Font Size
Hosea 6-9
New International Reader's Version
Hosea 6-9
New International Reader's Version
Israel Refuses to Turn Away From Their Sins
6 The people say, “Come.
Let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces.
But he will heal us.
He has wounded us.
But he’ll bandage our wounds.
2 After two days he will give us new life.
On the third day he’ll make us like new again.
Then we will enjoy his blessing.
3 Let’s recognize him as the Lord.
Let’s keep trying to know him.
You can be sure the sun will rise.
And you can be just as sure the Lord will appear.
He will come to renew us like the winter rains.
He will be like the spring rains that water the earth.”
4 The Lord says, “Ephraim, what can I do with you?
And what can I do with you, Judah?
Your love for me vanishes like the morning mist.
It soon disappears like the early dew.
5 So I used the words of my prophets to cut you in pieces.
I used my words to put you to death.
Then my judgments blazed out like the sun.
6 I want mercy and not sacrifice.
I want you to recognize me as God
instead of bringing me burnt offerings.
7 Just as at the city of Adam, they disobeyed me,
they have broken the covenant I made with them.
They were not faithful to me there.
8 Ramoth Gilead is a city where sinful people live.
It is stained with footprints of blood.
9 On the road to Shechem, groups of priests act like robbers.
They hide and wait to attack people.
They murder them.
So they carry out their evil plans.
10 I have seen a horrible thing in Israel.
The people of Ephraim are unfaithful to their own God.
The people of Israel are ‘unclean.’
11 “People of Judah, I have also appointed a time
for you to be destroyed.
“I would like to bless my people
with great success again.
7 I would like to heal Israel.
But when I try to, Ephraim’s sins
are brought out into the open.
The crimes of Samaria
are made known to everyone.
The people tell lies.
They break into houses and steal.
They rob others in the streets.
2 But they do not realize
that I remember all the evil things they do.
Their sins pile up and cover them.
I am always aware of their sins.
3 “Their evil conduct even makes the king glad.
Their lies make the princes happy.
4 But all the people are unfaithful to the king.
Their anger against him burns
like the coals in an oven.
The baker does not even need to stir up the fire
until the dough is ready.”
5 On special days to honor our king,
the princes get drunk with wine.
And the king enjoys the party.
He joins hands with those
who pretend to be faithful to him.
6 Their hearts are as hot as an oven.
They make evil plans to get rid of him.
Their anger burns like a slow fire all night.
In the morning it blazes out like a flaming fire.
7 All of them are as hot as an oven.
They destroy their rulers.
All their kings fall from power.
But none of them calls on the Lord for help.
8 The people of Ephraim mix with the nations.
They are like a thin loaf of bread
that is baked on only one side.
9 People from other lands make them weaker and weaker.
But they don’t realize it.
Their hair is becoming gray.
But they don’t even notice it.
10 The pride of Israel proves that they are guilty.
But in spite of everything,
they don’t return to the Lord their God.
They don’t go to him for help.
11 The Lord says,
“The people of Ephraim are like a dove.
They are easily tricked.
They do not have any sense at all.
First they call out to Egypt for help.
Then they turn to Assyria.
12 When they send for help,
I will throw my net over them.
I will capture them like the birds in the sky.
When I hear them gathering like birds,
I will catch them.
13 How terrible it will be for them!
They have wandered away from me.
So they will be destroyed.
That’s because they have refused to obey me.
I long to save them.
But they tell lies about me.
14 They do not cry out to me from their hearts.
Instead, they just lie on their beds and sob.
They cut themselves when they pray to their gods
for grain and fresh wine.
But they turn away from me.
15 I brought them up and made them strong.
But they make evil plans against me.
16 I am the Most High God. But they do not turn to me.
They are like a bow that does not shoot straight.
Their leaders will be killed by swords.
They will die because they have spoken too proudly.
The people of Egypt
will make fun of them.”
Israel Will Harvest a Windstorm
8 The Lord said to me,
“Put a trumpet to your lips!
Give a warning to my people!
Assyria is like an eagle.
It is ready to attack my land.
My people have broken the covenant I made with them.
They have refused to obey my law.
2 Israel shouts to me,
‘We recognize you as our God!’
