“They do not cry to me
From the heart.
But they wail
Upon their beds.
They gash themselves
For grain,
For wine.
They rebel against me.
I trained them.
I strengthened
Their arms.
Yet they devise evil
Against me.
They turn to Baal,
A useless unprofitable god.
They have become
Like a defective bow.
Their officials
Shall fall
By the sword,
Because of the rage
Of their tongues.
So much for babbling
In the land of Egypt.”
The Israelites were not crying out to Yahweh from their hearts. Instead they were weeping and wailing in their own beds. They gashed themselves that had been forbidden by the law of Moses, hoping for grain and wine. They had rebelled against Yahweh. Yet it was Yahweh who had trained them and strengthened their arms. However, they continually devised evil against Yahweh, turning to the useless Baal gods. They had become defective bows that could not shoot arrows. Thus, their officials would fall by the sword. Their raging tongues sent them babbling to the Egyptians.