Jeremiah 2:13-22

“For My people have committed two evils: They have abandoned (rejected) Me, The fountain of living water, And they have carved out their own cisterns, Broken cisterns That cannot hold water. ¶“Is Israel a servant? Is he a slave by birth? Why has he become a captive and a prey? “The young lions have roared at him, They have made their voices heard and roared loudly. And they have made his land a waste; His cities have been destroyed and are burned ruins, without inhabitant. “Moreover, the men of Memphis and Tahpanhes [as powerful enemies] Have shaved the crown of your head [to degrade you]. “Have you not brought this on yourself By abandoning (rejecting) the LORD your God When He led you in the way? “Now what are you doing by going to Egypt [in search of an ally], To drink the [muddy] waters of the Nile? Or what are you doing by going to Assyria [in search of an ally], To drink the [muddy] waters of the Euphrates? “Your own wickedness will discipline you, And your desertion of the faith will punish you. Know therefore that it is an evil and bitter thing For you to abandon (reject) the LORD your God, And for you to be indifferent to Me and dismiss the [reverent] fear of Me,” says the Lord GOD of hosts. ¶“For long ago you broke your yoke [in deliberate disobedience] And tore off your bonds [of the law that I gave you]; You said, ‘I will not serve and obey You!’ For on every high hill And under every green tree You have lain down [in idolatrous worship] like a [compliant] prostitute. “Yet I had planted you [O house of Israel as] a choice vine, A completely faithful seed. How then have you turned against Me Into degenerate shoots of a foreign and wild vine [alien to Me]? “For though you wash yourself with lye And use much soap, The stain of your guilt is [still] before Me [and you are soiled and dirty],” says the Lord GOD.