1 The Lord told me
2 to proclaim this message to everyone in Jerusalem.“I remember how faithful you were when you were young,how you loved me when we were first married;you followed me through the desert,through a land that had not been planted.
3 Israel, you belonged to me alone;you were my sacred possession.I sent suffering and disasteron everyone who hurt you.I, the Lord, have spoken.”
4 Listen to the Lord's message, you descendants of Jacob, you tribes of Israel.
5 The Lord says:“What accusation did your ancestors bring against me?What made them turn away from me?They worshiped worthless idolsand became worthless themselves.
6 They did not care about me,even though I rescued them from Egyptand led them through the wilderness:a land of deserts and sand pits,a dry and dangerous landwhere no one livesand no one will even travel.