⁹ “Therefore I will take away my grain^(AT) when it ripens,
    and my new wine^(AU) when it is ready.
I will take back my wool and my linen,
    intended to cover her naked body.
¹⁰ So now I will expose^(AV) her lewdness
    before the eyes of her lovers;^(AW)
    no one will take her out of my hands.^(AX)
11 I will stop^(AY) all her celebrations:^(AZ)
    her yearly festivals, her New Moons,
    her Sabbath days—all her appointed festivals.^(BA)
12 I will ruin her vines^(BB) and her fig trees,^(BC)
    which she said were her pay from her lovers;^(BD)
I will make them a thicket,^(BE)
    and wild animals will devour them.^(BF)
13 I will punish her for the days
    she burned incense^(BG) to the Baals;^(BH)
she decked herself with rings and jewelry,^(BI)
    and went after her lovers,^(BJ)
    but me she forgot,^(BK)”
declares the Lord.^(BL)

¹⁴ “Therefore I am now going to allure her;
    I will lead her into the wilderness^(BM)
    and speak tenderly to her.
¹⁵ There I will give her back her vineyards,
    and will make the Valley of Achor^[e](BN) a door of hope.
There she will respond^[f](BO) as in the days of her youth,^(BP)
    as in the day she came up out of Egypt.^(BQ)

¹⁶ “In that day,” declares the Lord,
    “you will call me ‘my husband’;^(BR)
    you will no longer call me ‘my master.^[g]’
¹⁷ I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips;^(BS)
    no longer will their names be invoked.^(BT)
18 In that day I will make a covenant for them
    with the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky
    and the creatures that move along the ground.^(BU)
Bow and sword and battle
    I will abolish^(BV) from the land,
    so that all may lie down in safety.^(BW)
19 I will betroth^(BX) you to me forever;
    I will betroth you in^[h] righteousness and justice,^(BY)
    in^[i] love and compassion.^(BZ)
20 I will betroth you in^[j] faithfulness,
    and you will acknowledge^(CA) the Lord.^(CB)

²¹ “In that day I will respond,”
    declares the Lord—
“I will respond^(CC) to the skies,
    and they will respond to the earth;
²² and the earth will respond to the grain,
    the new wine and the olive oil,^(CD)
    and they will respond to Jezreel.^[k](CE)
23 I will plant^(CF) her for myself in the land;
    I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.^[l](CG)’
I will say to those called ‘Not my people,^[m]’ ‘You are my people’;^(CH)
    and they will say, ‘You are my God.^(CI)’”

⁴ “But let no one bring a charge,
    let no one accuse another,
for your people are like those
    who bring charges against a priest.^(DH)
5 You stumble^(DI) day and night,
    and the prophets stumble with you.
So I will destroy your mother^(DJ)—
⁶     my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.^(DK)

“Because you have rejected knowledge,
    I also reject you as my priests;
because you have ignored the law^(DL) of your God,
    I also will ignore your children.
⁷ The more priests there were,
    the more they sinned against me;
    they exchanged their glorious God^[q](DM) for something disgraceful.^(DN)
8 They feed on the sins of my people
    and relish their wickedness.^(DO)
9 And it will be: Like people, like priests.^(DP)
    I will punish both of them for their ways
    and repay them for their deeds.^(DQ)

¹⁰ “They will eat but not have enough;^(DR)
    they will engage in prostitution^(DS) but not flourish,
because they have deserted^(DT) the Lord
    to give themselves ¹¹ to prostitution;^(DU)
old wine^(DV) and new wine
    take away their understanding.^(DW)
12 My people consult a wooden idol,^(DX)
    and a diviner’s rod speaks to them.^(DY)
A spirit of prostitution^(DZ) leads them astray;^(EA)
    they are unfaithful^(EB) to their God.
¹³ They sacrifice on the mountaintops
    and burn offerings on the hills,
under oak,^(EC) poplar and terebinth,
    where the shade is pleasant.^(ED)
Therefore your daughters turn to prostitution^(EE)
    and your daughters-in-law to adultery.^(EF)

¹⁴ “I will not punish your daughters
    when they turn to prostitution,
nor your daughters-in-law
    when they commit adultery,
because the men themselves consort with harlots^(EG)
    and sacrifice with shrine prostitutes^(EH)—
    a people without understanding^(EI) will come to ruin!^(EJ)

¹⁵ “Though you, Israel, commit adultery,
    do not let Judah become guilty.

