Jeremiah 3
1 Saying, 'Lo, one sendeth away his wife, And she hath gone from him, And she hath been to another man, Doth he turn back unto her again? Greatly defiled is not that land? And thou hast committed whoredom with many lovers, And turn again to Me, an affirmation of Jehovah.
They say, If a man put away his wife, and she goe from him, and become another mans, shall hee returne againe vnto her? shall not this land be polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many louers: yet turne againe to mee, sayeth the Lord.
2 Lift thine eyes to the high places, and see, Where hast thou not been lain with? On the ways thou hast sat for them, As an Arab in a wilderness, And thou defilest the land, By thy fornications, and by thy wickedness.
Lift vp thine eyes vnto the hie places, and beholde, where thou hast not plaied the harlot: thou hast sit waiting for them in the waies, as the Arabian in the wildernesse: and thou hast polluted the lande with thy whoredomes, and with thy malice.
3 And withheld are showers, and gathered rain hath not been. The forehead of a whorish woman thou hast, Thou hast refused to be ashamed.
Therefore the showres haue beene restrained, and the latter raine came not, and thou haddest a whores forehead: thou wouldest not bee ashamed.
4 Hast thou not henceforth called to Me, 'My father, Thou [art] the leader of my youth?
Diddest thou not stil crie vnto me, Thou art my father, and the guide of my youth?
5 Doth He keep to the age? watch for ever?' Lo, these things thou hast spoken, And thou dost the evil things, and prevailest.
Wil he keepe his anger for euer? will he reserue it to the ende? thus hast thou spoken, but thou doest euill, euen more and more.
6 And Jehovah saith unto me, in the days of Josiah the king, 'Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? She is going on every high mountain, and unto the place of every green tree, and committeth fornication there.
The Lord saide also vnto me, in the daies of Iosiah the King, Hast thou seene what this rebell Israel hath done? for she hath gone vp vpon euery high mountaine, and vnder euery greene tree, and there plaied the harlot.
7 And I say, after her doing all these, Unto Me thou dost turn back, and she hath not turned back, and see [it] doth her treacherous sister Judah.
And I sayde, when shee had done all this, Turne thou vnto me: but she returned not, as her rebellious sister Iudah sawe.
8 And I see when (for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery) I have sent her away, and I give the bill of her divorce unto her, that treacherous Judah her sister hath not feared, and goeth and committeth fornication — she also.
When I sawe, howe that by all occasions rebellious Israel had plaied the harlot, I cast her away, and gaue her a bill of diuorcement: yet her rebellious sister Iudah was not afraied, but shee went also, and plaied the harlot.
9 And it hath come to pass, from the vileness of her fornication, that the land is defiled, and she committeth fornication with stone and with wood.
So that for the lightnesse of her whoredome shee hath euen defiled the lande: for shee hath committed fornication with stones and stockes.
10 And even in all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned back unto Me with all her heart, but with falsehood, an affirmation of Jehovah.'
Neuerthelesse for all this, her rebellious sister Iudah hath not returned vnto mee with her whole heart, but fainedly, sayth the Lord.
11 And Jehovah saith unto me: 'Justified herself hath backsliding Israel, More than treacherous Judah.
And the Lord said vnto me, The rebellious Israel hath iustified her selfe more then the rebellious Iudah.
12 Go, and thou hast proclaimed these words toward the north, and hast said, Turn back, O backsliding Israel, An affirmation of Jehovah! I cause not Mine anger to fall upon you, For I [am] kind, an affirmation of Jehovah, I watch not to the age.
Goe and crie these woordes towarde the North and say, Thou disobedient Israel, returne, sayeth the Lord, and I will not let my wrath fall vpon you: for I am mercifull, sayeth the Lord, and I will not alway keepe mine anger.
13 Only, know thine iniquity, For against Jehovah thy God thou hast transgressed, And thou dost scatter thy ways to strangers, Under every green tree, And to My voice thou hast not hearkened, An affirmation of Jehovah.
But knowe thine iniquitie: for thou hast rebelled against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy waies to the straunge gods vnder euery greene tree, but yee woulde not obey my voyce, sayeth the Lord.
14 Turn back, O backsliding sons, An affirmation of Jehovah. For I have ruled over you, And taken you one of a city, and two of a family, And have brought you to Zion,
O yee disobedient children, turne againe, sayeth the Lord, for I am your Lord, and I will take you one of a citie, and two of a tribe and wil bring you to Zion,
15 And I have given to you shepherds According to Mine own heart, And they have fed you with knowledge and understanding.
And I will giue you pastours according to mine heart, which shall feede you with knowledge and vnderstanding.
16 And it hath come to pass, when ye are multiplied, And have been fruitful in the land, In those days — an affirmation of Jehovah, They say not any more, 'The ark of the covenant of Jehovah,' Nor doth it go up on the heart, Nor do they remember concerning it, Nor do they inspect, nor is it made again.
Moreouer, when yee be increased and multiplied in the land, in those daies, saieth the Lord, they shall say no more, The Arke of the couenant of the Lord: for it shall come no more to minde, neither shall they remember it, neither shall they visite it, for that shalbe no more done.
17 At that time they cry to Jerusalem, 'O throne of Jehovah,' And gathered unto her hath been all the nations, For the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem, Nor do they go any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart.
At that time they shall cal Ierusalem, The throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered vnto it, euen to the Name of the Lord in Ierusalem: and thence foorth they shall follow no more the hardnesse of their wicked heart.
18 In those days do the house of Judah Go unto the house of Israel, And they come together from the land of the south, unto the land That I caused your fathers to inherit.
In those daies ye house of Iudah shall walke with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the lande of the North, into the lande, that I haue giuen for an inheritance vnto your fathers.
19 And I have said, How do I put thee among the sons, And give to thee a desirable land, A beauteous inheritance of the hosts of nations, And I say, My father — ye do call to Me, And from after Me ye do not turn back.
But I sayde, Howe did I take thee for children and giue thee a pleasant lande, euen the glorious heritage of the armies of the heathen, and saide, Thou shalt call mee, saying, My father, and shalt not turne from me?
20 But — a woman hath deceived her friend, So ye have dealt treacherously with Me, O house of Israel, an affirmation of Jehovah.
But as a woman rebelleth against her husband: so haue yee rebelled against me, O house of Israel, sayeth the Lord.
21 A voice on high places is heard — weeping, Supplications of the sons of Israel, For they have made perverse their way, They have forgotten Jehovah their God.
A voice was heard vpon the hie places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel: for they haue peruerted their way, and forgotten the Lord their God.
22 Turn back, O backsliding sons, I cause your backslidings to cease. — Behold us, we have come to Thee, For Thou [art] Jehovah our God.
O yee disobedient children, returne and I wil heale your rebellions. Behold, we come vnto thee, for thou art the Lord our God.
23 Surely in vain from the heights, The multitude of mountains — Surely in Jehovah our God [is] the salvation of Israel.
Truely the hope of the hilles is but vaine, nor the multitude of mountaines: but in the Lord our God is the health of Israel.
24 And the shameful thing hath devoured The labour of our fathers from our youth, Their flock and their herd, Their sons and their daughters.
For confusion hath deuoured our fathers labour, from our youth their sheepe and their bullocks, their sonnes and their daughters.
25 We have lain down in our shame, and cover us doth our confusion, For against Jehovah our God we have sinned, We, and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day, Nor have we hearkened to the voice of Jehovah our God!
Wee lie downe in our confusion, and our shame couereth vs: for we haue sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers from our youth, euen vnto this day, and haue not obeyed the voyce of the Lord our God.
