66  Thus says the Lord:

^z“Heaven is my throne,

and the earth is my footstool;

what is the ^ahouse that you would build for me,

and what is the place of my rest?

2  All these things my hand has made,

and so all these things came to be,

declares the Lord.

But this is the one to whom I will look:

he who is humble and ^bcontrite in spirit

and ^ctrembles at my word.

3  ^d“He who slaughters an ox is like one who kills a man;

he who sacrifices a lamb, like one who breaks a dog’s neck;

he who presents a grain offering, like one who offers ^epig’s blood;

he who makes a memorial offering of frankincense, like one who blesses an idol.

These have chosen their own ways,

and their soul delights in their abominations;

4  I also will choose harsh treatment for them

and bring their fears upon them,

because ^fwhen I called, no one answered,

when I spoke, they did not listen;

but they did what was evil in my eyes

and chose that in which I did not delight.”

5  Hear the word of the Lord,

you who tremble at his word:

“Your brothers who ^ghate you

and cast you out for my name’s sake

have said, ‘Let the Lord be glorified,

that we may see your joy’;

but it is they who shall be put to shame.

6  “The sound of an uproar from the city!

A sound from the temple!

The sound of the Lord,

rendering recompense to his enemies!

7  “Before she was in labor

she gave birth;

before her pain came upon her

she delivered a son.

8  Who has heard such a thing?

Who has seen such things?

Shall a land be born in one day?

Shall a nation be brought forth in one moment?

For as soon as Zion was in labor

she brought forth her children.

9  Shall I bring ^hto the point of birth and not cause to bring forth?”

says the Lord;

“shall I, who cause to bring forth, shut the womb?”

says your God.

10  “Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her,

all you who love her;

rejoice with her in joy,

all you who mourn over her;

11  that you may nurse and be satisfied

from her consoling breast;

that you may drink deeply with delight

from her glorious abundance.”¹

12  For thus says the Lord:

“Behold, I will extend ⁱpeace to her like a river,

and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream;

and you shall nurse, you shall be ^jcarried upon her hip,

and bounced upon her knees.

13  As one whom his mother comforts,

so ^kI will comfort you;

you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

14  You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice;

your bones shall flourish like the grass;

and the hand of the Lord shall be known to his servants,

and he shall show his indignation against his enemies.

15  “For behold, the Lord will come in fire,

and his ^lchariots like the whirlwind,

to render his anger in fury,

and his rebuke with flames of fire.

16  For by fire will the Lord ^menter into judgment,

and by his sword, with all flesh;

and those slain by the Lord shall be many.

22  “For as the ^tnew heavens and the new earth

that I make

shall remain before me, says the Lord,

so shall your offspring and your name remain.

23  From new moon to new moon,

and from Sabbath to Sabbath,

all flesh shall come to worship before me,

declares the Lord.

5  ^h“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,

and before you were born I consecrated you;

I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

“Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’;

for to all to whom I send you, you shall go,

and whatever I command you, ^kyou shall speak.

8  ^lDo not be afraid of them,

for I am ^mwith you to deliver you,

declares the Lord.”

“Behold, ^oI have put my words in your mouth.

10  See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms,

to ^ppluck up and to break down,

to destroy and to overthrow,

to build and to plant.”

“I remember the devotion of your ^ayouth,

your love ^bas a bride,

how you followed me in the wilderness,

in a land not sown.

3  Israel was ^choly to the Lord,

the firstfruits of his harvest.

^dAll who ate of it incurred guilt;

disaster came upon them,

declares the Lord.”

^e“What wrong did your fathers find in me

that they went far from me,

and ^fwent after ^gworthlessness, and became worthless?

6  They did not say, ‘Where is the Lord

who brought us up from the land of Egypt,

who led us in the ^hwilderness,

in a land of deserts and pits,

in a land of drought and deep darkness,

in a land that none passes through,

where no man dwells?’

7  And I brought you into a plentiful land

to enjoy its fruits and its good things.

But when you came in, you ⁱdefiled my land

and made my heritage an abomination.

8  The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’

Those who handle the law did not ^jknow me;

the ^kshepherds¹ transgressed against me;

the prophets ^lprophesied by Baal

and went after ^mthings that do not profit.

9  “Therefore I still contend with you,

declares the Lord,

and with your children’s children I will contend.

10  For cross to the coasts of Cyprus and see,

or send to Kedar and examine with care;

see if there has been such a thing.

11  Has a nation changed its gods,

even though they are ⁿno gods?

But my people have ^ochanged their glory

for that which does not profit.

12  Be appalled, ^pO heavens, at this;

be shocked, be utterly desolate,

declares the Lord,

13  for my people have committed two evils:

they have ^qforsaken me,

the ^rfountain of living waters,

and hewed out cisterns for themselves,

broken cisterns that can hold no water.

14  “Is Israel a slave? Is he a homeborn servant?

Why then has he become a prey?

15  ^sThe lions have roared against him;

they have roared loudly.

They have made his land a ^twaste;

his cities are in ruins, ^uwithout inhabitant.

16  Moreover, the men of Memphis and Tahpanhes

have shaved² the crown of your head.

17  Have you not ^vbrought this upon yourself

by forsaking the Lord your God,

when he led you in the way?

18  ^wAnd now what do you gain by going to Egypt

to drink the waters of the Nile?³

Or what do you gain by going to Assyria

to drink the waters of the Euphrates?⁴

19  Your evil will chastise you,

and your apostasy will reprove you.

