My people consult their wooden idols, and their divining rods inform them. For a spirit of promiscuity leads them astray; they act promiscuously in disobedience to their God.

我的民求问木偶，以为木杖能指示他们；因为他们的淫心使他们失迷，他们就行淫离弃神，不守约束，

我的百姓求问木偶，以为木杖能指示他们；淫乱的心使他们失迷，以致行淫离弃他们的上帝，

我的百姓求问木偶，以为木杖能指示他们；淫乱的心使他们失迷，以致行淫离弃他们的神，

“我的子民祈求木头，随从木杖的指引。淫乱的心使他们走入歧途，他们不忠不贞，背弃他们的上帝。

我的子民求问木头，由木杖引导他们，因为淫荡的灵使他们走迷了路，他们就行淫不顺从神。

我的民求問木偶，以為木杖能指示他們；因為他們的淫心使他們失迷，他們就行淫離棄神，不守約束，

我的百姓求問木偶，以為木杖能指示他們；淫亂的心使他們失迷，以致行淫離棄他們的上帝，

我的百姓求問木偶，以為木杖能指示他們；淫亂的心使他們失迷，以致行淫離棄他們的神，

「我的子民祈求木頭，隨從木杖的指引。淫亂的心使他們走入歧途，他們不忠不貞，背棄他們的上帝。

我的子民求問木頭，由木杖引導他們，因為淫蕩的靈使他們走迷了路，他們就行淫不順從神。

他們求問着木頭，其指揮棍就指示他們；因為行淫的心使他們失迷，他們就行淫、離棄了他們的上帝、不肯在他手下。

我民諮詢於木、藉杖示之、彼為淫心所迷、狥欲離其上帝之制、

我民縱欲、棄我上帝、厥心昏昧、問偶像、卜以籤、望其應對、

我民諮諏木偶、以為其杖能指示未來事、被淫心迷惑、被淫心迷惑或作因其心被邪淫迷惑皆棄其天主、從偶像、偶像或作邪淫

My people consult a wooden idol, and a diviner’s rod speaks to them. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they are unfaithful to their God.

My people ask a wooden statue of a god for advice. They get answers from a stick of wood. They are as unfaithful as prostitutes. They are not faithful to their God.

My people inquire of a piece of wood, and their walking staff gives them oracles. For a spirit of whoredom has led them astray, and they have left their God to play the whore.

They ask a piece of wood for advice! They think a stick can tell them the future! Longing after idols has made them foolish. They have played the prostitute, serving other gods and deserting their God.

My people consult their wooden idols, and their divining rods inform them. For a spirit of promiscuity leads them astray; they act promiscuously in disobedience to their God.

My people consult their wooden idol, and their diviner’s wand informs them; For a spirit of infidelity has led them astray, And they have been unfaithful, departing from their God.

My people ask counsel from their wooden idols, And their staff informs them. For the spirit of harlotry has caused them to stray, And they have played the harlot against their God.

My people ask counsel at their stock, and their staff declareth unto them; for the spirit of whoredom hath caused them to err, and they have played the harlot, departing from under their God.

My people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth unto them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused[ them] to err, and they have gone a whoring from under their God.

They consult their wooden idols, and their diviner’s staff answers with an oracle. The wind of prostitution blows them astray; they commit spiritual adultery against their God.

My people consult with their wooden idol, and answer to a stick of wood. Indeed the spirit of prostitution has led them astray, and they have been unfaithful to their God.

say to a tree,“ You are my father,” and to a stone,“ You gave birth to me.” For they have turned their back to Me and not their face, yet in their time of disaster they beg,“ Rise up and save us!”

Their actions do not allow them to return to their God, for a spirit of promiscuity is among them, and they do not know the Lord.

Such people do not comprehend and cannot understand, for He has shut their eyes so they cannot see, and their minds so they cannot understand.No one reflects, no one has the perception or insight to say,“ I burned half of it in the fire, I also baked bread on its coals, I roasted meat and ate. I will make something detestable with the rest of it, and I will bow down to a block of wood.”He feeds on ashes. His deceived mind has led him astray, and he cannot deliver himself, or say,“ Isn’t there a lie in my right hand?”

Woe to him who says to wood: Wake up! or to mute stone: Come alive! Can it teach? Look! It may be plated with gold and silver, yet there is no breath in it at all.

The Lord said to Moses,“ You are about to rest with your fathers, and these people will soon commit adultery with the foreign gods of the land they are entering. They will abandon Me and break the covenant I have made with them.

