Jeremiah 13:10

13:10 These wicked people refuse to obey what I have said. ¹  They follow the stubborn inclinations of their own hearts and pay allegiance ²  to other gods by worshiping and serving them. So ³  they will become just like these linen shorts which are good for nothing.

Deuteronomy 6:14-15

6:14 You must not go after other gods, those ⁴  of the surrounding peoples, 6:15 for the Lord your God, who is present among you, is a jealous God and his anger will erupt against you and remove you from the land. ⁵ 

Deuteronomy 8:19

8:19 Now if you forget the Lord your God at all ⁶  and follow other gods, worshiping and prostrating yourselves before them, I testify to you today that you will surely be annihilated.

Deuteronomy 11:28

11:28 and the curse if you pay no attention ⁷  to his ⁸  commandments and turn from the way I am setting before ⁹  you today to pursue ¹⁰  other gods you have not known.

Ezekiel 18:6

18:6 does not eat pagan sacrifices on the mountains ¹¹  or pray to the idols ¹²  of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife, does not have sexual relations with a ¹³  woman during her period,

¹ tn Heb “to listen to my words.”

² tn Heb “and [they follow] after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for the idiom.

³ tn The structure of this verse is a little unusual. It consists of a subject, “this wicked people” qualified by several “which” clauses preceding a conjunction and a form which would normally be taken as a third person imperative (a Hebrew jussive; וִיהִי, vihi). This construction, called casus pendens by Hebrew grammarians, lays focus on the subject, here calling attention to the nature of Israel’s corruption which makes it rotten and useless to God. See GKC 458 §143.d for other examples of this construction.

⁴ tn Heb “from the gods.” The demonstrative pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

⁵ tn Heb “lest the anger of the Lord your God be kindled against you and destroy you from upon the surface of the ground.” Cf. KJV, ASV “from off the face of the earth.”

⁶ tn Heb “if forgetting, you forget.” The infinitive absolute is used for emphasis; the translation indicates this with the words “at all” (cf. KJV).

⁷ tn Heb “do not listen to,” that is, do not obey.

⁸ tn Heb “the commandments of the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

⁹ tn Heb “am commanding” (so NASB, NRSV).

¹⁰ tn Heb “walk after”; NIV “by following”; NLT “by worshiping.” This is a violation of the first commandment, the most serious of the covenant violations (Deut 5:6-7).

¹¹ tn Heb, “on the mountains he does not eat.” The mountains are often mentioned as the place where idolatrous sacrifices were eaten (Ezek 20:28; 22:9; 34:6).

¹² tn Heb, “does not lift up his eyes.” This refers to looking to idols for help.

¹³ tn Heb, “does not draw near to.” “Draw near” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse (Lev 18:14; Deut 22:14; Isa 8:3).