9:2 (9:1) I wish I had a lodging place in the desert
where I could spend some time like a weary traveler. 1
Then I would desert my people
and walk away from them
because they are all unfaithful to God,
a congregation 2 of people that has been disloyal to him. 3
10:5 Such idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field.
They cannot talk.
They must be carried
because they cannot walk.
Do not be afraid of them
because they cannot hurt you.
And they do not have any power to help you.” 4
18:15 Yet my people have forgotten me
and offered sacrifices to worthless idols!
This makes them stumble along in the way they live
and leave the old reliable path of their fathers. 5
They have left them to walk in bypaths,
in roads that are not smooth and level. 6
1 tn Heb “I wish I had in the desert a lodging place [inn, or place to spend the night] for travelers.”
2 tn Or “bunch,” but this loses the irony; the word is used for the solemn assemblies at the religious feasts.
3 tn Heb “they are all adulterers, a congregation of unfaithful people.” However, spiritual adultery is, of course, meant, not literal adultery. So the literal translation would be misleading.
4 tn Heb “And it is not in them to do good either.”
5 sn Heb “the ancient path.” This has already been referred to in Jer 6:16. There is another “old way” but it is the path trod by the wicked (cf. Job 22:15).
6 sn Heb “ways that are not built up.” This refers to the built-up highways. See Isa 40:4 for the figure. The terms “way,” “by-paths,” “roads” are, of course, being used here in the sense of moral behavior or action.