“For Israel and Judah will not be forsaken by their God, the Lord who rules over all. For the land of Babylonia is full of guilt against the Holy One of Israel.

“The Lord God of Israel has a message for you, Baruch.

Now listen to what the Lord has to say, you descendants of Jacob, all you family groups from the nation of Israel.

“Israel is not a slave, is he? He was not born into slavery, was he? If not, why then is he being carried off?

Then the Lord said to me, “Under the circumstances, wayward Israel could even be considered less guilty than unfaithful Judah.

But, you have been unfaithful to me, nation of Israel, like an unfaithful wife who has left her husband,” says the Lord.

We know our noisy worship of false gods on the hills and mountains did not help us. We know that the Lord our God is the only one who can deliver Israel.

For the nations of Israel and Judah have been very unfaithful to me,” says the Lord.

The Lord said to the people of Judah, “The Lord God of Israel who rules over all says: ‘You might as well go ahead and add the meat of your burnt offerings to that of the other sacrifices and eat it, too!

You people of Israel, listen to what the Lord has to say to you.

You have been the object of Israel’s hopes. You have saved them when they were in trouble. Why have you become like a resident foreigner in the land? Why have you become like a traveler who only stops in to spend the night?

Under his rule Judah will enjoy safety and Israel will live in security. This is the name he will go by: ‘The Lord has provided us with justice.’

The Lord says, “I saw the prophets of Samaria doing something that was disgusting. They prophesied in the name of the god Baal and led my people Israel astray.

“The Lord God of Israel who rules over all says, ‘I will break the yoke of servitude to the king of Babylon.

“The Lord God of Israel who rules over all says to all those he sent into exile to Babylon from Jerusalem,

So here is what the Lord has to say about Israel and Judah.

The Lord says, “The people of Israel who survived death at the hands of the enemy will find favor in the wilderness as they journey to find rest for themselves.

I will rebuild you, my dear children Israel, so that you will once again be built up. Once again you will take up the tambourine and join in the happy throng of dancers.

I will restore Judah and Israel and will rebuild them as they were in days of old.

The people of Moab will be disappointed by their god Chemosh. They will be as disappointed as the people of Israel were when they put their trust in the calf god at Bethel.