Jeremiah 23:18
in Jeremiah 23But which of them has stood in the council of the LORD to see and hear His word? Who has given heed to His word and obeyed it?
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For who hath stood in the council of Jehovah, that he should perceive and hear his word? who hath marked my word, and heard it?
KJV
For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it?
⋯
This verse in Jeremiah 23
Commentary
8 notes on this verseFor who - Which of those prophets, that prophesy such terrible things against this city is a privy-counsellor to God? The words seem to be the words of the false prophets.
This site's exposition
This is what the LORD of
on Jeremiah 23:16-22
A true word is tested by its source. These prophets “speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD,” and promise, “No harm will come to you.” Verse 22 gives the test, since true prophets would have “turned them back from their evil ways and deeds.”
This site's exposition
stood in the council of the LORD
The council is the LORD's inner circle, where a true prophet hears His word. Henry reads the question as a challenge to the false prophets, who never stood there. Wesley hears it as the false prophets' own taunt at Jeremiah.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Who of you has, that are so confident of this? You deliver this message with a great deal of assurance; but have you consulted God about it? No; you never considered whether it be agreeable to the discoveries God has made of himself, whether it will consist with the honour of his holiness and justice, to let sinners go unpunished.
For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord,....
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
A reason is given why the false prophets should not be heeded: They have not stood in the counsels of Jehovah (an image from ministers present in a standing posture at councils of Eastern kings) (compare Jer 23:22;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
Who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord - Who of them has ever received a word of prophecy from me? My word is not in them.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The prophet now applies this test to the circumstances of the times. A whirlwind has already gone forth Jer 23:19. Had these false prophets stood in God’s secret “Council” (so in Jer 23:22), they like Jeremiah would have labored to avert the danger by turning men from their evil way.
The words behind it
13 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כִּ֣י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| מִ֤י | mi | who? | H4310 → | 423 times |
| עָמַד֙ | ʾamad | has he stood | H5975 → | 521 times |
| בְּס֣וֹד | besod | in [the] council of | H5475 → | 21 times |
| יְהוָ֔ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| וְיֵ֖רֶא | veyere' | so he may see | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| וְיִשְׁמַ֣ע | veyishma' | and he may hear | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| דְּבָר֑וֹ | devaro | word his | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| מִֽי־ | mi- | who? | H4310 → | 423 times |
| הִקְשִׁ֥יב | hikshiv | has he paid attention to | H7181 → | 46 times |
| דְּבָר֖וֹ | devaro | word his | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| וַיִּשְׁמָֽע׃ ס | vaiyishma' | and has he listened? | H8085 → | 1159 times |
כִּ֣יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
מִ֤יwho?
miH4310 →423 times
עָמַד֙has he stood
ʾamadH5975 →521 times
בְּס֣וֹדin [the] council of
besodH5475 →21 times
יְהוָ֔הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
וְיֵ֖רֶאso he may see
veyere'H7200 →1300 times
וְיִשְׁמַ֣עand he may hear
veyishma'H8085 →1159 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
דְּבָר֑וֹword his
devaroH1697 →1440 times
מִֽי־who?
mi-H4310 →423 times
הִקְשִׁ֥יבhas he paid attention to
hikshivH7181 →46 times
דְּבָר֖וֹword his
devaroH1697 →1440 times
וַיִּשְׁמָֽע׃ סand has he listened?
vaiyishma'H8085 →1159 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Amos 3:7Surely the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.
it leads to
- John 15:15
No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 18:17
And the LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?
- Psalms 25:14
The LORD confides in those who fear Him, and reveals His covenant to them.
- Revelation 1:1
This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John,
- Daniel 9:22–27
He instructed me and spoke with me, saying: “O Daniel, I have come now to give you insight and understanding.
- John 15:15
Through
1 Corinthians 2:16“For who has known the mind of the Lord, so as to instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
it leads to
- Isaiah 40:13–14
Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or informed Him as His counselor?
- Romans 11:34
“Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been His counselor?”
- John 16:13–16
However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to…
- Isaiah 40:13–14
Where this verse is studied
About Jeremiah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, The Prophecies of Jeremiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.