These will serve as tassels for you to look at, so that you may remember all the Lord’s commands and obey them and not become unfaithful by following your own heart and your own eyes.

If a man of wind comes and invents lies:“ I will preach to you about wine and beer,” he would be just the preacher for this people!

Israel, do not rejoice jubilantly as the nations do, for you have acted promiscuously, leaving your God. You have loved the wages of a prostitute on every grain-threshing floor.

The word of the Lord came to me again:“ Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother,who acted like prostitutes in Egypt, behaving promiscuously in their youth. Their breasts were fondled there, and their virgin nipples caressed.The older one was named Oholah, and her sister was Oholibah. They became Mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. As for their names, Oholah represents Samaria and Oholibah represents Jerusalem.“ Oholah acted like a prostitute even though she was Mine. She lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians: warriorsdressed in blue, governors and prefects, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding on steeds.She offered her sexual favors to them; all of them were the elite of Assyria. She defiled herself with all those she lusted after and with all their idols.She didn’t give up her promiscuity that began in Egypt, when men slept with her in her youth, caressed her virgin nipples, and poured out their lust on her.Therefore, I handed her over to her lovers, the Assyrians she lusted for.They exposed her nakedness, seized her sons and daughters, and killed her with the sword. Since they executed judgment against her, she became notorious among women.“ Now her sister Oholibah saw this, but she was even more depraved in her lust than Oholah, and made her promiscuous acts worse than those of her sister.She lusted after the Assyrians: governors and prefects, warriors splendidly dressed, horsemen riding on steeds, all of them desirable young men.And I saw that she had defiled herself; both of them had taken the same path.But she increased her promiscuity when she saw male figures carved on the wall, images of the Chaldeans, engraved in vermilion,wearing belts on their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like officers, a depiction of the Babylonians in Chaldea, the land of their birth.At the sight of them she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.Then the Babylonians came to her, to the bed of love, and defiled her with their lust. But after she was defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust.When she flaunted her promiscuity and exposed her nakedness, I turned away from her in disgust just as I turned away from her sister.Yet she multiplied her acts of promiscuity, remembering the days of her youth when she acted like a prostitute in the land of Egyptand lusted after their lovers, whose sexual members were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of stallions.So you revisited the indecency of your youth, when the Egyptians caressed your nipples to enjoy your youthful breasts.“ Therefore Oholibah, this is what the Lord God says: I am going to incite your lovers against you, those you turned away from in disgust. I will bring them against you from every side:the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans; Pekod, Shoa, and Koa; and all the Assyrians with them— desirable young men, all of them governors and prefects, officers and administrators, all of them riding on horses.They will come against you with an alliance of nations and with weapons, chariots, and wagons. They will set themselves against you on every side with shields, bucklers, and helmets. I will delegate judgment to them, and they will judge you by their own standards.When I vent My jealous rage on you, they will deal with you in wrath. They will cut off your nose and ears, and your descendants will fall by the sword. They will seize your sons and daughters, and your descendants will be consumed by fire.They will strip off your clothes and take your beautiful jewelry.So I will put an end to your indecency and sexual immorality, which began in the land of Egypt, and you will not look longingly at them or remember Egypt anymore.“ For this is what the Lord God says: I am going to hand you over to those you hate, to those you turned away from in disgust.They will treat you with hatred, take all you have worked for, and leave you stark naked, so that the shame of your debauchery will be exposed, both your indecency and promiscuity.These things will be done to you because you acted like a prostitute with the nations, defiling yourself with their idols.You have followed the path of your sister, so I will put her cup in your hand.”This is what the Lord God says: You will drink your sister’s cup, which is deep and wide. You will be an object of ridicule and scorn, for it holds so much.You will be filled with drunkenness and grief, with a cup of devastation and desolation, the cup of your sister Samaria.You will drink it and drain it; then you will gnaw its broken pieces, and tear your breasts. For I have spoken. This is the declaration of the Lord God.Therefore, this is what the Lord God says:“ Because you have forgotten Me and cast Me behind your back, you must bear the consequences of your indecency and promiscuity.”Then the Lord said to me:“ Son of man, will you pass judgment against Oholah and Oholibah? Then declare their detestable practices to them.For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands; they have committed adultery with their idols. They have even made the children they bore to Me pass through the fire as food for the idols.They also did this to Me: they defiled My sanctuary on that same day and profaned My Sabbaths.On the same day they slaughtered their children for their idols, they entered My sanctuary to profane it. Yes, that is what they did inside My house.“ In addition, they sent for men who came from far away when a messenger was dispatched to them. And look how they came! You bathed, painted your eyes, and adorned yourself with jewelry for them.You sat on a luxurious couch with a table spread before it, on which you had set My incense and oil.The sound of a carefree crowd was there. Drunkards from the desert were brought in, along with common men. They put bracelets on the women’s hands and beautiful crowns on their heads.Then I said concerning this woman worn out by adultery: Will they now have illicit sex with her, even her?Yet they had sex with her as one does with a prostitute. This is how they had sex with Oholah and Oholibah, those obscene women.But righteous men will judge them the way adulteresses and those who shed blood are judged, for they are adulteresses and blood is on their hands.“ This is what the Lord God says: Summon an assembly against them and consign them to terror and plunder.The assembly will stone them and cut them down with their swords. They will kill their sons and daughters and burn their houses with fire.So I will put an end to indecency in the land, and all the women will be admonished not to imitate your indecent behavior.They will repay you for your indecency, and you will bear the consequences for your sins of idolatry. Then you will know that I am the Lord Yahweh.”

