| New Living Translation | Berean Study Bible |
| 1Hear the word of the LORD, O people of Israel! The LORD has brought charges against you, saying: “There is no faithfulness, no kindness, no knowledge of God in your land. | 1Hear the word of the LORD, O children of Israel, for the LORD has a case against the people of the land: “There is no truth, no loving devotion, and no knowledge of God in the land! |
| 2You make vows and break them; you kill and steal and commit adultery. There is violence everywhere— one murder after another. | 2Cursing and lying, murder and stealing, and adultery are rampant; one act of bloodshed follows another. |
| 3That is why your land is in mourning, and everyone is wasting away. Even the wild animals, the birds of the sky, and the fish of the sea are disappearing. | 3Therefore the land mourns, and all who dwell in it will waste away with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air; even the fish of the sea disappear. |
| 4“Don’t point your finger at someone else and try to pass the blame! My complaint, you priests, is with you. | 4But let no man contend; let no man offer reproof; for your people are like those who contend with a priest. |
| 5So you will stumble in broad daylight, and your false prophets will fall with you in the night. And I will destroy Israel, your mother. | 5You will stumble by day, and the prophet will stumble with you by night; so I will destroy your mother— |
| 6My people are being destroyed because they don’t know me. Since you priests refuse to know me, I refuse to recognize you as my priests. Since you have forgotten the laws of your God, I will forget to bless your children. | 6My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you as My priests. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children. |
| 7The more priests there are, the more they sin against me. They have exchanged the glory of God for the shame of idols. | 7The more they multiplied, the more they sinned against Me; they exchanged their Glory for a thing of disgrace. |
| 8“When the people bring their sin offerings, the priests get fed. So the priests are glad when the people sin! | 8They feed on the sins of My people and set their hearts on iniquity. |
| 9‘And what the priests do, the people also do.’ So now I will punish both priests and people for their wicked deeds. | 9And it shall be like people, like priest. I will punish both of them for their ways and repay them for their deeds. |
| 10They will eat and still be hungry. They will play the prostitute and gain nothing from it, for they have deserted the LORD | 10They will eat but not be satisfied; they will be promiscuous but not multiply. For they have stopped obeying the LORD. |
| 11to worship other gods. “Wine has robbed my people of their understanding. | 11Promiscuity, wine, and new wine take away understanding. |
| 12They ask a piece of wood for advice! They think a stick can tell them the future! Longing after idols has made them foolish. They have played the prostitute, serving other gods and deserting their God. | 12My people consult their wooden idols, and their divining rods inform them. For a spirit of prostitution leads them astray and they have played the harlot against their God. |
| 13They offer sacrifices to idols on the mountaintops. They go up into the hills to burn incense in the pleasant shade of oaks, poplars, and terebinth trees. “That is why your daughters turn to prostitution, and your daughters-in-law commit adultery. | 13They sacrifice on the mountaintops and burn offerings on the hills, under oak, poplar, and terebinth, because their shade is pleasant. And so your daughters turn to prostitution and your daughters-in-law to adultery. |
| 14But why should I punish them for their prostitution and adultery? For your men are doing the same thing, sinning with whores and shrine prostitutes. O foolish people! You refuse to understand, so you will be destroyed. | 14I will not punish your daughters when they prostitute themselves, nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery. For the men themselves go off with prostitutes and offer sacrifices with shrine prostitutes. So a people without understanding will come to ruin. |
| 15“Though you, Israel, are a prostitute, may Judah not be guilty of such things. Do not join the false worship at Gilgal or Beth-aven, and do not take oaths there in the LORD’s name. | 15Though you prostitute yourself, O Israel, may Judah avoid such guilt! Do not journey to Gilgal, do not go up to Beth-aven, and do not swear on oath, ‘As surely as the LORD lives!’ |
| 16Israel is stubborn, like a stubborn heifer. So should the LORD feed her like a lamb in a lush pasture? | 16For Israel is as obstinate as a stubborn heifer. Can the LORD now shepherd them like lambs in an open meadow? |
| 17Leave Israel alone, because she is married to idolatry. | 17Ephraim is joined to idols; leave him alone! |
| 18When the rulers of Israel finish their drinking, off they go to find some prostitutes. They love shame more than honor. | 18When their liquor is gone, they turn to prostitution; their rulers dearly love disgrace. |
| 19So a mighty wind will sweep them away. Their sacrifices to idols will bring them shame. | 19The whirlwind has wrapped them in its wings, and their sacrifices will bring them shame. |
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