Hosea 10–12

10^qIsrael is a luxuriant vine

that yields its fruit.

The more his fruit increased,

^rthe more altars he built;

as his country improved,

he improved his pillars.

²Their heart is false;

now they must bear their guilt.

The Lord¹ will break down their altars

and destroy their pillars.

³For now they will say:

^s“We have no king,

for we do not fear the Lord;

and a king—what could he do for us?”

⁴They utter ^tmere words;

with empty² oaths they make covenants;

so ^ujudgment springs up like poisonous weeds

^vin the furrows of the field.

⁵The inhabitants of Samaria tremble

for ^wthe calf³ of ^xBeth-aven.

Its people mourn for it, and so do its idolatrous priests—

those who rejoiced over it and ^yover its glory—

for it has departed⁴ from them.

^6zThe thing itself shall be carried to Assyria

as tribute to ^athe great king.⁵

Ephraim shall be put to shame,

and Israel shall be ashamed ^bof his idol.⁶

^7cSamaria’s king shall perish

like a twig on the face of the waters.

⁸The high places of ^xAven, ^dthe sin of Israel,

shall be destroyed.

^eThorn and thistle shall grow up

on their altars,

and ^fthey shall say to the mountains, “Cover us,”

and to the hills, “Fall on us.”

⁹From ^gthe days of Gibeah, you have sinned, O Israel;

there they have continued.

Shall not the war against the unjust⁷ overtake them in Gibeah?

^10hWhen I please, ⁱI will discipline them,

and nations shall be gathered against them

when they are bound up for ^jtheir double iniquity.

¹¹Ephraim was a trained calf

that ^kloved to thresh,

and I spared her fair neck;

but I will put ^lEphraim to the yoke;

^lJudah must plow;

Jacob must harrow for himself.

^12mSow for yourselves righteousness;

reap steadfast love;

ⁿbreak up your fallow ground,

for it is the time to seek the Lord,

that he may come and ^orain righteousness upon you.

^13pYou have plowed iniquity;

you have reaped injustice;

you have eaten the fruit of lies.

Because you have trusted in your own way

and in the multitude of your warriors,

¹⁴therefore ^qthe tumult of war shall arise among your people,

and all your fortresses shall be destroyed,

as ^rShalman destroyed Beth-arbel on the day of battle;

^smothers were dashed in pieces with their children.

¹⁵Thus it shall be done to you, O ^tBethel,

because of your great evil.

At dawn ^athe king of Israel

shall be utterly cut off.

The Lord’s Love for Israel

11^uWhen Israel was a child, ^vI loved him,

and out of Egypt I ^wcalled ^xmy son.

^2yThe more they were called,

the more they went away;

^zthey kept sacrificing to the Baals

and burning offerings to idols.

³Yet it was ^aI who taught Ephraim to walk;

I took them up by their arms,

but they did not know that ^bI healed them.

^4cI led them with cords of kindness,¹

with the bands of love,

and ^dI became to them as one who eases the yoke on their jaws,

and ^eI bent down to them and fed them.

^5fThey shall not² return to the land of Egypt,

but ^gAssyria shall be their king,

^hbecause ⁱthey have refused to return to me.

^6jThe sword shall rage against their cities,

consume the bars of their gates,

and devour them ^kbecause of their own counsels.

⁷My people are bent ^lon turning away from me,

and though ^mthey call out to the Most High,

he shall not raise them up at all.

⁸How can I give you up, O Ephraim?

How can I hand you over, O Israel?

ⁿHow can I make you ^olike Admah?

How can I treat you ^olike Zeboiim?

^pMy heart recoils within me;

my compassion grows warm and tender.

⁹I will not execute my burning anger;

I will not again destroy Ephraim;

^qfor I am God and not a man,

^rthe Holy One in your midst,

and I will not come in wrath.³

^10sThey shall go after the Lord;

^the will roar like a lion;

when he roars,

his children shall come trembling ^ufrom the west;

¹¹they shall come trembling like birds ^vfrom Egypt,

and ^wlike doves ^xfrom the land of Assyria,

and I will return them to their homes, declares the Lord.

¹²⁴ Ephraim ^yhas surrounded me with lies,

and the house of Israel with deceit,

but Judah still walks with God

and is faithful to the Holy One.

12Ephraim feeds on the wind

and pursues ^zthe east wind all day long;

they multiply ^yfalsehood and violence;

^athey make a covenant with Assyria,

and ^boil is carried to Egypt.

The Lord’s Indictment of Israel and Judah

^2cThe Lord has an indictment against Judah

and will punish Jacob according to his ways;

he will repay him according to his deeds.

^3dIn the womb he took his brother by the heel,

and in his manhood he strove with God.

⁴He strove with the angel and prevailed;

he wept and sought his favor.

^eHe met God¹ at Bethel,

and there God spoke with us—

⁵the Lord, the God of hosts,

^fthe Lord is his memorial name:

⁶“So you, ^gby the help of your God, return,

^hhold fast to love and justice,

and wait continually for your God.”

⁷A merchant, in whose hands are ⁱfalse balances,

he loves ^jto oppress.

⁸Ephraim has said, “Ah, but ^kI am rich;

I have found wealth for myself;

in all my labors ^lthey cannot find in me iniquity or sin.”

^9mI am the Lord your God

from the land of Egypt;

I will again make you ⁿdwell in tents,

as in the days of the appointed feast.

^10oI spoke to the prophets;

it was I who multiplied ^pvisions,

and through the prophets gave parables.

^11qIf there is iniquity in Gilead,

they shall surely come to nothing:

^rin Gilgal they sacrifice bulls;

^stheir altars also are like stone heaps

^ton the furrows of the field.

^12uJacob fled to the land of Aram;

there Israel ^vserved for a wife,

and for a wife he guarded sheep.

¹³By ^wa prophet ^xthe Lord brought Israel up from Egypt,

and by a prophet he was guarded.

^14yEphraim has given bitter provocation;

so his Lord ^zwill leave his bloodguilt on him

^aand will repay him for his disgraceful deeds.