ירמיהו, פרק כ״ז, פסוק ט׳

People facing national threats often turn to mystical sources for comfort and guarantees of security. A clear warning is delivered against relying on spiritual figures who offer empty promises of independence. Despite the wide variety of fortune tellers and mystics employed by the nations, their predictions are nothing but absolute lies.

The nations relied on a diverse group of spiritual practitioners to guide them. These included their own national false prophets, as well as diviners who engaged in specific forms of sorcery to consult the unknown. There were also those who claimed to foresee the future by interpreting or requesting specific dreams. As [רד״ק] points out, this refers directly to the professional dreamers themselves.

Another group of advisors consisted of enchanters. While [מצודת דוד] views them broadly as practitioners of general sorcery and divination, [ביאור שטיינזלץ] explains that these were fortune tellers who operated according to the calendar. They calculated the exact times and seasons when certain actions or events were most likely to occur. Finally, the nations consulted professional sorcerers. [ביאור שטיינזלץ] notes that these individuals would perform magic tricks and illusions as a way to predict future successes or failures.

All of these various mystical figures presented a united front to the people. They offered calming reassurances, promising that the nations would never have to serve the king of Babylon. As [מצודת דוד] explains, they guaranteed that the Babylonian king would fail to overpower them and would never turn them into his slaves. However, the clear message is that these comforting voices are entirely false and must not be listened to under any circumstances.