Charles Ellicott Commentary Jeremiah 23:35

"Thus shall ye say every one to his neighbor, and every one to his brother, What hath Jehovah answered? and, What hath Jehovah spoken?" — Jeremiah 23:35 (ASV)

Thus shall you say ... — The words are a protest against the high-sounding phrase, “This is the burden, the oracle of Jehovah.” This, with which the false prophets covered their teachings of lies, the prophet rejects, and he calls men back to the simpler terms, which were less open to abuse. The true prophet’s message was to be called an “answer” when men had come to him with questions — a “word of the Lord” when it was spoken to them without any previous inquiry.