3 But they have turned away from what is good.
So an enemy will chase them.
4 My people appoint kings I do not want.
They choose princes without my permission.
They use their silver and gold
to make statues of gods.
That is how they destroy themselves.”
5 The Lord says, “People of Samaria,
throw out your god that looks like a calf!
I am very angry with them.
How long will it be until they are able
to remain faithful to me?
6 Their calf is not God.
A skilled worker from Israel made it.
But that calf of Samaria will be broken to pieces.”
7 The Lord says,
“Worshiping other gods is like worshiping the wind.
It is like planting worthless seeds.
Assyria is like a windstorm.
That is all my people will harvest.
There are no heads of grain
on the stems that will come up.
So they will not produce any flour.
Even if they did produce grain,
the Assyrians would eat all of it up.
8 So the people of Israel are swallowed up.
Now they are among the nations
like something no one wants.
9 They have gone up to Assyria for help.
They are like a wild donkey
that wanders around by itself.
Ephraim’s people have sold themselves
to their Assyrian lovers.
10 They have sold themselves to the nations
to get their help.
But now I will gather them together.
They will get weaker and weaker.
The mighty kings of Assyria will crush them.
11 “Ephraim built many altars where they sacrificed
sin offerings to other gods.
So their altars have become
places where they commit sin.
12 In my law I wrote down many things for their good.
But they considered those things as something strange.
13 They offer sacrifices as gifts to me.
They eat the meat of the animals they bring.
But the Lord is not pleased with any of this.
He will remember the evil things they have done.
He will punish them for their sins.
And they will return to Egypt.
14 Israel has forgotten the God who made them.
They have built palaces for themselves.
Judah has built forts in many towns.
But I will send down fire on their cities.
It will burn up their forts.”
Israel Will Be Punished
9 Israel, don’t be joyful.
Don’t be glad as the other nations are.
You haven’t been faithful to your God.
You love to get paid for being a prostitute.
Your pay is the grain at every threshing floor.
2 But soon there won’t be any grain or wine to feed you.
There won’t even be any fresh wine.
3 You won’t remain in the Lord’s land.
Ephraim, you will return to Egypt.
You will eat “unclean” food in Assyria.
4 You won’t pour out wine offerings to the Lord.
Your sacrifices won’t please him.
They’ll be like the bread people eat when someone dies.
Everyone who eats those sacrifices will be “unclean.”
They themselves will have to eat that kind of food.
They can’t bring it into the Lord’s temple.
5 What will you do when your appointed feasts come?
What will you do on the Lord’s special days?
6 Some of you will escape without being destroyed.
But you will die in Egypt.
Your bodies will be buried at Memphis.
Weeds will cover your treasures of silver.
Thorns will grow up in your tents.
7 The time when God will punish you is coming.
The day when he will judge you is near.
I want Israel to know this.
You have committed many sins.
And you hate me very much.
That’s why you think the prophet is foolish.
You think the person the Lord speaks through is crazy.
8 People of Ephraim, the prophet, along with my God,
is warning you of danger.
But you set traps for him everywhere he goes.
You hate him so much
you even wait for him in God’s house.
9 You have sunk very deep into sin,
just as your people did at Gibeah long ago.
God will remember the evil things they have done.
He will punish them for their sins.
10 The Lord says,
“When I first found Israel,
it was like finding grapes in the desert.
When I saw your people of long ago,
it was like seeing the early fruit on a fig tree.
But then they went to Baal Peor.
There they gave themselves to that shameful god named Baal.
They became as evil as the god they loved.
11 Ephraim’s greatness and glory will be gone.
It will fly away like a bird.
Women will no longer have children.
They will not be able to get pregnant.
12 But suppose they do have children.
Then I will kill every one of them.
How terrible it will be for them
when I turn away from them!
13 Tyre is planted in a pleasant place.
And so is Ephraim.
But the Assyrians will kill
Ephraim’s children.”
14 Lord, what should you do to Ephraim’s people?
Give them women whose babies die before they are born.
Give them women whose breasts have no milk.
15 The Lord says,
“My people did many evil things in Gilgal.
That is why I hated them there.
They committed many sins.
So I will drive them out of my land.
