10 They will eat but not be satisfied;(A)
they will be promiscuous(B) but not multiply.
For they have abandoned their devotion to the Lord.(C)
11 Promiscuity,(D) wine, and new wine
take away one’s understanding.(E)

12 My people consult their wooden idols,(F)
and their divining rods inform them.
For a spirit of promiscuity leads them astray;(G)
they act promiscuously(H)
in disobedience to[a] their God.
13 They sacrifice on the mountaintops,(I)
and they burn offerings on the hills,(J)
and under oaks, poplars, and terebinths,(K)
because their shade is pleasant.
And so your daughters act promiscuously
and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.
14 I will not punish your daughters
when they act promiscuously
or your daughters-in-law
when they commit adultery,
for the men themselves go off with prostitutes(L)
and make sacrifices with cult prostitutes.(M)
People without discernment are doomed.(N)

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Footnotes

  1. 4:12 Lit promiscuously from under

10 They shall eat but not be satisfied;
    they shall prostitute themselves but not multiply,
because they have forsaken the Lord
to devote themselves to(A) 11     prostitution.

The Idolatry of Israel

Wine and new wine
    take away the understanding.(B)
12 My people consult a piece of wood,
    and their divining rod gives them oracles.
For a spirit of prostitution has led them astray,
    and they have prostituted themselves, forsaking their God.(C)
13 They sacrifice on the tops of the mountains
    and make offerings upon the hills,
under oak, poplar, and terebinth
    because their shade is good.

Therefore your daughters prostitute themselves,
    and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.(D)
14 I will not punish your daughters when they prostitute themselves
    nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery,
for the men themselves go aside with prostitutes
    and sacrifice with female attendants;
thus a people without understanding comes to ruin.(E)

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