For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
The verse condemns religious leaders and false shepherds for treating the spiritual wound of the people only slightly and superficially, covering it instead of curing it. Their way is to cry peace and safety and all is well when God has declared there is no peace for the wicked, giving false comfort and a false sense of security. God gives no one liberty to gloss over sin or soften warning, but calls His faithful ministers to cry aloud, show transgression, and lead sinners to repentance and reform. To call sin harmless and assure sinners all is well is counterfeit charity, for true love warns faithfully of danger and points to Christ to take sin away. Such reassuring words conceal danger, leave the wicked unwarned and unprepared, and bear a harvest in ruin.
Superficial Healing Condemned
The verse condemns religious leaders and false shepherds for treating the spiritual hurt of the people only slightly and superficially, covering the wound instead of curing it and leaving the people unhealed. Their reassuring words conceal danger, lead people to trust falsehood, and leave them unprepared for the consequences of their wrongdoing and under coming judgment. Their method is to declare peace, safety, prosperity, and that all is well when there is no peace, giving false comfort and a false sense of security where God has declared there is no peace for the wicked. By soothing and quieting sinners instead of arousing and convicting them to repent and reform, they counteract the decided warning God is giving at that very time through His appointed agencies. To call sin harmless or holy and assure sinners all is well is counterfeit charity, not genuine love, for it does not heal.
One mark of these false prophets is that from the least to the greatest they are given to covetousness, and from prophet to priest they deal falsely. They speak smooth and pleasing things and prophesy lies, crying peace, peace and safety when there is no peace. That pleasing message suits unconsecrated professors, who love to have it so, as seen in the delusion of Spiritualism. In its setting the verse belongs to perpetual backsliding where people hold fast deceit, refuse to return, and no one repents of wickedness saying what have I done. It belongs to claiming wisdom and possession of the law after rejecting the word of the Lord, trusting lying words that cannot profit instead of amending ways and doings, executing judgment, ceasing oppression, bloodshed and idolatry, and obeying God's voice.
Those who commit abominations without shame and cannot blush shall fall among the fallen and be cast down in the time of visitation, so the guilty are pressed to incline the ear, come to God, and live. The false peace includes leading away from obedience to God's Word by rejecting the original Sabbath for Sunday while claiming to uphold the law, leaving the people unhealed. It includes distorting Scripture with false interpretations and false reports, causing people to feel secure while rejecting the Sabbath and denying the nearness of Christ's coming. It includes crying after human fathers and guides in people's ears to keep them from the Word of the Lord, refusing to examine Scripture with an unprejudiced heart free from stubborn purpose, and burying truth under tradition, maxims, rabbis' sayings, false interpretations and preconceived opinions.
To follow that cry is to refuse to lift the cross, to continue in rebellion against God without sure evidence, to turn from the cool snow waters of Lebanon to the turbid streams of the valley, and to miss the way to heaven when a soul is to be saved or lost. The false peace also includes quieting fears about coming judgment by promising that the whole world would be converted, which kept people from accepting warning about the plagues. Inside the professed people the slight healing declares the church to be flourishing and sees no cause for alarm, prophesying smooth things and crying peace when there is no peace. It leaves people and teachers asleep in darkness and peril and at ease in Zion instead of alarmed to repentance, while the church assimilates to the world and lacks love and forbearance toward brethren.
Those who want it so take up the cry and believe the report, praising, petting, exalting and idolizing frail erring men in place of God. It includes feeding with milk those who need deeper truth by those who have been years in the truth yet know little of the leadings of the Spirit and do not realize the time being lived in, leaving the passions of the natural heart unpurified and unpurged. It includes a theory of sanctification with only outward holiness that leaves sin unreproved and uncorrected, assuring corrupt hearts they are safe when they are not, instead of bringing evil to light and rebuking wrong. It includes unfaithful watchmen laying down the watch and resting at ease while danger is ignored and Satan deceives the unsuspecting, seeing no danger, resenting plain reproof, and calling faithful trumpet warnings uncalled for, severe and harsh. This makes necessary that faithful teachers stand and speak the whole truth and bear plain, pointed, sifting testimony with active labor, toil and unceasing vigilance during the scouring and purifying time of warfare and trial when the house of Israel is being sifted.
