Who sayto a tree,'You are my father,'And to a stone,'You gaveme birth.'For they have turned[their] backto Me, And not [their] face;But in the timeof their troublethey will say,'Ariseand saveus.'
"For our fathershave beenunfaithfuland have doneevilin the sightof the LORDour God,and have forsakenHim and turnedtheir facesawayfrom the dwellingplaceof the LORD,and have turned[their] backs.
O LORD,they soughtYou in distress;They could only whispera prayer,Your chasteningwas upon them.
But they are altogetherstupidand foolish[In their] disciplineof delusion--their idol is wood!
Like an eastwindI will scatterthem Beforethe enemy;I will showthem My backand not [My] faceIn the dayof their calamity.'"
A wilddonkeyaccustomedto the wilderness,That sniffsthe windin her passion.In [the time of] her heatwhocan turnher away?Allwho seekher will not becomeweary;In her monththey will findher.
"You who dwellin Lebanon,Nestedin the cedars,Howyou will groanwhen pangscomeupon you, Painlike a woman in childbirth!
"Becauseof the lightnessof her harlotry,she pollutedthe landand committedadulterywith stonesand trees.
Alas!for that dayis great,Thereis nonelikeit; And it is the timeof Jacob'sdistress,But he will be savedfrom it.
"They have turned[their] backto Me and not [their] face;though [I] taughtthem, teachingagainand again,they would not listenand receiveinstruction.
Yet KingZedekiahsentJehucalthe sonof Shelemiah,and Zephaniahthe sonof Maaseiah,the priest,to Jeremiahthe prophet,saying,"Pleaseprayto the LORDour Godon our behalf."
and saidto Jeremiahthe prophet,"Pleaselet our petitioncomebeforeyou, and prayfor us to the LORDyour God,[that is] for allthisremnant;becausewe are left[but] a fewout of many,as your own eyes[now] seeus,
"Therefore,thussaysthe LordGOD,'Becauseyou have forgottenMe and castMe behindyour back,bearnowthe [punishment] of your lewdnessand your harlotries.'"
Then He broughtme into the innercourtof the LORD'Shouse.And behold,at the entranceto the templeof the LORD,betweenthe porchand the altar,[were] about twenty-fivemenwith their backsto the templeof the LORDand their facestoward the east;and they were prostratingthemselves eastwardtoward the sun.
"Righteousnessbelongs to You, O Lord,but to us openshame,as it is thisday--to the menof Judah,the inhabitantsof Jerusalemand allIsrael,those who are nearbyand those who are faraway in allthe countriesto whichYou have driventhem, because of their unfaithfuldeedswhichthey have committedagainst You.
My peopleconsulttheir woodenidol, and their [diviner's] wandinformsthem; For a spiritof harlotryhas led[them] astray,And they have playedthe harlot,[departing] from their God.
I will goaway [and] returnto My placeUntilthey acknowledgetheir guiltand seekMy face;In their afflictionthey will earnestlyseekMe.
And they do not cryto Me from their heartWhenthey wailon their beds;For the sakeof grainand newwinethey assemblethemselves, They turnawayfrom Me.