I will not love them anymore.
All their leaders refuse to obey me.
16 Ephraim is like a worthless plant.
Its roots are dried up.
It does not produce any fruit.
Suppose Ephraim’s people have children.
Then I will kill the children they love so much.”
17 My God will turn his back on his people.
They have not obeyed him.
So they will wander among other nations.
Hosea 6-9
New International Version
Hosea 6-9
New International Version
Israel Unrepentant
6 “Come, let us return(A) to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces(B)
but he will heal us;(C)
he has injured us
but he will bind up our wounds.(D)
2 After two days he will revive us;(E)
on the third day(F) he will restore(G) us,
that we may live in his presence.
3 Let us acknowledge the Lord;
let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises,
he will appear;
he will come to us like the winter rains,(H)
like the spring rains that water the earth.(I)”
4 “What can I do with you, Ephraim?(J)
What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
like the early dew that disappears.(K)
5 Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
I killed you with the words of my mouth(L)—
then my judgments go forth like the sun.[a](M)
6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,(N)
and acknowledgment(O) of God rather than burnt offerings.(P)
7 As at Adam,[b] they have broken the covenant;(Q)
they were unfaithful(R) to me there.
8 Gilead is a city of evildoers,(S)
stained with footprints of blood.
9 As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,(T)
so do bands of priests;
they murder(U) on the road to Shechem,
carrying out their wicked schemes.(V)
10 I have seen a horrible(W) thing in Israel:
There Ephraim is given to prostitution,
Israel is defiled.(X)
11 “Also for you, Judah,
a harvest(Y) is appointed.
“Whenever I would restore the fortunes(Z) of my people,
7 1 whenever I would heal Israel,
the sins of Ephraim are exposed
and the crimes of Samaria revealed.(AA)
They practice deceit,(AB)
thieves break into houses,(AC)
bandits rob in the streets;(AD)
2 but they do not realize
that I remember(AE) all their evil deeds.(AF)
Their sins engulf them;(AG)
they are always before me.
3 “They delight the king with their wickedness,
the princes with their lies.(AH)
4 They are all adulterers,(AI)
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,(AJ)
and he joins hands with the mockers.(AK)
6 Their hearts are like an oven;(AL)
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,(AM)
and none of them calls(AN) on me.
8 “Ephraim mixes(AO) with the nations;
Ephraim is a flat loaf not turned over.
9 Foreigners sap his strength,(AP)
but he does not realize it.
His hair is sprinkled with gray,
but he does not notice.
10 Israel’s arrogance testifies against him,(AQ)
but despite all this
he does not return(AR) to the Lord his God
or search(AS) for him.
11 “Ephraim is like a dove,(AT)
easily deceived and senseless—
now calling to Egypt,(AU)
now turning to Assyria.(AV)
12 When they go, I will throw my net(AW) 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(AX) to them,
because they have strayed(AY) from me!
Destruction to them,
because they have rebelled against me!
I long to redeem them
but they speak about me(AZ) falsely.(BA)
14 They do not cry out to me from their hearts(BB)
but wail on their beds.
They slash themselves,[c] appealing to their gods
for grain and new wine,(BC)
but they turn away from me.(BD)
15 I trained(BE) them and strengthened their arms,
but they plot evil(BF) against me.
16 They do not turn to the Most High;(BG)
they are like a faulty bow.(BH)
Their leaders will fall by the sword
because of their insolent(BI) words.
For this they will be ridiculed(BJ)
in the land of Egypt.(BK)
Israel to Reap the Whirlwind
8 “Put the trumpet(BL) to your lips!
An eagle(BM) is over the house of the Lord
because the people have broken my covenant(BN)
and rebelled against my law.(BO)
2 Israel cries out to me,
‘Our God, we acknowledge you!’
3 But Israel has rejected what is good;
an enemy will pursue him.(BP)
4 They set up kings without my consent;
they choose princes without my approval.(BQ)
With their silver and gold
they make idols(BR) for themselves
to their own destruction.
5 Samaria, throw out your calf-idol!(BS)
My anger burns against them.
