But have walked after the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught them:
The verse describes a turning away from God's law and instruction and direction to follow the desires of one's own heart and the worship of Baalim handed down from ancestors. Rejecting what God taught and choosing their own way, the people continued the idolatry their fathers taught them. Their own-hearted choices and inherited worship were thus put in place of obedience to God.
It applies to people in positions of trust and responsibility who rely on their own judgment instead of divine wisdom. For them, walking after the imagination of the heart means indulging selfishness and pursuing ambitious projects to please themselves. It also means insisting on working in their own way rather than under God's direction. Such conduct calls for repentance and confession.
The verse describes a turning away from God's law and instruction and direction to follow the desires of one's own heart and the worship of Baalim handed down from ancestors. Rejecting what God taught and choosing their own way, the people continued the idolatry their fathers taught them. Their own-hearted choices and inherited worship were thus put in place of obedience to God.
It applies to people in positions of trust and responsibility who rely on their own judgment instead of divine wisdom. For them, walking after the imagination of the heart means indulging selfishness and pursuing ambitious projects to please themselves. It also means insisting on working in their own way rather than under God's direction. Such conduct calls for repentance and confession.