Remember this is Israel that God is speaking to when He calls them a brood of evildoers. John the Baptist referred to them as a brood of vipers, and Peter says that judgement begins with the house of God.
Verse 4 sets out the basic problem. The nation was sinful and had amassed great guilt. They were given to corruption, and had turned their back on the Lord. Now this is talking about Israel, but the very same criticisms could just as well be levelled at this country. We had a Christian heritage, but have now turned our back on God completely.
Yet all this rebellion did the people no good. Rather it had only brought pain and suffering to them. The reference to heart and head should not be understood in the sense of that we think of it today (ie emotions and mind). The heart was the centre of the will in Hebrew thinking. However, verses 5 and 6 make it clear that their whole being was affected, and all of it covered in sores. Justice in society was corrupt, and the nation was in imminent danger of defeat. Similarly our whole society is sick. Economically we are in a mess, socially we are in a mess. There is corruption and decay all over the place.
This is the result of turning away from God.
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