Jeremiah 3:1-5·~1 min
The Wages of the Harlot
A case of divorce is used to show how grave Judah's behavior has become, since the land has been covered with her many adulteries. The nation has sat by the roads to seduce others, and even drought has not produced shame in her.
“1If a man divorces his wife 2“Lift up your eyes to the barren heights and see. 3Therefore the showers have been withheld,
Judah still addresses God as Father and guide, asking whether His anger will last, but these words are exposed as empty because she continues to do all the evil she can. The language of closeness remains, but the life beneath it has not changed.
4Have you not just called to Me, 5Will He be angry forever?
Section summaryThe chapter opens with the logic of divorce and then turns that image back on Judah, whose infidelity has spread across the land like a public stain. Even while calling God Father, the nation keeps speaking with false softness while persisting in evil.
Role in the chapterThis opening section sharpens the moral gravity of Judah's unfaithfulness. It shows that the nation's guilt is not hidden or accidental, and it sets the chapter's tone of accusation before any appeal to return is heard.