“Do not go to Gilgal;^(EK)
    do not go up to Beth Aven.^[r](EL)
    And do not swear, ‘As surely as the Lord lives!’^(EM)
16 The Israelites are stubborn,^(EN)
    like a stubborn heifer.^(EO)
How then can the Lord pasture them
    like lambs^(EP) in a meadow?
¹⁷ Ephraim is joined to idols;
    leave him alone!
¹⁸ Even when their drinks are gone,
    they continue their prostitution;
    their rulers dearly love shameful ways.
¹⁹ A whirlwind^(EQ) will sweep them away,
    and their sacrifices will bring them shame.^(ER)

⁴ “Their deeds do not permit them
    to return^(EZ) to their God.
A spirit of prostitution^(FA) is in their heart;
    they do not acknowledge^(FB) the Lord.
⁵ Israel’s arrogance testifies^(FC) against them;
    the Israelites, even Ephraim, stumble^(FD) in their sin;
    Judah also stumbles with them.^(FE)
6 When they go with their flocks and herds
    to seek the Lord,^(FF)
they will not find him;
    he has withdrawn^(FG) himself from them.
⁷ They are unfaithful^(FH) to the Lord;
    they give birth to illegitimate^(FI) children.
When they celebrate their New Moon feasts,^(FJ)
    he will devour^[s](FK) their fields.

⁸ “Sound the trumpet^(FL) in Gibeah,^(FM)
    the horn in Ramah.^(FN)
Raise the battle cry in Beth Aven^[t];^(FO)
    lead on, Benjamin.
⁹ Ephraim will be laid waste^(FP)
    on the day of reckoning.^(FQ)
Among the tribes of Israel
    I proclaim what is certain.^(FR)
10 Judah’s leaders are like those
    who move boundary stones.^(FS)
I will pour out my wrath^(FT) on them
    like a flood of water.
¹¹ Ephraim is oppressed,
    trampled in judgment,
    intent on pursuing idols.^[u](FU)
12 I am like a moth^(FV) to Ephraim,
    like rot^(FW) to the people of Judah.

¹³ “When Ephraim^(FX) saw his sickness,
    and Judah his sores,
then Ephraim turned to Assyria,^(FY)
    and sent to the great king for help.^(FZ)
But he is not able to cure^(GA) you,
    not able to heal your sores.^(GB)
14 For I will be like a lion^(GC) to Ephraim,
    like a great lion to Judah.
I will tear them to pieces^(GD) and go away;
    I will carry them off, with no one to rescue them.^(GE)
15 Then I will return to my lair^(GF)
    until they have borne their guilt^(GG)
    and seek my face^(GH)—
in their misery^(GI)
    they will earnestly seek me.^(GJ)”

⁴ “What can I do with you, Ephraim?^(GT)
    What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
    like the early dew that disappears.^(GU)
5 Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
    I killed you with the words of my mouth^(GV)—
    then my judgments go forth like the sun.^[v](GW)
6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,^(GX)
    and acknowledgment^(GY) of God rather than burnt offerings.^(GZ)
7 As at Adam,^[w] they have broken the covenant;^(HA)
    they were unfaithful^(HB) to me there.
⁸ Gilead is a city of evildoers,^(HC)
    stained with footprints of blood.
⁹ As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,^(HD)
    so do bands of priests;
they murder^(HE) on the road to Shechem,
    carrying out their wicked schemes.^(HF)
10 I have seen a horrible^(HG) thing in Israel:
    There Ephraim is given to prostitution,
    Israel is defiled.^(HH)

¹¹ “Also for you, Judah,
    a harvest^(HI) is appointed.

