³²Those who were fearing Yahweh made priests of the high places from among themselves,^m and they were sacrificing for them in the shrines of the high places. ³³Yahweh they were fearing, but their gods they were serving, according to the customs of the nations from which they were deported.

³⁴Until this day they are doing according to their former customs; none of them are fearing Yahweh, and none of them are doing according to their statutes, to their decisions, to the law, or to the commands that Yahweh commanded the descendantsⁿ of Jacob to whom he had given the name Israel. ³⁵Yahweh had made^o a covenant with them and commanded them, “You shall not fear other gods, nor shall you bow down to them, nor shall you serve them, nor shall you sacrifice to them. ³⁶Rather, Yahweh, who brought you out from the land of Egypt with great strength and with an outstretched arm—him you shall fear, and to him you shall bow down, and to him you shall sacrifice. ³⁷The statutes, the decisions, the law, and the commands that he wrote to you, you shall observe to do always, and you shall not fear other gods. ³⁸The covenant that I have made^p with you, you shall not forget, and you shall not fear other gods. ³⁹But Yahweh your God you shall fear, and he will deliver you from the hand of all of your enemies.” ⁴⁰They did not listen but kept on doing according to their former customs. ⁴¹So these nations were fearing Yahweh, but they were serving their idols, as were their children and their children’s children; as their ancestors^q did, they are doing until this day.

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Footnotes

mLiterally “for them from their ends”
nOr “sons”
oLiterally “cut”
pLiterally “cut”
qOr “fathers”