Know and see that it is evil and ^xbitter

for you to forsake the Lord your God;

the fear of me is not in you,

declares the Lord God of hosts.

20  “For long ago I ^ybroke your yoke

and burst your bonds;

but you said, ‘I will not serve.’

Yes, ^zon every high hill

and under every green tree

you bowed down ^alike a whore.

21  Yet I ^bplanted you a choice ^cvine,

wholly of pure seed.

How then have you turned degenerate

and become a ^dwild vine?

22  Though you wash yourself ^ewith lye

and use much soap,

the stain of your guilt is still before me,

declares the Lord God.

23  How can you say, ‘I am not unclean,

I have not gone after the Baals’?

Look at your way in the valley;

know what you have done—

a restless young camel running here and there,

24  a wild donkey used to the wilderness,

in her heat sniffing the wind!

Who can restrain her lust?

None who seek her need weary themselves;

in her month they will find her.

25  Keep your ^ffeet from going unshod

and your throat from ^gthirst.

But you said, ‘It is hopeless,

for I have loved ^hforeigners,

and after them I will go.’

26  “As a thief is shamed when caught,

so the house of Israel shall be shamed:

they, their ⁱkings, their officials,

their priests, and their prophets,

27  who say to a ^jtree, ‘You are my father,’

and to a stone, ‘You gave me birth.’

For they have ^kturned their back to me,

and not their face.

But in the time of their trouble they say,

‘Arise and save us!’

28  But ^lwhere are your gods

that you made for yourself?

^mLet them arise, if they can save you,

in your time of trouble;

for ⁿas many as your cities

are your gods, O Judah.

29  “Why do you contend with me?

You have all transgressed against me,

declares the Lord.

30  In vain have I struck your children;

they took no ^ocorrection;

your own sword devoured your ^pprophets

like a ravening lion.

31  And you, O generation, behold the word of the Lord.

Have I been a wilderness to Israel,

or a land of thick darkness?

Why then do my people say, ‘We are free,

we will come no more to you’?

32  Can a virgin forget her ornaments,

or a bride her attire?

Yet my people have ^qforgotten me

days without number.

33  “How well you direct your course

to seek love!

So that even to wicked women

you have taught your ways.

34  Also on your skirts is found

the ^rlifeblood of the guiltless poor;

^syou did not find them breaking in.

Yet in spite of all these things

35  you say, ‘I am innocent;

surely his anger has turned from me.’

Behold, I will bring you to judgment

for saying, ‘I have not sinned.’

36  How much you go about,

changing your way!

You shall be put to shame ^tby Egypt

as you were put to shame ^uby Assyria.

37  From it too you will come away

^vwith your hands on your head,

for the Lord has rejected those in whom you trust,

and you will not prosper by them.

3  “If¹ a man divorces his wife

and she goes from him

and becomes another man’s wife,

will he return to her?

^wWould not that land be greatly polluted?

You have played the whore with many ^xlovers;

and would you return to me?

declares the Lord.

2  Lift up your eyes to the bare heights, and see!

Where have you not been ravished?

By the waysides you have sat awaiting lovers

like an Arab in the wilderness.

You have polluted the land

with your vile whoredom.

3  Therefore the showers have been withheld,

and the ^yspring rain has not come;

yet you have the forehead of a whore;

^zyou refuse to be ashamed.

4  Have you not just now called to me,

‘My ^afather, you are the ^bfriend of my youth—

5  will he be angry forever,

will he be indignant to the end?’

Behold, you have spoken,

but you have done all the evil that you could.”

“‘Return, faithless Israel,

declares the Lord.

I will not look on you in anger,

for I am merciful,

declares the Lord;

^jI will not be angry forever.

13  Only acknowledge your guilt,

that you rebelled against the Lord your God

and scattered your favors among ^kforeigners under every green tree,

and that you have not obeyed my voice,

declares the Lord.

14  Return, O faithless children,

declares the Lord;

for I am your master;

I will take you, one from a city and two from a family,

and I will bring you to Zion.

19  “‘I said,

How I would set you among my sons,

and give you a pleasant land,

a heritage most ^tbeautiful of all nations.

And I thought you would call me, My Father,

and would not turn from following me.

20  Surely, as a treacherous wife leaves her husband,

so have you been ^utreacherous to me, O house of Israel,

declares the Lord.’”

21  A voice on the bare heights is heard,

the weeping and pleading of Israel’s sons

because they have perverted their way;

they have ^vforgotten the Lord their God.

22  “Return, O faithless sons;

I will ^wheal your faithlessness.”

“Behold, we come to you,

for you are the Lord our God.

23  Truly the hills are a delusion,

the orgies² on the mountains.

Truly in the Lord our God

is the salvation of Israel.

4  “If you ^yreturn, O Israel,

declares the Lord,

to me you should return.

If you remove your detestable things from my presence,

and do not waver,

2  and if you ^zswear, ‘As the Lord lives,’

in truth, in justice, and in righteousness,

then nations shall ^abless themselves in him,

and in him shall they ^bglory.”

^c“Break up your fallow ground,

and sow not among thorns.

4  Circumcise yourselves to the Lord;

^dremove the foreskin of your hearts,

O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem;

^elest my wrath go forth like fire,

and burn with none to quench it,

because of the evil of your deeds.”