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Judah Is Unfaithful

“Now a man might divorce his wife.
    And she might leave him and marry another man.
Should her first husband come back to her again?
    If he went back to her, the land would become completely unclean.
But you have acted like a prostitute with many lovers.
    And now you want to come back to me?” says the Lord.
“Look up to the bare hilltops, Judah.
    Is there any place where you have not been a prostitute?
You have sat by the road waiting for lovers.
    You sat there like an Arab in the desert.
You made the land unclean.
    This was because you did evil and were like a prostitute.
So the rain has not come.
    There have not been any spring rains.
But your face still looks like the face of a prostitute.
    You refuse even to be ashamed of what you did.
But now you are calling to me.
    You say, ‘My father, you have been my friend since I was young.
Will you always be angry at me?
    Will your anger last forever?’
Judah, you say this,
    but you do as much evil as you can!”

Judah and Israel Are like Sisters

When King Josiah was ruling Judah, the Lord spoke to me. He said: “Jeremiah, you saw what unfaithful Israel did. She was guilty of adultery. She had idols on every hill and under every green tree. I said to myself, ‘Israel will come back to me after she does this evil.’ But she didn’t come back to me. And Israel’s wicked sister Judah saw what Israel did. Unfaithful Israel knew that I divorced her because of her adultery. But that didn’t make her wicked sister Judah afraid. She also went out and acted like a prostitute! And she didn’t care that she was acting like a prostitute. So she made her country unclean. She was guilty of adultery. This was because she worshiped idols made of stone and wood. 10 Israel’s wicked sister didn’t come back to me with her whole heart. She only pretended to come back to me,” says the Lord.

11 The Lord said to me, “Unfaithful Israel had a better excuse than wicked Judah. 12 Go and speak this message toward the north:

‘Come back, unfaithful people of Israel,’ says the Lord.
    ‘I will stop frowning at you.
I am full of mercy,’ says the Lord.
    ‘I will not be angry with you forever.
13 All you have to do is admit your sin.
    You turned against the Lord your God.
You worshiped the false gods of other nations.
    You worshiped them under every green tree.
    You didn’t obey me,’” says the Lord.

14 “Come back to me, you unfaithful people,” says the Lord. “I am your husband. I will take one person from every city. And I will take two people from every family group. And I will bring you to Jerusalem. 15 Then I will give you new rulers. They will be faithful to me. They will lead you with knowledge and understanding. 16 In those days there will be many of you in the land,” says the Lord. “At that time people will no longer say, ‘I remember the Ark of the Covenant.’ They won’t even think about the Ark of the Covenant anymore. They won’t even remember or miss it or make another one. 17 At that time Jerusalem will be called The Throne of the Lord. All nations will come together in Jerusalem to show respect to the Lord. They will not follow their stubborn, evil hearts anymore. 18 In those days the family of Judah will join the family of Israel. They will come together from a land in the north. They will come to the land I gave to their ancestors.

19 “I, the Lord, said,

‘How happy I would be to treat you as sons!
    I would be glad to give you a pleasant land.
    It’s a land more beautiful than that of any other nation.’
I thought you would call me ‘Father’
    and not turn away from me.
20 But like a woman who is unfaithful to her husband,
    family of Israel, you have been unfaithful to me,” says the Lord.

21 You can hear crying on the bare hilltops.
    The people of Israel are crying and praying for mercy.
They have become very evil.
    They have forgotten the Lord their God.

22 “Come back to me, you unfaithful people of Israel.
    Come back, and I will forgive you for being unfaithful.”

“Yes, we will come to you.
    You are the Lord our God.
23 It was foolish to worship idols on the hills.
    All the loud noises on the mountains were a lie.
Surely the salvation of Israel
    comes from the Lord our God.
24 Since we were young, shameful gods have eaten up in sacrifice
    everything our fathers worked for.
The shameful gods have taken our fathers’ sheep and cattle.
    They have taken our fathers’ sons and daughters.
25 Let us lie down in our shame.
    And let our shame cover us like a blanket.
We have sinned against the Lord our God.
    Both we and our fathers have sinned.
Since we were children and until now,
    we have not obeyed the Lord our God.”

“If a man divorces(A) his wife
    and she leaves him and marries another man,
should he return to her again?
    Would not the land be completely defiled?(B)
But you have lived as a prostitute with many lovers(C)
    would you now return to me?”(D)
declares the Lord.
“Look up to the barren heights(E) and see.
    Is there any place where you have not been ravished?
By the roadside(F) you sat waiting for lovers,
    sat like a nomad in the desert.
You have defiled the land(G)
    with your prostitution(H) and wickedness.
Therefore the showers have been withheld,(I)
    and no spring rains(J) have fallen.
Yet you have the brazen(K) look of a prostitute;
    you refuse to blush with shame.(L)
Have you not just called to me:
    ‘My Father,(M) my friend from my youth,(N)
will you always be angry?(O)
    Will your wrath continue forever?’
This is how you talk,
    but you do all the evil you can.”

Unfaithful Israel

During the reign of King Josiah,(P) the Lord said to me, “Have you seen what faithless(Q) Israel has done? She has gone up on every high hill and under every spreading tree(R) and has committed adultery(S) there. I thought that after she had done all this she would return to me but she did not, and her unfaithful sister(T) Judah saw it.(U) I gave faithless Israel(V) her certificate of divorce(W) and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah had no fear;(X) she also went out and committed adultery. Because Israel’s immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land(Y) and committed adultery(Z) with stone(AA) and wood.(AB) 10 In spite of all this, her unfaithful sister Judah did not return(AC) to me with all her heart, but only in pretense,(AD)” declares the Lord.(AE)

11 The Lord said to me, “Faithless Israel is more righteous(AF) than unfaithful(AG) Judah.(AH) 12 Go, proclaim this message toward the north:(AI)

“‘Return,(AJ) faithless(AK) Israel,’ declares the Lord,
    ‘I will frown on you no longer,
for I am faithful,’(AL) declares the Lord,
    ‘I will not be angry(AM) forever.
13 Only acknowledge(AN) your guilt—
    you have rebelled against the Lord your God,
you have scattered your favors to foreign gods(AO)
    under every spreading tree,(AP)
    and have not obeyed(AQ) me,’”
declares the Lord.

14 “Return,(AR) faithless people,” declares the Lord, “for I am your husband.(AS) I will choose you—one from a town and two from a clan—and bring you to Zion. 15 Then I will give you shepherds(AT) after my own heart,(AU) who will lead you with knowledge and understanding. 16 In those days, when your numbers have increased greatly in the land,” declares the Lord, “people will no longer say, ‘The ark(AV) of the covenant of the Lord.’ It will never enter their minds or be remembered;(AW) it will not be missed, nor will another one be made. 17 At that time they will call Jerusalem The Throne(AX) of the Lord, and all nations(AY) will gather in Jerusalem to honor(AZ) the name of the Lord. No longer will they follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts.(BA) 18 In those days the people of Judah will join the people of Israel,(BB) and together(BC) they will come from a northern(BD) land to the land(BE) I gave your ancestors as an inheritance.

19 “I myself said,

“‘How gladly would I treat you like my children
    and give you a pleasant land,(BF)
    the most beautiful inheritance(BG) of any nation.’
I thought you would call me ‘Father’(BH)
    and not turn away from following me.
20 But like a woman unfaithful to her husband,
    so you, Israel, have been unfaithful(BI) to me,”
declares the Lord.

21 A cry is heard on the barren heights,(BJ)
    the weeping(BK) and pleading of the people of Israel,
because they have perverted their ways
    and have forgotten(BL) the Lord their God.

22 “Return,(BM) faithless people;
    I will cure(BN) you of backsliding.”(BO)

“Yes, we will come to you,
    for you are the Lord our God.
23 Surely the idolatrous commotion on the hills(BP)
    and mountains is a deception;
surely in the Lord our God
    is the salvation(BQ) of Israel.
24 From our youth shameful(BR) gods have consumed
    the fruits of our ancestors’ labor—
their flocks and herds,
    their sons and daughters.
25 Let us lie down in our shame,(BS)
    and let our disgrace cover us.
We have sinned(BT) against the Lord our God,
    both we and our ancestors;(BU)
from our youth(BV) till this day
    we have not obeyed(BW) the Lord our God.”