Hosea 5–6

Judgment Against Israel

5“Hear this, you priests!

Pay attention, you Israelites!

Listen, royal house!

This judgment^s is against you:

You have been a snare^t at Mizpah,

a net^u spread out on Tabor.

²The rebels are knee-deep in slaughter.^v

I will discipline all of them.^w

³I know all about Ephraim;

Israel is not hidden^x from me.

Ephraim, you have now turned to prostitution;

Israel is corrupt.^y

⁴“Their deeds do not permit them

to return^z to their God.

A spirit of prostitution^a is in their heart;

they do not acknowledge^b the Lord.

⁵Israel’s arrogance testifies^c against them;

the Israelites, even Ephraim, stumble^d in their sin;

Judah also stumbles with them.^e

⁶When they go with their flocks and herds

to seek the Lord,^f

they will not find him;

he has withdrawn^g himself from them.

⁷They are unfaithful^h to the Lord;

they give birth to illegitimateⁱ children.

When they celebrate their New Moon feasts,^j

he will devour^ak their fields.

⁸“Sound the trumpet^l in Gibeah,^m

the horn in Ramah.ⁿ

Raise the battle cry in Beth Aven^b;^o

lead on, Benjamin.

⁹Ephraim will be laid waste^p

on the day of reckoning.^q

Among the tribes of Israel

I proclaim what is certain.^r

¹⁰Judah’s leaders are like those

who move boundary stones.^s

I will pour out my wrath^t on them

like a flood of water.

¹¹Ephraim is oppressed,

trampled in judgment,

intent on pursuing idols.^cu

¹²I am like a moth^v to Ephraim,

like rot^w to the people of Judah.

¹³“When Ephraim^x saw his sickness,

and Judah his sores,

then Ephraim turned to Assyria,^y

and sent to the great king for help.^z

But he is not able to cure^a you,

not able to heal your sores.^b

¹⁴For I will be like a lion^c to Ephraim,

like a great lion to Judah.

I will tear them to pieces^d and go away;

I will carry them off, with no one to rescue them.^e

¹⁵Then I will return to my lair^f

until they have borne their guilt^g

and seek my face^h—

in their miseryⁱ

they will earnestly seek me.^j”

Israel Unrepentant

6“Come, let us return^k to the Lord.

He has torn us to pieces^l

but he will heal us;^m

he has injured us

but he will bind up our wounds.ⁿ

²After two days he will revive us;^o

on the third day^p he will restore^q us,

that we may live in his presence.

³Let us acknowledge the Lord;

let us press on to acknowledge him.

As surely as the sun rises,

he will appear;

he will come to us like the winter rains,^r

like the spring rains that water the earth.^s”

⁴“What can I do with you, Ephraim?^t

What can I do with you, Judah?

Your love is like the morning mist,

like the early dew that disappears.^u

⁵Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,

I killed you with the words of my mouth^v—

then my judgments go forth like the sun.^aw

⁶For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,^x

and acknowledgment^y of God rather than burnt offerings.^z

⁷As at Adam,^b they have broken the covenant;^a

they were unfaithful^b to me there.

⁸Gilead is a city of evildoers,^c

stained with footprints of blood.

⁹As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,^d

so do bands of priests;

they murder^e on the road to Shechem,

carrying out their wicked schemes.^f

¹⁰I have seen a horrible^g thing in Israel:

There Ephraim is given to prostitution,

Israel is defiled.^h

¹¹“Also for you, Judah,

a harvestⁱ is appointed.

“Whenever I would restore the fortunes^j of my people,