Hosea 12:11–14

11 Is Gilead wicked?

Its people are worthless!

Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal?

Their altars will be like piles of stones

on a plowed field.

12 Jacob fled to the country of Aram;

Israel served to get a wife,

and to pay for her he tended sheep.

13 The Lord used a prophet to bring Israel up from Egypt,

by a prophet he cared for him.

14 But Ephraim has aroused his bitter anger;

his Lord will leave on him the guilt of his bloodshed

and will repay him for his contempt.

11 Is there iniquity in Gilead? surely they are vanity:

They sacrifice bullocks in Gilgal;

Yea, their altars are as heaps in the furrows of the fields.

12 And Jacob fled into the country of Syria,

And Israel served for a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep.

13 And by a prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt,

And by a prophet was he preserved.

14 Ephraim provoked him to anger most bitterly:

Therefore shall he leave his blood upon him,

And his reproach shall his Lord return unto him.

11 But the people of Gilead are worthless

because of their idol worship.

And in Gilgal, too, they sacrifice bulls;

their altars are lined up like the heaps of stone

along the edges of a plowed field.

12 Jacob fled to the land of Aram,

and there he earned a wife by tending sheep.

13 Then by a prophet

the Lord brought Jacob’s descendants out of Egypt;

and by that prophet

they were protected.

14 But the people of Israel

have bitterly provoked the Lord,

so their Lord will now sentence them to death

in payment for their sins.

11 Though Gilead has idols—

Surely they are vanity—

Though they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal,

Indeed their altars shall be heaps in the furrows of the field.

12 Jacob fled to the country of Syria;

Israel served for a spouse,

And for a wife he tended sheep.

13 By a prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt,

And by a prophet he was preserved.

14 Ephraim provoked Him to anger most bitterly;

Therefore his Lord will leave the guilt of his bloodshed upon him,

And return his reproach upon him.

11 The people of Gilead are evil,

worth nothing.

Though people sacrifice bulls at Gilgal,

their altars will become like piles of stone

in a plowed field.

12 Your ancestor Jacob fled to Northwest Mesopotamia

where he worked to get a wife;

he tended sheep to pay for her.

13 Later the Lord used a prophet

to bring Jacob’s descendants out of Egypt;

he used a prophet

to take care of the Israelites.

14 But the Israelites made the Lord angry when they killed other people,

and they deserve to die for their crimes.

The Lord will make them pay

for the disgraceful things they have done.

11 Is Gilead iniquity? they are altogether false; in Gilgal they sacrifice bullocks; yea, their altars are as heaps in the furrows of the field. 12 And Jacob fled into the field of Aram, and Israel served for a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep. 13 And by a prophet Jehovah brought Israel up out of Egypt, and by a prophet was he preserved. 14 Ephraim hath provoked to anger most bitterly: therefore shall his blood be left upon him, and his reproach shall his Lord return unto him.

11 If Gilead is iniquity, surely they are but vanity: they sacrifice bullocks in Gilgal; yea, their altars are as heaps in the furrows of the fields. 12 And Jacob fled into the country of Syria, and Israel served for a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep. 13 And by a prophet Jehovah brought Israel out of Egypt, and by a prophet was he preserved. 14 Ephraim provoked him to anger most bitterly; and his Lord shall leave his blood upon him, and recompense unto him his reproach.

11 The people of Gilead are evil. 

They are worthless. 

They sacrifice bulls in Gilgal. 

But their altars will become like piles of rubble 

beside a plowed field. 

12 Jacob fled to the country of Syria. 

Israel worked to get a wife; he took care of sheep to pay for her. 

13 The Lord used a prophet to bring the people of Israel out of Egypt. 

He used a prophet to take care of them. 

14 The people of Ephraim made the Lord bitter. 

He will hold them guilty of murder. 

The Lord will pay them back for their insults. 

11 Since Gilead is full of evil,

they will certainly come to nothing.

They sacrifice bulls in Gilgal;

even their altars will be like heaps of rocks

on the furrows of a field.

12 Jacob fled to the land of Aram.

Israel worked to earn a wife;

he tended flocks for a wife.

13 The Lord brought Israel from Egypt by a prophet,

and Israel was tended by a prophet.

14 Ephraim has provoked bitter anger,

so his Lord will leave his bloodguilt on him

and repay him for his contempt.

11 In Gilead there is iniquity;

they shall surely come to nothing.

In Gilgal they sacrifice bulls,

so their altars shall be like stone heaps

on the furrows of the field.

12 Jacob fled to the land of Aram;

there Israel served for a wife,

and for a wife he guarded sheep.

13 By a prophet the Lord brought Israel up from Egypt,

and by a prophet he was guarded.

14 Ephraim has given bitter offense,

so his Lord will bring his crimes down on him

and pay him back for his insults.

11 If in Gilead there is evil,

surely they will come to nothing.

In Gilgal they sacrifice bulls,

also their altars will be like stone heaps

on furrows of the field.

12 Jacob fled to the open field of Aram,

and Israel served for a wife,

and for a wife he watched over sheep.

13 And by a prophet Yahweh brought

Israel up from Egypt,

and by a prophet

he was watched over.

14 Ephraim has caused bitter provocation,

and his Lord will hold him responsible for his crimes

and pay back to him his insults.

11 The people of Gilead are evil!

They aren’t worth anything!

Gilgal’s people sacrifice bulls to other gods.

Their altars will become like piles of stones

on a plowed field.

12 Jacob ran away to the country of Aram.

There Israel served Laban to get a wife.

He took care of sheep to pay for her.

13 The prophet Moses brought Israel up from Egypt.

The Lord used him to take care of them.

14 But Ephraim’s people have made the Lord very angry.

Their Lord will hold them accountable for the blood they’ve spilled.

He’ll pay them back for the shameful things they’ve done.

11 Is there iniquity in Gilead?

Surely they are worthless.

In Gilgal they sacrifice bulls,

Yes, their altars are like the stone heaps

Beside the furrows of the field.

12 Now Jacob fled to the land of Aram,

And Israel worked for a wife,

And for a wife he kept sheep.

13 But by a prophet the Lord brought Israel from Egypt,

And by a prophet he was kept.

14 Ephraim has provoked to bitter anger;

So his Lord will leave his bloodguilt on him

And bring back his reproach to him.