1Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem , and see now, and know , and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man , if there be any that executeth judgment , that seeketh the truth ; and I will pardon it. 2And though they say , The LORD liveth ; surely they swear falsely . 3O LORD , are not thine eyes upon the truth ? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved ; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction : they have made their faces harder than a rock ; they have refused to return . 4Therefore I said , Surely these are poor ; they are foolish : for they know not the way of the LORD , nor the judgment of their God . 5I will get me unto the great men , and will speak unto them; for they have known the way of the LORD , and the judgment of their God : but these have altogether broken the yoke , and burst the bonds . 6Wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evenings shall spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities : every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces : because their transgressions are many , and their backslidings are increased .
The Consequences of Rebellion
7How shall I pardon thee for this ? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods : when I had fed them to the full , they then committed adultery , and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses . 8They were as fed horses in the morning : every one neighed after his neighbour’s wife . 9Shall I not visit for these things ? saith the LORD : and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? 10Go ye up upon her walls , and destroy ; but make not a full end : take away her battlements ; for they are not the LORD’s . 11For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the LORD . 12They have belied the LORD , and said , It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine : 13And the prophets shall become wind , and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them.
The Prophets and the People
14Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts , Because ye speak this word , behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire , and this people wood , and it shall devour them. 15Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far , O house of Israel , saith the LORD : it is a mighty nation , it is an ancient nation , a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say . 16Their quiver is as an open sepulchre , they are all mighty men . 17And they shall eat up thine harvest , and thy bread , which thy sons and thy daughters should eat : they shall eat up thy flocks and thine herds : they shall eat up thy vines and thy fig trees : they shall impoverish thy fenced cities , wherein thou trustedst , with the sword . 18Nevertheless in those days , saith the LORD , I will not make a full end with you. 19And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say , Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land , so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.
God's Sovereignty and Justice
20Declare this in the house of Jacob , and publish it in Judah , saying , 21Hear now this, O foolish people , and without understanding ; which have eyes , and see not; which have ears , and hear not: 22Fear ye not me? saith the LORD : will ye not tremble at my presence , which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree , that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail ; though they roar , yet can they not pass over it? 23But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart ; they are revolted and gone . 24Neither say they in their heart , Let us now fear the LORD our God , that giveth rain , both the former and the latter , in his season : he reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest . 25Your iniquities have turned away these things , and your sins have withholden good things from you.
A Call to Repentance
26For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait , as he that setteth snares ; they set a trap , they catch men . 27As a cage is full of birds , so are their houses full of deceit : therefore they are become great , and waxen rich . 28They are waxen fat , they shine : yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked : they judge not the cause , the cause of the fatherless , yet they prosper ; and the right of the needy do they not judge . 29Shall I not visit for these things ? saith the LORD : shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? 30A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land ; 31The prophets prophesy falsely , and the priests bear rule by their means ; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?