4 Then I thought, “These are only the poor and ignorant.They behave foolishly;they don't know what their God requires,what the Lord wants them to do.
5 I will go to the people in powerand talk with them.Surely they know what their God requires,what the Lord wants them to do.”But all of them have rejected the Lord's authorityand refuse to obey him.
6 That is why lions from the forest will kill them;wolves from the desert will tear them to pieces,and leopards will prowl through their towns.If those people go out, they will be torn apartbecause their sins are numerousand time after time they have turned from God.
7 The Lord asked, “Why should I forgive the sins of my people?They have abandoned meand have worshiped gods that are not real.I fed my people until they were full,but they committed adulteryand spent their time with prostitutes.
8 They were like well-fed stallions wild with desire,each lusting for his neighbor's wife.
9 Shouldn't I punish them for these thingsand take revenge on a nation such as this?
10 I will send enemies to cut down my people's vineyards,but not to destroy them completely.I will tell them to strip away the branches,because those branches are not mine.