Jeremiah 2:20 — Meaning and Application

And now what hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?

Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that {it is} an evil {thing} and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear {is} not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

For of old time I have broken thy yoke, {and} burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not transgress; when upon every high hill and under every green tree thou wanderest, playing the harlot. {transgress: or, serve}

Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?

For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, {yet} thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord GOD.