Hosea 10

The Vine and the Calf

10Israel is a lush ^dvine; ^e

it yields fruit for itself.

The more his fruit increased,

the more he increased the altars. ^f

The better his land produced,

the better they made the sacred pillars. ^g

²Their hearts are devious; ^hi

now they must bear their guilt. ^j

The Lord will break down their altars ^k

and demolish their sacred pillars.

³In fact, they are now saying,

“We have no king!

For we do not fear the Lord. ^l

What can a king do for us?”

⁴They speak mere words,

taking false oaths while making covenants. ^m

So lawsuits break out

like poisonous weeds in the furrows of a field. ⁿ

⁵The residents of Samaria ^owill have anxiety

over the calf ^pof Beth-aven. ^q

Indeed, its idolatrous priests rejoiced over it;

the people will mourn over it,

over its glory. ^r

It will certainly depart from them.

⁶The calf itself will be taken to Assyria ^s

as an offering to the great king. ^tu

Ephraim will experience shame; ^v

Israel will be ashamed of its counsel. ^w

⁷Samaria’s king will disappear ^xy

like foam ^zon the surface of the water.

⁸The high places ^aof Aven, the sin of Israel, ^b

will be destroyed;

thorns and thistles will grow over their altars. ^c

They will say to the mountains, ^d“Cover us!”

and to the hills, “Fall on us!” ^e

Israel’s Defeat because of Sin

⁹Israel, you have sinned

since the days of Gibeah; ^f

they have taken their stand there.

Will not war against the unjust

overtake them in Gibeah?

¹⁰I will discipline ^gthem at My discretion; ^h

nations will be gathered against them

to put them in bondage ⁱ

for their two crimes. ^j

¹¹Ephraim is a well-trained calf ^k

that loves to thresh,

but I will place a yoke on ^lher fine neck. ^m

I will harness Ephraim; ⁿ

Judah will plow;

Jacob will do the final plowing.

¹²Sow righteousness for yourselves ^o

and reap faithful love;

break up your unplowed ground. ^p

It is time to seek the Lord ^q

until He comes ^rand sends righteousness

on you like the rain. ^s

¹³You have plowed wickedness and reaped injustice; ^t

you have eaten the fruit of lies. ^u

Because you have trusted in your own way ^v

and in your large number of soldiers, ^w

¹⁴the roar of battle will rise against your people,

and all your fortifications will be demolished ^x

in a day of war,

like Shalman’s destruction of Beth-arbel.

Mothers will be dashed to pieces

along with their children. ^y

¹⁵So it will be done to you, Bethel, ^z

because of your extreme evil.

At dawn the king of Israel will be totally destroyed.