Jeremiah 3
1 One could say, Behold, if a man send away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, can he return unto her again? would not that land be greatly polluted? and thou hast played the harlot with many companions, and wilt yet return to me, saith the Lord.
“If a man divorces his wife and she goes from him and becomes another man's wife, will he return to her again? Would that land not be greatly polluted? You have lived as a prostitute who has many lovers; and would you return to me?—this is Yahweh's declaration.
2 Lift up thy eyes unto the mountain-tops, and see where thou hast not been lain with. On public roads hast thou sat for them, as the Arab in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy incests and with thy wickedness.
Lift up your eyes to the barren heights and look! Is there any place where you have not had illicit sex? By the roadsides you sat waiting for your lovers, as an Arab in the wilderness. You have polluted the land with your prostitution and wickedness.
3 And [though] the early showers were withholden, and the latter rain came not: yet hadst thou a forehead of an incestuous wife, thou refusedst to feel shame.
So the showers have been withheld and the spring rains have not come; yet you have the forehead of a prostitute; you refuse to be ashamed.
4 Wilt thou not from this time call out unto mem My father, the guide of my youth art thou?
Have you not just now called to me: 'My father! My closest friend even from my youth!
5 Will he bear grudge for ever? will he keep it to eternity? Behold, thou hast spoken [this], and yet hast done the things that are evil as much as thou wast able.
Will he always be angry? Will he always keep his wrath to the end?' Look! This is what you have said, but you do all the evil you can!”
6 And the Lord said unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen what backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and hath played the harlot there.
Then Yahweh said to me in the days of Josiah the king, “Do you see what faithless Israel has done? She has gone up every high hill and under every leafy tree, and there she has acted like a prostitute.
7 And I thought that after she had done all these things, she would return unto me. But she returned not. And this saw her treacherous sister Judah.
I said, 'After she does all these things, she will return to me,' but she did not return. Then her faithless sister Judah saw these things.
8 And I saw, that, although because backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had sent her away, and given her bill of divorce unto her, still treacherous Judah her sister feared not, but went and played herself the harlot also.
So I saw that, in the same way that faithless Israel had committed adultery and I had sent her away and had given a bill of divorce against her, her faithless sister Judah did not fear; she also went out and acted like a prostitute.
9 And it came to pass through her giddy incest, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stone and with wood.
Her prostitution was nothing to her; she defiled the land, and she committed adultery with stones and trees.
10 And yet with all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not returned unto me with all her heart, but with falsehood, saith the Lord.
Then after all of this, her faithless sister Judah returned to me, not with all her heart, but with a lie—this is Yahweh's declaration.”
11 And the Lord said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself through the treacherous Judah.
Then Yahweh said to me, “Faithless Israel has been more righteous than faithless Judah!
12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord: I will not cause my anger to fall upon you; for I am full of kindness, saith the Lord, I will not hear grudge for ever.
Go and proclaim these words to the north. Say, 'Return, faithless Israel!—this is Yahweh's declaration—I will not always be angry with you. Since I am faithful—this is Yahweh's declaration—I will not stay angry forever.
13 Only acknowledge thy iniquity, that against the Lord thy God thou hast rebelled, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and that unto my voice ye have not hearkened, saith the Lord.
Acknowledge your iniquity, for you have transgressed against Yahweh your God; you have shared your ways with strangers under every leafy tree! For you have not listened to my voice!—this is Yahweh's declaration.
14 Return, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am become your husband; and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and bring you to Zion:
Return, faithless people!—this is Yawheh's declaration—I am your husband! I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion!
15 And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, and they shall feed you with knowledge and intelligence.
I will give you shepherds after my heart, and they will shepherd you with knowledge and insight.
16 And it shall come to pass, when ye multiply and increase in the land, in those days, saith the Lord, that men shall not say any more, “The ark of the covenant of the Lord;” nor shall it come any more to mind; nor shall they remember it; nor shall they mention it; nor shall any thing be done any more [with it].
Then it will happen that you will increase and bear fruit in the land in those days—this is Yahweh's declaration-they will no longer say, “The ark of the covenant of Yahweh!” This matter will no longer come up in their hearts or be remembered; it will not be missed, and another one will not be made.'
17 At that time shall they call Jerusalem, The throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem: and they shall not walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart.
In that time they will proclaim about Jerusalem, 'This is Yahweh's throne,' and all the other nations will gather at Jerusalem in Yahweh's name. They will no longer walk in the stubbornness of their wicked hearts.
18 In those days shall the house of Judah walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north unto the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.
In those days, the house of Judah will walk with the house of Israel. They will come together from the land of the north to the land that I gave your ancestors as an inheritance.
19 But I had thought, How shall I establish thee among the [other] sons [of man], and give thee a desirable land, a heritage of glory of the hosts of nations? and I thought, My father thou wouldst call me, and that from me thou wouldst not turn away.
As for me, I said, 'How I want to treat you as my son and give you a pleasant land, an inheritance more beautiful than what is in any other nation!' I would have said, 'You will call me “my father”.' I would have said that you would not turn from following me.
20 But truly as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith the Lord.
But like a woman faithless to her husband, you have betrayed me, house of Israel—this is Yahweh's declaration.”
21 A voice is now heard upon the mountain-tops, the supplicatory weeping of the children of Israel; for they have perverted their way, they have forgotten the Lord their God.
A voice is heard on the plains, the weeping and pleading of the people of Israel! For they have changed their ways; they have forgotten Yahweh their God.
22 Return, ye backsliding children, I will heal your backslidings. “Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the Lord our God.
“Return, faithless people! I will heal you of treachery!” “Behold! We will come to you, for you are Yahweh our God!
23 Truly deceptive was [what we hoped for] from the hills, and the multitude on the mountains; truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.
Surely lies come from the hills, a confusing noise from the mountains; surely Yahweh our God is the salvation of Israel.
24 And shame hath devoured the acquisition of our fathers from our youth, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.
Yet shameful idols have consumed what our ancestors have worked for— their flocks and cattle, their sons and daughters!
25 We lie down in our shame, and our confusion covereth us; for against the Lord our God have we sinned, we and our fathers, from our youth even until this day; and we have not hearkened to the voice of the Lord our God.”
Let us lie down in shame. May our shame cover us, for we have sinned against Yahweh our God! We ourselves and our ancestors, from the time of our youthfulness to this present day, have not listened to the voice of Yahweh our God!”
