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Go, cry out this message for Jerusalem to hear!

I remember the devotion[a] of your youth,
    how you loved me as a bride,
Following me in the wilderness,
    in a land unsown.(A)
Israel was dedicated to the Lord,
    the first fruits[b] of his harvest;
All who ate of it were held guilty,
    evil befell them—oracle of the Lord.(B)

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Footnotes

  1. 2:2 Devotion: Heb. hesed; Israel’s gratitude, fidelity, and love for God.
  2. 2:3 First fruits: the first yield of a harvest offered as a sign of dependence on and gratitude toward the Lord of the land, thus divine property. Israel, then, is a gift made to God, set apart for his use; cf. Ex 23:19.

“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem:

“This is what the Lord says:

“‘I remember the devotion of your youth,(A)
    how as a bride you loved me
and followed me through the wilderness,(B)
    through a land not sown.
Israel was holy(C) to the Lord,(D)
    the firstfruits(E) of his harvest;
all who devoured(F) her were held guilty,(G)
    and disaster overtook them,’”
declares the Lord.

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