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Against the False Prophetesses
v. 17. Likewise, thou son of man, set thy face against the daughters of thy people, the very expression signifying that these false prophetesses had cut themselves off from any true fellowship with the true God, which prophesy out of their own heart, pretending an inspiration which had not been vouchsafed them; and prophesy thou against them,
v. 18. and say, Thus saith the Lord God, Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls, literally, "who sew together for themselves coverings for all joints of My hands and make caps for the head of every size to catch souls!" that is, their false prophecies served to cover the joints of the Lord, so that He was hindered in carrying out His intentions against them; and they provide veils, or caps, thick coverings, for the heads of all men, no matter what their status and stature, so that they fit each individual ease and keep the persons concerned from hearing and seeing the truth and the effect of the truth upon others. Will ye hunt the souls of My people, coaxing them to their destruction, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you? or, "ye will hunt the souls among My people, and ye will save souls alive among you!" that is, they would cause the souls of others to perish, while making every attempt to save their own.
v. 19. And will ye pollute Me among My people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, the reward of unrighteousness, the price which they demanded for their false messages proclaimed by them, to slay the souls that should not die, to barter away immortal souls for paltry gain, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by promising safety to those on the broad way to ruin, by your lying to My people that hear your lies, accepting their false statements as divine truth.
v. 20. Wherefore, thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I am against your pillows wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly, that is, Jehovah, the God of the covenant, intended to take away the covers which the false prophetesses used, and to liberate the souls which they had enmeshed by their fine speeches; and I will tear them from your arms and will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt to make them fly, so that they might escape like birds from the net of a fowler.
v. 21. Your kerchiefs also, the caps which they used for such evil purposes, will I tear and deliver My people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted, to be the prey of their wicked designs; and ye shall know that I am the Lord, His righteous judgments, carried out in this manner, being a proof of His true godhead.
v. 22. Because with lies ye have made the heart of the righteous sad, since flair false messages threw suspicions upon the true believers among the exiles, whom I have not made sad, and strengthened the hands of the wicked, who relied upon their false representations, that he should not return from his wicked way, by promising him life,
v. 23. therefore ye shall see no more vanity, have visions of things which were without foundation, which were invented by them for their own evil purposes, nor divine divinations, in false predictions of the future; for I will deliver My people out of your hand, namely, those who are Israelites in truth; and ye shall know that I am the Lord. As false teachers, imitating the ways of the Lord's true servants, deceive souls and cause them to perish, so, on the other hand, the true ministers of God plainly tell the unrighteous that they are doomed to destruction, while they promise safety and deliverance to those who place their trust in the grace of Jehovah.