Jeremiah 3

1 They say, If a man shall put away his wife, and she shall go from him, and become another man's, shall he return to 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.

“Saying, Behold, one sends his wife away, And she has gone from him, And she has been to another man, Does he return to her again? Is that land not greatly defiled? And you have committed whoredom with many lovers, And turn to Me again,” A declaration of YHWH.

2 Lift up thy eyes to the high places, and see where thou hast not been lain with. In the ways hast thou sat for them, as the Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy acts of lewdness, and with thy wickedness.

“Lift your eyes to the high places, and see, Where have you not been lain with? You have sat for them on the ways, As an Arab in a wilderness, And you defile the land, By your fornications, and by your wickedness.

3 Therefore the showers have been withheld, and there hath been no latter rain? and thou hadst a harlot's forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.

And showers are withheld, and there has been no spring rain. You have the forehead of a whorish woman, You have refused to be ashamed.

4 Wilt thou not from this time cry to me, My father, thou [art] the guide of my youth?

Have you not from now on called to Me, My Father, You [are] the leader of my youth?

5 Will he retain [his anger] for ever? will he keep [it] to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken and done evil things as thou couldst.

Does He keep for all time? Watch forever? Behold, you have spoken these things, And you do evil, and prevail.”

6 The LORD said also to me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen [that] which backsliding Israel hath done? she hath gone up upon every high mountain, and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.

And YHWH says to me, in the days of Josiah the king, “Have you seen that which backsliding Israel has done? She is going on every high mountain, and to the place of every green tree, and commits fornication there.

7 And I said after she had done all these [things], Turn thou to me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw [it].

And I say, after her doing all these, Return to Me, and she has not returned, and her treacherous sister Judah sees it.

8 And I saw, when for all the causes by which 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.

And I see that for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery, I have sent her away, and I give the bill of her divorce to her; and her treacherous sister Judah has not feared, and goes and commits fornication—she also.

9 And it came to pass through the lightness of her lewdness, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.

And it has come to pass, from the vileness of her fornication, that the land is defiled, and she commits fornication with stone and with wood.

10 And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned to me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD.

And even in all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned back to Me with all her heart, but with falsehood,” a declaration of YHWH.

11 And the LORD said to me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.

And YHWH says to me: “Backsliding Israel has justified herself, More than treacherous Judah.

12 Go and proclaim these words towards the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; [and] I will not cause my anger to fall upon you: for I [am] merciful, saith the LORD, [and] I will not keep [anger] for ever.

Go, and you have proclaimed these words toward the north, and have said, Return, O backsliding Israel,” A declaration of YHWH! “I do not cause My anger to fall on you, for I [am] kind,” A declaration of YHWH, “I do not watch for all time.

13 Only acknowledge thy 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.

Only, know your iniquity, For you have transgressed against your God YHWH, And you scatter your ways to strangers, Under every green tree, And you have not listened to My voice,” A declaration of YHWH.

14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married to you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:

“Return, O backsliding sons,” A declaration of YHWH. “For I have ruled over you, And taken you—one from a city, and two from a family, And have brought you to Zion,

15 And I will give you pastors according to my heart, who shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.

And I have given shepherds to you According to My own heart, And they have fed you with knowledge and understanding.

16 And it shall come to pass, when ye shall 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.

And it has come to pass, when you are multiplied, And have been fruitful in the land, In those days,” A declaration of YHWH, “They no longer say, The Ark of the Covenant of YHWH, Nor does it go up on the heart, Nor do they remember concerning it, Nor do they inspect, nor is it made again.

17 At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered to it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem; neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.

At that time they cry to Jerusalem, O throne of YHWH, And all the nations have been gathered to her, For the Name of YHWH, to Jerusalem, Nor do they go after the stubbornness of their evil heart anymore.

18 In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together from the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance to your fathers.

In those days the house of Judah Goes to the house of Israel, And they come together from the land of the south, To the land that I caused your fathers to inherit.

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.

And I have said, How do I put you among the sons, And give a desirable land to you, A beautiful inheritance of the hosts of nations, And I say, You call Me—My Father, And you do not turn back from after 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.

But a woman has deceived her friend, So you have dealt treacherously with Me, O house of Israel,” A declaration of YHWH.

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.

A voice is heard on high places—weeping, Supplications of the sons of Israel, For they have made their way perverse, They have forgotten their God YHWH.

22 Return, ye backsliding children, [and] I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come to thee; for thou [art] the LORD our God.

“Return, O backsliding sons, I cause your backslidings to cease.” “Behold us, we have come to You, For You [are] our God YHWH.

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.

Surely in vain—from the heights, The multitude of mountains—Surely the salvation of Israel [is] in our God YHWH.

24 For shame hath devoured the labor of our fathers from our youth; their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.

And the shameful thing has devoured The labor of our fathers from our youth, Their flock and their herd, 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 to this day, and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God.

We have lain down in our shame, and our confusion covers us, For we have sinned against our God YHWH, We, and our fathers, from our youth even to this day, Nor have we listened to the voice of our God YHWH!”