After confronting the people about their corrupt actions, the prophet shifts his focus to their twisted beliefs and heretical thoughts, which were considered even worse than their physical deeds. Looking around, the people saw a reality where the wicked succeeded and enjoyed good fortune, while the righteous suffered. This troubling observation led them to doubt the very existence of divine justice.
The prophet accuses the people of causing weariness to God [מצודת ציון]. Because God does not actually experience physical exhaustion, the primary approach among commentators is that the prophet is speaking in human terms. Their endless complaints weary Him, meaning God will simply no longer tolerate their behavior [רש"י, רד"ק, אבן עזרא, מצודת דוד]. However, another perspective suggests that the people themselves attributed weakness and fatigue to God. According to this view, they claimed God was too tired to oversee the daily details of human actions and judge them properly [מלבי"ם, אברבנאל].
Feigning innocence, the people ask how exactly they have caused this weariness. The prophet responds by breaking down their heretical statements into two possible claims, both rooted in the undeniable success of the wicked. The first claim asserts that anyone who does evil is actually good in God's eyes, and that He desires them [מצודת ציון]. In their minds, if God is actively watching over the world and still granting abundance to wicked individuals, the only logical conclusion is that He loves and wants their evil behavior.
The second claim presents a cynical alternative: if God truly hates evil, why does He not punish the wrongdoers? They ask where the God of justice is. This rhetorical question leads to the bleak conclusion that there is no ultimate judge, that God does not oversee the events on earth, or that He has abandoned the world entirely, leaving it devoid of justice [רש"י, מצודת דוד, מלבי"ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ, אברבנאל]. To this cynical challenge, the ultimate answer will only become clear in the future prophecies later in the book, when God will reveal Himself and establish true justice on earth [אבן עזרא].