Bible

1 The people of Israel feed on the wind; they chase after the east wind all day long. They multiply lies and violence; they make alliances with Assyria and cut deals with the Egyptians. 2 Now the LORD is bringing a lawsuit against Judah. He is about to punish Jacob for all his deceitful ways. 3 Before Jacob was born, he struggled with his brother; when he became a man, he even fought with God. 4 Yes, he wrestled with the angel and won. He wept and pleaded for a blessing from him. There at Bethel he met God face to face, and God spoke to him-- 5 the LORD God Almighty, the LORD is his name! 6 So now, come back to your God! Act on the principles of love and justice, and always live in confident dependence on your God. 7 But no, the people are like crafty merchants selling from dishonest scales--they love to cheat. 8 Israel boasts, "I am rich, and I've gotten it all by myself! No one can say I got it by cheating! My record is spotless!" 9 "I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from your slavery in Egypt. And I will make you live in tents again, as you do each year when you celebrate the Festival of Shelters. 10 I sent my prophets to warn you with many visions and parables." 11 But Gilead is filled with sinners who worship idols. And in Gilgal, too, they sacrifice bulls; their altars are lined up like the heaps of stone along the edges of a plowed field. 12 Jacob fled to the land of Aram and earned a wife by tending sheep. 13 Then the LORD led Jacob's descendants, the Israelites, out of Egypt by a prophet, who guided and protected them. 14 But the people of Israel have bitterly provoked the LORD, so their Lord will now sentence them to death in payment for their sins.