Israel is swallowed up; now she is among the nations like something no one wants.

Israel has forgotten their Maker and built palaces; Judah has fortified many towns. But I will send fire on their cities that will consume their fortresses.”

Punishment for Israel

Do not rejoice, Israel; do not be jubilant like the other nations. For you have been unfaithful to your God; you love the wages of a prostitute at every threshing floor.

The days of punishment are coming, the days of reckoning are at hand. Let Israel know this. Because your sins are so many and your hostility so great, the prophet is considered a fool, the inspired person a maniac.

“When I found Israel, it was like finding grapes in the desert; when I saw your ancestors, it was like seeing the early fruit on the fig tree. But when they came to Baal Peor, they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol and became as vile as the thing they loved.

Israel was a spreading vine; he brought forth fruit for himself. As his fruit increased, he built more altars; as his land prospered, he adorned his sacred stones.

It will be carried to Assyria as tribute for the great king. Ephraim will be disgraced; Israel will be ashamed of its foreign alliances.

The high places of wickedness will be destroyed— it is the sin of Israel. Thorns and thistles will grow up and cover their altars. Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!” and to the hills, “Fall on us!”

“Since the days of Gibeah, you have sinned, Israel, and there you have remained. Will not war again overtake the evildoers in Gibeah?

So will it happen to you, Bethel, because your wickedness is great. When that day dawns, the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.

God’s Love for Israel

“When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.

“How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I treat you like Admah? How can I make you like Zeboyim? My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused.

Israel’s Sin

Ephraim has surrounded me with lies, Israel with deceit. And Judah is unruly against God, even against the faithful Holy One.

Jacob fled to the country of Aram; Israel served to get a wife, and to pay for her he tended sheep.

The Lord used a prophet to bring Israel up from Egypt, by a prophet he cared for him.

The Lord’s Anger Against Israel

When Ephraim spoke, people trembled; he was exalted in Israel. But he became guilty of Baal worship and died.

“You are destroyed, Israel, because you are against me, against your helper.

Repentance to Bring Blessing

Return, Israel, to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall!

I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like a lily. Like a cedar of Lebanon he will send down his roots;

People will dwell again in his shade; they will flourish like the grain, they will blossom like the vine— Israel’s fame will be like the wine of Lebanon.