13. for my people have committed two sins:they have turned away from me,the spring of fresh water,and they have dug cisterns,cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all.
14. “Israel is not a slave;he was not born into slavery.Why then do his enemies hunt him down?
15. They have roared at him like lions;they have made his land a desert,and his towns lie in ruins, completely abandoned.
16. Yes, those of Memphis and Tahpanheshave cracked his skull.
17. Israel, you brought this on yourself!You deserted me, the Lord your God,while I was leading you along the way.
18. What do you think you will gain by going to Egyptto drink water from the Nile?What do you think you will gain by going to Assyriato drink water from the Euphrates?
19. Your own evil will punish you,and your turning from me will condemn you.You will learn how bitter and wrong it isto abandon me, the Lord your God,and no longer to remain faithful to me.I, the Sovereign Lord Almighty, have spoken.”
20. The Sovereign Lord says,“Israel, long ago you rejected my authority;you refused to obey me and worship me.On every high hilland under every green treeyou worshipped fertility gods.
21. I planted you like a choice vinefrom the very best seed.But look what you have become!You are like a rotten, worthless vine.
22. Even if you washed with the strongest soap,I would still see the stain of your guilt.