Faithful Warning Required
No one is given liberty to gloss over sin, to lessen its seriousness, or to soften warning to suit corrupt wishes, for God has declared there is no peace for the wicked and He has no sympathy with the evildoer. His faithful, upright ministers in every age are worked through and empowered by His Holy Spirit to arouse and convict sinners in order to lead them to repentance and reform, by crying aloud, sparing not, lifting up the voice like a trumpet, and showing His people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins. Those who heal slightly act at the very time God is giving that decided warning, counteracting His work through His appointed agencies with soothing and quieting instead of arousing and convicting. In a time of darkness and peril, when people and teachers are asleep and see no special cause of alarm in their present condition, multitudes of teachers prophesy smooth things and declare peace when there is no peace so that the multitude who hear believe the report and are at ease, which makes it necessary for faithful teachers to stand and speak the whole truth and bear plain and pointed testimony during the scouring and purifying time of warfare and trial when the house of Israel is being sifted. Unfaithful watchmen refuse to warn of danger and want only a comfortable message of peace when there is no peace, having laid down their watch and resting at ease while Satan deceives the unsuspecting and tears down what God commanded to be built up, seeing no danger, taking quietly what should alarm them, and resenting plain reproof that shows transgressions and sins. They call faithful trumpet warnings uncalled for, severe and harsh and disturbing to their quiet, and accuse the faithful of taking too much upon themselves and denying rest and happiness, because only active labor, toil and unceasing vigilance will satisfy true watchmen.
Calling sin harmless or holy and assuring sinners that all is well does not heal them but only covers the hurt with false peace, and to call that charity or to join together to call sin holiness and truth is counterfeit charity and counterfeit love, not genuine love. True charity loves the sinner while opposing sin, warns the sinner faithfully of danger, and points to Christ to take sin away. True love refuses to speak reassuring words of safety to those in spiritual danger whose peril God has revealed, whether they are blinded about themselves, remain unchanged in spiritual peril, continue in a position of large responsibility while unfit for it, or are loved ones whose selfishness and self-righteousness are harming their spiritual life, but warns them plainly of their peril so they will understand their relation to God and His claims upon them and their relation to their fellow men, and become self-denying and consecrated to His service, seeking to restore and heal them through deep searching and correction of selfishness rather than reassure them while they remain unchanged. Sympathy that reassures a dying person while sins are unconfessed is like daubing a wall with untempered mortar, giving false comfort instead of healing, and this kind of false reassurance has ruined many.
Such false reassurance does not mean that God approves the condition or that people are safe, even when religious leaders falsely assure them of peace while their own corruption and sin remain unaddressed. A theory of sanctification that leaves sin unreproved and uncorrected gives corrupt hearts only the outward appearance of holiness while assuring people that they are safe when they are not, whereas true healing brings evil to light and rebukes wrong, for claims of holiness without changed lives deceive people and draw them away from truth. Stirring up rebellion against the servants God sends to deliver His messages is rebellion against the word of the Lord.
The reassuring words conceal danger, lead people to trust falsehood, sacrifice truth to please people, and leave the wicked without warning to turn from their ways. Such false reassurance strengthens people in resisting correction and turns them against the true messenger, while unfaithful teachers also quiet fears by misinterpreting Scripture and obstructing those seeking salvation. The false promise that the whole world would be converted quieted fears and kept people from accepting warning of the coming plagues, and their teachings bear a harvest in the ruin of those they misled, leaving them unprepared for the consequences of wrongdoing. This kind of false comfort misleads people and brings responsibility for souls hindered, so that when judgment and plagues come people blame the ministers who failed to warn them, and many are ruined.
