22
One thing led to another. It was not enough to be wrong about the knowledge of God. They lived in a state of evil warfare, but they were so ignorant that they called it peace.
23
They murdered children in their initiation rituals, celebrated secret mysteries, and held wild ceremonial orgies with unnatural practices.
24
They no longer kept their lives or their marriages pure. A man might kill another by an act of treachery or cause him grief by committing adultery with his wife.
25
Everything was a complete riot of bloody murder, robbery, deceit, corruption, faithlessness, disorder, falsehood,
26
harassment of innocent people, ingratitude, moral decay, sexual perversion, broken marriages, adultery, and immorality.
27
The worship of idols, whose names should never be spoken, is the beginning and the end, the cause and the result of every evil.
28
People who worship them lose control of themselves in ecstasy, or pass off lies as prophecies, or live wickedly, or break their word without hesitation.
29
They tell lies under oath and expect no punishment, because the idols they put their trust in are lifeless.
30
But punishment will finally catch up with them, for two reasons: first, they were in error about God when they worshiped idols, and second, they had so little regard for holiness that they made false statements to deceive people.
31
When unrighteous people commit sin, they will be hunted down, not by the power of whatever thing they swear by, but by the punishment that sinners deserve.