“To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord GOD.”
My Notes
What Does Ezekiel 13:16 Mean?
Ezekiel identifies the specific content of the false prophets' lies: they see "visions of peace for her"—for Jerusalem—"and there is no peace." The prophets aren't lying about abstract theology. They're lying about the most urgent, practical question of the moment: is Jerusalem safe? They say yes. God says no.
The word "peace" (shalom) in this context means security, safety, well-being. The false prophets looked at Jerusalem—a city on the brink of destruction—and declared: everything is fine. We're safe. God is with us. The temple protects us. The vision they offered was exactly what people wanted to hear and exactly the opposite of what was true.
Jeremiah made the same accusation (Jeremiah 6:14, 8:11): they have "healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace." The false prophet's signature sin is diagnosing a fatal wound as a minor scratch. They look at catastrophe and see comfort. They prescribe reassurance when the patient needs surgery.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Who in your life is telling you 'peace, peace' when the situation might actually require urgent action?
- 2.How do you distinguish between genuine reassurance and dangerous comfort—between real peace and false peace?
- 3.Have you ever been numbed by comfortable lies when you needed uncomfortable truth? What happened when reality broke through?
- 4.What 'vision of peace' are you clinging to that might not be true?
Devotional
"Peace, peace"—and there is no peace. The false prophets looked at a doomed city and said: everything's fine. Safe. Secure. God is with us. And every word was a lie. Not a confused lie—a comfortable one. The lie people wanted to hear in the moment they needed to hear truth.
The most dangerous lies are the ones that feel like comfort. "You're fine." "God would never let that happen." "Things will work out." When these are spoken into a situation that actually requires urgent action, repentance, or radical change—they're not comfort. They're sedation. They numb you to the danger until the danger is inescapable.
The false prophets of Ezekiel's day weren't confused about the truth. They were choosing not to deliver it because the truth was unpopular and the lies were profitable. Telling people what they want to hear is always more lucrative—financially, socially, relationally—than telling them what they need to hear. The market for "peace, peace" is always bigger than the market for "judgment is coming."
Be careful about the voices telling you everything is fine. Not every reassurance is false—sometimes things genuinely are okay. But when the reassurance contradicts what you see with your own eyes, when the "peace" message requires you to ignore obvious warning signs, when the comfort comes from someone who benefits from your complacency—test it. The false prophets saw visions of peace. There was no peace. Don't let someone else's comfortable vision blind you to an uncomfortable reality.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And say, thus saith the Lord God, woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes,.... Or, "put pillows to all elbows"…
We have here more plain dealing with the false prophets, and some further articles of their doom. We have seen the…
to wit, the prophets This construction puts "the prophets" in apposition with the last words of Eze 13:13 "they that…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture