3 The Lord says this:
‘If a man sends his wife away,
she may leave him and marry another man.
Then her first husband may not take her as his wife again.
That would be a sin against the land where you live. [ a ]
But you have left me to live with other gods.
You have lived like a prostitute,
but you still think that you can return to me.
2 Look up at the tops of the hills.
You have loved other gods on all of them!
You sat by the side of the road,
and you waited for a lover to come.
Like a robber, you waited to catch men
so that you could sleep with them.
You have not been faithful to me,
but you have looked for other gods, like a prostitute.
The wicked things that you have done
have made the land unclean.
3 That is why I have not sent any rain on your land.
Even the spring rains have not come.
But you still live like a proud prostitute.
You refuse to be ashamed of what you have done.
4 You still call me your Father.
You say, “You have always been my friend.
You have loved me all my life.
5 Surely you will not always be angry with me!
You cannot continue to be angry for ever.”
Those are the things that you say.
But you continue to do as many evil things as you can.’
6 The Lord spoke to me while Josiah was king of Judah. He said,
‘Look at what the Israelites have done. They have not been faithful to me. They have worshipped other gods under every big tree and on every high hill. Israel has been like a wife who is not faithful to her husband. 7 I thought that one day she would come back to me. But she did not return. Israel's sister, Judah, saw what Israel did. [ b ] 8 Israel was not faithful to me and she served other gods. So I sent her away, like a husband may send his wife away if she is not faithful to him. Judah saw what happened to Israel, but she was not afraid. Like a prostitute, she also went to find other gods that she could serve. 9 She was not ashamed of what she was doing. She worshipped idols made of wood and stone. She made the land unclean because she was not faithful to me. 10 Still Judah has not turned back to me. She wants me to think that she has, but she has not. Like her sister, Israel, she has not been faithful.’ That is what the Lord says.
11 The Lord said to me, ‘It is true that Israel's people have not been faithful to me. But Judah's people are even more guilty than them. [ c ]
12 Go now. Shout this message to my people in the north:
“You people of Israel have not been faithful to me.
But now return to me,” says the Lord .
“I will not always turn away from you.
I am kind and I forgive people.
I will not be angry with you for ever,” says the Lord .
13 “But you must agree that you are guilty of sin.
You have turned against me, the Lord your God.
You have loved to serve many foreign gods.
You have worshipped them under every big tree.
You have not obeyed my commands.” ’
That is what the Lord says.
14 The Lord says, ‘Return to me, you people who have turned away. Remember that you belong to me. If you turn back to me, I will choose one of you from each town and two from each family. I will bring you safely back to Zion. 15 I will give you leaders who will serve me faithfully. They will take care of you like shepherds. They will be wise and they will lead you well. 16 Then the number of your people who live in your land will increase. You will no longer need to talk about the Lord 's Covenant Box. You will not think that it is important any more. You will forget all about it. You will not want to make another one. 17 Instead, you will call the city of Jerusalem “The Lord 's throne”. At that time, people from all nations will come to Jerusalem. They will meet there to give honour to the Lord 's name. They will no longer do the wicked things that they enjoy. 18 At that time, the nations of Judah and Israel will join together as one kingdom. They will leave their exile in a country in the north. They will come back to this land that I gave to your ancestors to be their home for ever.
19 I thought this:
“I want you people of Israel to be my children.
That would make me very happy.
I want to give you a good land as your home.
It is a more beautiful land than any other nation enjoys.”
I thought that you would call me “Father”.
I thought that you would always be faithful to me.
20 But you, Israel, have gone away from me,
like a woman who leaves her husband.
You have not been faithful to me.’
That is what the Lord says.
21 ‘I can hear a noise on the tops of the hills.
Israel's people are weeping.
They are calling out for help.
Yes, they have turned to bad ways.
They have forgotten to serve the Lord their God.
22 Return to me, all of you have turned away.
I will help you to be faithful to me.
Now you should say,
“Yes, we will return to you,
because you are the Lord our God.
23 The false gods that we worship on the hills have deceived us.
Our wild parties on the mountains have not helped us.
Only the Lord our God can really save Israel.
24 Since we were a young nation,
we have seen all our good things disappear.
The useless gods that we worshipped have taken them.
They took away the things that our ancestors worked to get.
They took away our sheep and our cows.
They even took away our sons and our daughters.
25 We are ashamed to agree that this is true.
We must accept the shame that we deserve.
We and our ancestors have done bad things
against the Lord our God.
Since long ago, we have not obeyed him,
and even today, we still do not listen to him.” ’
3 “If a man divorces his wife and she goes and marries someone else,
the first husband cannot take her back.
If he did, [ a ] it would make the land unclean.
Judah, you and all your false gods are like a prostitute with many lovers!
So why do you think you can come back to me?”
This message is from the Lord .
2 “Look up to the bare hilltops, Judah.
Is there any place where you have not had sex with your lovers?
You sat by the road waiting for lovers,
like an Arab in the desert.
You made the land ‘dirty’
with all the evil sins you did
when you were unfaithful to me.
3 You sinned, so the rain has not come.
There has not been any springtime rains.
But still you refuse to be ashamed.
The look on your face is like that of a prostitute who refuses to be ashamed.
4 But didn’t you just call me ‘Father’?
Didn’t you say, ‘You have been my friend since I was a child’?
5 You also said, ‘God will not always be angry with me.
His anger will not continue forever.’
“Judah, you say that,
but you do as much evil as you can.”
6 The Lord spoke to me during the time King Josiah was ruling the nation of Judah. He said, “Jeremiah, you saw the bad things Israel [ b ] did! You saw how she was unfaithful to me. She was unfaithful to me with every idol on every hill and under every green tree. 7 I said to myself, ‘Israel will come back to me after she has finished doing these evil things.’ But she did not come back to me. And Israel’s unfaithful sister, Judah, saw what she did. 8 Israel was unfaithful, and she knew why I sent her away. Israel knew that I divorced her because she committed the sin of adultery. But that did not make her unfaithful sister afraid. Judah was not afraid. She also went out and acted like a prostitute. 9 Judah did not care that she was acting like a prostitute. So she made her country ‘dirty.’ She committed the sin of adultery by worshiping idols made out of stone and wood. 10 Israel’s unfaithful sister did not come back to me with her whole heart. She only pretended that she came back to me.” This message is from the Lord .
11 The Lord said to me, “Israel was not faithful to me, but she had a better excuse than unfaithful Judah. 12 Jeremiah, look toward the north and speak this message:
“‘Come back, you faithless people of Israel.’
This message is from the Lord .
‘I will stop frowning at you.
I am full of mercy.’
The Lord says, ‘I will not be angry with you forever.
13 But you must recognize your sin.
You turned against the Lord your God.
That is your sin.
You worshiped the idols of other nations.
You worshiped them under every green tree.
You did not obey me.’”
This message is from the Lord .
14 The Lord says, “You people are unfaithful, but come back to me because I am your master. I will take one person from every city and two people from every family and bring you to Zion. 15 Then I will give you new rulers who 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.” This message is from the Lord .
“At that time people will never again say, ‘I remember the days when we had the Box of the Lord ’s Agreement.’ They will not even think about the Holy Box anymore. They will not even remember or miss it. They will never make another Holy Box. 17 At that time the city of Jerusalem will be called the ‘ Lord ’s Throne.’ All nations will come together in the city of Jerusalem to give honor to the name of 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 to the land I gave to their ancestors.”
19-20 This message is from the Lord :
“I want to treat you like my own children.
I want to give you a pleasant land,
a land more beautiful than any other nation.
I thought you would call me ‘Father.’
I thought you would always follow me.
But you have been unfaithful to me, family of Israel!
You have been like an unfaithful wife who leaves her husband.
21 You can hear crying on the bare hills.
The people of Israel are crying and praying for mercy.
They became very evil.
They forgot the Lord their God.
22 “People of Israel, you are unfaithful to me, but come back to me.
Come back and I will forgive [ c ] you for being unfaithful.
“Just say, ‘Yes, we will come back,
because you are the Lord our God.
23 It was foolish to worship idols on the hills.
All the loud parties on the mountains were wrong.
Surely the salvation of Israel
comes from the Lord our God.
24 That terrible false god Baal has eaten everything our fathers owned.
This has happened since we were children.
That terrible false god took our fathers’ sheep and cattle
and their sons and daughters.
25 Let us lie down in our shame.
Let our shame cover us like a blanket.
We have sinned against the Lord our God.
We and our fathers have sinned.
We have not obeyed the Lord our God
from the time we were children.’”
3 They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the Lord .
2 Lift up thine eyes unto the high places, and see where thou hast not been lien with. In the ways hast thou sat for them, as the Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness.
3 Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a whore's forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.
4 Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth?
5 Will he reserve his anger for ever? will he keep it to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken and done evil things as thou couldest.
6 The Lord said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.
7 And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.
8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.
9 And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.
10 And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the Lord .
11 And the Lord said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.
12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord ; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the Lord , and I will not keep anger for ever.
13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord .
14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord ; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:
15 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.
16 And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the Lord , they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the Lord : neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done any more.
17 At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord ; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord , to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.
18 In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.
19 But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? and I said, Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from me.
20 Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith the Lord .
21 A voice was heard upon the high places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel: for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the Lord our God.
23 Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.
24 For shame hath devoured the labour of our fathers from our youth; their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.
25 We lie down in our shame, and our confusion covereth us: for we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day, and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.
3 God [ a ] says, “ ( A ) If a husband divorces his wife
And she leaves him
And becomes another man’s wife ,
Will he return to her again?
Would that land not be completely defiled?
But you ( B ) are a prostitute with many [ b ] lovers;
Yet you ( C ) turn to Me,” declares the Lord .
2 “Raise your eyes to the ( D ) bare heights and see;
Where have you not been violated?
You have ( E ) sat for them by the roads
Like an Arab in the desert,
And you have ( F ) defiled a land
With your prostitution and your wickedness.
3 Therefore the ( G ) showers have been withheld,
And there has been no spring rain.
Yet you had a ( H ) prostitute’s [ c ] forehead;
You refused to be ashamed.
4 Have you not just now called to Me,
‘ ( I ) My Father, You are the ( J ) friend of my ( K ) youth?
5 ( L ) Will He be angry forever,
Or keep His anger to the end?’
Behold, you have spoken
And have done evil things,
And you have [ d ] had your own way.”
6 Then the Lord said to me in the days of King Josiah, “Have you seen what faithless Israel did? She ( M ) went up on every high hill and under every leafy tree, and she prostituted herself there. 7 Yet ( N ) I [ e ] thought, ‘After she has done all these things she will return to Me’; but she did not return, and her ( O ) treacherous sister Judah saw it. 8 And I saw that for all the [ f ] adulteries of faithless Israel, I had sent her away and ( P ) given her a certificate of divorce, yet her ( Q ) treacherous sister Judah did not fear; but she went and prostituted herself also. 9 And because of the thoughtlessness of her prostitution, she ( R ) defiled the land and committed [ g ] adultery with ( S ) stones and trees. 10 Yet in spite of all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to Me with all her heart, but rather in ( T ) deception,” declares the Lord .
11 And the Lord said to me, “ ( U ) Faithless Israel has proved herself to be more righteous than treacherous Judah. 12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north and say,
‘ ( V ) Return, faithless Israel,’ declares the Lord ;
‘ ( W ) I will not [ h ] look at you in anger.
For I am ( X ) gracious,’ declares the Lord ;
‘I will not be angry forever.
13 Only [ i ] ( Y ) acknowledge your wrongdoing,
That you have revolted against the Lord your God,
And have ( Z ) scattered your [ j ] favors to the strangers ( AA ) under every leafy tree,
And you have not obeyed My voice,’ declares the Lord .
14 ‘Return, you faithless sons,’ declares the Lord ;
‘For I am a ( AB ) master to you,
And I will take you, one from a city and two from a family,
And ( AC ) bring you to Zion.’
15 “Then I will give you ( AD ) shepherds [ k ] after My own heart, who will ( AE ) feed you knowledge and understanding. 16 And it shall be in those days when you become numerous and are fruitful in the land,” declares the Lord , “they will ( AF ) no longer say, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord .’ And it will not come to mind, nor will they remember it, nor miss it , nor will it be made again. 17 At that time they will call Jerusalem ‘The ( AG ) Throne of the Lord ,’ and ( AH ) all the nations will assemble at it, at Jerusalem, for the ( AI ) name of the Lord ; and they will no longer ( AJ ) follow the stubbornness of their evil heart. 18 ( AK ) In those days the house of Judah will walk with the house of Israel, and they will come together ( AL ) from the land of the north to the ( AM ) land that I gave your fathers as an inheritance.
19 “Then I said,
‘How I would set you among [ l ] My sons
And give you a pleasant land,
The most ( AN ) beautiful inheritance of the nations!’
And I said, ‘You shall call Me, ( AO ) My Father,
And not turn away from following Me.’
20 However, as a woman treacherously leaves her lover,
So you have ( AP ) dealt treacherously with Me,
House of Israel,” declares the Lord .
21 A voice is heard on the ( AQ ) bare heights,
The weeping, the pleading of the sons of Israel.
Because they have perverted their way,
They have ( AR ) forgotten the Lord their God.
22 “Return, you faithless sons,
( AS ) I will heal your faithlessness.”
“Behold, we come to You;
For You are the Lord our God.
23 Certainly ( AT ) the hills are a deception,
[ m ] Commotion on the mountains.
Certainly in the ( AU ) Lord our God
Is the salvation of Israel.
24 “But ( AV ) the shame has consumed the product of our fathers’ labor since our youth—their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters. 25 Let us lie down in our ( AW ) shame, and let our humiliation cover us; for we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, ( AX ) from our youth even to this day. And we have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.”
3 “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 .
2 “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.
3 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 )
4 Have you not just called to me:
‘My Father, ( M ) my friend from my youth, ( N )
5 will you always be angry? ( O )
Will your wrath continue forever?’
This is how you talk,
but you do all the evil you can.”
6 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. 7 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 ) 8 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. 9 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.
“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.”
