Hosea 11
Evangelical Heritage Version
God’s Love for Israel
11 When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.
2 The more I called to them,
the more they went away from me.[a]
They kept sacrificing to the Baals
and burning incense to idols.
3 Yet I was the one who taught Ephraim to walk.
I took them in my arms,[b]
but they did not realize that it was I who healed them.
4 I drew them with cords suitable for a man,[c] with ropes of love.
For them I became like someone who lifts a yoke off their neck,
and I bent down to feed them.
5 They will not[d] return into the land of Egypt.
Instead, an Assyrian will be their king,
because they refused to repent.
6 The sword will slash against their cities.
It will destroy the bars of their gates,
and it will devour them because of their plans.
7 My people are determined to turn away from me.
Though they call him the Most High, he certainly will not exalt them.
8 How can I give you up, Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I treat you like Zeboiim?[e]
My heart is changed inside me.
All my compassion is stirred up.
9 I will not carry out my burning anger.
I will not destroy Ephraim again,
because I am God, and not man, the Holy One among you.
I will not enter a city.[f]
10 They will follow the Lord.
He will roar like a lion.
Yes, he will roar, and his children will come trembling from the west.
11 They will come trembling like a bird from Egypt,
and like a dove from the land of Assyria.
I will settle them in their houses, declares the Lord.
Israel Must Repent
12 Ephraim surrounds me with falsehood,
and the house of Israel with deceit.
Judah still strays from[g] God,
even from the Holy One, who is faithful.[h]
Footnotes
- Hosea 11:2 A variant reading is the more they called them, the more they went away from them.
- Hosea 11:3 The text of the pronouns in this verse is uncertain. The translation follows the Greek Old Testament.
- Hosea 11:4 Literally cords of mankind. The words translated man and love have homonyms meaning leather, so there may be a play on words here.
- Hosea 11:5 Not is missing from some manuscripts.
- Hosea 11:8 Admah and Zeboiim were daughter cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
- Hosea 11:9 Or come in wrath. The Hebrew is difficult.
- Hosea 11:12 Literally wanders with. Translations disagree whether the term is negative or positive.
- Hosea 11:12 English verse 11:12 is verse 12:1 in Hebrew. In chapter 12 the subsequent Hebrew verse numbers are one higher than the English numbers.
Hosea 11
Lexham English Bible
God Will Have Compassion
11 When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.
2 When I called[a] them, they went from my face.[b]
They sacrificed to the Baals, and they sacrificed to idols.
3 And I myself taught Ephraim to walk;
I took them[c] in my[d] arms,
but they did not know that I healed them.
4 I drew them with human ties,[e]
with the bands of love.
I was to them like one who lifted up[f] a yoke on their jaws,[g]
though I bent down to them[h] and let them[i] eat.
5 He will return[j] to the land of Egypt,
and Assyria will be his king,[k]
because they refused to return.
6 The sword rages in his cities;
it consumes his false prophets
and devours because of their plans.
7 My people are bent on backsliding from me.
To the Most High they call,
he does not raise them at all.
8 How can I give you up, O Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, O Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I treat you like Zeboiim?
My heart is disturbed[l] within me;
all[m] my compassions are aroused.
9 I will not execute[n] my fierce anger,[o]
I will not again destroy Ephraim;
because I am God
and not a mortal,[p]
the Holy One in your midst;
and I will not come in wrath.
10 They will go after Yahweh;
he roars like a lion.
When he roars,
his children will come trembling
from the sea.[q]
11 They will tremble like birds[r] from Egypt,
and like doves[s] from the land of Assyria;
and I will let them return[t] to their homes—
a declaration of Yahweh.
Israel’s History
12 [u] Ephraim has surrounded me with lies,[v]
and the house of Israel with deceit;
and Judah is still wandering with God
and is faithful to the Holy One.
Footnotes
- Hosea 11:2 Hebrew “When they called”; the LXX and modern translations read “When I called”
- Hosea 11:2 Hebrew “their face”
- Hosea 11:3 Hebrew uncertain
- Hosea 11:3 Hebrew “his”
- Hosea 11:4 Literally “ropes of a human”
- Hosea 11:4 Or “like one who imposed”
- Hosea 11:4 Or “infants to their cheeks”
- Hosea 11:4 Hebrew “him”
- Hosea 11:4 Hebrew “him”
- Hosea 11:5 Or “They will not return”
- Hosea 11:5 That is “Israel’s king”
- Hosea 11:8 Or “My heart is overturned”
- Hosea 11:8 Literally “together”
- Hosea 11:9 Literally “I will not do”
- Hosea 11:9 Literally “the anger of my nose”
- Hosea 11:9 Or “human”
- Hosea 11:10 That is, “the West”
- Hosea 11:11 Hebrew “bird”
- Hosea 11:11 Hebrew “dove”
- Hosea 11:11 Hebrew “I will cause them to live”
- Hosea 11:12 Hosea 11:12–12:14 in the English Bible is 12:1–15 in the Hebrew Bible
- Hosea 11:12 Hebrew “lie”
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