Hosea 10
King James Version
10 Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images.
2 Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: he shall break down their altars, he shall spoil their images.
3 For now they shall say, We have no king, because we feared not the Lord; what then should a king do to us?
4 They have spoken words, swearing falsely in making a covenant: thus judgment springeth up as hemlock in the furrows of the field.
5 The inhabitants of Samaria shall fear because of the calves of Bethaven: for the people thereof shall mourn over it, and the priests thereof that rejoiced on it, for the glory thereof, because it is departed from it.
6 It shall be also carried unto Assyria for a present to king Jareb: Ephraim shall receive shame, and Israel shall be ashamed of his own counsel.
7 As for Samaria, her king is cut off as the foam upon the water.
8 The high places also of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed: the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars; and they shall say to the mountains, Cover us; and to the hills, Fall on us.
9 O Israel, thou hast sinned from the days of Gibeah: there they stood: the battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity did not overtake them.
10 It is in my desire that I should chastise them; and the people shall be gathered against them, when they shall bind themselves in their two furrows.
11 And Ephraim is as an heifer that is taught, and loveth to tread out the corn; but I passed over upon her fair neck: I will make Ephraim to ride; Judah shall plow, and Jacob shall break his clods.
12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
13 Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men.
14 Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, as Shalman spoiled Betharbel in the day of battle: the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.
15 So shall Bethel do unto you because of your great wickedness: in a morning shall the king of Israel utterly be cut off.
Hosea 10
International Children’s Bible
Israel Will Pay for Sin
10 Israel is like a vine
that produced plenty of fruit.
As the people became richer,
they built more altars for idols.
As their land became better,
they put up better stone pillars to honor false gods.
2 Their heart was false.
Now they must pay for their guilt.
The Lord will break down their altars.
He will destroy their holy stone pillars.
3 Then the Israelites will say, “We have no king,
because we didn’t honor the Lord.
But even if we had one,
he couldn’t do anything for us.”
4 They make many false promises.
They make agreements they don’t keep.
So people sue each other in court.
They are like poisonous weeds growing in a plowed field.
5 The people from Israel are worried about
the calf-shaped idol at Beth Aven.
The people and the priests will cry
because their glorious idol is gone.
6 It will be carried off as a payment that was demanded
to the great king of Assyria.
Israel will be disgraced.
The people will be ashamed of trusting that idol.
7 The king of Israel will be carried off
like a chip of wood floating on the water.
8 The places of worship at Beth Aven will be destroyed.
They are where Israel sins.
Thorns and weeds will grow up
and cover their altars.
Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”
And they will say to the hills, “Fall on us!”
9 “Israel, you have sinned since the time of Gibeah.[a]
The people there have continued sinning.
But war will surely overwhelm them,
because of the evil they have done there.
10 When I am ready,
I will come to punish them.
Armies will come together against them.
They will be punished for their many sins.
11 Israel is like a well-trained young cow
that likes to thresh grain.
But I will put a yoke on her neck.
I will make Israel work hard in the field.
Judah will plow.
Israel will break up the ground.
12 I said, ‘Break new ground.
Plant what is right.
Then you will harvest good things
from your loyalty to me.
It is time for you to turn back to me, the Lord.
Do it until I come and pour out my goodness on you.’
13 But you have planted evil.
So you have harvested trouble.
You have trusted in your own power
and your many soldiers.
Now you must live with the result of your lies.
14 So your armies will hear the noise of battle.
And all your strong, walled cities will be destroyed.
It will be like the time King Shalman
destroyed Beth Arbel in battle.
Mothers and children were crushed to the ground together.
15 The same will happen to you, people of Bethel,
because you did so much evil.
When that time comes,
the king of Israel will die.
Footnotes
- 10:9 Gibeah The sins of the men of Gibeah caused a civil war. See Judges 19–21.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
