were stubborn in their attitude towards Him, that the LORD was saying they would have peace and that no harm would come to them. Of course it was spiritual deception big time!
God said through Jeremiah that none of these false prophets had stood in God’s council to see and to hear and to listen to His Word (Jeremiah 23:16-18).
God did not send these prophets yet they ran enthusiastically with their own message, vision or dream. God had not spoken to them, yet they went ahead anyway and prophesied lies and deception in His name.
However, if they had stood in God’s presence and before His heavenly council they would have warned the people of coming judgement if they did not repent and turn from their sin and rebellion against God’s Word. Instead of comforting the people in their sins and with a false hope, if the prophets were from God then they would have turned His people from their evil ways and from their evil deeds (Jeremiah 23:21-22). Now let’s look at our text…
Jeremiah 23:25-32
Exposition:
(Vs.25) “I have heard what the prophets say who prophesy lies in My name. They say, ‘I had a dream! I had a dream!’”
Some years ago I attended a meeting run by the NAR (New Apostolic Reformation) now called ICAL (International Coalition of Apostolic Leadership). There was a so called ‘prophet’ of sorts up front on stage prophesying a wave of spiritual revival that he saw coming to Victoria and had a video playing behind him of images of waves sweeping in on a shoreline, and it was clear he was proclaiming his ‘dream’ or ‘vision.’ It did not happen.
In fact he was propagating the Kingdom Dominion doctrine that teaches that the Church ultimately will take possession of the nations and present them as Christianised nations to the Lord Jesus when He returns.
This ‘doctrine’ is nowhere taught in the Word of God!
According to the Word of God the saints (The Body of Messiah spiritually grafted into Israel) inherit the Messianic Kingdom on earth only after the Messiah’s Second Coming, and that only after He has destroyed all opposition to His Kingdom, especially the empire of the Antichrist (Daniel 7:20-27).
The Kingdom Dominion, Kingdom Now doctrine was made popular by the heretic William Braham (1909–1965) who publically denied the Trinity saying it was of the devil. I heard him say it! The movement at the time was called “The manifest sons of God,” a bedfellow with the NAR movement today which is a bedfellow of faith prosperity doctrine.
Another movement that is connected to the NAR movement is the “Seven Mountain Mandate” which, as I understand, also by passes Israel’s end time prophetic purposes.
Now after this meeting I attended I went up to the NAR leader and asked him “has your movement replaced Israel?” He replied; “yes it has.” While discussing these movements is not the purpose of this study it is clear that these movements are bed fellows with replacement theology.
Scripture is clear that as this age closes there will be all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, spiritual deception from those with a false anointing, persecution of the Body of Messiah on a global scale, and all of the nations gathering to attack Israel. Wars, famines, pestilence and nations in turmoil are becoming the norm today and Israel is a nation again after almost 2,000 years of exile from the Holy Land .
In fact Israel is God’s prophetic time clock for the nations! If the Lord Jesus does not come back no flesh will survive (Matthew 24:21-22).
This is why Satan is turning all of the nations against Israel. He thinks in his twisted mindset that if He destroys the Jews and the nation of Israel that the Messiah will not have a kingdom to come back to.
Also the great end-time apostasy, which is already in play within wider Christendom, and the revealing of the man of sin, must precede the Second Coming of the Messiah our Lord Jesus and the snatching up of the Body of Messiah to meet Him in the air at His coming.
(These matters have been addressed on this website).
Kingdom Dominion and the New Apostolic Movement with its false promotion of an unbiblical view of apostles and prophets is an “infestation” in Charismatic circles today. Modern ‘Charismania’ is infested with false prophets plying their wares to gullible naive believers with itching ears to hear what they want to hear (2 Timothy 4:3-4). (See; “Kingdom Dominion Now?”)
Just watch the internet and you will see these “wolves in sheep’s clothing” fleecing the sheep of their hard earned dollars, fuelled by dreams and visions and emotionally charged ‘prophecies’ of one sort or another, with no exposition of scripture. These are hirelings! (John 10:12-13). Once they have their money they fly out of town in their Lear jets leaving the sheep to Satan’s power.
In fact these false teachers and ‘profits’… oops ‘prophets,’ do not even know how to rightly divide the Word of Truth! (See; Propheteering Dreamers & Schemers)
The largest Christian Broadcasting Network globally has these false teachers and prophets operating side by side with reputable ministries. It is a mixture which God hates (Deuteronomy 22:10-11) (See; The Murky Mixture). Let’s move on…
(Vs.26) “How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions of their own minds?”
