Hosea 7–8

7when I would heal Israel,

and the corruption of Ephraim is revealed,

and the wicked deeds of Samaria;

because they deal in falsehood,

the thief breaks in,^a

and the bandit raids the outside.

²But they did not consider^b

that I remember all their wickedness.

Now their deeds surround them;

they are before my face.

³By their wickedness they make the king glad,

and the officials by their treacheries.

⁴All of them commit adultery,

like a burning oven

whose baker has stopped from stirring the fire,

and from kneading the dough until it is leavened.

⁵On the day of our king, the princes

became sick with the heat of wine;^c

he stretched out his hand with mockers.

⁶Because they are kindled^d like an oven,

their heart burns within them;

all night their anger smolders,^e

in the morning it blazes like a flaming fire.

⁷All of them are hot as an oven,

and they devour^f their rulers.

All their kings have fallen;

there is none who calls to me amongst them.

⁸Ephraim mixes himself

with the nations;

Ephraim is a bread cake

not turned over.

⁹Foreigners devour^g his strength,

and he does not know it;

mold^h is also sprinkled upon him,

and he does not know it.

¹⁰The pride of Israel testifies against himⁱ—

they do not return to Yahweh their God;

they do not seek him for all of this.^j

¹¹Ephraim was like a dove,

silly, without sense;^k

they call to Egypt,

they go to Assyria.

¹²Just as they go, I will cast my net

over them;

I will bring them down

like the birds^l of the heavens;^m

I will discipline them

according to a report to their assembly.ⁿ

¹³Woe to them, because they have strayed from me!

Destruction to them, because they have rebelled against me!

I myself would redeem them,

but they speak lies against me.

¹⁴They do not cry out to me from their heart,

but they wail on their beds;

because of grain and new wine they lacerate^o themselves;

they depart from me.

¹⁵And I myself trained

and strengthened their arms;

but they plan evil against me.

¹⁶They turn, not to the Most High,^p

like a slack bow;

their officials will fall by the sword

because of the anger of their tongue.

This is their scorn^q

in the land of Egypt.

Israel Rejects the Good

8Put to your lips the trumpet

like a vulture over the house of Yahweh,

because they have broken my covenant^a

and rebelled against my law.

²They cry out to me,

“My God! We, Israel, know you!”

³Israel has spurned the good;

the enemy will pursue him.

⁴They appointed kings, but not through me;

they made officials, but without my knowledge.

With their silver and gold

they made idols for themselves

for their^b own destruction.^c

⁵Your calf is rejected,^d O Samaria;

my anger burns against them.

How long^e will they be incapable of innocence?

⁶Because it is from Israel,

an artisan made it,

it is not a god;

for the calf of Samaria

will be broken to pieces.

⁷Because they sow the wind,

they will reap the whirlwind.

The standing grain does not have heads;^f

it will not yield flour.

And if it would yield,

strangers would devour it.

⁸Israel is swallowed up;

now they are among the nations,

like an object that no one desires.

⁹For they have gone up to Assyria,

a wild donkey alone to itself;

Ephraim has sold itself for lovers.

¹⁰Even though they have sold themselves to the nations,

now I will gather them.

They will soon writhe

from the burden of kings^g and princes.

¹¹When Ephraim multiplied altars

to expiate sins,

they became to him altars to sin on.

¹²I write for him myriads of my instruction;^h

they are regarded as a strange thing.

¹³They offer sacrifices of my choiceⁱ

and they eat flesh;

Yahweh does not accept them.

Now he will remember their iniquity

and punish their sins;

they will return to Egypt.

¹⁴Israel has forgotten his maker and built palaces,

and Judah has multiplied fortified cities;

but I will send fire on his cities

and it will devour her strongholds.