¹⁷We will certainly do everything we said we would. We’ll burn incense to the goddess who is called the Queen of Heaven. We’ll pour out drink offerings to her. We’ll do just as we and our people before us did. Our kings and our officials also did it. All of us did it in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. At that time we had plenty of food. We were well off. We didn’t suffer any harm.

¹⁸“But then we stopped burning incense to the Queen of Heaven. We stopped pouring out drink offerings to her. And ever since that time we haven’t had anything. Instead, we’ve been dying of war and hunger.”

¹⁹The women added, “We burned incense to the Queen of Heaven. We poured out drink offerings to her. And our husbands knew we were making cakes that looked like her. They knew we were pouring out drink offerings to her.”

²⁰Then I spoke to all of the people who were answering me. I spoke to men and women alike. I said, ²¹“Didn’t the Lord know you were burning incense in the towns of Judah? Didn’t he care that you were also doing it in the streets of Jerusalem? You and your people before you were doing it. Your kings and officials were doing it too. So were the rest of the people in the land.

²²“The Lord couldn’t put up with the evil things you were doing anymore. He hated the things you did. So people called down curses on your land. It became a dry and empty desert. No one lived there. And that’s the way it still is today.

²³“You have burned incense to other gods. You have sinned against the Lord. You haven’t obeyed him or his law. You haven’t followed his rules. You haven’t lived up to the terms of the covenant he made with you. That’s why all of this trouble has come on you. You have seen it with your own eyes.”

²⁴Then I spoke to all of the people. That included the women. I said, “All you people of Judah in Egypt, listen to the Lord’s message. ²⁵The Lord who rules over all is the God of Israel. He says, ‘You and your wives have done what you promised you would do. You said, “We will certainly keep the promises we made to the Queen of Heaven. We’ll burn incense to her. We’ll pour out drink offerings to her.” ’

“Go ahead then. Do what you said you would! Keep your promises!

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