And if you shall say: Why hath the Lord our God done all these things to us? thou shalt say to them: As you have forsaken me, and served a strange god in your own land, so shall you serve strangers in a land that is not your own.
וְהָיָה֙ כִּ֣י תֹאמְר֔וּ תַּ֣חַת מֶ֗ה עָשָׂ֨ה יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֵ֛ינוּ לָ֖נוּ אֶת־כָּל־אֵ֑לֶּה וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֲלֵיהֶ֗ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר עֲזַבְתֶּ֤ם אוֹתִי֙ וַתַּעַבְד֞וּ אֱלֹהֵ֤י נֵכָר֙ בְּאַרְצְכֶ֔ם כֵּ֚ן תַּעַבְד֣וּ זָרִ֔ים בְּאֶ֖רֶץ לֹ֥א לָכֶֽם׃
3 Church Fathers comment on this verse
When you question why certain events occur, it reveals a profound lack of understanding, as those who have endured sufferings ask, "Why do you act this way?" In such moments, the guidance offered will be appropriate. Hence, it is stated, 'So you will serve foreign deities in a land that is not yours.'
When you question, 'Why has the Lord our God allowed all these things to happen to us?' you can respond, 'Because you have abandoned me and worshiped foreign gods in your land, you will find yourselves serving strangers in a land that is not yours.' It is indeed foolish to be unaware of the reasons for their suffering, especially since they sinned greatly. The answer to those confused is simple: just as you worshiped false gods among the Jews, namely Baal and the deities of many nations, so shall you serve these foreign gods in a land that does not belong to you—most certainly in Babylon and Chaldea. If you find a foreign faith appealing, why then embrace a falsehood from another place? Rather, align your service with those whose gods you respect.
This can also be understood in the context of heretics, as it is written: ‘They went out from us, but they were not of us: for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us’ (1 John 2:19). The Lord expels heretics from the church, who for a time honored the idols of their misguided beliefs under His name, driving them out so that they may serve what they worshipped within the church, thus separating the tares from the wheat.
Why has the Lord our God allowed these events to occur among us? The Lord instructs the prophet to declare to them, ‘As you abandon Me and worship a foreign deity in your land, so will you serve a foreign god in a land that is not your own.’ What a fair decree of retribution! Since you have rejected My dominion, says God, I shall hand you over to other authorities. He urges them to listen attentively and labels them as irrational and foolish, because they have failed to utilize their physical senses appropriately. For He states:
Passages read together with this verse.
THEOSIS