Hosea 4-14

New International Version

⁴ “But let no one bring a charge,
    let no one accuse another,
for your people are like those
    who bring charges against a priest.^(N)
5 You stumble^(O) day and night,
    and the prophets stumble with you.
So I will destroy your mother^(P)—
⁶     my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.^(Q)

“Because you have rejected knowledge,
    I also reject you as my priests;
because you have ignored the law^(R) of your God,
    I also will ignore your children.
⁷ The more priests there were,
    the more they sinned against me;
    they exchanged their glorious God^[b](S) for something disgraceful.^(T)
8 They feed on the sins of my people
    and relish their wickedness.^(U)
9 And it will be: Like people, like priests.^(V)
    I will punish both of them for their ways
    and repay them for their deeds.^(W)

¹⁰ “They will eat but not have enough;^(X)
    they will engage in prostitution^(Y) but not flourish,
because they have deserted^(Z) the Lord
    to give themselves ¹¹ to prostitution;^(AA)
old wine^(AB) and new wine
    take away their understanding.^(AC)
12 My people consult a wooden idol,^(AD)
    and a diviner’s rod speaks to them.^(AE)
A spirit of prostitution^(AF) leads them astray;^(AG)
    they are unfaithful^(AH) to their God.
¹³ They sacrifice on the mountaintops
    and burn offerings on the hills,
under oak,^(AI) poplar and terebinth,
    where the shade is pleasant.^(AJ)
Therefore your daughters turn to prostitution^(AK)
    and your daughters-in-law to adultery.^(AL)

¹⁴ “I will not punish your daughters
    when they turn to prostitution,
nor your daughters-in-law
    when they commit adultery,
because the men themselves consort with harlots^(AM)
    and sacrifice with shrine prostitutes^(AN)—
    a people without understanding^(AO) will come to ruin!^(AP)

¹⁵ “Though you, Israel, commit adultery,
    do not let Judah become guilty.

“Do not go to Gilgal;^(AQ)
    do not go up to Beth Aven.^[c](AR)
    And do not swear, ‘As surely as the Lord lives!’^(AS)
16 The Israelites are stubborn,^(AT)
    like a stubborn heifer.^(AU)
How then can the Lord pasture them
    like lambs^(AV) in a meadow?
¹⁷ Ephraim is joined to idols;
    leave him alone!
¹⁸ Even when their drinks are gone,
    they continue their prostitution;
    their rulers dearly love shameful ways.
¹⁹ A whirlwind^(AW) will sweep them away,
    and their sacrifices will bring them shame.^(AX)

⁴ “Their deeds do not permit them
    to return^(BF) to their God.
A spirit of prostitution^(BG) is in their heart;
    they do not acknowledge^(BH) the Lord.
⁵ Israel’s arrogance testifies^(BI) against them;
    the Israelites, even Ephraim, stumble^(BJ) in their sin;
    Judah also stumbles with them.^(BK)
6 When they go with their flocks and herds
    to seek the Lord,^(BL)
they will not find him;
    he has withdrawn^(BM) himself from them.
⁷ They are unfaithful^(BN) to the Lord;
    they give birth to illegitimate^(BO) children.
When they celebrate their New Moon feasts,^(BP)
    he will devour^[d](BQ) their fields.

⁸ “Sound the trumpet^(BR) in Gibeah,^(BS)
    the horn in Ramah.^(BT)
Raise the battle cry in Beth Aven^[e];^(BU)
    lead on, Benjamin.
⁹ Ephraim will be laid waste^(BV)
    on the day of reckoning.^(BW)
Among the tribes of Israel
    I proclaim what is certain.^(BX)
10 Judah’s leaders are like those
    who move boundary stones.^(BY)
I will pour out my wrath^(BZ) on them
    like a flood of water.
¹¹ Ephraim is oppressed,
    trampled in judgment,
    intent on pursuing idols.^[f](CA)
12 I am like a moth^(CB) to Ephraim,
    like rot^(CC) to the people of Judah.

