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Listen to the word of the Lord, people of Jacob—all you families of Israel! This is what the Lord says:

“What did your ancestors find wrong with me
    that led them to stray so far from me?
They worshiped worthless idols,
    only to become worthless themselves.
They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord
    who brought us safely out of Egypt
and led us through the barren wilderness—
    a land of deserts and pits,
a land of drought and death,
    where no one lives or even travels?’

“And when I brought you into a fruitful land
    to enjoy its bounty and goodness,
you defiled my land and
    corrupted the possession I had promised you.
The priests did not ask,
    ‘Where is the Lord?’
Those who taught my word ignored me,
    the rulers turned against me,
and the prophets spoke in the name of Baal,
    wasting their time on worthless idols.

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Hear the word of the Lord, house of Jacob
and all families of the house of Israel.
This is what the Lord says:
What fault did your ancestors find in me(A)
that they went so far from me,
followed worthless idols,(B)
and became worthless themselves?(C)
They stopped asking, “Where is the Lord(D)
who brought us from the land of Egypt,
who led us through the wilderness,(E)
through a land of deserts and ravines,
through a land of drought and darkness,[a]
a land no one traveled through
and where no one lived?”
I brought you to a fertile land(F)
to eat its fruit and bounty,
but after you entered, you defiled my land;(G)
you made my inheritance(H) detestable.
The priests quit asking, “Where is the Lord?”
The experts in the law no longer knew me,(I)
and the rulers(J) rebelled against me.
The prophets prophesied by[b] Baal(K)
and followed useless idols.(L)

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Footnotes

  1. 2:6 Or shadow of death
  2. 2:8 = in the name of

Hear the word of the Lord, you descendants of Jacob,
    all you clans of Israel.

This is what the Lord says:

“What fault did your ancestors find in me,
    that they strayed so far from me?
They followed worthless idols(A)
    and became worthless(B) themselves.
They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord,
    who brought us up out of Egypt(C)
and led us through the barren wilderness,
    through a land of deserts(D) and ravines,(E)
a land of drought and utter darkness,
    a land where no one travels(F) and no one lives?’
I brought you into a fertile land
    to eat its fruit and rich produce.(G)
But you came and defiled my land
    and made my inheritance detestable.(H)
The priests did not ask,
    ‘Where is the Lord?’
Those who deal with the law did not know me;(I)
    the leaders(J) rebelled against me.
The prophets prophesied by Baal,(K)
    following worthless idols.(L)

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