Print Page Options Listen to Hosea 2

Say ye unto your brethren, Ammi; and to your sisters, Ruhamah.

Plead with your mother, plead: for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband: let her therefore put away her whoredoms out of her sight, and her adulteries from between her breasts;

Lest I strip her naked, and set her as in the day that she was born, and make her as a wilderness, and set her like a dry land, and slay her with thirst.

And I will not have mercy upon her children; for they be the children of whoredoms.

For their mother hath played the harlot: she that conceived them hath done shamefully: for she said, I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my drink.

Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths.

And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better with me than now.

For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal.

Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax given to cover her nakedness.

10 And now will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and none shall deliver her out of mine hand.

11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast days, her new moons, and her sabbaths, and all her solemn feasts.

12 And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, whereof she hath said, These are my rewards that my lovers have given me: and I will make them a forest, and the beasts of the field shall eat them.

13 And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim, wherein she burned incense to them, and she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels, and she went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith the Lord.

14 Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.

15 And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.

16 And it shall be at that day, saith the Lord, that thou shalt call me Ishi; and shalt call me no more Baali.

17 For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name.

18 And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely.

19 And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies.

20 I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the Lord.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the Lord, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth;

22 And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel.

23 And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God.

Say ye unto your brethren, Ammi; and to your sisters, Ruhamah.

Plead with your mother, plead:
for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband:
let her therefore put away her whoredoms out of her sight,
and her adulteries from between her breasts;
lest I strip her naked,
and set her as in the day that she was born,
and make her as a wilderness,
and set her like a dry land,
and slay her with thirst.
And I will not have mercy upon her children;
for they be the children of whoredoms.
For their mother hath played the harlot:
she that conceived them hath done shamefully:
for she said, I will go after my lovers,
that give me my bread and my water,
my wool and my flax, mine oil and my drink.

Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns,
and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths.
And she shall follow after her lovers,
but she shall not overtake them;
and she shall seek them, but shall not find them:
then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband;
for then was it better with me than now.
For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil,
and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal.
Therefore will I return,
and take away my corn in the time thereof,
and my wine in the season thereof,
and will recover my wool and my flax
given to cover her nakedness.
10 And now will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers,
and none shall deliver her out of mine hand.
11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease,
her feast days, her new moons,
and her sabbaths, and all her solemn feasts.
12 And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees,
whereof she hath said, These are my rewards
that my lovers have given me:
and I will make them a forest,
and the beasts of the field shall eat them.
13 And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim,
wherein she burned incense to them,
and she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels,
and she went after her lovers,
and forgat me, saith the Lord.

14 Therefore, behold, I will allure her,
and bring her into the wilderness,
and speak comfortably unto her.
15 And I will give her her vineyards from thence,
and the valley of Achor for a door of hope:
and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth,
and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.
16 And it shall be at that day, saith the Lord,
that thou shalt call me Ishi;
and shalt call me no more Baali.
17 For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth,
and they shall no more be remembered by their name.
18 And in that day will I make a covenant for them
with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven,
and with the creeping things of the ground:
and I will break the bow and the sword
and the battle out of the earth,
and will make them to lie down safely.
19 And I will betroth thee unto me for ever;
yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness,
and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies.
20 I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness:
and thou shalt know the Lord.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day,
I will hear, saith the Lord,
I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth;
22 and the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil;
and they shall hear Jezreel.
23 And I will sow her unto me in the earth;
and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy;
and I will say to them which were not my people,
Thou art my people;
and they shall say, Thou art my God.

[a]Call[b] your brothers: My People
and your sisters: Compassion.

