Hosea 4-9
New King James Version
God’s Charge Against Israel
4 Hear the word of the Lord,
You children of Israel,
For the Lord brings a (A)charge[a] against the inhabitants of the land:
“There is no truth or mercy
Or (B)knowledge of God in the land.
2 By swearing and lying,
Killing and stealing and committing adultery,
They break all restraint,
With bloodshed [b]upon bloodshed.
3 Therefore (C)the land will mourn;
And (D)everyone who dwells there will waste away
With the beasts of the field
And the birds of the air;
Even the fish of the sea will be taken away.
4 “Now let no man contend, or rebuke another;
For your people are like those (E)who contend with the priest.
5 Therefore you shall stumble (F)in the day;
The prophet also shall stumble with you in the night;
And I will destroy your mother.
6 (G)My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you from being priest for Me;
(H)Because you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.
7 “The more they increased,
The more they sinned against Me;
(I)I[c] will change [d]their glory into shame.
8 They eat up the sin of My people;
They set their [e]heart on their iniquity.
9 And it shall be: (J)like people, like priest.
So I will punish them for their ways,
And [f]reward them for their deeds.
10 For (K)they shall eat, but not have enough;
They shall commit harlotry, but not increase;
Because they have ceased obeying the Lord.
The Idolatry of Israel
11 “Harlotry, wine, and new wine (L)enslave the heart.
12 My people ask counsel from their (M)wooden idols,
And their [g]staff informs them.
For (N)the spirit of harlotry has caused them to stray,
And they have played the harlot against their God.
13 (O)They offer sacrifices on the mountaintops,
And burn incense on the hills,
Under oaks, poplars, and terebinths,
Because their shade is good.
(P)Therefore your daughters commit harlotry,
And your brides commit adultery.
14 “I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry,
Nor your brides when they commit adultery;
For the men themselves go apart with harlots,
And offer sacrifices with a (Q)ritual harlot.
Therefore people who do not understand will be trampled.
15 “Though you, Israel, play the harlot,
Let not Judah offend.
(R)Do not come up to Gilgal,
Nor go up to (S)Beth[h] Aven,
(T)Nor swear an oath, saying, ‘As the Lord lives’—
16 “For Israel (U)is stubborn
Like a stubborn calf;
Now the Lord will let them forage
Like a lamb in [i]open country.
17 “Ephraim is joined to idols,
(V)Let him alone.
18 Their drink [j]is rebellion,
They commit harlotry continually.
(W)Her [k]rulers [l]dearly love dishonor.
19 (X)The wind has wrapped her up in its wings,
And (Y)they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices.
Impending Judgment on Israel and Judah
5 “Hear this, O priests!
Take heed, O house of Israel!
Give ear, O house of the king!
For [m]yours is the judgment,
Because (Z)you have been a snare to Mizpah
And a net spread on Tabor.
2 The revolters are (AA)deeply involved in slaughter,
Though I rebuke them all.
3 (AB)I know Ephraim,
And Israel is not hidden from Me;
For now, O Ephraim, (AC)you commit harlotry;
Israel is defiled.
4 “They[n] do not direct their deeds
Toward turning to their God,
For (AD)the spirit of harlotry is in their midst,
And they do not know the Lord.
5 The (AE)pride of Israel testifies to his face;
Therefore Israel and Ephraim stumble in their iniquity;
Judah also stumbles with them.
6 “With their flocks and herds
(AF)They shall go to seek the Lord,
But they will not find Him;
He has withdrawn Himself from them.
7 They have (AG)dealt treacherously with the Lord,
For they have begotten [o]pagan children.
Now a New Moon shall devour them and their heritage.
8 “Blow(AH) the ram’s horn in Gibeah,
The trumpet in Ramah!
(AI)Cry aloud at (AJ)Beth Aven,
‘Look behind you, O Benjamin!’
9 Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke;
Among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure.
10 “The princes of Judah are like those who (AK)remove a landmark;
I will pour out My wrath on them like water.
11 Ephraim is (AL)oppressed and broken in judgment,
Because he willingly walked by (AM)human precept.
12 Therefore I will be to Ephraim like a moth,
And to the house of Judah (AN)like rottenness.
13 “When Ephraim saw his sickness,
And Judah saw his (AO)wound,
Then Ephraim went (AP)to Assyria
And sent to King Jareb;
Yet he cannot cure you,
Nor heal you of your wound.
14 For (AQ)I will be like a lion to Ephraim,
And like a young lion to the house of Judah.
(AR)I, even I, will tear them and go away;
I will take them away, and no one shall rescue.
15 I will return again to My place
Till they [p]acknowledge their offense.
Then they will seek My face;
In their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.”
A Call to Repentance
6 Come,(AS) and let us return to the Lord;
For (AT)He has torn, but (AU)He will heal us;
He has stricken, but He will [q]bind us up.
2 (AV)After two days He will revive us;
On the third day He will raise us up,
That we may live in His sight.