These lying prophets were those who were deluded in their thinking. They not only deceived others but were themselves deceived and “legends in their own minds.” In other words they believed their own publicity!
We are told in 2nd Timothy that these kinds of prophets or false teachers are men who oppose the truth, men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned are rejected, however, with those who have spiritual discernment their folly will be exposed.
These evil men and imposters (enchanters) will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived). Just as Jannes and Jambres Pharaoh’s magicians opposed Moses and Aaron, and were, by occult power able up to a point to counterfeit the miracles of Moses and Aaron (2 Timothy 3:8-9, 13).
Not all supernatural miracles or healings are from God. The gift of discernment of spirits is desperately needed today within the wider Body of Messiah! All kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders will pave the way for the coming of the man of sin (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10). Now let’s continue…
(Vs.27) “They think the dreams they tell one another will make My people forget My name, just as their ancestors forgot My name through Baal worship.”
The worship of Baal was multifaceted and involved several key practices that were abhorrent to the God of Israel. One of the most notorious aspects of Baal worship was child sacrifice.
The Bible explicitly condemns this practice, which was associated with the worship of Molech, another deity often linked with Baal. God expresses His abhorrence of such practices: “They have built the high places of Baal to burn their children in the fire as offerings to Baal—something I did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind” (Jeremiah 19:5).
This horrific practice was an attempt to appease the gods and ensure favour, but it was a direct violation of God’s commands and a grievous sin.
Sexual immorality was another significant component of Baal worship. The worship of Baal often involved ritual prostitution, where both male and female prostitutes would engage in sexual acts as part of religious ceremonies.
Baal worship also included elaborate feasts and festivals, which were often marked by drunkenness and revelry. These celebrations were intended to honour Baal and seek his favour for the coming agricultural season.
All idolatry is in fact the worship of demons (Deuteronomy 32:16-17) (Psalm 106:36-37) (1 Corinthians 10:20).
False prophets and teachers are not only influenced by demonic power but will often copycat each other as well and invite one another to their respective church pulpits to bolster their false unbiblical doctrines and manifestations of one sort or another. As the saying goes; “birds of a feather flock together.” Let’s continue…
(Vs.28) “Let the prophet who has a dream recount the dream, but let the one who has My Word speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain?” declares the LORD.”
Now dreams and visions have their place among God’s people in both Testaments. Every dream and vision of course is subject to the Word of God. God will never reveal a dream or a vision that is not in line with His Word.
In these last of the very last days in which we are now living, the LORD said through His prophetic word that after He had poured out His Spirit on all flesh that His sons and daughters (New Covenant Believers) would prophesy, that old men would dream dreams, and that young men would see visions (Joel 2:28-29) (Acts 2:17-18).
On the day of Pentecost when this occurred the last days commenced. However, what happened at Pentecost will happen again at the end of this present age when a remnant in Israel will be saved! (Romans 11:25-29).
So the LORD says that the prophet who has a dream should share it. However, dreams alone do not necessarily come from Him, but can be the result of a very fertile unsanctified imagination, or even by an evil spirit masquerading as an angel of light through the one relating his or her dream.
Notice what the LORD also says. He says the dream is valid if it from Him, however the most reliable endorsement of His will and purposes is the one who possesses His Word in their heart and mind, rightly dividing the Word of Truth and preaches it faithfully and that without compromising it.
The LORD mentions “straw” and “grain” and shows that the grain is superior to straw. Now straw in itself has no nutritional value and neither is it really suited for human consumption, whereas wheat has nutritional value and is suitable for human consumption.
Dreams come and go and they can be deceptive, but God’s Word remains the same (1 Peter 1:25) (Psalm 89:34).
Dreams and visions may help God’s people spiritually, however, the most reliable and lasting spiritual nourishment comes from the nutritious grain of God’s Word. As we read in Luke’s gospel “The seed is the Word of God” (Luke 8:11).
Only a life or a fellowship built on the solid foundation of God’s Word will stand when the spiritual storms hit hard. The life or fellowship built on the foundation of sand being anything other than the Word of God, no matter how popular and splendid in is outwardly, it will not stand when the spiritual storms hit hard. (Matthew 7:24-27).
And again we read in Peter’s first letter; “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God” (1 Peter 1:23).