Israel’s Adultery Rebuked

Rebuke your mother; rebuke her.(A)
For she is not My wife and I am not her husband.(B)
Let her remove the promiscuous look from her face(C)
and her adultery from between her breasts.
Otherwise, I will strip her naked(D)
and expose her as she was on the day of her birth.
I will make her like a desert(E)
and like a parched land,
and I will let her die of thirst.(F)
I will have no compassion on her children(G)
because they are the children of promiscuity.
Yes, their mother is promiscuous;
she conceived them and acted shamefully.(H)
For she thought, “I will go after my lovers,(I)
the men who give me my food and water,
my wool and flax, my oil and drink.”(J)
Therefore, this is what I will do:
I will block her[c] way(K) with thorns;(L)
I will enclose her with a wall,
so that she cannot find her paths.(M)
She will pursue her lovers but not catch them;(N)
she will seek them but not find them.
Then she will think,
“I will go back to my former husband,(O)
for then it was better for me than now.”(P)
She does not recognize(Q)
that it is I who gave her the grain,(R)
the new wine, and the oil.
I lavished silver and gold on her,
which they used for Baal.
Therefore, I will take back My grain in its time(S)
and My new wine in its season;
I will take away My wool and linen,
which were to cover her nakedness.
10 Now I will expose her shame(T)
in the sight of her lovers,
and no one will rescue her from My hands.
11 I will put an end to all her celebrations:(U)
her feasts,(V) New Moons,(W) and Sabbaths—
all her festivals.
12 I will devastate her vines and fig trees.(X)
She thinks that these are her wages
that her lovers have given her.
I will turn them into a thicket,(Y)
and the wild animals will eat them.(Z)
13 And I will punish her for the days of the Baals(AA)
when she burned incense to them,(AB)
put on her rings and jewelry,(AC)
and went after her lovers,
but forgot Me.(AD)
This is the Lord’s declaration.

Israel’s Adultery Forgiven

14 Therefore, I am going to persuade her,
lead her to the wilderness,(AE)
and speak tenderly to her.[d]
15 There I will give her vineyards back to her(AF)
and make the Valley of Achor[e](AG)
into a gateway of hope.
There she will respond as she did
in the days of her youth,(AH)
as in the day she came out of the land of Egypt.
16 In that day—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
you will call Me, “My husband,”(AI)
and no longer call Me, “My Baal.”[f]
17 For I will remove the names of the Baals
from her mouth;
they will no longer be remembered by their names.
18 On that day I will make a covenant for them
with the wild animals, the birds of the sky,
and the creatures that crawl on the ground.(AJ)
I will shatter bow, sword,
and weapons of war in the land[g](AK)
and will enable the people to rest securely.(AL)
19 I will take you to be My wife forever.(AM)
I will take you to be My wife in righteousness,
justice, love, and compassion.(AN)
20 I will take you to be My wife in faithfulness,
and you will know Yahweh.(AO)
21 On that day I will respond(AP)
this is the Lord’s declaration.
I will respond to the sky,
and it will respond to the earth.
22 The earth will respond to the grain,(AQ)
the new wine, and the oil,
and they will respond to Jezreel.
23 I will sow her[h] in the land for Myself,(AR)
and I will have compassion(AS)
on No Compassion;
I will say(AT) to Not My People:(AU)
You are My people,(AV)
and he will say, “You are My God.”

Footnotes

  1. Hosea 2:1 Hs 2:3 in Hb
  2. Hosea 2:1 Lit Say to
  3. Hosea 2:6 LXX, Syr; MT reads your
  4. Hosea 2:14 Lit speak to her heart
  5. Hosea 2:15 = Trouble
  6. Hosea 2:16 Or My master
  7. Hosea 2:18 Or war on the earth
  8. Hosea 2:23 = Israel

Say ye unto your brethren, [a]Ammi; and to your sisters, [b]Ruhamah.

Contend with your mother, contend; for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband; and let her put away her whoredoms from her face, and her adulteries from between her breasts; lest I strip her naked, and set her as in the day that she was born, and make her as a wilderness, and set her like a dry land, and slay her with thirst. Yea, upon her children will I have no mercy; for they are children of whoredom; for their mother hath played the harlot; she that conceived them hath done shamefully; for she said, I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my [c]drink. Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and I will build a wall against her, that she shall not find her paths. And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better with me than now.

For she did not know that I gave her the grain, and the new wine, and the oil, and multiplied unto her silver and gold, which they [d]used for Baal. Therefore will I [e]take back my grain in the time thereof, and my new wine in the season thereof, and will pluck away my wool and my flax which should have covered her nakedness. 10 And now will I uncover her [f]lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and none shall deliver her out of my hand. 11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feasts, her new moons, and her sabbaths, and all her [g]solemn assemblies. 12 And I will lay waste her vines and her fig-trees, whereof she hath said, These are my hire that my lovers have given me; and I will make them a forest, and the beasts of the field shall eat them. 13 And I will visit upon her the days of the Baalim, [h]unto which she burned incense, when she decked herself with her [i]ear-rings and her jewels, and went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith Jehovah.

