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Israel Rejects the Lord

The Lord said:

Sound a warning!
Israel, you broke our agreement
    and ignored my teaching.
Now an eagle[a] is swooping down
    to attack my land.
Israel, you say, “We claim you,
    the Lord, as our God.”
But your enemies
will chase you for rejecting
    our good agreement.[b]

You chose kings and leaders
    without consulting me;
you made silver and gold idols
    that led to your downfall.
City of Samaria, I'm angry
because of your idol
    in the shape of a calf.
When will you ever
    be innocent again?
Someone from Israel built
that idol for you,
    but only I am God.
And so it will be smashed
    to pieces.[c]

If you scatter wind
    instead of wheat,
you will harvest a whirlwind
    and have no wheat.
Even if you harvest grain,
    enemies will steal it all.

Israel, you are ruined,
and now the nations
    consider you worthless.
You are like a wild donkey
    that goes its own way.
You've run off to Assyria
    and hired them as allies.
10 You can bargain with nations,
    but I'll catch you anyway.
Soon you will suffer abuse
    by kings and rulers.

11 Israel, you have built
many altars where you offer
    sacrifices for sin.
But these altars have become
    places for sin.
12 My instructions for sacrifices
were written in detail,
    but you ignored them.
13 You sacrifice your best animals
    and eat the sacrificial meals,[d]
but I, the Lord,
    refuse your offerings.
I will remember your sins
    and punish you.
Then you will return to Egypt.[e]

14 Israel, I created you,
    but you forgot me.
You and Judah built palaces
    and many strong cities.[f]
Now I will send fire to destroy
    your towns and fortresses.

Israel Will Be Punished

Israel, don't celebrate
or make noisy shouts[g]
    like other nations.
You have been unfaithful
    to your God.
Wherever grain is threshed,
    you behave like prostitutes
because you enjoy
    the money you receive.[h]
But you will run short
    of grain and wine,
and you will have to leave
    the land of the Lord.
Some of you will go to Egypt;
others will go to Assyria
    and eat unclean food.

You won't be able to offer
sacrifices of wine
    to the Lord.
None of your sacrifices
    will please him—
they will be unclean
    like food offered to the dead.
Your food will only be used
    to satisfy your hunger;
none of it will be brought
    to the Lord's temple.
You will no longer be able
to celebrate the festival
    of the Lord.[i]
Even if you escape alive,
you will end up in Egypt
    and be buried in Memphis.[j]
Your silver treasures
    will be lost among weeds;[k]
thorns will sprout in your tents.

(A) Israel, the time has come.
You will get what you deserve,
    and you will know it.
“Prophets are fools,” you say.
“And God's messengers
    are crazy.”
Your terrible guilt
    has filled you with hatred.

Israel, the Lord sent me
    to look after you.[l]
But you trap his prophets
and flood his temple
    with your hatred.
(B) You are brutal and corrupt,
    as were the men of Gibeah.[m]
But God remembers your sin,
    and you will be punished.

Sin's Terrible Results

10 (C) Israel, when I, the Lord,
    found you long ago
it was like finding
grapes in a barren desert
    or tender young figs.
Then you worshiped Baal Peor,
    that disgusting idol,
and you became as disgusting
    as the idol you loved.

11 And so, Israel, your glory
    will fly away like birds—
your women will no longer
    be able to give birth.
12 Even if you do have children,
I will take them all
    and leave you to mourn.
I will turn away,
and you will sink down
    in deep trouble.
13 Israel, when I first met you,
I thought of you as palm trees
    growing in fertile ground.[n]
Now you lead your people out,
    only to be slaughtered.

Hosea's Advice

14 Our Lord, do just one thing
    for your people—
make their women unable
to have children
    or to nurse their babies.

The Lord's Judgment on Israel

15 Israel, I first began
to hate you because
    you did evil at Gilgal.[o]
Now I will chase you
    out of my house.
No longer will I love you;
    your leaders betrayed me.
16 Israel, you are a vine
with dried-up roots
    and fruitless branches.
Even if you had more children
and loved them dearly,
    I would slaughter them all.

