Israel’s Futile Idolatry
1 The righteous perishes,
And no man takesitto heart;
# Merciful menaretaken away,
# While no one considers
That the righteous is taken away from evil.
2 He shall enter into peace;
# They shall rest intheir beds,
Eachonewalkinginhis uprightness.
3 “But come here,
# You sons of the sorceress,
You offspring of the adulterer and the harlot!
4 Whom do you ridicule?
Against whom do you make a wide mouth
Andstick out the tongue?
Areyou not children of transgression,
Offspring of falsehood,
5 Inflaming yourselves with godsunder every green tree,
# Slaying the children in the valleys,
Under the clefts of the rocks?
6 Among the smoothstonesof the stream
Isyour portion;
They, they,areyour lot!
Even to them you have poured a drink offering,
You have offered a grain offering.
# Should I receive comfort inthese?
7 “Ona lofty and high mountain
# You have setyour bed;
Even there you went up
To offer sacrifice.
8 Also behind the doors and their posts
You have set up your remembrance;
For you have uncovered yourselftothoseotherthan Me,
And have gone up to them;
You have enlarged your bed
And madeacovenantwith them;
# You have loved their bed,
Where you sawtheirnudity.
9 You went to the king with ointment,
And increased your perfumes;
# You sent yourmessengers far off,
Andevendescended to Sheol.
10 You are wearied in the length of your way;
# Yetyou did not say, ‘There is no hope.’
You have found the life of your hand;
Therefore you were not grieved.
11 “Andof whom have you been afraid, or feared,
That you have lied
And not remembered Me,
Nor takenitto your heart?
# Is it not becauseI have held My peace from of old
That you do not fear Me?
12 I will declare your righteousness
And your works,
For they will not profit you.
13 When you cry out,
Let your collectionofidolsdeliver you.
But the wind will carry them all away,
A breath will takethem.
But he who puts his trust in Me shall possess the land,
And shall inherit My holy mountain.”
Healing for the Backslider
14 And one shall say,
# “Heap it up! Heap it up!
Prepare the way,
Take the stumbling block out of the way of My people.”
15 For thus says the High and Lofty One
# Who inhabits eternity,whose nameisHoly:
# “I dwell in the high and holyplace,
# With himwhohas a contrite and humble spirit,
# To revive the spirit of the humble,
And to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
16 For I will not contend forever,
Nor will I always be angry;
For the spirit would fail before Me,
# And the soulswhichI have made.
17 For the iniquity ofhis covetousness
I was angry and struck him;
# I hid and was angry,
# And he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.
18 I have seen his ways, andwill heal him;
I will also lead him,
And restore comforts to him
# And tohis mourners.
19 “I createthe fruit of the lips:
# Peace, peacetohimwhoisfar off and tohimwhoisnear,”
Says theLord,
“And I will heal him.”
20 But the wickedarelike the troubled sea,
When it cannot rest,
Whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
21 “Thereis no peace,”
Says my God, “for the wicked.”