The Lord Said: "Simply Put..."

Jeremiah 16:10 “And when you tell this people all these words, and they say to you, ‘Why has the Lord pronounced all this great evil against us? What is our iniquity? What is the sin that we have committed against the Lord our God?’ 11 then you shall say to them: ‘Because your fathers have forsaken me, declares the Lord, and have gone after other gods and have served and worshiped them, and have forsaken me and have not kept my law, 12 and because you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, every one of you follows his stubborn, evil will, refusing to listen to me. 

Preceding this paragraph, we have Jeremiah's typical transitions: "The word of the Lord came to me..." and "Thus says the Lord...". God had told him to tell the people: "Don't get to comfortable here; you're not going to be here much longer," reminding them of the coming exile.  Their response is predictable: "Why?" God gives Jeremiah the response: "Simply put, you have turned your back on me for other gods, and you are the worst generation ever. Everyone wants to do what you want and is rebelling against Me." A long explanation is not warranted or needed. The evidence is obvious and blatant. Look all around you. Rebellion rules and righteousness has run away. Why should you expect the land of plenty and place of peace? Often, when we are prone to ask: "Why me?," we need to simply open our eyes and ears to Him.