How long will they be incapable of purity?(BT)
6 They are from Israel!
This calf—a metalworker has made it;
it is not God.(BU)
It will be broken in pieces,
that calf(BV) of Samaria.(BW)
7 “They sow the wind
and reap the whirlwind.(BX)
The stalk has no head;
it will produce no flour.(BY)
Were it to yield grain,
foreigners would swallow it up.(BZ)
8 Israel is swallowed up;(CA)
now she is among the nations
like something no one wants.(CB)
9 For they have gone up to Assyria(CC)
like a wild donkey(CD) wandering alone.
Ephraim has sold herself to lovers.(CE)
10 Although they have sold themselves among the nations,
I will now gather them together.(CF)
They will begin to waste away(CG)
under the oppression of the mighty king.
11 “Though Ephraim built many altars for sin offerings,
these have become altars for sinning.(CH)
12 I wrote for them the many things of my law,
but they regarded them as something foreign.(CI)
13 Though they offer sacrifices as gifts to me,
and though they eat(CJ) the meat,
the Lord is not pleased with them.(CK)
Now he will remember(CL) their wickedness
and punish their sins:(CM)
They will return to Egypt.(CN)
14 Israel has forgotten(CO) their Maker(CP)
and built palaces;
Judah has fortified many towns.
But I will send fire on their cities
that will consume their fortresses.”(CQ)
Punishment for Israel
9 Do not rejoice, Israel;
do not be jubilant(CR) like the other nations.
For you have been unfaithful(CS) to your God;
you love the wages of a prostitute(CT)
at every threshing floor.
2 Threshing floors and winepresses will not feed the people;
the new wine(CU) will fail them.
3 They will not remain(CV) in the Lord’s land;
Ephraim will return to Egypt(CW)
and eat unclean food in Assyria.(CX)
4 They will not pour out wine offerings(CY) to the Lord,
nor will their sacrifices please(CZ) him.
Such sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners;(DA)
all who eat them will be unclean.(DB)
This food will be for themselves;
it will not come into the temple of the Lord.(DC)
5 What will you do(DD) on the day of your appointed festivals,(DE)
on the feast days of the Lord?
6 Even if they escape from destruction,
Egypt will gather them,(DF)
and Memphis(DG) will bury them.(DH)
Their treasures of silver(DI) will be taken over by briers,
and thorns(DJ) will overrun their tents.
7 The days of punishment(DK) are coming,
the days of reckoning(DL) are at hand.
Let Israel know this.
Because your sins(DM) are so many
and your hostility so great,
the prophet is considered a fool,(DN)
the inspired person a maniac.(DO)
8 The prophet, along with my God,
is the watchman over Ephraim,[d]
yet snares(DP) await him on all his paths,
and hostility in the house of his God.(DQ)
9 They have sunk deep into corruption,(DR)
as in the days of Gibeah.(DS)
God will remember(DT) their wickedness
and punish them for their sins.(DU)
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(DV) on the fig(DW) tree.
But when they came to Baal Peor,(DX)
they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol(DY)
and became as vile as the thing they loved.
11 Ephraim’s glory(DZ) will fly away like a bird(EA)—
no birth, no pregnancy, no conception.(EB)
12 Even if they rear children,
I will bereave(EC) them of every one.
Woe(ED) to them
when I turn away from them!(EE)
13 I have seen Ephraim,(EF) like Tyre,
planted in a pleasant place.(EG)
But Ephraim will bring out
their children to the slayer.”(EH)
14 Give them, Lord—
what will you give them?
Give them wombs that miscarry
and breasts that are dry.(EI)
15 “Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal,(EJ)
I hated them there.
Because of their sinful deeds,(EK)
I will drive them out of my house.
I will no longer love them;(EL)
all their leaders are rebellious.(EM)
16 Ephraim(EN) is blighted,
their root is withered,
they yield no fruit.(EO)
Even if they bear children,
I will slay(EP) their cherished offspring.”
Footnotes
- Hosea 6:5 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
- Hosea 6:7 Or Like Adam; or Like human beings
- Hosea 7:14 Some Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts They gather together
- Hosea 9:8 Or The prophet is the watchman over Ephraim, / the people of my God
3 John 1-15
New International Reader's Version
3 John 1-15
New International Reader's Version
1 I, the elder, am writing this letter.
I am sending it to you, my dear friend Gaius. I love you because of the truth.
