As the Revised Standard Version note indicates, there is some problem with the first part of the Hebrew text for this verse. Hebrew Old Testament Text Project offers two possibilities of interpretation. They believe the best interpretation is to see a break in the thought of the verse with a loose connection between How long shall there be and in the heart of the prophets. The result would be as follows for verses 26-27: “26 How long will this go on? Do the prophets have this in mind? Those prophets who preach lies and the deceitful things that they have thought up, 27 do they plan to…?” As an alternative interpretation, they suggest “How long will there be in the mind of the prophets the question: ‘Is there a message from the LORD?’ Those prophets who preach lies….” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates “How long must this go on? What have these men in mind that they spread lies, their own fancies?”

As in verse 9, heart refers to “mind.”

The word deceit is used also in 8.5; 14.14.

Another way to translate this verse is:

• How long will this go on? For how long will they think they can spread these false messages that spring out of their own imagination?

Or the questions can be made affirmations:

• Surely this won’t go on for long! They won’t be able to continue thinking they can spread these lies they think up themselves!

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Jeremiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2003. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .