Jeremiah 3:6-14

English Standard Version

Faithless Israel Called to Repentance

⁶The Lord said to me in the days of ^(A)King Josiah: “Have you seen what she did, that faithless one, Israel, ^(B)how she went up on every high hill and under every green tree, and there ^(C)played the whore? ⁷And I thought, ‘After she has done all this she will return to me,’ but she did not return, and her treacherous ^(D)sister Judah saw it. ⁸She saw that for all the adulteries of that faithless one, Israel, ^(E)I had sent her away with ^(F)a decree of divorce. ^(G)Yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but she too went ^(H)and played the whore. ⁹Because she took her whoredom lightly, she polluted the land, committing adultery with ^(I)stone and tree. ¹⁰Yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to me ^(J)with her whole heart, but in pretense, declares the Lord.”

¹¹And the Lord said to me, ^(K)“Faithless Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. ¹²Go, and proclaim these words toward ^(L)the north, and say,

^(M)“‘Return, faithless Israel,
declares the Lord.
I will not look on you in anger,
    for ^(N)I am merciful,
declares the Lord;
^(O)I will not be angry forever.
¹³^(P)Only acknowledge your guilt,
    that you rebelled against the Lord your God
and scattered your favors among foreigners under ^(Q)every green tree,
    and that you have not obeyed my voice,
declares the Lord.
¹⁴^(R)Return, O faithless children,
declares the Lord;
    ^(S)for I am your master;
I will take you, one from a city and two from a family,
    and I will bring you to Zion.