Yet in spite of all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to Me with all her heart, but rather in deception,” declares the Lord.

God Invites Repentance

And the Lord said to me, “Faithless Israel has proved herself to be more righteous than treacherous Judah.

Go and proclaim these words toward the north and say, ‘Return, faithless Israel,’ declares the Lord; ‘I will not look at you in anger. For I am gracious,’ declares the Lord; ‘I will not be angry forever.

Only acknowledge your wrongdoing, That you have revolted against the Lord your God, And have scattered your favors to the strangers under every leafy tree, And you have not obeyed My voice,’ declares the Lord.

‘Return, you faithless sons,’ declares the Lord; ‘For I am a master to you, And I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, And bring you to Zion.’

“Then I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will feed you knowledge and understanding.

And it shall be in those days when you become numerous and are fruitful in the land,” declares the Lord, “they will no longer say, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord.’ And it will not come to mind, nor will they remember it, nor miss it, nor will it be made again.

At that time they will call Jerusalem ‘The Throne of the Lord,’ and all the nations will assemble at it, at Jerusalem, for the name of the Lord; and they will no longer follow the stubbornness of their evil heart.

“Then I said, ‘How I would set you among My sons And give you a pleasant land, The most beautiful inheritance of the nations!’ And I said, ‘You shall call Me, My Father, And not turn away from following Me.’

However, as a woman treacherously leaves her lover, So you have dealt treacherously with Me, House of Israel,” declares the Lord.

A voice is heard on the bare heights, The weeping, the pleading of the sons of Israel. Because they have perverted their way, They have forgotten the Lord their God.

“Return, you faithless sons, I will heal your faithlessness.” “Behold, we come to You; For You are the Lord our God.

Certainly the hills are a deception, Commotion on the mountains. Certainly in the Lord our God Is the salvation of Israel.

“But the shame has consumed the product of our fathers’ labor since our youth—their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.

Let us lie down in our shame, and let our humiliation cover us; for we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even to this day. And we have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.”

Judah Threatened with Invasion

“If you will return, Israel,” declares the Lord, “Then you should return to Me. And if you will put away your detestable things from My presence, And will not waver,

And if you will swear, ‘As the Lord lives,’ In truth, in justice, and in righteousness; Then the nations will bless themselves in Him, And in Him they will boast.”

For this is what the Lord says to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem: “Break up your uncultivated ground, And do not sow among thorns.

Circumcise yourselves to the Lord And remove the foreskins of your hearts, Men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, Or else My wrath will spread like fire And burn with no one to quench it, Because of the evil of your deeds.”

Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say, “Blow the trumpet in the land; Cry aloud and say, ‘Assemble, and let’s go Into the fortified cities.’

Raise a flag toward Zion! Take refuge, do not stand still, For I am bringing evil from the north, And great destruction.

A lion has gone up from his thicket, And a destroyer of nations has set out; He has gone out from his place To make your land a waste. Your cities will be ruins, Without an inhabitant.

For this, put on sackcloth, Mourn and wail; For the fierce anger of the Lord Has not turned away from us.”

“And it shall come about on that day,” declares the Lord, “that the heart of the king and the hearts of the leaders will fail; and the priests will tremble, and the prophets will be astonished.”

Then I said, “Oh, Lord God! Surely You have utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘You will have peace’; yet a sword touches the throat.”