Jeremiah 23:35 Commentary: What Has the Lord Answered?

The surrounding passage (Jeremiah 23:33, 40) confronts a specific profanity: the people, priests, and false prophets had taken the Hebrew word מַשָׂא (massā), which can mean both 'oracle' and 'burden', and twisted it into a joke. Whenever Jeremiah or another true prophet appeared, they would ask sarcastically, 'What is the burden of the Lord?' (v.33). They were treating God's serious warnings as a heavy load they could dismiss, even a punch line. This mocking spirit was widespread during the final years of Judah, when false prophets were promising peace (Jeremiah 23:16, 17) and the people preferred their flattering words over Jeremiah's calls to repentance.

In response, God declares that He will punish anyone who uses the phrase 'burden of the Lord' in derision (v.34). Then He gives a new pattern for inquiry: instead of asking about a 'burden,' the people are to ask, 'What has Yahweh answered?' and 'What has Yahweh spoken?' (v.35). The verbs are perfect tense, ʿānâ ('he answered') and dibbēr ('he spoke'), emphasizing that God has already given a response through His prophet; the issue is whether they will receive it. The term 'burden' is no longer to be used at all (v.36), because their own rebellious words will become a burden that falls back on them.

Culturally, this reflects the ancient Near Eastern practice of addressing a prophet as a divine messenger. The proper response to a prophetic word was not to weigh it like cargo but to listen as a servant to a master. By commanding a different vocabulary, God is re-educating His people in basic reverence. The phrase 'neighbor...brother' underscores that this respectful speech should become the norm in everyday conversation about God's word.

The supplied commentaries do not note any significant textual variants for this verse. The Hebrew text is stable across manuscripts, and ancient versions (LXX, Syriac, Targum) reflect the same reading. Some modern editions note a minor variation in the placement of the opening kōh ('thus'), but it does not change the meaning.

Jeremiah 23:35 has been a touchstone for Christian teaching on reverence for Scripture. The early church cited it to warn against treating prophecy lightly. During the Reformation, Calvin and others used the passage to urge believers to approach the preached word with teachable hearts, not as critics but as disciples. In Puritan and later evangelical preaching, the verse was often applied to how Christians speak of sermons and Bible teaching, encouraging a shift from dismissive comments ('heavy message') to expectant questions ('What has the Lord said?'). It remains a pastoral text for calling entire congregations to a posture of humble listening.

Three-point outline

1. The sin of mocking God's word. The people used "burden" as a dismissive joke, revealing hearts closed to correction. This is a warning against flippancy toward Scripture and preaching (Jeremiah 23:33, 34).
2. The command to replace scorn with reverence. God prescribes a new question: "What has the Lord answered?" The perfect tense verbs (answered, spoken) stress that God has already acted, our job is to listen, not to sneer.
3. The promise of true hearing. When we approach God's word with humility, we position ourselves to receive His answer and to know Him (cf. Jeremiah 33:3).

Five-point outline

1. Context: a nation addicted to false prophecies of peace (Jeremiah 23:16, 17).
2. The specific profanity: using "burden" to mock the prophetic word (v.33).
3. God's judgment: punishment on everyone who uses the term in derision (v.34).
4. The new model: ask reverently, "What has Yahweh answered? What has Yahweh spoken?" (v.35).
5. The reason: God's word is not a burden to shake off; it is holy and life-giving (v.36, 40).

Illustration hooks

• Someone greeting a pastor after a convicting sermon with a smirk: "That was a heavy one, pastor." The word "heavy" can dismiss what God intended to pierce the heart.
• A teenager rolling their eyes when a parent says, "We need to talk about what the Bible says." The posture of the eye-roll is the same as asking, "What's the burden now?"
• Church members who use phrases like "I already know that" or "I've heard this before", treating familiar Scripture as a stale burden rather than a living word.

Questions your congregation is asking

• "Does it really matter what words we use when talking about God's word? Isn't the heart what counts?"
• "How do I know if I'm asking 'What has the Lord said?' with the right attitude, or just going through the motions?"
• "What does it look like to receive a hard message from God (one that feels like a 'burden') as a loving answer?"

This passage is a mirror for how we approach God's word. The people of Judah turned a sacred term into a joke, and God called them back to reverence. As you discuss, consider how the language you use about Scripture reveals what you really believe about it.

Discussion questions

1. Read Jeremiah 23:33, 35. What were the people saying, and why did God forbid it?
2. The Hebrew word massā can mean both "oracle" and "burden." Why do you think the people chose to emphasize the negative meaning?
3. In verse 35, God commands a new question: "What has Yahweh answered?" What does this question assume about God, that He speaks, that He has already given an answer, that He can be trusted?
4. Think of a time you heard a hard truth from Scripture or a sermon. Did you feel it as a burden, or as an answer you needed? What made the difference?
5. How can the way you speak about preaching, Bible study, or prophecy at church or at home either honor or dishonor God?
6. Verse 35 says this new way of speaking should happen "everyone to his neighbor...everyone to his brother." How can our everyday conversations about faith become more reverent without becoming artificial or strained?
7. What would change in your personal walk if you began each time of reading Scripture by asking, "Lord, what have You answered? What have You spoken?"