Jeremiah 2:1-13 ▼

1 Now the word of the LORD came to me saying,

2 “Go and proclaim in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD, “I remember [earnestly] the lovingkindness and devotion of your youth, Your time of betrothal [like that of a bride during the early years in Egypt and again at Sinai], When you followed Me in the wilderness, Through a land not sown.

3 “Israel was holy [something set apart from ordinary purposes, consecrated] to the LORD, The first fruits of His harvest [in which no outsider was allowed to share]. All who ate of it [injuring Israel] became guilty; Evil came on them,” says the LORD.’”

4 Hear the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel.

5 Thus says the LORD, “What injustice or unrighteousness did your fathers find in Me, That they have wandered far from Me And [habitually] walked after emptiness and futility and became empty?

6 “They did not say, ‘Where is the LORD Who brought us up from the land of Egypt, Who led us through the wilderness, Through a land of deserts and of pits, Through a land of drought and of the deep darkness [of the shadow of death], Through a land that no man passed through And where no man lived?’

7 “I brought you into a plentiful land To eat its fruit and [enjoy] its good things. But you came and defiled My land And you made My inheritance repulsive.

8 “[Even] the priests did not say, ‘Where is the LORD?’ And those who deal with the law [given to Moses] did not know Me. The rulers and shepherds also transgressed against Me, And the prophets prophesied by [the authority and in the name of] Baal And walked after [idolatrous] things that did not benefit [them].

9 “Therefore I will still contend (struggle) with you [by bringing judgment on you],” says the LORD, “And I will contend with your children’s children.”

10 “For cross over to the coasts of Kittim (Cyprus) [to the west] and see, Send also to Kedar (Arabia) [to the east] and carefully observe and consider And see whether there has been such [a thing] as this!

11 “Has a nation [ever] changed gods Even though they were not gods [but merely man-made objects]? But My people have exchanged their Glory (the true God) For that [man-made idol] which does not benefit [them].

12 “Be appalled, O heavens, at this; Be shocked and shudder with horror [at the behavior of the people],” says the LORD.

13 “For My people have committed two evils: They have abandoned (rejected) Me, The fountain of living water, And they have carved out their own cisterns, Broken cisterns That cannot hold water.