14 Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak [j]comfortably unto her. 15 And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of [k]Achor for a door of hope; and she shall [l]make answer there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt. 16 And it shall be at that day, saith Jehovah, that thou shalt call me [m]Ishi, and shalt call me no more [n]Baali. 17 For I will take away the names of the Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be [o]mentioned by their name. 18 And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the birds of the heavens, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the land, and will make them to lie down safely. 19 And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in justice, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies. 20 I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness; and thou shalt know Jehovah.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day, I will answer, saith Jehovah, I will answer the heavens, and they shall answer the earth; 22 and the earth shall answer the grain, and the new wine, and the oil; and they shall answer [p]Jezreel. 23 And I will sow her unto me in the [q]earth; and I will have mercy upon [r]her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to [s]them that were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God.

Footnotes

  1. Hosea 2:1 That is, My people.
  2. Hosea 2:1 That is, That hath obtained mercy.
  3. Hosea 2:5 Hebrew drinks.
  4. Hosea 2:8 Or, made into the image of Baal
  5. Hosea 2:9 Or, return, and take away
  6. Hosea 2:10 Or, shame
  7. Hosea 2:11 Or, appointed feasts
  8. Hosea 2:13 Or, wherein she burned incense to them
  9. Hosea 2:13 Or, nose-rings
  10. Hosea 2:14 Hebrew to her heart.
  11. Hosea 2:15 That is, Troubling.
  12. Hosea 2:15 Or, sing
  13. Hosea 2:16 That is, My husband.
  14. Hosea 2:16 That is, My master.
  15. Hosea 2:17 Or, remembered
  16. Hosea 2:22 That is, Whom God soweth.
  17. Hosea 2:23 Or, land
  18. Hosea 2:23 Hebrew Lo-ruhamah. See 1:6.
  19. Hosea 2:23 Hebrew Lo-ammi. See 1:9, 10.

`Say ye to your brethren -- Ammi, And to your sisters -- Ruhamah.

Plead ye with your mother -- plead, (For she [is] not My wife, and I [am] not her husband,) And she turneth her whoredoms from before her, And her adulteries from between her breasts,

Lest I strip her naked. And have set her up as [in] the day of her birth, And have made her as a wilderness, And have set her as a dry land, And have put her to death with thirst.

And her sons I do not pity, For sons of whoredoms [are] they,

For gone a-whoring hath their mother, Acted shamefully hath their conceiver, For she hath said, I go after my lovers, Those giving my bread and my water, My wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.

Therefore, lo, I am hedging up thy way with thorns, And I have made for her a wall, And her paths she doth not find.

And she hath pursued her lovers, And she doth not overtake them, And hath sought them, and doth not find, And she hath said: I go, and I turn back unto My first husband, For -- better to me then than now.

And she knew not that I had given to her, The corn, and the new wine, and the oil. Yea, silver I did multiply to her, And the gold they prepared for Baal.

Therefore do I turn back, And I have taken My corn in its season, And My new wine in its appointed time, And I have taken away My wool and My flax, covering her nakedness.

10 And now do I reveal her dishonour before the eyes of her lovers, And none doth deliver her out of My hand.

11 And I have caused to cease all her joy, Her festival, her new moon, and her sabbath, Even all her appointed times,

12 And made desolate her vine and her fig-tree, Of which she said, A gift they [are] to me, That my lovers have given to me, And I have made them for a forest, And consumed them hath a beast of the field.

13 And I have charged on her the days of the Baalim, To whom she maketh perfume, And putteth on her ring and her ornament, And goeth after her lovers, And Me forgat -- an affirmation of Jehovah.

14 Therefore, lo, I am enticing her, And have caused her to go to the wilderness, And I have spoken unto her heart,

15 And given to her her vineyards from thence, And the valley of Achor for an opening of hope, And she hath responded there as in the days of her youth, And as in the day of her coming up out of the land of Egypt.

16 And it hath come to pass, in that day, An affirmation of Jehovah, Thou dost call Me -- My husband, And dost not call Me any more -- My lord.

17 And I have turned aside the names of the lords from her mouth, And they are not remembered any more by their name.

18 And I have made to them a covenant in that day, with the beast of the field, And with the fowl of the heavens, And the creeping thing of the ground, And bow, and sword, and war I break from off the land, And have caused them to lie down confidently.

19 And I have betrothed thee to Me to the age, And betrothed thee to Me in righteousness, And in judgment, and kindness, and mercies,

20 And betrothed thee to Me in faithfulness, And thou hast known Jehovah.

21 And it hath come to pass in that day, I answer -- an affirmation of Jehovah, I answer the heavens, and they answer the earth.

22 And the earth doth answer the corn, And the new wine, and the oil, And they answer Jezreel.

23 And I have sowed her to Me in the land, And I have pitied Lo-Ruhamah, And I have said to Lo-Ammi, My people thou [art], and it saith, My God!'