Dreams and visions may move people emotionally and even bring encouragement and this is valid, however, it is only God’s Word empowered by the Holy Spirit that can bring about spiritual fruitfulness, endurance and spiritual transformation deep down on the inside. Let’s look at this…
(Vs.29) “Is not My Word like fire,” declares the LORD…”
When God’s Word is preached under the anointing of the Holy Spirit the spiritually arid hearts of men and women are set alight by the spiritual flame of the convicting and converting work of the Holy Spirit. It is a purifying work that He does.
As we read the words of John the Baptist when he proclaimed;
“As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (Matthew 3:11-12) (NASB).
Malachi the prophet spoke of this refining of God’s people that would come when the Messiah our Lord Jesus tabernacled among men after His incarnation. After His death, resurrection and ascension into heaven when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Day of Pentecost the refining process that was at work in the ministry of the Lord Jesus would continue through His followers (John 14:11-13).
Also this passage in Malachi has a prophetic application related to Israel at the end of this age. This refining would primarily be for those entrusted by God to preach His Word (Malachi 3:1-4).
When the Holy Spirit fell upon the 120 in the upper room on the Day of Pentecost it was not only an empowering to witness to the Messiah our Lord Jesus (Acts 1:8) (John 7:37-39), but it was also spiritually purifying of those he fell upon. We see tongues of fire resting upon each one of them (Acts 2:1-4).
As a result of this work of sanctification and endowment of supernatural power by the Holy Spirit 3,000 were “cut to the heart and cried out “men and brethren what shall we do?” Peter told them what to do. They needed to repent, be baptised in the name of Jesus to be identified with Him for the forgiveness of sin, and receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:37-38).
When the fire of the Holy Spirit falls upon anyone or a group of people gathered to hear the word of God there will be repentance and a confession and a renunciation of sin resulting in the purifying of the thoughts, motives and intentions of the heart.
We see this in the case of Gentiles gathered together in the house of Cornelius the Roman Centurion who were all baptised with the Holy Spirit corporately. We read where their hearts were purified by faith (Acts 15:8-11).
In the case of the 120 they were already regenerated spiritually by the Holy Spirit (John 15:3). When they were baptised by the Holy Spirit their hearts were purified and subsequently they were empowered to witness and work for the Lord Jesus (Luke 24:49) (Acts 1:8; 2:4).
In the case of Cornelius and those Gentiles gathered in his house they received the spiritual package deal. They were born again and baptised by the Holy Spirit and then were baptised in water by immersion (Acts 10:44-48).
It is interesting to note that in virtually all of the cases in the Book of Acts where people received the Holy Spirit it was a corporate experience. Let’s move on…
“…and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?”
Charles Spurgeon wrote; “The Word of God is the anvil upon which the opinions of men are smashed.” It is only the Word of God applied to a person’s affections, intellect, and their will and especially to their conscience by the Holy Spirit, that will bring about spiritual transformation (John 16:8-11).
With man this is impossible no matter how finely crafted a sermon may be, but with God nothing is impossible where the convicting and converting work of the Holy Spirit is involved and directing the message being proclaimed.
The Word of God is God’s spiritual hammer to break apart the rock like hardness of the heart to God’s spiritual power and purpose for people’s lives, whether they are unsaved, or those who have been saved but have become backsliders or have grown cold in their love for our Triune God.
When you consider the power of God’s Word applied in the power of the Spirit this is spiritually nutritious spiritual grain for the spirit, the soul and the body (Proverbs 4:22).
When you consider dreams, and there are dreams that do come from God, as far as dreams are concerned they are for the most part like straw that can blow away with every wind of doctrine unless these dreams are supported by the Word of God! And then we read…
(Vs.30) “Therefore,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who steal from one another words supposedly from Me.”
False prophets always borrow from one another. We see this in the doctrines of the hyper faith money preachers who all have the same stance when it comes to money and false doctrine concerning the person and work of the Messiah our Lord Jesus.
One of their main doctrines they copy from each other is the Jesus died spiritually doctrine which is heresy and an attack on the deity of the Messiah. (See; “Did Jesus die Spiritually”). And then we read…
(Vs.31-32) “Yes,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and yet declare, ‘The Lord declares.’ “Indeed, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,” declares the LORD. “They tell them and lead My people astray with their reckless lies, yet I did not send or appoint them. They do not benefit these people in the least,” declares the LORD.”
Those who declare that which God has not declared He calls them out as those who wag their own tongues, spewing forth words that are in no way sanctified or even directed by the Holy Spirit.
