Hosea 3–6

WAITING FOR RESTORATION

3Then the Lord said to me, “Go again; show love to a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress,^aj just as the Lord loves the Israelites though they turn to other gods and love raisin cakes.”^ak

²So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and nine bushels of barley.^{EFal 3}I said to her, “You are to live with me many days. You must not be promiscuous or belong to any man, and I will act the same way toward you.”

⁴For the Israelites must live many days without king or prince,^am without sacrifice^a or sacred pillar,^b and without ephod^c or household idols.^{d 5}Afterward, the people of Israel will return^e and seek the Lord their God and David their king.^f They will come with awe to the Lord^g and to his goodness in the last days.

GOD’S CASE AGAINST ISRAEL

4Hear the word of the Lord,^h people of Israel,

for the Lord has a caseⁱ

against the inhabitants of the land:

There is no truth,^j no faithful love,^k

and no knowledge of God^l in the land!

²Cursing,^m lying,ⁿ murder,^o stealing,^p

and adultery^q are rampant;

one act of bloodshed follows another.^r

³For this reason the land mourns,^s

and everyone who lives in it languishes,

along with the wild animals^t and the birds of the sky;

even the fish of the sea disappear.^u

⁴But let no one dispute;^v let no one argue,

for my case is against you priests.^ABw

⁵You will stumble by day;^x

the prophet will also stumble with you by night.

And I will destroy your mother.^y

⁶My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.^z

Because you have rejected knowledge,^aa

I will reject you^ab from serving as my priest.

Since you have forgotten the law of your God,^ac

I will also forget your sons.

⁷The more they multiplied,^ad

the more they sinned against me.

I^C will change their^D honor into disgrace.^ae

⁸They feed on the sin^E of my people;^af

they have an appetite for their iniquity.^ag

⁹The same judgment will happen

to both people and priests.^ah

I will punish them for their ways^ai

and repay them for their deeds.

¹⁰They will eat but not be satisfied;^aj

they will be promiscuous^ak but not multiply.

For they have abandoned their devotion to the Lord.^al

¹¹Promiscuity,^am wine, and new wine

take away one’s understanding.^an

¹²My people consult their wooden idols,^ao

and their divining rods inform them.

For a spirit of promiscuity leads them astray;^ap

they act promiscuously^aq

in disobedience to^F their God.

¹³They sacrifice on the mountaintops,^ar

and they burn offerings on the hills,^as

and under oaks, poplars, and terebinths,^at

because their shade is pleasant.

And so your daughters act promiscuously

and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.

¹⁴I will not punish your daughters

when they act promiscuously

or your daughters-in-law

when they commit adultery,

for the men themselves go off with prostitutes^au

and make sacrifices with cult prostitutes.^av

People without discernment are doomed.^aw

WARNINGS FOR ISRAEL AND JUDAH

¹⁵Israel, if you act promiscuously,

don’t let Judah become guilty!

Do not go to Gilgal^ax

or make a pilgrimage to Beth-aven,^Aay

and do not swear an oath: As the Lord lives!^az

¹⁶For Israel is as obstinate as a stubborn cow.^ba

Can the Lord now shepherd them

like a lamb in an open meadow?^bb

¹⁷Ephraim is attached to idols;^bc

leave him alone!^bd

¹⁸When their drinking is over,

they turn to promiscuity.

Israel’s leaders fervently love disgrace.^C

¹⁹A wind with its wings will carry them off,^Dbe

and they will be ashamed of their sacrifices.

5Hear this, priests!^a

Pay attention, house of Israel!

Listen, royal house!

For the judgment applies to you

because you have been a snare at Mizpah^b

and a net spread out on Tabor.

²Rebels^c are deeply involved in slaughter;^d

I will be a punishment for all of them.^C

³I know Ephraim,^e

and Israel is not hidden from me.

For now, Ephraim,^f

you have acted promiscuously;

Israel is defiled.

⁴Their actions do not allow them

to return to their God,^g

for a spirit of promiscuity is among them,^h

and they do not know the Lord.ⁱ

⁵Israel’s arrogance testifies against them.^Ej

Both Israel and Ephraim stumble

because of their iniquity;^k

even Judah will stumble with them.^l

⁶They go with their flocks and herds

to seek the Lord^m

but do not find him;ⁿ

he has withdrawn from them.^o

⁷They betrayed the Lord;^p

indeed, they gave birth to illegitimate children.^q

Now the New Moon^r will devour them

along with their fields.^s

⁸Blow the trumpet in Gibeah,^t

the trumpet in Ramah;^u

raise the war cry in Beth-aven:^v

Look behind you,^F Benjamin!^w

⁹Ephraim will become a desolation^x

on the day of punishment;^y

I announce what is certain

among the tribes of Israel.^z

¹⁰The princes of Judah are like those

who move boundary markers;^aa

I will pour out my fury^ab on them like water.^ac

¹¹Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment,^ad

for he is determined to follow what is worthless.^A

¹²So I am like rot to Ephraim^ae

and like decay to the house of Judah.

¹³When Ephraim saw his sickness

and Judah his wound,

Ephraim went to Assyria^af

and sent a delegation to the great king.^Bag

But he cannot cure you or heal your wound.^ah

¹⁴For I am like a lion to Ephraim^ai

and like a young lion to the house of Judah.

Yes, I will tear them to pieces and depart.^aj

I will carry them off,

and no one can rescue them.^ak

¹⁵I will depart and return to my place

until they recognize their guilt and seek my face;^al

they will search for me in their distress.^am

A CALL TO REPENTANCE

6Come, let’s return to the Lord.^an

For he has torn us,^ao

and he will heal us;^ap

he has wounded us,

and he will bind up our wounds.^aq

²He will revive us after two days,^ar

and on the third day he will raise us up

so we can live in his presence.^as

³Let’s strive to know the Lord.^at

His appearance is as sure as the dawn.^au

He will come to us like the rain,^av

like the spring showers that water the land.

THE LORD’S FIRST LAMENT

⁴What am I going to do with you, Ephraim?^aw

What am I going to do with you, Judah?

Your love is like the morning mist^ax

and like the early dew that vanishes.

⁵This is why I have used the prophets

to cut them down;^Cay

I have killed them with the words from my mouth.

My judgment strikes like lightning.^D

⁶For I desire faithful love and not sacrifice,

the knowledge of God^az rather than burnt offerings.^ba

⁷But they, like Adam,^E have violated the covenant;^a

there they have betrayed me.^b

⁸Gilead is a city of evildoers,^c

tracked with bloody footprints.^d

⁹Like raiders who wait in ambush for someone,^e

a band of priests murders on the road to Shechem.^f

They commit atrocities.^g

¹⁰I have seen something horrible^h in the house of Israel:

Ephraim’s promiscuity is there;ⁱ Israel is defiled.

¹¹A harvest is also appointed for you, Judah.^j

When I return my people from captivity,^k