Hosea Warns Israel

17 Israel, you disobeyed my God.
Now he will force you to roam
    from nation to nation.

10 You were a healthy vine
    covered with grapes.
But the more grapes you grew,
    the more altars you built;
the better off you became,
the better shrines you set up
    for pagan gods.
You are deceitful and disloyal.
So you will pay
    for your sins,
because the Lord will destroy
    your altars and images.

“We don't have a king,”
    you will say.
“We don't fear the Lord.
    And what good are kings?”
Israel, you break treaties
    and don't keep promises;
you turn justice
    into poisonous weeds
where healthy plants should grow.[p]

All who live in Samaria tremble
with concern for the idols[q]
    at sinful Bethel.[r]
The idol there was the pride
    of the priests,
but it has been put to shame;
    now everyone will cry.
It will be taken to Assyria
    and given to the great king.
Then Israel will be disgraced
    for worshiping that idol.

Like a twig in a stream,
the king of Samaria
    will be swept away.
(D) The altars at sinful Bethel
will be destroyed
    for causing Israel to sin;
they will be grown over
    with thorns and thistles.
Then everyone will beg
the mountains and hills
    to cover and protect them.

The Lord Promises To Punish Israel

(E) Israel, you have never
stopped sinning[s]
    since that time at Gibeah.[t]
That's why you
    will be attacked at Gibeah.[u]
10 Your sins have doubled,
    and you are rebellious.
Now I have decided
to send nations to attack
    and put you in chains.

11 Once you were obedient
like a calf
    that loved to thresh grain.
But I will put a harness
    on your beautiful neck;
you and Judah must plow
    and cultivate the ground.
12 (F) Plow your fields,
scatter seeds of justice,
    and harvest faithfulness.
Worship me, the Lord,
and I will send my saving power
    down like rain.
13 You have planted evil,
harvested injustice, and eaten
    the fruit of your lies.
You trusted your own strength
    and your powerful forces.
14 So war will break out,
and your fortresses
    will be destroyed.
Your enemies will do to you
what Shalman[v] did to the people
    of Beth-Arbel—
mothers and their children
will be beaten to death
    against rocks.
15 Bethel, this will be your fate
    because of your evil.
Israel, at dawn your king
    will be killed.

God's Love for His People

11 (G) When Israel was a child,
I loved him, and I called
    my son out of Egypt.
But as the saying goes,
“The more they were called,
    the more they rebelled.”[w]
They never stopped offering
incense and sacrifices
    to the idols of Baal.

I took Israel by the arm
    and taught them to walk.
But they would not admit
that I was the one
    who had healed them.
I led them with kindness
and with love,
    not with ropes.
I held them close to me;[x]
    I bent down to feed them.

But they rejected me,
and so must return to Egypt;
    now Assyria will rule them.
War will visit their cities,
    and their plans will fail.[y]
My people are determined
    to reject me for a god
they think is stronger,
    but he can't help.[z]

(H) Israel, I can't let you go.
    I can't give you up.
How could I possibly destroy you
as I did the towns of Admah
    and Zeboiim?[aa]
I just can't do it.
My feelings for you
    are much too strong.
Israel, I won't lose my temper
    and destroy you again.
I am the Holy God—
not merely some human,
    and I won't stay angry.

10 I, the Lord, will roar like a lion,
and my children will return,
    trembling from the west.
11 They will come back,
fluttering like birds from Egypt
    or like doves from Assyria.
Then I will bring them
back to their homes.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!

Israel and Judah Compared

12 Israel is deceitful to me,
    their loyal and holy God;
they surround me with lies,
and Judah worships
    other gods.[ab]

12 All day long Israel chases
    wind from the desert;
deceit and violence
    are found everywhere.
Treaties are made with Assyria;
    olive oil is taken to Egypt.

Israel and Judah Condemned

The Lord also brings charges
against the people of Judah,
    the descendants of Jacob.
He will punish them
    for what they have done.
(I)(J) Even before Jacob was born,
    he cheated his brother,[ac]
and when he grew up,
    he fought against God.[ad]

(K) At Bethel, Jacob wrestled
    with an angel and won;
then with tears in his eyes,
he asked for a blessing,
    and God spoke to us[ae] there.
God's name is the Lord,
    the Lord God All-Powerful.
So return to your God.
Patiently trust him,
    and show love and justice.