¹³ “When Ephraim^(CD) saw his sickness,
    and Judah his sores,
then Ephraim turned to Assyria,^(CE)
    and sent to the great king for help.^(CF)
But he is not able to cure^(CG) you,
    not able to heal your sores.^(CH)
14 For I will be like a lion^(CI) to Ephraim,
    like a great lion to Judah.
I will tear them to pieces^(CJ) and go away;
    I will carry them off, with no one to rescue them.^(CK)
15 Then I will return to my lair^(CL)
    until they have borne their guilt^(CM)
    and seek my face^(CN)—
in their misery^(CO)
    they will earnestly seek me.^(CP)”

⁴ “What can I do with you, Ephraim?^(CZ)
    What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
    like the early dew that disappears.^(DA)
5 Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
    I killed you with the words of my mouth^(DB)—
    then my judgments go forth like the sun.^[g](DC)
6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,^(DD)
    and acknowledgment^(DE) of God rather than burnt offerings.^(DF)
7 As at Adam,^[h] they have broken the covenant;^(DG)
    they were unfaithful^(DH) to me there.
⁸ Gilead is a city of evildoers,^(DI)
    stained with footprints of blood.
⁹ As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,^(DJ)
    so do bands of priests;
they murder^(DK) on the road to Shechem,
    carrying out their wicked schemes.^(DL)
10 I have seen a horrible^(DM) thing in Israel:
    There Ephraim is given to prostitution,
    Israel is defiled.^(DN)

¹¹ “Also for you, Judah,
    a harvest^(DO) is appointed.

“Whenever I would restore the fortunes^(DP) of my people,

³ “They delight the king with their wickedness,
    the princes with their lies.^(DX)
4 They are all adulterers,^(DY)
    burning like an oven
whose fire the baker need not stir
    from the kneading of the dough till it rises.
⁵ On the day of the festival of our king
    the princes become inflamed with wine,^(DZ)
    and he joins hands with the mockers.^(EA)
6 Their hearts are like an oven;^(EB)
    they approach him with intrigue.
Their passion smolders all night;
    in the morning it blazes like a flaming fire.
⁷ All of them are hot as an oven;
    they devour their rulers.
All their kings fall,^(EC)
    and none of them calls^(ED) on me.

⁸ “Ephraim mixes^(EE) with the nations;
    Ephraim is a flat loaf not turned over.
⁹ Foreigners sap his strength,^(EF)
    but he does not realize it.
His hair is sprinkled with gray,
    but he does not notice.
¹⁰ Israel’s arrogance testifies against him,^(EG)
    but despite all this
he does not return^(EH) to the Lord his God
    or search^(EI) for him.

¹¹ “Ephraim is like a dove,^(EJ)
    easily deceived and senseless—
now calling to Egypt,^(EK)
    now turning to Assyria.^(EL)
12 When they go, I will throw my net^(EM) over them;
    I will pull them down like the birds in the sky.
When I hear them flocking together,
    I will catch them.
¹³ Woe^(EN) to them,
    because they have strayed^(EO) from me!
Destruction to them,
    because they have rebelled against me!
I long to redeem them
    but they speak about me^(EP) falsely.^(EQ)
14 They do not cry out to me from their hearts^(ER)
    but wail on their beds.
They slash themselves,^[i] appealing to their gods
    for grain and new wine,^(ES)
    but they turn away from me.^(ET)
15 I trained^(EU) them and strengthened their arms,
    but they plot evil^(EV) against me.
¹⁶ They do not turn to the Most High;^(EW)
    they are like a faulty bow.^(EX)
Their leaders will fall by the sword
    because of their insolent^(EY) words.
For this they will be ridiculed^(EZ)
    in the land of Egypt.^(FA)

⁷ “They sow the wind
    and reap the whirlwind.^(FN)
The stalk has no head;
    it will produce no flour.^(FO)
Were it to yield grain,
    foreigners would swallow it up.^(FP)
8 Israel is swallowed up;^(FQ)
    now she is among the nations
    like something no one wants.^(FR)
9 For they have gone up to Assyria^(FS)
    like a wild donkey^(FT) wandering alone.
    Ephraim has sold herself to lovers.^(FU)
10 Although they have sold themselves among the nations,
    I will now gather them together.^(FV)
They will begin to waste away^(FW)
    under the oppression of the mighty king.