The verse condemns religious leaders and false shepherds for treating the spiritual wound of the people only slightly and superficially, covering it instead of curing it. Their way is to cry peace and safety and all is well when God has declared there is no peace for the wicked, giving false comfort and a false sense of security. God gives no one liberty to gloss over sin or soften warning, but calls His faithful ministers to cry aloud, show transgression, and lead sinners to repentance and reform. To call sin harmless and assure sinners all is well is counterfeit charity, for true love warns faithfully of danger and points to Christ to take sin away. Such reassuring words conceal danger, leave the wicked unwarned and unprepared, and bear a harvest in ruin.
Superficial Healing Condemned
The verse condemns religious leaders and false shepherds for treating the spiritual hurt of the people only slightly and superficially, covering the wound instead of curing it and leaving the people unhealed. Their reassuring words conceal danger, lead people to trust falsehood, and leave them unprepared for the consequences of their wrongdoing and under coming judgment. Their method is to declare peace, safety, prosperity, and that all is well when there is no peace, giving false comfort and a false sense of security where God has declared there is no peace for the wicked. By soothing and quieting sinners instead of arousing and convicting them to repent and reform, they counteract the decided warning God is giving at that very time through His appointed agencies. To call sin harmless or holy and assure sinners all is well is counterfeit charity, not genuine love, for it does not heal.
One mark of these false prophets is that from the least to the greatest they are given to covetousness, and from prophet to priest they deal falsely. They speak smooth and pleasing things and prophesy lies, crying peace, peace and safety when there is no peace. That pleasing message suits unconsecrated professors, who love to have it so, as seen in the delusion of Spiritualism. In its setting the verse belongs to perpetual backsliding where people hold fast deceit, refuse to return, and no one repents of wickedness saying what have I done. It belongs to claiming wisdom and possession of the law after rejecting the word of the Lord, trusting lying words that cannot profit instead of amending ways and doings, executing judgment, ceasing oppression, bloodshed and idolatry, and obeying God's voice.
Those who commit abominations without shame and cannot blush shall fall among the fallen and be cast down in the time of visitation, so the guilty are pressed to incline the ear, come to God, and live. The false peace includes leading away from obedience to God's Word by rejecting the original Sabbath for Sunday while claiming to uphold the law, leaving the people unhealed. It includes distorting Scripture with false interpretations and false reports, causing people to feel secure while rejecting the Sabbath and denying the nearness of Christ's coming. It includes crying after human fathers and guides in people's ears to keep them from the Word of the Lord, refusing to examine Scripture with an unprejudiced heart free from stubborn purpose, and burying truth under tradition, maxims, rabbis' sayings, false interpretations and preconceived opinions.
To follow that cry is to refuse to lift the cross, to continue in rebellion against God without sure evidence, to turn from the cool snow waters of Lebanon to the turbid streams of the valley, and to miss the way to heaven when a soul is to be saved or lost. The false peace also includes quieting fears about coming judgment by promising that the whole world would be converted, which kept people from accepting warning about the plagues. Inside the professed people the slight healing declares the church to be flourishing and sees no cause for alarm, prophesying smooth things and crying peace when there is no peace. It leaves people and teachers asleep in darkness and peril and at ease in Zion instead of alarmed to repentance, while the church assimilates to the world and lacks love and forbearance toward brethren.
Those who want it so take up the cry and believe the report, praising, petting, exalting and idolizing frail erring men in place of God. It includes feeding with milk those who need deeper truth by those who have been years in the truth yet know little of the leadings of the Spirit and do not realize the time being lived in, leaving the passions of the natural heart unpurified and unpurged. It includes a theory of sanctification with only outward holiness that leaves sin unreproved and uncorrected, assuring corrupt hearts they are safe when they are not, instead of bringing evil to light and rebuking wrong. It includes unfaithful watchmen laying down the watch and resting at ease while danger is ignored and Satan deceives the unsuspecting, seeing no danger, resenting plain reproof, and calling faithful trumpet warnings uncalled for, severe and harsh. This makes necessary that faithful teachers stand and speak the whole truth and bear plain, pointed, sifting testimony with active labor, toil and unceasing vigilance during the scouring and purifying time of warfare and trial when the house of Israel is being sifted.
