^13:10These wicked people refuse to obey what I have said.²⁰ They follow the stubborn inclinations of their own hearts and pay allegiance²¹ to other gods by worshiping and serving them. So²² they will become just like these linen shorts which are good for nothing. ^13:11For,’ I say,²³ ‘just as shorts cling tightly to a person’s body, so I bound the whole nation of Israel and the whole nation of Judah²⁴ tightly²⁵ to me.’ I intended for them to be my special people and to bring me fame, honor, and praise.²⁶ But they would not obey me.

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Footnotes

20 Heb “to listen to my words.”
21 Heb “and [they follow] after.” See the translator’s note at for the idiom.
22 The structure of this verse is a little unusual. It consists of a subject, “this wicked people” qualified by several “which” clauses preceding a conjunction and a form which would normally be taken as a third person imperative (a Hebrew jussive; וִיהִי, vihi). This construction, called casus pendens by Hebrew grammarians, lays focus on the subject, here calling attention to the nature of Israel’s corruption which makes it rotten and useless to God. See §143.d for other examples of this construction.
23 The words “I say” are “Oracle of the Lord” in Hebrew, and are located at the end of this statement in the Hebrew text rather than the beginning. However, they are rendered in the first person and placed at the beginning for smoother English style.
24 Heb “all the house of Israel and all the house of Judah.”
25 It would be somewhat unnatural in English to render the play on the word translated here “cling tightly” and “bound tightly” in a literal way. They are from the same root word in Hebrew (דָּבַק, davaq), a word that emphasizes the closest of personal relationships and the loyalty connected with them. It is used, for example, of the relationship of a husband and a wife and the loyalty expected of them (cf. Gen 2:24; for other similar uses see Ruth 1:14; 2 Sam 20:2; Deut 11:22).
26 Heb “I bound them … in order that they might be to me for a people and for a name and for praise and for honor.” The sentence has been separated from the preceding and an equivalent idea expressed which is more in keeping with contemporary English style.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

This evil people, who refuse to hear my words, who stubbornly follow their own heart and have gone after other gods to serve them and worship them, shall be like this loincloth, which is good for nothing. For as the loincloth clings to the waist of a man, so I made the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah cling to me, declares the Lord, that they might be for me a people, a name, a praise, and a glory, but they would not listen.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

These wicked people, who refuse to listen to my words, who follow the stubbornness of their hearts and go after other gods to serve and worship them, will be like this belt—completely useless! For as a belt is bound around the waist, so I bound all the people of Israel and all the people of Judah to me,’ declares the Lord, ‘to be my people for my renown and praise and honor. But they have not listened.’

CSBChristian Standard Bible

These evil people, who refuse to listen to me, who follow the stubbornness of their own hearts, and who have followed other gods to serve and bow in worship—they will be like this underwear, of no use at all. Just as underwear clings to one’s waist, so I fastened the whole house of Israel and of Judah to me”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“so that they might be my people for my fame, praise, and glory, but they would not obey.

NLTNew Living Translation

These wicked people refuse to listen to me. They stubbornly follow their own desires and worship other gods. Therefore, they will become like this loincloth—good for nothing! As a loincloth clings to a man’s waist, so I created Judah and Israel to cling to me, says the Lord. They were to be my people, my pride, my glory—an honor to my name. But they would not listen to me.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

This evil people, who refuse to listen to my words, who go in the stubbornness of their hearts, and have gone after other gods, to serve them, and to bow in worship to them, let them be like this loincloth which is not good for anything. For as the loincloth clings to the loins of a person, so I caused to cling to me all the house of Israel and all the house of Judah,’ declares Yahweh, ‘to be for me a people, and a name, and a praise, and a glory, but they would not listen.’

KJV 1900King James Version

This evil people, which refuse to hear my words, which walk in the imagination of their heart, and walk after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this girdle, which is good for nothing. For as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave unto me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, saith the Lord; that they might be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear.

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