3 (AW)Let us know,
Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord.
His going forth is established (AX)as the morning;
(AY)He will come to us (AZ)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 (BA)the words of My mouth;
And [r]your judgments are like light that goes forth.
6 For I desire (BB)mercy[s] and (BC)not sacrifice,
And the (BD)knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 “But like [t]men they transgressed the covenant;
There they dealt treacherously with Me.
8 (BE)Gilead is a city of evildoers
And [u]defiled with blood.
9 As bands of robbers lie in wait for a man,
So the company of (BF)priests (BG)murder on the way to Shechem;
Surely they commit (BH)lewdness.
10 I have seen a horrible thing in the house of Israel:
There is the [v]harlotry of Ephraim;
Israel is defiled.
11 Also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed for you,
When I return the captives of My people.
Israel Has Rebelled Against God
7 “When I would have healed Israel,
Then the iniquity of Ephraim was uncovered,
And the wickedness of Samaria.
For (BI)they have committed fraud;
A thief comes in;
A band of robbers [w]takes spoil outside.
2 They [x]do not consider in their hearts
That (BJ)I remember all their wickedness;
Now their own deeds have surrounded them;
They are before My face.
3 They make a (BK)king glad with their wickedness,
And princes (BL)with their lies.
4 “They(BM) are all adulterers.
Like an oven heated by a baker—
He ceases stirring the fire after kneading the dough,
Until it is leavened.
5 In the day of our king
Princes have made him sick, [y]inflamed with (BN)wine;
He stretched out his hand with scoffers.
6 They prepare their heart like an oven,
While they lie in wait;
[z]Their baker sleeps all night;
In the morning it burns like a flaming fire.
7 They are all hot, like an oven,
And have devoured their judges;
All their kings have fallen.
(BO)None among them calls upon Me.
8 “Ephraim (BP)has mixed himself among the peoples;
Ephraim is a cake unturned.
9 (BQ)Aliens have devoured his strength,
But he does not know it;
Yes, gray hairs are here and there on him,
Yet he does not know it.
10 And the (BR)pride of Israel testifies to his face,
But (BS)they do not return to the Lord their God,
Nor seek Him for all this.
Futile Reliance on the Nations
11 “Ephraim(BT) also is like a silly dove, without [aa]sense—
(BU)They call to Egypt,
They go to (BV)Assyria.
12 Wherever they go, I will (BW)spread My net on them;
I will bring them down like birds of the air;
I will chastise them
(BX)According to what their congregation has heard.
13 “Woe to them, for they have fled from Me!
Destruction to them,
Because they have transgressed against Me!
Though (BY)I redeemed them,
Yet they have spoken lies against Me.
14 (BZ)They did not cry out to Me with their heart
When they wailed upon their beds.
“They [ab]assemble together for grain and new (CA)wine,
[ac]They rebel against Me;
15 Though I disciplined and strengthened their arms,
Yet they devise evil against Me;
16 They return, but not [ad]to the Most High;
(CB)They are like a treacherous bow.
Their princes shall fall by the sword
For the (CC)cursings of their tongue.
This shall be their derision (CD)in the land of Egypt.
The Apostasy of Israel
8 “Set the [ae]trumpet to your mouth!
He shall come (CE)like an eagle against the house of the Lord,
Because they have transgressed My covenant
And rebelled against My law.
2 (CF)Israel will cry to Me,
‘My God, (CG)we know You!’
3 Israel has rejected the good;
The enemy will pursue him.
4 “They(CH) set up kings, but not by Me;
They made princes, but I did not acknowledge them.
From their silver and gold
They made idols for themselves—
That they might be cut off.
5 Your [af]calf [ag]is rejected, O Samaria!
My anger is aroused against them—
(CI)How long until they attain to innocence?
6 For from Israel is even this:
A (CJ)workman made it, and it is not God;
But the calf of Samaria shall be broken to pieces.
7 “They(CK) sow the wind,
And reap the whirlwind.
The stalk has no bud;
It shall never produce meal.
If it should produce,
(CL)Aliens would swallow it up.
8 (CM)Israel is swallowed up;
Now they are among the Gentiles
(CN)Like a vessel in which is no pleasure.
9 For they have gone up to Assyria,
Like (CO)a wild donkey alone by itself;
Ephraim (CP)has hired lovers.
10 Yes, though they have hired among the nations,
Now (CQ)I will gather them;
And they shall [ah]sorrow a little,
Because of the [ai]burden of (CR)the king of princes.
11 “Because Ephraim has made many altars for sin,
They have become for him altars for sinning.
12 I have written for him (CS)the great things of My law,
But they were considered a strange thing.
13 For the sacrifices of My offerings (CT)they sacrifice flesh and eat it,
(CU)But the Lord does not accept them.
(CV)Now He will remember their iniquity and punish their sins.
They shall return to Egypt.
