171 The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, With the point of a diamond, Graven on the tablet of their heart, And on the horns of your altars, 2 As their sons remember their altars and their shrines, By the green tree, by the high hills. 3 O My mountain in the field—thy strength, All thy treasures—for a prey I give, Thy high places for sin in all thy borders. 4 And thou hast let go—even through thyself, Of thine inheritance that I gave to thee, And I have caused thee to serve thine enemies, In a land that thou hast not known, For a fire ye have kindled in Mine anger, Unto the age it doth burn.
5 Thus said Jehovah: Cursed 'is' the man who doth trust in man, And hath made flesh his arm, And from Jehovah whose heart turneth. 6 And he hath been as a naked thing in a desert, And doth not see when good cometh, And hath inhabited parched places in a wilderness, A salt land, and not inhabited. 7 Blessed 'is' the man who trusteth in Jehovah, And whose confidence hath been Jehovah. 8 And hath been as a tree planted by waters, And by a rivulet he sendeth forth his roots, And he doth not see when heat cometh, And his leaf hath been green, And in a year of dearth he is not sorrowful, Nor doth he cease from making fruit. 9 Crooked 'is' the heart above all things, And it 'is' incurable—who doth know it? 10 I Jehovah do search the heart, try the reins, Even to give to each according to his way, According to the fruit of his doings. 11 A partridge hatching, and not bringing forth, 'Is' one making wealth, and not by right, In the midst of his days he doth forsake it, And in his latter end—he is a fool.
12 A throne of honour on high from the beginning, The place of our sanctuary, 13 The hope of Israel 'is' Jehovah, All forsaking Thee are ashamed, And 'My apostates' in the earth are written, For they have forsaken Jehovah, A fountain of living waters. 14 Heal me, O Jehovah, and I am healed, Save me, and I am saved, for my praise 'art' Thou. 15 Lo, they are saying unto me: 'Where 'is' the word of Jehovah? pray, let it come.' 16 And I hastened not from feeding after Thee, And the desperate day I have not desired, Thou—Thou hast known, The produce of my lips, before Thy face it hath been, 17 Be not Thou to me for a terror, My hope 'art' Thou in a day of evil. 18 Let my pursuers be ashamed, and let not me be ashamed—me! Let them be affrighted, and let not me be affrighted—me! Bring in on them a day of evil, And a second time 'with' destruction destroy them.
19 Thus said Jehovah unto me: 'Go, and thou hast stood in the gate of the sons of the people, by which kings of Judah come in, and by which they go out, and in all gates of Jerusalem, 20 and thou hast said unto them: Hear a word of Jehovah, ye kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all inhabitants of Jerusalem, who are coming in by these gates, 21 Thus said Jehovah, Take ye heed to yourselves, And ye bear not a burden on the day of rest, Nor have ye brought 'it' in by the gates of Jerusalem. 22 Nor do ye take out a burden from your houses on the day of rest, Yea, any work ye do not do, And ye have sanctified the day of rest, As I have commanded your fathers. 23 And they have not hearkened nor inclined their ear, And they stiffen their neck not to hear, And not to receive instruction. 24 And it hath been, if ye certainly hearken unto Me, An affirmation of Jehovah, So as not to bring in a burden By the gates of this city on the day of rest, And to sanctify the day of rest, So as not to do in it any work— 25 Then entered by the gates of this city have kings and princes, Sitting on the throne of David, Riding in a chariot, and on horses, They, and their princes, the man of Judah, And inhabitants of Jerusalem, And this city hath remained to the age. 26 And they have come in from cities of Judah, And from suburbs of Jerusalem, And from the land of Benjamin, And from the low country, And from the hill-country, and from the south, Bringing in burnt-offering, and sacrifice, And present, and frankincense, And bringing praise 'to' the house of Jehovah. 27 And if ye do not hearken unto me to sanctify the day of rest, And so as not to bear a burden, And to come in at the gates of Jerusalem on the day of rest, Then I have kindled a fire in its gates, And it hath consumed the high places of Jerusalem, And it is not quenched!'
31 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. 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. 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. 4 Hast thou not henceforth called to Me, 'My father, Thou 'art' the leader 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.
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. 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. 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. 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. 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.' 11 And Jehovah saith unto me: 'Justified herself hath backsliding Israel, More than treacherous Judah.
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. 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. 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, 15 And I have given to you shepherds According to Mine own heart, And they have fed you with knowledge and understanding. 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. 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. 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. 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.
20 But—a woman hath deceived her friend, So ye have dealt treacherously with Me, O house of Israel, an affirmation of Jehovah. 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. 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. 23 Surely in vain from the heights, The multitude of mountains—Surely in Jehovah our God 'is' the salvation 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. 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!
