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Hosea 6
New King James Version
Hosea 6
New King James Version
A Call to Repentance
6 Come,(A) and let us return to the Lord;
For (B)He has torn, but (C)He will heal us;
He has stricken, but He will [a]bind us up.
2 (D)After two days He will revive us;
On the third day He will raise us up,
That we may live in His sight.
3 (E)Let us know,
Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord.
His going forth is established (F)as the morning;
(G)He will come to us (H)like the rain,
Like the latter and former rain to the earth.
Impenitence of Israel and Judah
4 “O Ephraim, what shall I do to you?
O Judah, what shall I do to you?
For your faithfulness is like a morning cloud,
And like the early dew it goes away.
5 Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets,
I have slain them by (I)the words of My mouth;
And [b]your judgments are like light that goes forth.
6 For I desire (J)mercy[c] and (K)not sacrifice,
And the (L)knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 “But like [d]men they transgressed the covenant;
There they dealt treacherously with Me.
8 (M)Gilead is a city of evildoers
And [e]defiled with blood.
9 As bands of robbers lie in wait for a man,
So the company of (N)priests (O)murder on the way to Shechem;
Surely they commit (P)lewdness.
10 I have seen a horrible thing in the house of Israel:
There is the [f]harlotry of Ephraim;
Israel is defiled.
11 Also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed for you,
When I return the captives of My people.
Hosea 6
Amplified Bible
Hosea 6
Amplified Bible
The Response to God’s Rebuke
6 “Come and let us return [in repentance] to the Lord,
For He has torn us, but He will heal us;
He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.
2
“After two days He will revive us;
On the third day He will raise us up
That we may live before Him.(A)
3
“So let us know and become personally acquainted with Him; let us press on to know and understand fully the [greatness of the] Lord [to honor, heed, and deeply cherish Him].
His appearing is prepared and is as certain as the dawn,
And He will come to us [in salvation] like the [heavy] rain,
Like the spring rain watering the earth.”
The Reply of the Lord
4
O Ephraim, what shall I do with you?
O Judah, what shall I do with you?
For your [wavering] loyalty and kindness are [transient] like the morning cloud
And like the dew that goes away early.
5
Therefore, I have hewn them in pieces by [the words of] the prophets;
I have slain them by the words of My mouth;
My judgments [pronounced upon them by the prophets] are like the light that shines forth [obvious to all].
6
For I desire and delight in [steadfast] loyalty [faithfulness in the covenant relationship], rather than sacrifice,
And in the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.(B)
7
But they, like Adam, have transgressed the covenant;
There they have dealt treacherously against Me.
8
Gilead is a city of wrongdoers;
It is tracked with bloody footprints.
9
And as bands of robbers [lie in] wait for a man,
So a band of priests murder on the road toward [a]Shechem [covering their crimes in that city of refuge];
Certainly they have committed crimes and outrages.
10
I have seen a horrible thing [sins of every kind] in the house of Israel!
Ephraim’s prostitution (idolatry) is there; Israel has defiled itself.
11
Also, O Judah, there is a harvest [of divine judgment] appointed for you,
When I restore the fortunes of My people [who have been slaves to the misery of sin].
Footnotes
- Hosea 6:9 Shechem was the first capital city of the Kingdom of Israel.
Hosea 6
New International Version
Hosea 6
New International Version
Israel Unrepentant
6 “Come, let us return(A) to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces(B)
but he will heal us;(C)
he has injured us
but he will bind up our wounds.(D)
2 After two days he will revive us;(E)
on the third day(F) he will restore(G) us,
that we may live in his presence.
3 Let 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,(H)
like the spring rains that water the earth.(I)”
4 “What can I do with you, Ephraim?(J)
What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
like the early dew that disappears.(K)
5 Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
I killed you with the words of my mouth(L)—
then my judgments go forth like the sun.[a](M)
6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,(N)
and acknowledgment(O) of God rather than burnt offerings.(P)
7 As at Adam,[b] they have broken the covenant;(Q)
they were unfaithful(R) to me there.
8 Gilead is a city of evildoers,(S)
stained with footprints of blood.
9 As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,(T)
so do bands of priests;
they murder(U) on the road to Shechem,
carrying out their wicked schemes.(V)
10 I have seen a horrible(W) thing in Israel:
There Ephraim is given to prostitution,
Israel is defiled.(X)
11 “Also for you, Judah,
a harvest(Y) is appointed.
“Whenever I would restore the fortunes(Z) of my people,
Hosea 6
The Message
Hosea 6
The Message
Gangs of Priests Assaulting Worshipers
6 1-3 “Come on, let’s go back to God.
He hurt us, but he’ll heal us.
He hit us hard,
but he’ll put us right again.
In a couple of days we’ll feel better.
By the third day he’ll have made us brand-new,
Alive and on our feet,
fit to face him.
We’re ready to study God,
eager for God-knowledge.
As sure as dawn breaks,
so sure is his daily arrival.
He comes as rain comes,
as spring rain refreshing the ground.”
* * *
4-7 “What am I to do with you, Ephraim?
What do I make of you, Judah?
Your declarations of love last no longer
than morning mist and predawn dew.
That’s why I use prophets to shake you to attention,
why my words cut you to the quick:
To wake you up to my judgment
blazing like light.
I’m after love that lasts, not more religion.
I want you to know God, not go to more prayer meetings.
You broke the covenant—just like Adam!
You broke faith with me—ungrateful wretches!
8-9 “Gilead has become Crime City—
blood on the sidewalks, blood on the streets.
It used to be robbers who mugged pedestrians.
Now it’s gangs of priests
Assaulting worshipers on their way to Shechem.
Nothing is sacred to them.
10 “I saw a shocking thing in the country of Israel:
Ephraim worshiping in a religious whorehouse,
and Israel in the mud right there with him.
11 “You’re as bad as the worst of them, Judah.
You’ve been sowing wild oats. Now it’s harvest time.”
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Amplified Bible (AMP) 
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson