Hosea 11–12

God’s Love for Israel

11“When Israel was a child,^u I loved^v him,

and out of Egypt I called my son.^w

²But the more they were called,

the more they went away from me.^ax

They sacrificed to the Baals^y

and they burned incense to images.^z

³It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,

taking them by the arms;^a

but they did not realize

it was I who healed^b them.

⁴I led them with cords of human kindness,

with ties of love.^c

To them I was like one who lifts

a little child to the cheek,

and I bent down to feed^d them.^e

⁵“Will they not return to Egypt^f

and will not Assyria^g rule over them

because they refuse to repent?^h

⁶A swordⁱ will flash in their cities;

it will devour^j their false prophets

and put an end to their plans.

⁷My people are determined to turn^k from me.^l

Even though they call me God Most High,

I will by no means exalt them.

⁸“How can I give you up,^m Ephraim?ⁿ

How can I hand you over, Israel?

How can I treat you like Admah?

How can I make you like Zeboyim?^o

My heart is changed within me;

all my compassion^p is aroused.^q

⁹I will not carry out my fierce anger,^r

nor will I devastate^s Ephraim again.

For I am God, and not a man^t—

the Holy One^u among you.

I will not come against their cities.

¹⁰They will follow the Lord;

he will roar^v like a lion.^w

When he roars,

his children will come trembling^x from the west.^y

¹¹They will come from Egypt,

trembling like sparrows,

from Assyria,^z fluttering like doves.^a

I will settle them in their homes,”^b

declares the Lord.

Israel’s Sin

¹²Ephraim has surrounded me with lies,^c

Israel with deceit.

And Judah is unruly against God,

even against the faithful^d Holy One.^be

12^aEphraim^f feeds on the wind;^g

he pursues the east wind all day

and multiplies lies and violence.^h

He makes a treaty with Assyriaⁱ

and sends olive oil to Egypt.^j

²The Lord has a charge^k to bring against Judah;^l

he will punish^m Jacob^b according to his ways

and repay him according to his deeds.ⁿ

³In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel;^o

as a man he struggled^p with God.

⁴He struggled with the angel and overcame him;

he wept and begged for his favor.

He found him at Bethel^q

and talked with him there—

⁵the Lord God Almighty,

the Lord is his name!^r

⁶But you must return^s to your God;

maintain love and justice,^t

and wait for your God always.^u

⁷The merchant uses dishonest scales^v

and loves to defraud.

⁸Ephraim boasts,^w

“I am very rich; I have become wealthy.^x

With all my wealth they will not find in me

any iniquity or sin.”

⁹“I have been the Lord your God

ever since you came out of Egypt;^y

I will make you live in tents^z again,

as in the days of your appointed festivals.

¹⁰I spoke to the prophets,

gave them many visions

and told parables^a through them.”^b

¹¹Is Gilead wicked?^c

Its people are worthless!

Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal?^d

Their altars will be like piles of stones

on a plowed field.^e

¹²Jacob fled to the country of Aram^c;^f

Israel served to get a wife,

and to pay for her he tended sheep.^g

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

by a prophet he cared for him.ⁱ

¹⁴But Ephraim has aroused his bitter anger;

his Lord will leave on him the guilt of his bloodshed^j

and will repay him for his contempt.^k