50:21 When you did these things, I was silent,
so you thought I was exactly like you.
But now I will condemn
and state my case against you!
2:17 You have brought all this on yourself, Israel,
by deserting the Lord your God when he was leading you along the right path.
2:18 What good will it do you
to seek help from the Egyptians?
What good will it do you
to seek help from the Assyrians?
2:19 Your own wickedness will bring about your punishment.
Your unfaithful acts will bring down discipline on you.
Know, then, and realize how utterly harmful
it was for you to reject me, the Lord your God,
to show no respect for me,”
says the Lord God who rules over all.
2:20 “Indeed,
and refused to be subject to me.
You said, ‘I will not serve you.’
Instead, you gave yourself to other gods on every high hill
and under every green tree,
like a prostitute sprawls out before her lovers.
2:21 I planted you in the land
like a special vine of the very best stock.
Why in the world have you turned into something like a wild vine
that produces rotten, foul-smelling grapes?
2:22 You can try to wash away your guilt with a strong detergent.
You can use as much soap as you want.
But the stain of your guilt is still there for me to see,”
says the Lord God.
2:23 “How can you say, ‘I have not made myself unclean.
I have not paid allegiance to
Just look at the way you have behaved in the Valley of Hinnom!
Think about the things you have done there!
You are like a flighty, young female camel
that rushes here and there, crisscrossing its path.
2:29 “Why do you try to refute me?
All of you have rebelled against me,”
says the Lord.
2:30 “It did no good for me to punish your people.
They did not respond to such correction.
You slaughtered your prophets
like a voracious lion.”
2:31 You people of this generation,
listen to what the Lord says.
“Have I been like a wilderness to you, Israel?
Have I been like a dark and dangerous land to you?
Why then do you
We will not come to you any more?’
2:32 Does a young woman forget to put on her jewels?
Does a bride forget to put on her bridal attire?
But my people have forgotten me
for more days than can even be counted.
2:33 “My, how good you have become
at chasing after your lovers!
Why, you could even teach prostitutes a thing or two!
2:34 Even your clothes are stained with
the lifeblood of the poor who had not done anything wrong;
you did not catch them breaking into your homes.
Yet, in spite of all these things you have done,
2:35 you say, ‘I have not done anything wrong,
so the Lord cannot really be angry with me any more.’
But, watch out!
because you say, ‘I have not committed any sin.’
2:36 Why do you constantly go about
changing your political allegiances?
You will get no help from Egypt
just as you got no help from Assyria.
2:37 Moreover, you will come away from Egypt
with your hands covering your faces in sorrow and shame
because the Lord will not allow your reliance on them to be successful
and you will not gain any help from them.
16:10 “When you tell these people about all this,