2 Dear friend, I know that your spiritual life is going well. I pray that you also may enjoy good health. And I pray that everything else may go well with you. 3 Some believers came to me and told me that you are faithful to the truth. They told me that you continue to live by it. This news gave me great joy. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are living by the truth.
5 Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters. You are faithful even though they are strangers to you. 6 They have told the church about your love. Please help them by sending them on their way in a manner that honors God. 7 They started on their journey to serve Jesus Christ. They didn’t receive any help from those who aren’t believers. 8 So we should welcome people like them. We should work together with them for the truth.
9 I wrote to the church. But Diotrephes will not welcome us. He loves to be the first in everything. 10 So when I come, I will point out what he is doing. He is saying evil things that aren’t true about us. Even this doesn’t satisfy him. So he refuses to welcome other believers. He also keeps others from welcoming them. In fact, he throws them out of the church.
11 Dear friend, don’t be like those who do evil. Be like those who do good. Anyone who does what is good belongs to God. Anyone who does what is evil hasn’t really seen or known God. 12 Everyone says good things about Demetrius. He lives in keeping with the truth. We also say good things about him. And you know that what we say is true.
13 I have a lot to write to you. But I don’t want to write with pen and ink. 14 I hope I can see you soon. Then we can talk face to face.
15 May you have peace.
The friends here send their greetings. Greet each one of the friends there.
Read full chapter
3 John
New International Version
3 John
New International Version
1 The elder,(A)
To my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth.
2 Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. 3 It gave me great joy when some believers(B) came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it.(C) 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children(D) are walking in the truth.(E)
5 Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters,[a](F) even though they are strangers to you.(G) 6 They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way(H) in a manner that honors(I) God. 7 It was for the sake of the Name(J) that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans.(K) 8 We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth.
9 I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us. 10 So when I come,(L) I will call attention to what he is doing, spreading malicious nonsense about us. Not satisfied with that, he even refuses to welcome other believers.(M) He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.(N)
11 Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good.(O) Anyone who does what is good is from God.(P) Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God.(Q) 12 Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone(R)—and even by the truth itself. We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true.(S)
13 I have much to write you, but I do not want to do so with pen and ink. 14 I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.(T)
15 Peace to you.(U) The friends here send their greetings. Greet the friends there by name.(V)
Footnotes
- 3 John 1:5 The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God’s family.
Psalm 126
New International Reader's Version
Psalm 126
New International Reader's Version
A song for those who go up to Jerusalem to worship the Lord.
126 Our enemies took us away from Zion.
But when the Lord brought us home,
it seemed like a dream to us.
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter.
Our tongues sang with joy.
Then the people of other nations said,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us.
And we are filled with joy.
4 Lord, bless us with great success again,
as rain makes streams flow in the Negev Desert.
5 Those who cry as they plant their crops
will sing with joy when they gather them in.
6 Those who go out weeping
as they carry seeds to plant
will come back singing with joy.
They will bring the new crop back with them.
Psalm 126
New International Version
Psalm 126
New International Version
Psalm 126
A song of ascents.
1 When the Lord restored(A) the fortunes of[a] Zion,
we were like those who dreamed.[b]
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter,(B)
our tongues with songs of joy.(C)
Then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things(D) for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things(E) for us,
and we are filled with joy.(F)
Footnotes
- Psalm 126:1 Or Lord brought back the captives to
- Psalm 126:1 Or those restored to health
- Psalm 126:4 Or Bring back our captives
Proverbs 29:12-14
New International Reader's Version
Proverbs 29:12-14
New International Reader's Version
12 If rulers listen to lies,
all their officials become evil.
13 The Lord gives sight to the eyes of poor people and those who treat others badly.
That’s what they both have in common.
14 If a king judges poor people fairly,
his throne will always be secure.
Proverbs 29:12-14
New International Version
Proverbs 29:12-14
New International Version
13 The poor and the oppressor have this in common:
The Lord gives sight to the eyes of both.(C)
14 If a king judges the poor with fairness,
his throne will be established forever.(D)
New International Reader's Version (NIRV) 
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.