¹¹ “Though Ephraim built many altars for sin offerings,
    these have become altars for sinning.^(FX)
12 I wrote for them the many things of my law,
    but they regarded them as something foreign.^(FY)
13 Though they offer sacrifices as gifts to me,
    and though they eat^(FZ) the meat,
    the Lord is not pleased with them.^(GA)
Now he will remember^(GB) their wickedness
    and punish their sins:^(GC)
    They will return to Egypt.^(GD)
14 Israel has forgotten^(GE) their Maker^(GF)
    and built palaces;
    Judah has fortified many towns.
But I will send fire on their cities
    that will consume their fortresses.”^(GG)

⁵ What will you do^(GT) on the day of your appointed festivals,^(GU)
    on the feast days of the Lord?
⁶ Even if they escape from destruction,
    Egypt will gather them,^(GV)
    and Memphis^(GW) will bury them.^(GX)
Their treasures of silver^(GY) will be taken over by briers,
    and thorns^(GZ) will overrun their tents.
⁷ The days of punishment^(HA) are coming,
    the days of reckoning^(HB) are at hand.
    Let Israel know this.
Because your sins^(HC) are so many
    and your hostility so great,
the prophet is considered a fool,^(HD)
    the inspired person a maniac.^(HE)
8 The prophet, along with my God,
    is the watchman over Ephraim,^[j]
yet snares^(HF) await him on all his paths,
    and hostility in the house of his God.^(HG)
9 They have sunk deep into corruption,^(HH)
    as in the days of Gibeah.^(HI)
God will remember^(HJ) their wickedness
    and punish them for their sins.^(HK)

¹⁰ “When I found Israel,
    it was like finding grapes in the desert;
when I saw your ancestors,
    it was like seeing the early fruit^(HL) on the fig^(HM) tree.
But when they came to Baal Peor,^(HN)
    they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol^(HO)
    and became as vile as the thing they loved.
¹¹ Ephraim’s glory^(HP) will fly away like a bird^(HQ)—
    no birth, no pregnancy, no conception.^(HR)
12 Even if they rear children,
    I will bereave^(HS) them of every one.
Woe^(HT) to them
    when I turn away from them!^(HU)
13 I have seen Ephraim,^(HV) like Tyre,
    planted in a pleasant place.^(HW)
But Ephraim will bring out
    their children to the slayer.”^(HX)

¹⁴ Give them, Lord—
    what will you give them?
Give them wombs that miscarry
    and breasts that are dry.^(HY)

¹⁵ “Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal,^(HZ)
    I hated them there.
Because of their sinful deeds,^(IA)
    I will drive them out of my house.
I will no longer love them;^(IB)
    all their leaders are rebellious.^(IC)
16 Ephraim^(ID) is blighted,
    their root is withered,
    they yield no fruit.^(IE)
Even if they bear children,
    I will slay^(IF) their cherished offspring.”

¹⁷ My God will reject^(IG) them
    because they have not obeyed^(IH) him;
    they will be wanderers among the nations.^(II)

10 Israel was a spreading vine;^(IJ)
    he brought forth fruit for himself.
As his fruit increased,
    he built more altars;^(IK)
as his land prospered,^(IL)
    he adorned his sacred stones.^(IM)
2 Their heart is deceitful,^(IN)
    and now they must bear their guilt.^(IO)
The Lord will demolish their altars^(IP)
    and destroy their sacred stones.^(IQ)

³ Then they will say, “We have no king
    because we did not revere the Lord.
But even if we had a king,
    what could he do for us?”
⁴ They make many promises,
    take false oaths^(IR)
    and make agreements;^(IS)
therefore lawsuits spring up
    like poisonous weeds^(IT) in a plowed field.
⁵ The people who live in Samaria fear
    for the calf-idol^(IU) of Beth Aven.^[k](IV)
Its people will mourn over it,
    and so will its idolatrous priests,^(IW)
those who had rejoiced over its splendor,
    because it is taken from them into exile.^(IX)
6 It will be carried to Assyria^(IY)
    as tribute^(IZ) for the great king.^(JA)
Ephraim will be disgraced;^(JB)
    Israel will be ashamed^(JC) of its foreign alliances.
⁷ Samaria’s king will be destroyed,^(JD)
    swept away like a twig on the surface of the waters.
⁸ The high places^(JE) of wickedness^[l](JF) will be destroyed—
    it is the sin of Israel.
Thorns^(JG) and thistles will grow up
    and cover their altars.^(JH)
Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”^(JI)
    and to the hills, “Fall on us!”^(JJ)

⁹ “Since the days of Gibeah,^(JK) you have sinned,^(JL) Israel,
    and there you have remained.^[m]
Will not war again overtake
    the evildoers in Gibeah?
¹⁰ When I please, I will punish^(JM) them;
    nations will be gathered against them
    to put them in bonds for their double sin.
¹¹ Ephraim is a trained heifer
    that loves to thresh;
so I will put a yoke^(JN)
    on her fair neck.
I will drive Ephraim,
    Judah must plow,
    and Jacob must break up the ground.
¹² Sow^(JO) righteousness^(JP) for yourselves,
    reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;^(JQ)
    for it is time to seek^(JR) the Lord,
until he comes
    and showers his righteousness^(JS) on you.
¹³ But you have planted wickedness,
    you have reaped evil,^(JT)
    you have eaten the fruit of deception.^(JU)
Because you have depended on your own strength
    and on your many warriors,^(JV)
14 the roar of battle will rise against your people,
    so that all your fortresses will be devastated^(JW)—
as Shalman^(JX) devastated Beth Arbel on the day of battle,
    when mothers were dashed to the ground with their children.^(JY)
15 So will it happen to you, Bethel,
    because your wickedness is great.
When that day dawns,
    the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.^(JZ)

⁵ “Will they not return to Egypt^(KL)
    and will not Assyria^(KM) rule over them
    because they refuse to repent?^(KN)
6 A sword^(KO) will flash in their cities;
    it will devour^(KP) their false prophets
    and put an end to their plans.
⁷ My people are determined to turn^(KQ) from me.^(KR)
    Even though they call me God Most High,
    I will by no means exalt them.

⁸ “How can I give you up,^(KS) Ephraim?^(KT)
    How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah?
    How can I make you like Zeboyim?^(KU)
My heart is changed within me;
    all my compassion^(KV) is aroused.^(KW)
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger,^(KX)
    nor will I devastate^(KY) Ephraim again.
For I am God, and not a man^(KZ)—
    the Holy One^(LA) among you.
    I will not come against their cities.
¹⁰ They will follow the Lord;
    he will roar^(LB) like a lion.^(LC)
When he roars,
    his children will come trembling^(LD) from the west.^(LE)
11 They will come from Egypt,
    trembling like sparrows,
    from Assyria,^(LF) fluttering like doves.^(LG)
I will settle them in their homes,”^(LH)
    declares the Lord.

⁷ The merchant uses dishonest scales^(MB)
    and loves to defraud.
⁸ Ephraim boasts,^(MC)
    “I am very rich; I have become wealthy.^(MD)
With all my wealth they will not find in me
    any iniquity or sin.”

