This is what the Lord says about these people: “They come near to me with hollow words and honor me superficially with their lips; all the while their hearts run far away from me! Their worship is nothing more than man-made rules.
You plant them like trees that take root; they spread their branches and bear fruit. They talk like they know you, but their affections are so far from you.
Yahweh, you are the only hope of Israel! All who forsake you will be covered with shame. Those who turn away from you will be written in the dirt. To forsake you, Yahweh, is to forsake the fountain of living waters.
Yet look at you now! Everything is new! Although you were once distant and far away from God, now you have been brought delightfully close to him through the sacred blood of Jesus—you have actually been united to Christ!
You have become spiritual adulterers who are having an affair, an unholy relationship with the world. Don’t you know that flirting with the world’s values places you at odds with God? Whoever chooses to be the world’s friend makes himself God’s enemy!