The Darby Translation DBY
GOD'S WORD Translation GW
1 They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto her again? Would not that land be utterly polluted? But thou hast committed fornication with many lovers; yet return to me, saith Jehovah.
1
A saying: If a man divorces his wife and she leaves him and marries another man, her first husband shouldn't go back to her again. The land would become thoroughly polluted. "You have acted like a prostitute who has many lovers. And now you want to come back to me!" declares the LORD.
2 Lift up thine eyes unto the heights and see, where hast thou not been lain with? In the ways hast thou sat for them, as an Arab in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy fornications and with thy wickedness.
2
"Look at the bare hills, and see. You have had sex with men in every place. You sat by the roadside waiting for them like a nomad in the desert. You have polluted the land with your prostitution and wickedness.
3 And the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; but thou hast a harlot's forehead, thou refusest to be ashamed.
3
So the rain has been withheld, and there have been no spring showers. Yet, you have the shameless look of a prostitute, and you refuse to blush.
4 Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth?
4
But now you are calling to me. You say, 'Father! You have been my companion ever since I was young.
5 Will he keep [his anger] for ever? Will he preserve it perpetually? Behold, thou hast spoken and hast done evil things, and thou art [so] determined.
5
He won't hold a grudge forever. He won't always be angry.' You have said and done all the evil things that you could."
6 And Jehovah said unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen what backsliding Israel hath done? She hath gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath committed fornication.
6
When Josiah was king, the LORD asked me, "Did you see what unfaithful Israel did? She went up every high mountain and under every large tree, and she acted like a prostitute there.
7 And I said, After she hath done all these [things], she will return unto me; but she returned not. And her sister Judah, the treacherous, saw [it].
7
I thought that after she had done all this that she would come back to me. But she didn't come back, and her treacherous sister Judah saw her.
8 And I saw that when for all the causes wherein backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce, yet the treacherous Judah, her sister, feared not, but went and committed fornication also.
8
Judah saw that I sent unfaithful Israel away because of her adultery and that I gave Israel her divorce papers. But treacherous Judah, her sister, wasn't afraid. She also acted like a prostitute.
9 And it came to pass through the lightness of her fornication that she polluted the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.
9
Because she wasn't concerned about acting like a prostitute, she polluted the land and committed adultery with standing stones and wood pillars.
10 And even for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not returned unto me with her whole heart, but with falsehood, saith Jehovah.
10
Even after all this, Israel's treacherous sister Judah didn't wholeheartedly come back to me.She was deceitful," declares the LORD.
11 And Jehovah said unto me, Backsliding Israel hath shewn herself more just than treacherous Judah.
11
Then the LORD said to me, "Unfaithful Israel was less guilty than treacherous Judah.
12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith Jehovah: I will not make my face dark upon you; for I am merciful, saith Jehovah; I will not keep [anger] for ever.
12
Go and proclaim these things to the north: "'Come back, unfaithful Israel. It is the LORD speaking. I will no longer frown on you because I'm merciful,' declares the LORD. 'I will no longer be angry with you.
13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against Jehovah thy God, and hast turned thy ways hither and thither to the strangers under every green tree; and ye have not hearkened to my voice, saith Jehovah.
13
Admit that you've done wrong! You have rebelled against the LORD your God. You have given yourself to strangers under every large tree. You have not obeyed me,' declares the LORD.
14 Return, backsliding children, saith Jehovah; for I am a husband unto you, and I will take you, one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion.
14
"Come back, you rebellious people," declares the LORD. "I'm your husband. I will take you, one from every city and two from every family, and bring you to Zion.
15 And I will give you shepherds according to my heart, and they shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.
15
I will give you shepherds after my own heart. They will be shepherds who feed you with knowledge and insight.
16 And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied in the land and become fruitful, in those days, saith Jehovah, they shall say no more, Ark of the covenant of Jehovah! neither shall it come to mind, nor shall they remember it, nor shall they visit [it]; neither shall it be done any more.
16
In those days you will be fertile, and your population will increase in the land," declares the LORD. "People will no longer talk about the ark of the LORD's promise. It will no longer come to mind. They won't remember it, miss it, or make another one.
17 At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem; and they shall no more walk after the stubbornness of their evil heart.
17
At that time they will call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD. All nations will gather in Jerusalem because the name of the LORD will be found there. They will no longer follow their own stubborn, evil ways.
18 In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel; and they shall come together out of the land of the north, to the land which I caused your fathers to inherit.
18
In those days the nation of Judah will live with the nation of Israel. They will come together from the land of the north to the land that I gave their ancestors as their own property.
19 And as for me, I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee the pleasant land, the goodly inheritance of the hosts of the nations? And I said, Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from following me.
19
"I wanted to treat you like children and give you a pleasant land, the most beautiful property among the nations. I thought that you would call me Father and wouldn't turn away from me.
20 Surely [as] a woman treacherously departeth from her companion, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith Jehovah.
20
But like a wife who betrays her husband, so you, nation of Israel, betrayed me," declares the LORD.
21 A voice is heard upon the heights, the weeping supplications of the children of Israel; for they have perverted their way, they have forgotten Jehovah their God.
21
The sound of crying is heard on the hills. It is the crying and the pleading of the people of Israel. They have become crooked and have forgotten the LORD their God.
22 -- Return, backsliding children; I will heal your backslidings. ... Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art Jehovah our God.
22
"Come back, you rebellious people, and I will forgive you for being unfaithful." Here we are! We have come to you because you are the LORD our God.
23 Truly in vain [is salvation looked for] from the hills, [and] the multitude of mountains; truly in Jehovah our God is the salvation of Israel.
23
Truly, the noise from the hills, from the mountains, is the noise of false worship. Truly, the LORD our God will rescue us.
24 But shame hath devoured the labour of our fathers from our youth; their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.
24
Ever since we were young, the shameful worship [of Baal] has taken everything our ancestors worked for, their flocks and herds, their sons and daughters.
25 We lie down in our shame, and our confusion covereth us; for we have sinned against Jehovah our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day, and have not hearkened to the voice of Jehovah our God.
25
We must lie down in our shame and be covered by our disgrace. Ever since we were young, we and our ancestors have sinned against the LORD our God. We haven't obeyed the LORD our God.
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GOD'S WORD® is a copyrighted work of God's Word to the Nations. Copyright © 1995 by God's Word to the Nations. All rights reserved. Used by permission.