“1 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2 Go and cry in
the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; I remember thee, the
kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest
after me in the wilderness, in a land [that was] not sown. 3 Israel
[was] holiness unto the LORD, [and] the firstfruits of his increase: all
that devour him shall offend; evil shall come upon them, saith the LORD.
4 Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families
of the house of Israel: 5 Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your
fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked
after vanity, and are become vain? 6 Neither said they, Where [is] the
LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through
the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of
drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed
through, and where no man dwelt? 7 And I brought you into a plentiful
country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye
entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination. 8
The priests said not, Where [is] the LORD? and they that handle the law
knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets
prophesied by Baal, and walked after [things that] do not profit.”
“9 Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your
children’s children will I plead. 10 For pass over the isles of Chittim,
and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there
be such a thing. 11 Hath a nation changed [their] gods, which [are] yet
no gods? but my people have changed their glory for [that which] doth
not profit. 12 Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly
afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD. 13 For my people have
committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living
waters, [and] hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no
water.”
“14 [Is] Israel a servant? [is] he a homeborn [slave]? why is he
spoiled? 15 The young lions roared upon him, [and] yelled, and they made
his land waste: his cities are burned without inhabitant. 16 Also the
children of Noph and Tahapanes have broken the crown of thy head. 17
Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the
LORD thy God, when he led thee by the way? 18 And now what hast thou to
do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou
to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river? 19 Thine
own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove
thee: know therefore and see that [it is] an evil [thing] and bitter,
that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear [is] not in
thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.”
“20 For of old time I have broken thy yoke, [and] burst thy bands; and
thou saidst, I will not transgress; when upon every high hill and under
every green tree thou wanderest, playing the harlot. 21 Yet I had
planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned
into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me? 22 For though thou
wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, [yet] thine iniquity is
marked before me, saith the Lord GOD. 23 How canst thou say, I am not
polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know
what thou hast done: [thou art] a swift dromedary traversing her ways;
24 A wild ass used to the wilderness, [that] snuffeth up the wind at her
pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her
will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her. 25 Withhold
thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst,
There is no hope: no; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I
go. 26 As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of
Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and
their prophets, 27 Saying to a stock, Thou [art] my father; and to a
stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned [their] back
unto me, and not [their] face: but in the time of their trouble they
will say, Arise, and save us. 28 But where [are] thy gods that thou hast
made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy
trouble: for [according to] the number of thy cities are thy gods, O
Judah.”
“29 Wherefore will ye plead with me? ye all have transgressed against
me, saith the LORD. 30 In vain have I smitten your children; they
received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your prophets, like
a destroying lion. 31 O generation, see ye the word of the LORD. Have I
been a wilderness unto Israel? a land of darkness? wherefore say my
people, We are lords; we will come no more unto thee? 32 Can a maid
forget her ornaments, [or] a bride her attire? yet my people have
forgotten me days without number. 33 Why trimmest thou thy way to seek
love? therefore hast thou also taught the wicked ones thy ways. 34 Also
in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the poor innocents: I
have not found it by secret search, but upon all these. 35 Yet thou
sayest, Because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me.
Behold, I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.
36 Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way? thou also shalt be
ashamed of Egypt, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria. 37 Yea, thou shalt go
forth from him, and thine hands upon thine head: for the LORD hath
rejected thy confidences, and thou shalt not prosper in them.” (Jeremiah
2:1-37 AV)