Israel, you enjoy cheating
and taking advantage
    of others.
You say to yourself, “I'm rich!
I earned it all on my own,
    without committing a sin.”[af]

The Lord Is Still the God of Israel

(L) Israel, I, the Lord,
am still your God,
    just as I have been
since the time
    you were in Egypt.
Now I will force you
to live in tents once again,
    as you did in the desert.[ag]
10 I spoke to the prophets—
    often I spoke in visions.
And so, I will send my prophets
    with messages of doom.
11 Gilead is terribly sinful
    and will end up ruined.
Bulls are sacrificed in Gilgal
    on altars made of stones,
but those stones will be scattered
    in every field.
12 (M) Jacob[ah] escaped to Syria[ai]
where he tended sheep
    to earn himself a wife.
13 (N) I sent the prophet Moses
to lead Israel from Egypt
    and to keep them safe.
14 Israel, I will make you pay
for your violent crimes
    and for insulting me.

Israel Is Doomed

The Lord said:

13 When your leaders[aj] spoke,
everyone in Israel trembled
    and showed great respect.
But you sinned by worshiping Baal,
    and you were destroyed.
Now you continue to sin
    by designing and making
idols of silver
    in the shape of calves.
You are told to sacrifice
to these idols[ak]
    yes, even to kiss them.
And so, all of you will vanish
like the mist or the dew
    of early morning,
or husks of grain in the wind
    or smoke from a chimney.

I, the Lord, have been your God
since the time
    you were in Egypt.
I am the only God you know,
    the only one who can save.
(O) I took care of you
    in a thirsty desert.[al]
I fed you till you were satisfied,
then you became proud
    and forgot about me.
Now I will attack like a lion,
    ambush you like a leopard,
and rip you apart like a bear
    robbed of her cubs.
I will gnaw on your bones,
as though I were a lion
    or some other wild animal.
Israel, you are done for.
    Don't expect help from me.[am]
10 (P) You wanted a king and rulers.
Where is your king now?
    What cities have rulers?
11 (Q) In my anger, I gave you a king;
    in my fury, I took him away.

Israel's Terrible Fate

The Lord said:

12 Israel, your terrible sins
are written down
    and stored away.
13 You are like a senseless child
who refuses to be born
    at the proper time.
14 (R) Should I, the Lord, rescue you
    from death and the grave?
No! I call death and the grave
to strike you like a plague.
    I refuse to show mercy.

15 No matter if you prosper
    more than the other tribes,[an]
I, the Lord, will wipe you out,
just as a scorching desert wind
    dries up streams of water.
I will take away
    your precious treasures.
16 Samaria[ao] will be punished
    for turning against me.
It will be destroyed in war—
children will be beaten
    against rocks,
and pregnant women
    will be ripped open.

Turn Back to the Lord

14 Israel, return! Come back
to the Lord, your God.
    Sin has made you fall.
Return to the Lord and say,
    “Please forgive our sins.
Accept our good sacrifices
    of praise instead of bulls.[ap]
Assyria can't save us,
    and chariots can't help.
So we will no longer worship
    the idols we have made.
Our Lord, you show mercy
    to orphans.”

The Lord Promises To Forgive

Israel, you have rejected me,
    but my anger is gone;
I will heal you and love you
    without limit.
I will be like the dew—
then you will blossom like lilies
    and have roots like a tree.[aq]
Your branches will spread
with the beauty
    of an olive tree
and with the aroma
    of Lebanon Forest.
You will rest in my shade,
    and your grain will grow.
You will blossom
    like a vineyard
and be famous as the wine
    from Lebanon.

Israel, give up your idols!
I will answer your prayers
    and take care of you.[ar]
I am that glorious tree,
    the source of your fruit.[as]

If you are wise, you will know
    and understand what I mean.
I am the Lord, and I lead you
    along the right path.
If you obey me,
    we will walk together,
but if you are wicked,
    you will stumble.