“Whenever I would restore the fortunes^(HJ) of my people,

³ “They delight the king with their wickedness,
    the princes with their lies.^(HR)
4 They are all adulterers,^(HS)
    burning like an oven
whose fire the baker need not stir
    from the kneading of the dough till it rises.
⁵ On the day of the festival of our king
    the princes become inflamed with wine,^(HT)
    and he joins hands with the mockers.^(HU)
6 Their hearts are like an oven;^(HV)
    they approach him with intrigue.
Their passion smolders all night;
    in the morning it blazes like a flaming fire.
⁷ All of them are hot as an oven;
    they devour their rulers.
All their kings fall,^(HW)
    and none of them calls^(HX) on me.

⁸ “Ephraim mixes^(HY) with the nations;
    Ephraim is a flat loaf not turned over.
⁹ Foreigners sap his strength,^(HZ)
    but he does not realize it.
His hair is sprinkled with gray,
    but he does not notice.
¹⁰ Israel’s arrogance testifies against him,^(IA)
    but despite all this
he does not return^(IB) to the Lord his God
    or search^(IC) for him.

¹¹ “Ephraim is like a dove,^(ID)
    easily deceived and senseless—
now calling to Egypt,^(IE)
    now turning to Assyria.^(IF)
12 When they go, I will throw my net^(IG) over them;
    I will pull them down like the birds in the sky.
When I hear them flocking together,
    I will catch them.
¹³ Woe^(IH) to them,
    because they have strayed^(II) from me!
Destruction to them,
    because they have rebelled against me!
I long to redeem them
    but they speak about me^(IJ) falsely.^(IK)
14 They do not cry out to me from their hearts^(IL)
    but wail on their beds.
They slash themselves,^[x] appealing to their gods
    for grain and new wine,^(IM)
    but they turn away from me.^(IN)
15 I trained^(IO) them and strengthened their arms,
    but they plot evil^(IP) against me.
¹⁶ They do not turn to the Most High;^(IQ)
    they are like a faulty bow.^(IR)
Their leaders will fall by the sword
    because of their insolent^(IS) words.
For this they will be ridiculed^(IT)
    in the land of Egypt.^(IU)

⁷ “They sow the wind
    and reap the whirlwind.^(JH)
The stalk has no head;
    it will produce no flour.^(JI)
Were it to yield grain,
    foreigners would swallow it up.^(JJ)
8 Israel is swallowed up;^(JK)
    now she is among the nations
    like something no one wants.^(JL)
9 For they have gone up to Assyria^(JM)
    like a wild donkey^(JN) wandering alone.
    Ephraim has sold herself to lovers.^(JO)
10 Although they have sold themselves among the nations,
    I will now gather them together.^(JP)
They will begin to waste away^(JQ)
    under the oppression of the mighty king.

¹¹ “Though Ephraim built many altars for sin offerings,
    these have become altars for sinning.^(JR)
12 I wrote for them the many things of my law,
    but they regarded them as something foreign.^(JS)
13 Though they offer sacrifices as gifts to me,
    and though they eat^(JT) the meat,
    the Lord is not pleased with them.^(JU)
Now he will remember^(JV) their wickedness
    and punish their sins:^(JW)
    They will return to Egypt.^(JX)
14 Israel has forgotten^(JY) their Maker^(JZ)
    and built palaces;
    Judah has fortified many towns.
But I will send fire on their cities
    that will consume their fortresses.”^(KA)

⁵ What will you do^(KN) on the day of your appointed festivals,^(KO)
    on the feast days of the Lord?
⁶ Even if they escape from destruction,
    Egypt will gather them,^(KP)
    and Memphis^(KQ) will bury them.^(KR)
Their treasures of silver^(KS) will be taken over by briers,
    and thorns^(KT) will overrun their tents.
⁷ The days of punishment^(KU) are coming,
    the days of reckoning^(KV) are at hand.
    Let Israel know this.
Because your sins^(KW) are so many
    and your hostility so great,
the prophet is considered a fool,^(KX)
    the inspired person a maniac.^(KY)
8 The prophet, along with my God,
    is the watchman over Ephraim,^[y]
yet snares^(KZ) await him on all his paths,
    and hostility in the house of his God.^(LA)
9 They have sunk deep into corruption,^(LB)
    as in the days of Gibeah.^(LC)
God will remember^(LD) their wickedness
    and punish them for their sins.^(LE)

