The wicked should stop doing wrong, and they should stop their evil thoughts. They should return to the Lord so he may have mercy on them. They should come to our God, because he will freely forgive them.
I have seen the terrible things you have done: your acts of adultery and your snorting, your prostitution, your hateful acts on the hills and in the fields. How terrible it will be for you, Jerusalem. How long will you continue being unclean?”
“The sin of the people of Judah is written with an iron tool. Their sins were cut with a hard point into the stone that is their hearts. Their sins were cut into the corners of their altars.
“So, say this to the people of Judah and those who live in Jerusalem: ‘This is what the Lord says: I am preparing disaster for you and making plans against you. So stop doing evil. Change your ways and do what is right.’
Hear this, people of the earth: I am going to bring disaster to the people of Judah because of the evil they plan. They have not listened to my messages and have rejected my teachings.
“If you want good fruit, you must make the tree good. If your tree is not good, it will have bad fruit. A tree is known by the kind of fruit it produces.
Come near to God, and God will come near to you. You sinners, clean sin out of your lives. You who are trying to follow God and the world at the same time, make your thinking pure.