Faithful Warning Required
No one is given liberty to gloss over sin, to lessen its seriousness, or to soften warning to suit corrupt wishes, for God has declared there is no peace for the wicked and He has no sympathy with the evildoer. His faithful, upright ministers in every age are worked through and empowered by His Holy Spirit to arouse and convict sinners in order to lead them to repentance and reform, by crying aloud, sparing not, lifting up the voice like a trumpet, and showing His people their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins. Those who heal slightly act at the very time God is giving that decided warning, counteracting His work through His appointed agencies with soothing and quieting instead of arousing and convicting. In a time of darkness and peril, when people and teachers are asleep and see no special cause of alarm in their present condition, multitudes of teachers prophesy smooth things and declare peace when there is no peace so that the multitude who hear believe the report and are at ease, which makes it necessary for faithful teachers to stand and speak the whole truth and bear plain and pointed testimony during the scouring and purifying time of warfare and trial when the house of Israel is being sifted. Unfaithful watchmen refuse to warn of danger and want only a comfortable message of peace when there is no peace, having laid down their watch and resting at ease while Satan deceives the unsuspecting and tears down what God commanded to be built up, seeing no danger, taking quietly what should alarm them, and resenting plain reproof that shows transgressions and sins. They call faithful trumpet warnings uncalled for, severe and harsh and disturbing to their quiet, and accuse the faithful of taking too much upon themselves and denying rest and happiness, because only active labor, toil and unceasing vigilance will satisfy true watchmen.
Calling sin harmless or holy and assuring sinners that all is well does not heal them but only covers the hurt with false peace, and to call that charity or to join together to call sin holiness and truth is counterfeit charity and counterfeit love, not genuine love. True charity loves the sinner while opposing sin, warns the sinner faithfully of danger, and points to Christ to take sin away. True love refuses to speak reassuring words of safety to those in spiritual danger whose peril God has revealed, whether they are blinded about themselves, remain unchanged in spiritual peril, continue in a position of large responsibility while unfit for it, or are loved ones whose selfishness and self-righteousness are harming their spiritual life, but warns them plainly of their peril so they will understand their relation to God and His claims upon them and their relation to their fellow men, and become self-denying and consecrated to His service, seeking to restore and heal them through deep searching and correction of selfishness rather than reassure them while they remain unchanged. Sympathy that reassures a dying person while sins are unconfessed is like daubing a wall with untempered mortar, giving false comfort instead of healing, and this kind of false reassurance has ruined many.
Such false reassurance does not mean that God approves the condition or that people are safe, even when religious leaders falsely assure them of peace while their own corruption and sin remain unaddressed. A theory of sanctification that leaves sin unreproved and uncorrected gives corrupt hearts only the outward appearance of holiness while assuring people that they are safe when they are not, whereas true healing brings evil to light and rebukes wrong, for claims of holiness without changed lives deceive people and draw them away from truth. Stirring up rebellion against the servants God sends to deliver His messages is rebellion against the word of the Lord.
The reassuring words conceal danger, lead people to trust falsehood, sacrifice truth to please people, and leave the wicked without warning to turn from their ways. Such false reassurance strengthens people in resisting correction and turns them against the true messenger, while unfaithful teachers also quiet fears by misinterpreting Scripture and obstructing those seeking salvation. The false promise that the whole world would be converted quieted fears and kept people from accepting warning of the coming plagues, and their teachings bear a harvest in the ruin of those they misled, leaving them unprepared for the consequences of wrongdoing. This kind of false comfort misleads people and brings responsibility for souls hindered, so that when judgment and plagues come people blame the ministers who failed to warn them, and many are ruined.