¹⁰ “When I found Israel,
    it was like finding grapes in the desert;
when I saw your ancestors,
    it was like seeing the early fruit^(LF) on the fig^(LG) tree.
But when they came to Baal Peor,^(LH)
    they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol^(LI)
    and became as vile as the thing they loved.
¹¹ Ephraim’s glory^(LJ) will fly away like a bird^(LK)—
    no birth, no pregnancy, no conception.^(LL)
12 Even if they rear children,
    I will bereave^(LM) them of every one.
Woe^(LN) to them
    when I turn away from them!^(LO)
13 I have seen Ephraim,^(LP) like Tyre,
    planted in a pleasant place.^(LQ)
But Ephraim will bring out
    their children to the slayer.”^(LR)

¹⁴ Give them, Lord—
    what will you give them?
Give them wombs that miscarry
    and breasts that are dry.^(LS)

¹⁵ “Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal,^(LT)
    I hated them there.
Because of their sinful deeds,^(LU)
    I will drive them out of my house.
I will no longer love them;^(LV)
    all their leaders are rebellious.^(LW)
16 Ephraim^(LX) is blighted,
    their root is withered,
    they yield no fruit.^(LY)
Even if they bear children,
    I will slay^(LZ) their cherished offspring.”

¹⁷ My God will reject^(MA) them
    because they have not obeyed^(MB) him;
    they will be wanderers among the nations.^(MC)

10 Israel was a spreading vine;^(MD)
    he brought forth fruit for himself.
As his fruit increased,
    he built more altars;^(ME)
as his land prospered,^(MF)
    he adorned his sacred stones.^(MG)
2 Their heart is deceitful,^(MH)
    and now they must bear their guilt.^(MI)
The Lord will demolish their altars^(MJ)
    and destroy their sacred stones.^(MK)

³ Then they will say, “We have no king
    because we did not revere the Lord.
But even if we had a king,
    what could he do for us?”
⁴ They make many promises,
    take false oaths^(ML)
    and make agreements;^(MM)
therefore lawsuits spring up
    like poisonous weeds^(MN) in a plowed field.
⁵ The people who live in Samaria fear
    for the calf-idol^(MO) of Beth Aven.^[z](MP)
Its people will mourn over it,
    and so will its idolatrous priests,^(MQ)
those who had rejoiced over its splendor,
    because it is taken from them into exile.^(MR)
6 It will be carried to Assyria^(MS)
    as tribute^(MT) for the great king.^(MU)
Ephraim will be disgraced;^(MV)
    Israel will be ashamed^(MW) of its foreign alliances.
⁷ Samaria’s king will be destroyed,^(MX)
    swept away like a twig on the surface of the waters.
⁸ The high places^(MY) of wickedness^[aa](MZ) will be destroyed—
    it is the sin of Israel.
Thorns^(NA) and thistles will grow up
    and cover their altars.^(NB)
Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”^(NC)
    and to the hills, “Fall on us!”^(ND)

⁹ “Since the days of Gibeah,^(NE) you have sinned,^(NF) Israel,
    and there you have remained.^[ab]
Will not war again overtake
    the evildoers in Gibeah?
¹⁰ When I please, I will punish^(NG) them;
    nations will be gathered against them
    to put them in bonds for their double sin.
¹¹ Ephraim is a trained heifer
    that loves to thresh;
so I will put a yoke^(NH)
    on her fair neck.
I will drive Ephraim,
    Judah must plow,
    and Jacob must break up the ground.
¹² Sow^(NI) righteousness^(NJ) for yourselves,
    reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;^(NK)
    for it is time to seek^(NL) the Lord,
until he comes
    and showers his righteousness^(NM) on you.
¹³ But you have planted wickedness,
    you have reaped evil,^(NN)
    you have eaten the fruit of deception.^(NO)
Because you have depended on your own strength
    and on your many warriors,^(NP)
14 the roar of battle will rise against your people,
    so that all your fortresses will be devastated^(NQ)—
as Shalman^(NR) devastated Beth Arbel on the day of battle,
    when mothers were dashed to the ground with their children.^(NS)
15 So will it happen to you, Bethel,
    because your wickedness is great.
When that day dawns,
    the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.^(NT)

