Has a nation ever exchanged its gods?
(Of course, its gods are not really gods at all.)
But my people have exchanged their glorious God
for idols worth nothing.
Skies, be shocked at the things that have happened
and shake with great fear!” says the LORD.
“My people have done two evils:
They have turned away from me,
the spring of living water.
And they have dug their own wells,
which are broken wells that cannot hold water.
Have the people of Israel become slaves?
Have they become like someone who was born a slave?
Why were they taken captive?
Enemies have roared like lions at Israel;
they have growled at Israel.
They have destroyed the land of Israel.
The cities of Israel lie in ruins,
and all the people have left.
The men from the cities of Memphis and Tahpanhes
have disgraced you by shaving the top of your head.
Haven’t you brought this on yourselves
by turning away from the LORD your God
when he was leading you in the right way?
It did not help to go to Egypt
and drink from the Shihor River.
It did not help to go to Assyria
and drink from the Euphrates River.
Your evil will bring punishment to you,
and the wrong you have done will teach you a lesson.
Think about it and understand
that it is a terrible evil to turn away from the LORD your God.
It is wrong not to fear me,”
says the Lord GOD All-Powerful.
“Long ago you refused to obey me as an ox breaks its yoke.
You broke the ropes I used to hold you
and said, ‘I will not serve you!’
In fact, on every high hill
and under every green tree
you lay down as a prostitute.
But I planted you as a special vine,
as a very good seed.
How then did you turn
into a wild vine that grows bad fruit?
Although you wash yourself with cleanser
and use much soap,
I can still see the stain of your guilt,” says the Lord GOD.
“How can you say to me, ‘I am not guilty.
I have not worshiped the Baal idols’?
Look at the things you did in the valley.
Think about what you have done.
You are like a she-camel in mating season
that runs from place to place.
You are like a wild donkey that lives in the desert
and sniffs the wind at mating time.
At that time who can hold her back?
Any male who chases her will easily catch her;
at mating time, it is easy to find her.
Don’t run until your feet are bare
or until your throat is dry.
But you say, ‘It’s no use!
I love those other gods,
and I must chase them!’
“A thief is ashamed when someone catches him stealing.
In the same way, the family of Israel is ashamed—
they, their kings, their officers,
their priests, and their prophets.
They say to things of wood, ‘You are my father,’
and to idols of stone, ‘You gave birth to me.’
Those people won’t look at me;
they have turned their backs to me.
But when they get into trouble, they say,
‘Come and save us!’
Where are the idols you made for yourselves?
Let them come and save you
when you are in trouble!
People of Judah, you have as many idols
as you have towns!
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