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Hosea 12
EasyEnglish Bible

12 Ephraim's people chase after useless things all the time.
They think that they can catch the wind that comes from the east!
But the result is more violence and lies.
They make an agreement with Assyria to get their help.
They also send their olive oil to Egypt to ask for their help.[a]

2 The Lord is ready to accuse Judah's people in a court of law.
He will punish Jacob's descendants for the bad way that they live.
He will punish them as their sins deserve.
3 Before Jacob was born, he cheated his brother.
He did that when they were both inside their mother's body.[b]
When Jacob became a man, he fought against God.
4 He fought against an angel and he won.
He wept and he asked God to bless him.
There at Bethel, Jacob met with God. God spoke to him there.
5 This was the Lord God Almighty!
We know him as the Lord, his special name.

6 So now, you must return to your God.
You must show faithful love for each other.
You must judge people in a fair way.
You must be patient. Trust God to come and help you.

7 Your traders love to cheat people.
They use false weights and measures.
8 Ephraim's people proudly say,
‘We are rich! We have become very rich!
In all the ways that we have found riches,
nobody can accuse us.
We have not really done anything that is a sin!’

9 God says,

‘Remember that I am the Lord your God!
I brought you out of Egypt, where you were slaves.
Now I will make you live in tents again,
as you did before, in the wilderness.
10 I gave my messages to the prophets.
I showed them many visions.[c]
I used stories for the prophets to teach the people about me.
11 The people in Gilead do wicked things.[d]
They will become as useless as their idols.
At Gilgal, the people offer bulls as sacrifices on their altars.
Those altars will be like heaps of stones in a farmer's field.’

12 Jacob ran away to the land of Aram.[e]
He worked there as a shepherd so that he could get a wife.
13 The Lord used a prophet to bring the Israelites out of Egypt.
He used a prophet to keep them safe in the wilderness.
14 But Ephraim's people have made the Lord very angry.
He will punish them with death for their terrible sins.
Their Lord will pay them back as they deserve,
because they have insulted him.

Footnotes

  1. 12:1 The Israelites wanted other nations to help them to be safe from their enemies. They should have trusted God to keep them safe. The wind is something that you can never catch. See Ecclesiastes 1:6,14.
  2. 12:3 At birth, Jacob held on to his brother Esau's foot. See Genesis 25:21-26.
  3. 12:10 A vision is like a dream but you might not be asleep.
  4. 12:11 Hosea is perhaps thinking about murders in Gilead. See Hosea 6:8. They also worshipped idols.
  5. 12:12 Jacob ran away from his brother Esau. He had cheated Esau and Esau was very angry with him.
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Hosea 12
New International Version

12 [a]1 Ephraim(A) feeds on the wind;(B)
    he pursues the east wind all day
    and multiplies lies and violence.(C)
He makes a treaty with Assyria(D)
    and sends olive oil to Egypt.(E)
2 The Lord has a charge(F) to bring against Judah;(G)
    he will punish(H) Jacob[b] according to his ways
    and repay him according to his deeds.(I)
3 In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel;(J)
    as a man he struggled(K) with God.
4 He struggled with the angel and overcame him;
    he wept and begged for his favor.
He found him at Bethel(L)
    and talked with him there—
5 the Lord God Almighty,
    the Lord is his name!(M)
6 But you must return(N) to your God;
    maintain love and justice,(O)
    and wait for your God always.(P)

7 The merchant uses dishonest scales(Q)
    and loves to defraud.
8 Ephraim boasts,(R)
    “I am very rich; I have become wealthy.(S)
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;(T)
I will make you live in tents(U) again,
    as in the days of your appointed festivals.
10 I spoke to the prophets,
    gave them many visions
    and told parables(V) through them.”(W)

11 Is Gilead wicked?(X)
    Its people are worthless!
Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal?(Y)
    Their altars will be like piles of stones
    on a plowed field.(Z)
12 Jacob fled to the country of Aram[c];(AA)
    Israel served to get a wife,
    and to pay for her he tended sheep.(AB)
13 The Lord used a prophet to bring Israel up from Egypt,(AC)
    by a prophet he cared for him.(AD)
14 But Ephraim has aroused his bitter anger;
    his Lord will leave on him the guilt of his bloodshed(AE)
    and will repay him for his contempt.(AF)

Footnotes

  1. Hosea 12:1 In Hebrew texts 12:1-14 is numbered 12:2-15.
  2. Hosea 12:2 Jacob means he grasps the heel, a Hebrew idiom for he takes advantage of or he deceives.
  3. Hosea 12:12 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
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Hosea 11
Hosea 13
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