Whether they are copy catting the words of their fellow false prophets, or announcing the visions and dreams of their own imaginations, or speaking soothing words to draw attention to themselves, or are using their words as a mask for covetousness in order to get money out of God’s people, they are all wagging their tongues as far as God is concerned. God is against these false dreamers and schemers!
False prophets and teachers will abound in the last of the last days in which we are now living, and there are myriads of them around today plying their wares and false doctrines on the internet.
Many are dreaming and scheming to put money into their own pockets and ministries. Their so called ministries are just “straw” compared to the nutritious “grain” of God’s Word!
The apostle Peter in his first letter wrote about these false prophets and teachers who “secretly introduce destructive heresies.” This phrase describes those who are laying truth and error side by side who are themselves bound for hell and who gain many followers who bring the way of truth into disrepute.
In their greed (greedy appetites as false shepherds who feed only themselves) these false teachers exploit their hearers with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping (2 Peter 2:1-3).
Their dreams and visions and their wagging of the tongue may well enchant their hearers who have itching ears to hear what they want to hear from these false preachers and teachers. In the end it will bring upon them spiritual death in Hell and ultimately into the lake of Fire forever.
For example “secretly introducing destructive heresies” can be likened to one having a steady and regular diet of beautiful gourmet sandwiches filled with all kinds of nutritious ingredients but the sandwich is laced with arsenic, a very slow acting poison that is virtually odourless and tasteless. Over time it accumulates in the body and ultimately brings about death.
Spiritual death occurs when God’s people embrace false prophets and teachers and embrace their false and deceptive doctrines.
In his second letter to Timothy Rabbi the apostle Paul calls false teachers “imposters going from bad to worse deceiving and being deceived” (2 Timothy 3:13). These believe in their own publicity. The word in the Greek used for ‘imposters” is the word “enchanters.”
A snake charmer plays his flute and can mesmerise the snake to sway in a hypnotic state to the soothing music as it is controlled by the charmer. This is how false teachers and prophets enchant and hypnotise those who listen to them.
Through their dreams and schemes false prophets and teachers lead God’s people astray with their reckless lies. God has not sent them or appointed them but they have appointed themselves! They do not benefit God’s people in any way at all.
”Reckless lies” describe those who are extravagant in their frivolity in the things they say and exhibit. They are good at telling funny jokes, emotionally moving stories or touting about dreams or visions they claim to have had and in some cases they have made up to sway their hearers to follow them. Visions of this nature are “straw.”
Epilogue:
Today there are multitudes of church congregations that are being ‘charmed’ by these false prophets and teachers who do not know how to rightly divide or handle the Word of truth, the Bible.
Both Peter and Jude write about them, and both apostles pull no punches when describing their character, their conduct and their eternal condemnation (2 Peter 2:10-22) (Jude 1:8-16).
In closing as we sum up, our text says; “Let the prophet who has a dream tell his dream, but let the one who has My Word speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain” declares the LORD?”
Dreams and vision have their place within the assemblies of New Covenant believers, however there is nothing more spiritually nutritious and of eternal value than that of sound Biblical exposition. It is the spiritual nutritious seed that will feed and sustain us spiritually in all the changing circumstances of life.
It is “the street directory” around the kingdom of God. If we want to know where to go and what to say and what to do that are marks of those who are in His kingdom, then we need to read the directions in God’s book the Bible (Psalm 19: 8, 11) (Psalm 43:30) (Psalm 119:105, 130).
It is written in God’s Word; “Where there is no vision the people perish” or an alternate reading says; “Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint; but blessed is he who keeps the Law” (Proverbs 29:18).
In other words when we understand and obey God’s Word we will see things from His perspective and hear His Spirit say “this is the way, walk in it.”
Straw has no nutritious value whereas grain does. False prophets and teachers in their dreaming and scheming have never stood in God’s presence and have no spiritual insight to turn back God’s people when they have backslidden into spiritual error.
True prophets and teachers in most cases, are not popular as we see throughout both Testaments because even though they feel within themselves that they do not have what it takes, they constantly rely on, and cling to the LORD, knowing that He is the one “who reveals His secrets to his servants the prophets” and enables them to prophesy only what He says (Amos 3:7). This will deal decisively with those who dream and scheme contrary to God’s Word!
And so God says to all of those He has called and empowered to declare His unchanging Word, being “the whole counsel of God” with nothing left out or added to it; “Let the prophet who has a dream tell his dream, but let the one who has My Word speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain” declares the LORD?”
