²⁵ From the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt to this day, ^(A)I have persistently sent all my servants the prophets to them, day after day.

^4 (A)You have neither listened nor inclined your ears to hear, although the Lord ^(B)persistently sent to you all his servants the prophets,

¹⁵ The Lord, the God of their fathers, ^(A)sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place.

¹⁰ When the time came, he sent a servant^[a] to the tenants, so that ^(A)they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. ^(B)But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ^11 (C)And ^(D)he sent another servant. But they also beat and ^(E)treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. ^12 (F)And he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out.

³⁴ When the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants^[a] to the tenants ^(A)to get his fruit. ^35 (B)And the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and ^(C)stoned another. ^36 (D)Again he sent other servants, more than the first. And they did the same to them.

^2 (A)“Son of man, there were ^(B)two women, the daughters of one mother. ^3 (C)They played the whore in Egypt; ^(D)they played the whore ^(E)in their youth; there their breasts were pressed and their virgin bosoms^[a] handled.

⁵ and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: ^(A)On the day when I chose Israel, ^(B)I swore^[a] to the offspring of the house of Jacob, ^(C)making myself known to them in the land of Egypt; ^(D)I swore to them, saying, I am the Lord your God. ⁶ On that day I swore to them that ^(E)I would bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched out for them, a land ^(F)flowing with milk and honey, ^(G)the most glorious of all lands. ⁷ And I said to them, ^(H)‘Cast away the detestable things ^(I)your eyes feast on, every one of you, and do not defile yourselves with ^(J)the idols of Egypt; ^(K)I am the Lord your God.’ ^8 (L)But they rebelled against me and were not willing to listen to me. ^(M)None of them cast away the detestable things their eyes feasted on, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt.

“Then I said I would pour out my wrath upon them ^(N)and spend my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt. ^9 (O)But I acted ^(P)for the sake of my name, ^(Q)that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations among whom they lived, ^(R)in whose sight I made myself known to them in bringing them out of the land of Egypt. ^10 (S)So I led them out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. ^11 (T)I gave them my statutes and made known to them my rules, ^(U)by which, if a person does them, he shall live. ¹² Moreover, I gave them ^(V)my Sabbaths, as a sign between me and them, ^(W)that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them. ^13 (X)But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness. ^(Y)They did not walk in my statutes but rejected my rules, by which, if a person does them, he shall live; ^(Z)and my Sabbaths they greatly profaned.

^(AA)“Then I said I would pour out my wrath upon them in the wilderness, to make a full end of them. ¹⁴ But I acted for the sake of my name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, ^(AB)in whose sight I had brought them out. ¹⁵ Moreover, ^(AC)I swore to them in the wilderness ^(AD)that I would not bring them into the land that I had given them, a land ^(AE)flowing with milk and honey, ^(AF)the most glorious of all lands, ¹⁶ because they rejected my rules and did not walk in my statutes, and profaned my Sabbaths; ^(AG)for their heart went after their idols. ¹⁷ Nevertheless, ^(AH)my eye spared them, and I did not destroy them or ^(AI)make a full end of them in the wilderness.

¹⁸ “And I said to ^(AJ)their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk ^(AK)in the statutes of your fathers, nor keep their rules, ^(AL)nor defile yourselves with their idols. ^19 (AM)I am the Lord your God; ^(AN)walk in my statutes, and be careful to obey my rules, ²⁰ and ^(AO)keep my Sabbaths holy that ^(AP)they may be a sign between me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God.’ ^21 (AQ)But the children ^(AR)rebelled against me. ^(AS)They did not walk in my statutes and were not careful to obey my rules, by which, if a person does them, he shall live; they profaned my Sabbaths.

^(AT)“Then I said I would pour out my wrath upon them and spend my anger against them in the wilderness. ^22 (AU)But I withheld my hand ^(AV)and acted for the sake of my name, ^(AW)that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, in whose sight I had brought them out. ^23 (AX)Moreover, ^(AY)I swore to them in the wilderness ^(AZ)that I would scatter them among the nations and disperse them through the countries, ²⁴ because they had not obeyed my rules, but had rejected my statutes and profaned my Sabbaths, ^(BA)and their eyes were set on their fathers' idols. ^25 (BB)Moreover, I gave them statutes that were not good and rules by which they could not have life, ²⁶ and I defiled them through ^(BC)their very gifts ^(BD)in their offering up all their firstborn, that I might devastate them. I did it ^(BE)that they might know that I am the Lord.

²⁷ “Therefore, ^(BF)son of man, speak to the house of Israel and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: In this also your fathers blasphemed me, by ^(BG)dealing treacherously with me. ²⁸ For when I had brought them into the land that ^(BH)I swore to give them, then wherever they saw ^(BI)any high hill or any leafy tree, there they offered their sacrifices and there they presented ^(BJ)the provocation of their offering; there they sent up their pleasing aromas, and there they poured out their drink offerings. ²⁹ (I said to them, ^(BK)‘What is the high place to which you go?’ So its name is called Bamah^[b] to this day.)

³⁰ “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: ^(BL)Will you defile yourselves after the manner of your fathers and go ^(BM)whoring after their detestable things? ³¹ When you present your gifts and ^(BN)offer up your children in fire,^[c] you defile yourselves with all your idols to this day. And ^(BO)shall I be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? ^(BP)As I live, declares the Lord God, I will not be inquired of by you.

^32 (BQ)“What is in your mind shall never happen—the thought, ^(BR)‘Let us be like the nations, like the tribes of the countries, ^(BS)and worship wood and stone.’

³ And he said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to ^(A)nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me. ^(B)They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day.

³⁰ For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight ^(A)from their youth. The children of Israel have done nothing but ^(B)provoke me to anger ^(C)by the work of their hands, declares the Lord. ³¹ This city has aroused my anger and wrath, from the day it was built to this day, ^(D)so that I will remove it from my sight