ירמיהו, פרק כ״ג, פסוק ל״ד

A severe warning is directed at anyone who treats prophetic concepts with disrespect or manipulation. Whether the offender is a prophet, a priest, or an ordinary citizen, making cynical use of divine communication carries heavy consequences. God promises to remember this specific sin [מצודת ציון], ensuring that He will repay and punish both the speaker and his household [מצודת דוד].

The nature of this offense unfolds in several connected layers. The root of the problem begins with a false prophet who deceives the public with lies. This false prophet claims that God intends to abandon the people of Israel, throwing them away just as a person discards a heavy burden [מצודת דוד]. The sin then spreads to the general public. People begin repeating the false prophet's words to their friends, using the concept of a divine burden as a joke or a clever phrase to mock the true word of God [מלבי״ם].

The punishment for this disrespect operates on a strict principle of measure for measure. The very idea of a burden, which the people cynically used to describe prophecy, will take on a literal reality. It will become a heavy, physical weight that God places directly upon the offender and his family [ביאור שטיינזלץ].