Enemies have carried off everything they own. All my people are trapped in pits or hidden away in prisons. They themselves have become like stolen goods. No one can save them. They have been carried off. And there is no one who will say, “Send them back.”
Who allowed you to be carried off like stolen goods? Who handed you over to robbers? The Lord did it! We have sinned against him. Israel, you wouldn’t follow his ways. You didn’t obey his law.
I wish you would pay attention to my commands. If you did, peace would flow over you like a river. Godliness would sweep over you like the waves of the ocean.
Admit that you are guilty of doing what is wrong. You have refused to obey me. I am the Lord your God. You have committed adultery with other gods. You worshiped them under every green tree. And you have not obeyed me,’ ” announces the Lord.
Who is wise enough to understand these things? Who has been taught by the Lord? Who can explain them? Why has the land been destroyed so completely? Why has it become like a desert that no one can go across?
The Lord is calling out to Jerusalem. And it would be wise to pay attention to him. He says, “Listen, tribe of Judah and you people who are gathered in the city.