Those far from You will certainly perish; You destroy all who are unfaithful to You.

If a man divorces his wife and she leaves him to marry another, can he ever return to her? Wouldn’t such a land become totally defiled? But you! You have played the prostitute with many partners— can you return to Me? This is the Lord’s declaration.Look to the barren heights and see. Where have you not been immoral? You sat waiting for them beside the highways like a nomad in the desert. You have defiled the land with your prostitution and wickedness.This is why the showers haven’t come— why there has been no spring rain. You have the brazen look of a prostitute and refuse to be ashamed.

They are both stupid and foolish, instructed by worthless idols made of wood!

They must no longer offer their sacrifices to the goat-demons that they have prostituted themselves with. This will be a permanent statute for them throughout their generations.

then I will turn against that man and his family, and cut off from their people both him and all who follow him in prostituting themselves with Molech.

but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, have caused Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to prostitute themselves like the house of Ahab prostituted itself, and also have killed your brothers, your father’s family, who were better than you,

The word of the Lord came to me again:“ Son of man, explain Jerusalem’s detestable practices to her.You are to say: This is what the Lord God says to Jerusalem: Your origin and your birth were in the land of the Canaanites. Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite.As for your birth, your umbilical cord wasn’t cut on the day you were born, and you weren’t washed clean with water. You were not rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths.No one cared enough about you to do even one of these things out of compassion for you. But you were thrown out into the open field because you were despised on the day you were born.“ I passed by you and saw you lying in your blood, and I said to you as you lay in your blood: Live! Yes, I said to you as you lay in your blood: Live!I made you thrive like plants of the field. You grew up and matured and became very beautiful. Your breasts were formed and your hair grew, but you were stark naked.“ Then I passed by you and saw you, and you were indeed at the age for love. So I spread the edge of My garment over you and covered your nakedness. I pledged Myself to you, entered into a covenant with you, and you became Mine.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.“ I washed you with water, rinsed off your blood, and anointed you with oil.I clothed you in embroidered cloth and provided you with leather sandals. I also wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk.I adorned you with jewelry, putting bracelets on your wrists and a chain around your neck.I put a ring in your nose, earrings on your ears, and a beautiful tiara on your head.So you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was made of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth. You ate fine flour, honey, and oil. You became extremely beautiful and attained royalty.Your fame spread among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect through My splendor, which I had bestowed on you.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.“ But you were confident in your beauty and acted like a prostitute because of your fame. You lavished your sexual favors on everyone who passed by. Your beauty became his.You took some of your garments and made colorful high places for yourself, and you engaged in prostitution on them. These places should not have been built, and this should never have happened!You also took your beautiful jewelry made from the gold and silver I had given you, and you made male images so that you could engage in prostitution with them.Then you took your embroidered garments to cover them, and set My oil and incense before them.You also set before them as a pleasing aroma the food I gave you— the fine flour, oil, and honey that I fed you. That is what happened.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.“ You even took your sons and daughters you bore to Me and sacrificed them to these images as food. Wasn’t your prostitution enough?You slaughtered My children and gave them up when you passed them through the fire to the images.In all your detestable practices and acts of prostitution, you did not remember the days of your youth when you were stark naked and lying in your blood.“ Then after all your evil— Woe, woe to you!”— the declaration of the Lord God—“ you built yourself a mound and made yourself an elevated place in every square.You built your elevated place at the head of every street and turned your beauty into a detestable thing. You spread your legs to everyone who passed by and increased your prostitution.You engaged in promiscuous acts with Egyptian men, your well-endowed neighbors, and increased your prostitution to provoke Me to anger.“ Therefore, I stretched out My hand against you and reduced your provisions. I gave you over to the desire of those who hate you, the Philistine women, who were embarrassed by your indecent behavior.Then you engaged in prostitution with the Assyrian men because you were not satisfied. Even though you did this with them, you were still not satisfied.So you extended your prostitution to Chaldea, the land of merchants, but you were not even satisfied with this!