⁷ And I thought, ‘After she has done all this she will return to me,’ but she did not return, and her treacherous ^(A)sister Judah saw it. ⁸ She saw that for all the adulteries of that faithless one, Israel, ^(B)I had sent her away with ^(C)a decree of divorce. ^(D)Yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but she too went ^(E)and played the whore. ⁹ Because she took her whoredom lightly, she polluted the land, committing adultery with ^(F)stone and tree. ¹⁰ Yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to me ^(G)with her whole heart, but in pretense, declares the Lord.”

¹¹ And the Lord said to me, ^(H)“Faithless Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah.

^26 (A)Egypt, Judah, Edom, the sons of Ammon, Moab, and ^(B)all who dwell in the desert who cut the corners of their hair, for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are ^(C)uncircumcised in heart.”

⁹ Again the Lord said to me, ^(A)“A conspiracy exists among the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

¹⁰ They have turned back to ^(A)the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words. ^(B)They have gone after other gods to serve them. ^(C)The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant that I made with their fathers.

¹² Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem ^(A)will go and cry to the gods to whom they make offerings, ^(B)but they cannot save them in the time of their trouble.

⁹ “Thus says the Lord: ^(A)Even so will I spoil the pride of Judah and the great ^(B)pride of Jerusalem.

The Sin of Judah

17 “The sin of Judah is written with ^(A)a pen of iron; with a point of diamond it is engraved on ^(B)the tablet of their heart, and on ^(C)the horns of their altars,