Hosea 13–14

When Ephraim spake trembling, he ^aexalted himself in Israel;

But when he ^boffended ^cin Baal, he died.

²And now they sin more and more,

And ^dhave made them molten images of their silver,

And idols according to their own understanding,

^eAll of it the work of the craftsmen:

They say of them, Let the men that sacrifice ^fkiss the calves.

³Therefore they shall be ^ffas the morning cloud,

^ffAnd as the early dew that passeth away,

^gAs the chaff that is driven with a whirlwind out of the floor,

And ^has the smoke out of ⁱthe chimney.

⁴Yet ^klI am the Lord thy God from the land of Egypt,

And thou shalt know no god but me:

For ^kmthere is no saviour ⁿbeside me.

^5oI did know thee in the wilderness,

^pIn the land of great drought.

^6qrAccording to their pasture, so were they filled;

^qThey were filled, and their heart was exalted;

Therefore ^qrhave they forgotten me.

⁷Therefore ^sI will be unto them as a lion:

As ^ta leopard by the way will I ^uobserve them:

⁸I will meet them as ^va bear that is bereaved of her whelps,

And will rent the caul of their heart,

And there will I devour them like a lion:

The wild beast shall tear them.

⁹O Israel, ^wthou hast destroyed thyself; but ^xin me is thine help.

¹⁰I will be thy king: ^xwhere is any other that may save thee in all thy cities?

And thy judges of whom ^zthou saidst, Give me a king and princes?

^11aI gave thee a king in mine anger,

And ^btook him away in my wrath.

¹²The iniquity of Ephraim is ^cbound up; his sin is hid.

^13dThe sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him:

He is an unwise son;

For he should not ^estay long in the place of ^fthe breaking forth of children.

¹⁴I ^ghwill ransom them from ⁱthe power of the grave;

^hI will redeem them from death:

^jO death, I will be thy plagues;

O grave, I will be thy ^kdestruction:

^lRepentance shall be hid from mine eyes.

¹⁵Though ^mhe be fruitful among his brethren,

ⁿAn east wind shall come, ^othe wind of the Lord shall come up ^pfrom the wilderness,

And his ^qspring ^rshall become dry, and his ^sfountain shall be dried up:

He shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels.

^16ssSamaria ^tshall become desolate;

^uFor she hath rebelled against her God:

They shall fall by the sword:

^vwTheir infants shall be dashed in pieces,

And ^wxtheir women with child shall be ript up.

XIV.O Israel, ^areturn unto the Lord thy God;

For thou hast ^bfallen by thine iniquity.

²Take with you words, and ^aturn to the Lord:

Say unto him, ^cTake away all iniquity, and receive us graciously:

So ^dwill we render the calves of our lips.

^3eAsshur shall not save us: ^fwe will not ride upon horses:

^gNeither will we say any more to the work of our hands, Ye are our gods:

For ^hin thee the fatherless findeth mercy.

⁴ⁱI will heal ^iktheir backsliding, ^lI will love them ^mfreely:

For mine anger is turned away from him.

⁵I will be ⁿas the dew unto Israel:

He shall grow as ^othe lily,

^pqAnd cast forth his roots as Lebanon.

^6qHis branches shall spread,

And his ^rbeauty shall be ^sas the olive tree,

And ^this smell as Lebanon.

^7quThey that dwell under his shadow shall return;

They shall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine:

The sent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon.

⁸Ephraim shall say, ^gvWhat have I to do any more with idols?

I have ^wheard him, and ^xobserved him:

^qsI am like a green fir tree.

^yFrom me is thy fruit found.

^9zWho is wise, and he shall understand these things?

Prudent, and he shall know them?

For ^athe ways of the Lord are ^bright,

And ^cthe just shall walk in them:

^cBut the transgressors shall ^dfall therein.