“ How your heart was inflamed with lust”— the declaration of the Lord God—“ when you did all these things, the acts of a brazen prostitute,building your mound at the head of every street and making your elevated place in every square. But you were unlike a prostitute because you scorned payment.You adulterous wife, who receives strangers instead of her husband!Men give gifts to all prostitutes, but you gave gifts to all your lovers. You bribed them to come to you from all around for your sexual favors.So you were the opposite of other women in your acts of prostitution; no one solicited you. When you paid a fee instead of one being paid to you, you were the opposite.“ Therefore, you prostitute, hear the word of the Lord!This is what the Lord God says: Because your lust was poured out and your nakedness exposed by your acts of prostitution with your lovers, and because of all your detestable idols and the blood of your children that you gave to them,I am therefore going to gather all the lovers you pleased— all those you loved as well as all those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around and expose your nakedness to them so they see you completely naked.I will judge you the way adulteresses and those who shed blood are judged. Then I will bring about your bloodshed in wrath and jealousy.I will hand you over to them, and they will level your mounds and tear down your elevated places. They will strip off your clothes, take your beautiful jewelry, and leave you stark naked.They will bring a mob against you to stone you and cut you to pieces with their swords.Then they will burn down your houses and execute judgments against you in the sight of many women. I will stop you from being a prostitute, and you will never again pay fees for lovers.So I will satisfy My wrath against you, and My jealousy will turn away from you. Then I will be silent and no longer angry.Because you did not remember the days of your youth but enraged Me with all these things, I will also bring your actions down on your own head.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.“ Haven’t you committed immoral acts in addition to all your detestable practices?“ Look, everyone who uses proverbs will say this proverb about you: Like mother, like daughter.You are the daughter of your mother, who despised her husband and children. You are the sister of your sisters, who despised their husbands and children. Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite.Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to the north of you, and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to the south of you.Didn’t you walk in their ways and do their detestable practices? It was only a short time before you behaved more corruptly than they did.“ As I live”— the declaration of the Lord God—“ your sister Sodom and her daughters have not behaved as you and your daughters have.Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, plenty of food, and comfortable security, but didn’t support the poor and needy.They were haughty and did detestable things before Me, so I removed them when I saw this.But Samaria did not commit even half your sins. You have multiplied your detestable practices beyond theirs and made your sisters appear righteous by all the detestable things you have committed.You must also bear your disgrace, since you have been an advocate for your sisters. For they appear more righteous than you because of your sins, which you committed more abhorrently than they did. So you also, be ashamed and bear your disgrace, since you have made your sisters appear righteous.“ I will restore their fortunes, the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters and those of Samaria and her daughters. I will also restore your fortunes among them,so you will bear your disgrace and be ashamed of all you did when you comforted them.As for your sisters, Sodom and her daughters and Samaria and her daughters will return to their former state. You and your daughters will also return to your former state.Didn’t you treat your sister Sodom as an object of scorn when you were proud,before your wickedness was exposed? It was like the time you were scorned by the daughters of Aram and all those around her, and by the daughters of the Philistines— those who treated you with contempt from every side.You yourself must bear the consequences of your indecency and detestable practices”— this is the Lord’s declaration.“ For this is what the Lord God says: I will deal with you according to what you have done, since you have despised the oath by breaking the covenant.But I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you receive your older and younger sisters. I will give them to you as daughters, but not because of your covenant.I will establish My covenant with you, and you will know that I am Yahweh,so that when I make atonement for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed, and never open your mouth again because of your disgrace.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.

The coming of the lawless one is based on Satan’s working, with all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders,and with every unrighteous deception among those who are perishing. They perish because they did not accept the love of the truth in order to be saved.For this reason God sends them a strong delusion so that they will believe what is false,

For the king of Babylon stands at the split in the road, at the fork of the two roads, to practice divination: he shakes the arrows, consults the idols, and observes the liver.