24
and told him to build a city which would bear your name and in which sacrifices would be offered to you.
25
This was done for many years, but then the inhabitants of the city disobeyed you
26
and sinned just like Adam and all his descendants, because they had the same evil impulse.
27
So you handed over your own city to your enemies.
28
"I said to myself, "Perhaps Babylon has been allowed to conquer Jerusalem because the people who live there are better than we are.'
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But when I got to Babylon, I saw more sins than I could count, and now for thirty years I have seen many sinners here. So I was perplexed
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when I saw how you tolerate sinners and do not punish them, how you protect your enemies and yet destroy your own people.
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You haven't given the faintest hint as to how these ways of yours can be changed. Surely Babylon is no better than Jerusalem.
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No other nation, except Israel, has ever known you or accepted your covenants.
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But Israel was never rewarded, and never profited from its labor. I have traveled widely in the other nations, and I have seen how prosperous they are, although they don't keep your commands.
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Now then, Lord, if you would just weigh our sins on the scales against those of the rest of the world, it would be perfectly clear that their sins are heavier.