14 “For(CW) Israel has forgotten (CX)his Maker,
And has built [aj]temples;
Judah also has multiplied (CY)fortified cities;
But (CZ)I will send fire upon his cities,
And it shall devour his [ak]palaces.”
Judgment of Israel’s Sin
9 Do(DA) not rejoice, O Israel, with joy like other peoples,
For you have played the harlot against your God.
You have made love for (DB)hire on every threshing floor.
2 The threshing floor and the winepress
Shall not feed them,
And the new wine shall fail in her.
3 They shall not dwell in (DC)the Lord’s land,
(DD)But Ephraim shall return to Egypt,
And (DE)shall eat unclean things in Assyria.
4 They shall not offer wine offerings to the Lord,
Nor (DF)shall their (DG)sacrifices be pleasing to Him.
It shall be like bread of mourners to them;
All who eat it shall be defiled.
For their bread shall be for their own life;
It shall not come into the house of the Lord.
5 What will you do in the appointed day,
And in the day of the feast of the Lord?
6 For indeed they are gone because of destruction.
Egypt shall gather them up;
Memphis shall bury them.
(DH)Nettles shall possess their valuables of silver;
Thorns shall be in their tents.
7 The (DI)days of punishment have come;
The days of recompense have come.
Israel knows!
The prophet is a (DJ)fool,
(DK)The spiritual man is insane,
Because of the greatness of your iniquity and great enmity.
8 The (DL)watchman of Ephraim is with my God;
But the prophet is a [al]fowler’s snare in all his ways—
Enmity in the house of his God.
9 (DM)They are deeply corrupted,
As in the days of (DN)Gibeah.
He will remember their iniquity;
He will punish their sins.
10 “I found Israel
Like grapes in the (DO)wilderness;
I saw your fathers
As the (DP)firstfruits on the fig tree in its first season.
But they went to (DQ)Baal Peor,
And [am]separated themselves to that shame;
(DR)They became an abomination like the thing they loved.
11 As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird—
No birth, no pregnancy, and no conception!
12 Though they bring up their children,
Yet I will bereave them to the last man.
Yes, (DS)woe to them when I depart from them!
13 Just (DT)as I saw Ephraim like Tyre, planted in a pleasant place,
So Ephraim will bring out his children to the murderer.”
14 Give them, O Lord—
What will You give?
Give them (DU)a miscarrying womb
And dry breasts!
15 “All their wickedness is in (DV)Gilgal,
For there I hated them.
Because of the evil of their deeds
I will drive them from My house;
I will love them no more.
(DW)All their princes are rebellious.
16 Ephraim is (DX)stricken,
Their root is dried up;
They shall bear no fruit.
Yes, were they to bear children,
I would kill the darlings of their womb.”
17 My God will (DY)cast them away,
Because they did not obey Him;
And they shall be (DZ)wanderers among the nations.
Footnotes
- Hosea 4:1 A legal complaint
- Hosea 4:2 Lit. touching
- Hosea 4:7 So with MT, LXX, Vg.; scribal tradition, Syr., Tg. They will change
- Hosea 4:7 So with MT, LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg.; scribal tradition My glory
- Hosea 4:8 Desires
- Hosea 4:9 repay
- Hosea 4:12 Diviner’s rod
- Hosea 4:15 Lit. House of Idolatry or Wickedness
- Hosea 4:16 Lit. a large place
- Hosea 4:18 Or has turned aside
- Hosea 4:18 Lit. shields
- Hosea 4:18 Heb. difficult; a Jewish tradition shamefully love, ‘Give!’
- Hosea 5:1 Or to you
- Hosea 5:4 Or Their deeds will not allow them to turn
- Hosea 5:7 Lit. strange
- Hosea 5:15 Lit. become guilty or bear punishment
- Hosea 6:1 Bandage
- Hosea 6:5 Or the judgments on you
- Hosea 6:6 Or faithfulness or loyalty
- Hosea 6:7 Or Adam
- Hosea 6:8 Lit. foot-tracked
- Hosea 6:10 Spiritual adultery
- Hosea 7:1 plunders
- Hosea 7:2 Lit. do not say to
- Hosea 7:5 Lit. with the heat of
- Hosea 7:6 So with MT, Vg.; Syr., Tg. Their anger; LXX Ephraim
- Hosea 7:11 Lit. heart
- Hosea 7:14 So with MT, Tg.; Vg. thought upon; LXX slashed themselves for (cf. 1 Kin. 18:28)
- Hosea 7:14 So with MT, Syr., Tg.; LXX omits They rebel against Me; Vg. They departed from Me
- Hosea 7:16 Or upward
- Hosea 8:1 ram’s horn, Heb. shophar
- Hosea 8:5 Golden calf image
- Hosea 8:5 Or has rejected you
- Hosea 8:10 Or begin to diminish
- Hosea 8:10 Or oracle or proclamation
- Hosea 8:14 Or palaces
- Hosea 8:14 Or citadels
- Hosea 9:8 One who catches birds in a trap or snare
- Hosea 9:10 Or dedicated
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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