⁹ “I have been the Lord your God
    ever since you came out of Egypt;^(ME)
I will make you live in tents^(MF) again,
    as in the days of your appointed festivals.
¹⁰ I spoke to the prophets,
    gave them many visions
    and told parables^(MG) through them.”^(MH)

¹¹ Is Gilead wicked?^(MI)
    Its people are worthless!
Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal?^(MJ)
    Their altars will be like piles of stones
    on a plowed field.^(MK)
12 Jacob fled to the country of Aram^[r];^(ML)
    Israel served to get a wife,
    and to pay for her he tended sheep.^(MM)
13 The Lord used a prophet to bring Israel up from Egypt,^(MN)
    by a prophet he cared for him.^(MO)
14 But Ephraim has aroused his bitter anger;
    his Lord will leave on him the guilt of his bloodshed^(MP)
    and will repay him for his contempt.^(MQ)

⁴ “But I have been the Lord your God
    ever since you came out of Egypt.^(ND)
You shall acknowledge^(NE) no God but me,^(NF)
    no Savior^(NG) except me.
⁵ I cared for you in the wilderness,^(NH)
    in the land of burning heat.
⁶ When I fed them, they were satisfied;
    when they were satisfied, they became proud;^(NI)
    then they forgot^(NJ) me.^(NK)
7 So I will be like a lion^(NL) to them,
    like a leopard I will lurk by the path.
⁸ Like a bear robbed of her cubs,^(NM)
    I will attack them and rip them open;
like a lion^(NN) I will devour them—
    a wild animal will tear them apart.^(NO)

⁹ “You are destroyed, Israel,
    because you are against me,^(NP) against your helper.^(NQ)
10 Where is your king,^(NR) that he may save you?
    Where are your rulers in all your towns,
of whom you said,
    ‘Give me a king and princes’?^(NS)
11 So in my anger I gave you a king,^(NT)
    and in my wrath I took him away.^(NU)
12 The guilt of Ephraim is stored up,
    his sins are kept on record.^(NV)
13 Pains as of a woman in childbirth^(NW) come to him,
    but he is a child without wisdom;
when the time^(NX) arrives,
    he doesn’t have the sense to come out of the womb.^(NY)

¹⁴ “I will deliver this people from the power of the grave;^(NZ)
    I will redeem them from death.^(OA)
Where, O death, are your plagues?
    Where, O grave, is your destruction?^(OB)

“I will have no compassion,
¹⁵     even though he thrives^(OC) among his brothers.
An east wind^(OD) from the Lord will come,
    blowing in from the desert;
his spring will fail
    and his well dry up.^(OE)
His storehouse will be plundered^(OF)
    of all its treasures.
¹⁶ The people of Samaria^(OG) must bear their guilt,^(OH)
    because they have rebelled^(OI) against their God.
They will fall by the sword;^(OJ)
    their little ones will be dashed^(OK) to the ground,
    their pregnant women^(OL) ripped open.”^[t]

⁴ “I will heal^(OX) their waywardness^(OY)
    and love them freely,^(OZ)
    for my anger has turned away^(PA) from them.
⁵ I will be like the dew^(PB) to Israel;
    he will blossom like a lily.^(PC)
Like a cedar of Lebanon^(PD)
    he will send down his roots;^(PE)
6     his young shoots will grow.
His splendor will be like an olive tree,^(PF)
    his fragrance like a cedar of Lebanon.^(PG)
7 People will dwell again in his shade;^(PH)
    they will flourish like the grain,
they will blossom^(PI) like the vine—
    Israel’s fame will be like the wine^(PJ) of Lebanon.^(PK)
8 Ephraim, what more have I^[w] to do with idols?^(PL)
    I will answer him and care for him.
I am like a flourishing juniper;^(PM)
    your fruitfulness comes from me.”

⁹ Who is wise?^(PN) Let them realize these things.
    Who is discerning? Let them understand.^(PO)
The ways of the Lord are right;^(PP)
    the righteous walk^(PQ) in them,
    but the rebellious stumble in them.