⁵ “Will they not return to Egypt^(OF)
    and will not Assyria^(OG) rule over them
    because they refuse to repent?^(OH)
6 A sword^(OI) will flash in their cities;
    it will devour^(OJ) their false prophets
    and put an end to their plans.
⁷ My people are determined to turn^(OK) from me.^(OL)
    Even though they call me God Most High,
    I will by no means exalt them.

⁸ “How can I give you up,^(OM) Ephraim?^(ON)
    How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah?
    How can I make you like Zeboyim?^(OO)
My heart is changed within me;
    all my compassion^(OP) is aroused.^(OQ)
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger,^(OR)
    nor will I devastate^(OS) Ephraim again.
For I am God, and not a man^(OT)—
    the Holy One^(OU) among you.
    I will not come against their cities.
¹⁰ They will follow the Lord;
    he will roar^(OV) like a lion.^(OW)
When he roars,
    his children will come trembling^(OX) from the west.^(OY)
11 They will come from Egypt,
    trembling like sparrows,
    from Assyria,^(OZ) fluttering like doves.^(PA)
I will settle them in their homes,”^(PB)
    declares the Lord.

⁷ The merchant uses dishonest scales^(PV)
    and loves to defraud.
⁸ Ephraim boasts,^(PW)
    “I am very rich; I have become wealthy.^(PX)
With all my wealth they will not find in me
    any iniquity or sin.”

⁹ “I have been the Lord your God
    ever since you came out of Egypt;^(PY)
I will make you live in tents^(PZ) again,
    as in the days of your appointed festivals.
¹⁰ I spoke to the prophets,
    gave them many visions
    and told parables^(QA) through them.”^(QB)

¹¹ Is Gilead wicked?^(QC)
    Its people are worthless!
Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal?^(QD)
    Their altars will be like piles of stones
    on a plowed field.^(QE)
12 Jacob fled to the country of Aram^[ag];^(QF)
    Israel served to get a wife,
    and to pay for her he tended sheep.^(QG)
13 The Lord used a prophet to bring Israel up from Egypt,^(QH)
    by a prophet he cared for him.^(QI)
14 But Ephraim has aroused his bitter anger;
    his Lord will leave on him the guilt of his bloodshed^(QJ)
    and will repay him for his contempt.^(QK)

⁴ “But I have been the Lord your God
    ever since you came out of Egypt.^(QX)
You shall acknowledge^(QY) no God but me,^(QZ)
    no Savior^(RA) except me.
⁵ I cared for you in the wilderness,^(RB)
    in the land of burning heat.
⁶ When I fed them, they were satisfied;
    when they were satisfied, they became proud;^(RC)
    then they forgot^(RD) me.^(RE)
7 So I will be like a lion^(RF) to them,
    like a leopard I will lurk by the path.
⁸ Like a bear robbed of her cubs,^(RG)
    I will attack them and rip them open;
like a lion^(RH) I will devour them—
    a wild animal will tear them apart.^(RI)

⁹ “You are destroyed, Israel,
    because you are against me,^(RJ) against your helper.^(RK)
10 Where is your king,^(RL) that he may save you?
    Where are your rulers in all your towns,
of whom you said,
    ‘Give me a king and princes’?^(RM)
11 So in my anger I gave you a king,^(RN)
    and in my wrath I took him away.^(RO)
12 The guilt of Ephraim is stored up,
    his sins are kept on record.^(RP)