Absalom and all the Israelites said, “The advice of Hushai the Arkite is better than Ahithophel’s advice.” {They said this} because it was the Lord’s plan. The Lord had planned to make Ahithophel’s good advice useless. That is how the Lord would punish Absalom.
So those poor people begin thinking,\par “God has forgotten us!\par He has turned away from us forever!\par God doesn’t see what is happening to us!”\par
Bad people have destroyed my people.\par And those bad people don’t know God.\par Bad people have plenty of food to eat. {\cf2\super [76]} \par And they don’t even worship the Lord.\par
Strangers that don’t even worship God\par have turned against me.\par Those powerful men are trying to kill me.\par \i (SELAH {\cf2\super [324]})\i0 \par
Then \{God\} said to me, “Son of man, {\cf2\super [67]} do you see what the elders of Israel do in the dark? Each man has a special room for his own false god! Those men say to themselves, ‘The Lord can’t see us. The Lord left this country.’”
\{God\} said, “The family of Israel and Judah have done many, many very bad sins! People are being murdered everywhere in this country. And this city is filled with crime. Why? Because the people say to themselves, ‘The Lord left this country. He can’t see the things we are doing.’