Footnotes

  1. 8.1 an eagle: Or “a vulture.”
  2. 8.3 our good agreement: Or “me, the Good One” (referring to God).
  3. 8.6 smashed to pieces: Or “destroyed by fire.”
  4. 8.13 sacrifice … sacrificial meals: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. Two kinds of sacrifices are referred to: Those in which the whole animal is burned on the altar (“whole burnt offerings” in traditional translations) and those in which part is eaten by the worshipers (“fellowship offerings” in traditional translations).
  5. 8.13 return to Egypt: Either as slaves or to find help against Assyria.
  6. 8.14 built palaces … cities: They did this because they no longer trusted the Lord to protect them. “Palaces” may also mean “temples.”
  7. 9.1 or … shouts: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  8. 9.1 Wherever … receive: Grain was threshed on hills or other places where the wind could blow away the husks. People also met at these places to worship Baal, the god they thought had given them the grain harvest.
  9. 9.5 festival of the Lord: Probably the Festival of Shelters.
  10. 9.6 Memphis: An Egyptian city with a famous cemetery.
  11. 9.6 Your silver … weeds: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  12. 9.8 Israel … you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  13. 9.9 the men of Gibeah: They raped and murdered a woman (see Judges 19).
  14. 9.13 Israel, when … ground: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  15. 9.15 Gilgal: See 4.15.
  16. 10.4 you turn … grow: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  17. 10.5 idols: The Hebrew text has “calves,” referring to the idols made in the shape of calves.
  18. 10.5 sinful Bethel: See the note at 4.15.
  19. 10.9 never stopped sinning: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  20. 10.9 Gibeah: See the note at 9.9.
  21. 10.9 That's why … Gibeah: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  22. 10.14 Shalman: Perhaps a Moabite king, also known as Salamanu.
  23. 11.2 But … rebelled: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  24. 11.4 I held … to me: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  25. 11.6 fail: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 6.
  26. 11.7 help: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 7.
  27. 11.8 Admah and Zeboiim: When the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, he also destroyed these two towns (see Deuteronomy 29.23).
  28. 11.12 and Judah worships other gods: Or “but Judah remains faithful.”
  29. 12.3 Jacob … cheated … brother: In Hebrew “Jacob” sounds like “cheat” and also like “heel.” Jacob grabbed his twin brother Esau by the heel at the time of their birth (see Genesis 25.26). Later he cheated him out of his rights and blessings as the first-born son (see Genesis 25.29-34; 27.1-40).
  30. 12.3 fought against God: See Genesis 32.22-32.
  31. 12.4 us: Hebrew; two ancient translations “him.”
  32. 12.8 without … sin: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  33. 12.9 as … desert: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. This probably refers to the 40 years of wandering through the desert after leaving Egypt, though it could refer to the “tents” (or “shelters”) in which the Israelites lived during the Festival of Shelters (see 9.5,6).
  34. 12.12 Jacob: His name was later changed to Israel (see Genesis 32.28), and he became the ancestor of the nation by that name.
  35. 12.12 Syria: The Hebrew text has “Aram,” probably referring to northern Syria in the region of Haran.
  36. 13.1 your leaders: The Hebrew text has “Ephraim,” here meaning Mount Ephraim, where the royal palace of Samaria (capital of the northern kingdom of Israel) was located.
  37. 13.2 You are told … idols: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  38. 13.5 thirsty desert: The 40 years that Israel wandered through the desert, after leaving Egypt.
  39. 13.9 Don't … me: Or “You are against me, the one who helps you.”
  40. 13.15 more … tribes: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  41. 13.16 Samaria: The capital of the northern kingdom of Israel.
  42. 14.2 Accept … bulls: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  43. 14.5 like a tree: The Hebrew text has “like Lebanon,” probably referring to the famous cedar trees on Mount Lebanon.
  44. 14.8 Israel … you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  45. 14.8 I am … fruit: This is the only place in the Old Testament where the Lord is compared to a tree. Hosea reminds the people that it is the Lord who is the source of life, rather than the Canaanite gods and goddesses that are worshiped under trees at the local shrines.

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