Jeremiah 3:1

3:1 “If a man divorces his wife

and she leaves him and becomes another man’s wife,

he may not take her back again. ¹ 

Doing that would utterly defile the land. ² 

But you, Israel, have given yourself as a prostitute to many gods. ³ 

So what makes you think you can return to me?” ⁴ 

says the Lord.

Jeremiah 3:8

3:8 She also saw ⁵  that I gave wayward Israel her divorce papers and sent her away because of her adulterous worship of other gods. ⁶  Even after her unfaithful sister Judah had seen this, ⁷  she still was not afraid, and she too went and gave herself like a prostitute to other gods. ⁸ 

Jeremiah 2:2

2:2 “Go and declare in the hearing of the people of Jerusalem: ⁹  ‘This is what the Lord says: “I have fond memories of you, ¹⁰  how devoted you were to me in your early years. ¹¹  I remember how you loved me like a new bride; you followed me through the wilderness, through a land that had never been planted.

Jeremiah 31:32

31:32 It will not be like the old ¹²  covenant that I made with their ancestors ¹³  when I delivered them ¹⁴  from Egypt. For they violated that covenant, even though I was like a faithful husband to them,” ¹⁵  says the Lord. ¹⁶ 

Isaiah 54:5

54:5 For your husband is the one who made you –

the Lord who commands armies is his name.

He is your protector, ¹⁷  the Holy One of Israel. ¹⁸ 

He is called “God of the entire earth.”

Hosea 2:19-20

2:19 I will commit myself to you ¹⁹  forever;

I will commit myself to you in ²⁰  righteousness and justice,

in steadfast love and tender compassion.

2:20 I will commit myself to you in faithfulness;

then ²¹  you will acknowledge ²²  the Lord.” ²³ 

¹ tn Heb “May he go back to her again?” The question is rhetorical and expects a negative answer.

² tn Heb “Would the land not be utterly defiled?” The stative is here rendered actively to connect better with the preceding. The question is rhetorical and expects a positive answer.

³ tn Heb “But you have played the prostitute with many lovers.”

⁴ tn Heb “Returning to me.” The form is the bare infinitive which the KJV and ASV have interpreted as an imperative “Yet, return to me!” However, it is more likely that a question is intended, expressing surprise in the light of the law alluded to and the facts cited. For the use of the infinitive absolute in the place of a finite verb, cf. GKC 346 §113.ee. For the introduction of a question without a question marker, cf. GKC 473 §150.a.

⁵ tc Heb “she [‘her sister, unfaithful Judah’ from the preceding verse] saw” with one Hebrew ms, some Greek mss, and the Syriac version. The MT reads “I saw” which may be a case of attraction to the verb at the beginning of the previous verse.

⁶ tn Heb “because she committed adultery.” The translation is intended to spell out the significance of the metaphor.

⁷ tn The words “Even after her unfaithful sister, Judah, had seen this” are not in the Hebrew text but are implicit in the connection and are supplied for clarification.

⁸ tn Heb “she played the prostitute there.” This is a metaphor for Israel’s worship; she gave herself to the worship of other gods like a prostitute gives herself to her lovers. There seems no clear way to completely spell out the metaphor in the translation.

⁹ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹⁰ tn Heb “I remember to/for you.”

¹¹ tn Heb “the loyal love of your youth.”

¹² tn The word “old” is not in the text but is implicit in the use of the word “new.” It is supplied in the translation for greater clarity.

¹³ tn Heb “fathers.”

¹⁴ tn Heb “when I took them by the hand and led them out.”

¹⁵ tn Or “I was their master.” See the study note on 3:14.

¹⁶ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

¹⁷ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

¹⁸ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

¹⁹ tn Heb “I will betroth you to me” (so NIV) here and in the following lines. Cf. NRSV “I will take you for my wife forever.”

²⁰ tn The preposition בְּ (bet), which is repeated throughout 2:19-20 [21-22], denotes price paid (BDB 90 s.v. בְּ III.3; e.g., Ezek 3:14). The text contains an allusion to the payment of bridal gifts. The Lord will impute the moral character to Israel that will be necessary for a successful covenant relationship (contra 4:1).

²¹ tn The vav consecutive on the suffix conjugation verb וְיָדַעַתְּ (véyada’at, “then you will know”) introduces a result clause (cf. NASB, CEV).

²² tn Or “know.” The term יָדַע (yada’, “know, acknowledge”) is often used in covenant contexts. It can refer to the suzerain’s acknowledgment of his covenant obligations to his vassal or to the vassal’s acknowledgment of his covenant obligations to his suzerain. When used in reference to a vassal, the verb “know” is metonymical (cause for effect) for “obey.” See H. Huffmann, “The Treaty Background of Hebrew ya„daà,” BASOR 181 (1966): 31-37.

²³ tc The MT reads יְהוָה (yÿhvah, “the Lord”); however, many Hebrew mss read כִּי אָנִי (ki ’ani, “that it is I”), as also reflected in the Latin Vulgate (cf. CEV “know who I am”).