The Polluted Land
1They say,If a manput awayhis wife,and she gofrom him, and become anotherman's,shall he return unto her again?shall not that landbe greatlypolluted?but thou hast played the harlotwith manylovers;yet return againto me, saiththe LORD.
2Lift upthine eyesunto the high places,and seewherethou hast not been lien{08676;07901:08795} with. In the wayshast thou satfor them, as the Arabianin the wilderness;and thou hast pollutedthe landwith thy whoredomsand with thy wickedness.
3Therefore the showershave been withholden,and there hath been no latter rain;and thou hadst a whore'sforehead,thou refusedstto be ashamed.
4Wilt thou not from this time cryunto me, My father,thou [art] the guideof my youth?
5Will he reserve[his anger] for ever?will he keep[it] to the end?Behold, thou hast spokenand doneevil thingsas thou couldest.
Israel's and Judah's Unfaithfulness
6The LORDsaidalso unto me in the daysof Josiahthe king,Hast thou seen[that] which backslidingIsraelhath done?she is gone upupon every highmountainand underevery greentree,and there hath played the harlot.7And I saidaftershe had doneall these [things], Turnthou unto me. But she returnednot. And her treacheroussisterJudahsaw[it].8And I saw,when for all the causeswhereby backslidingIsraelcommitted adulteryI had put her away,and givenher a billof divorce;yet her treacheroussisterJudahfearednot, but wentand played the harlotalso.9And it came to pass through the lightnessof her whoredom,that she defiledthe land,and committed adulterywith stonesand with stocks.10And yet for all this her treacheroussisterJudahhath not turnedunto me with her whole heart,but feignedly,saiththe LORD.
Invitation to Repentance
(Isaiah 57:14-21;Hosea 14:1-3;Zechariah 1:1-6)
11And the LORDsaidunto me, The backslidingIsraelhath justifiedherselfmore than treacherousJudah.
12Goand proclaimthese wordstoward the north,and say,Return,thou backslidingIsrael,saiththe LORD;[and] I will not cause mine angerto fallupon you: for I [am] merciful,saiththe LORD,[and] I will not keep[anger] for ever.
13Only acknowledgethine iniquity,that thou hast transgressedagainst the LORDthy God,and hast scatteredthy waysto the strangersunder every greentree,and ye have not obeyedmy voice,saiththe LORD.
14Turn,O backslidingchildren,saiththe LORD;for I am marriedunto you: and I will takeyou oneof a city,and twoof a family,and I will bringyou to Zion:
15And I will giveyou pastorsaccording to mine heart,which shall feedyou with knowledgeand understanding.16And it shall come to pass, when ye be multipliedand increasedin the land,in those days,saiththe LORD,they shall sayno more, The arkof the covenantof the LORD:neither shall it cometo mind:neither shall they rememberit; neither shall they visit[it]; neither shall [that] be doneany more.17At that timethey shall callJerusalemthe throneof the LORD;and all the nationsshall be gatheredunto it, to the nameof the LORD,to Jerusalem:neither shall they walkany more afterthe imaginationof their evilheart.18In those daysthe houseof Judahshall walkwith the houseof Israel,and they shall cometogetherout of the landof the northto the landthat I have given for an inheritanceunto your fathers.
19But I said,How shall I putthee among the children,and givethee a pleasantland,a goodlyheritageof the hostsof nations?and I said,Thou shalt callme, My father;and shalt not turn awayfrom me.
20Surely[as] a wifetreacherouslydeparteth from her husband,so have ye dealt treacherouslywith me, O houseof Israel,saiththe LORD.
21A voicewas heardupon the high places,weeping[and] supplicationsof the childrenof Israel:for they have pervertedtheir way,[and] they have forgottenthe LORDtheir God.
22Return,ye backslidingchildren,[and] I will healyour backslidings.Behold, we comeunto thee; for thou [art] the LORDour God.
23Trulyin vain[is salvation hoped for] from the hills,[and from] the multitudeof mountains:trulyin the LORDour God[is] the salvationof Israel.
24For shamehath devouredthe labourof our fathersfrom our youth;their flocksand their herds,their sonsand their daughters.25We lie downin our shame,and our confusioncoverethus: for we have sinnedagainst the LORDour God,we and our fathers,from our youtheven unto this day,and have not obeyedthe voiceof the LORDour God.
