The People’s Apostasy Rebuked

Hear this, you priests!
Pay attention, house of Israel!
Listen, you of the house of the king!
For the judgment applies to you,
Because you have been a (A)trap at Mizpah,
And a net spread out on Tabor.
And the (B)rebels have (C)gone deep in [a]depravity,
But I will discipline all of them.
I (D)know Ephraim, and Israel is not hidden from Me;
Because now, Ephraim, you have been unfaithful,
Israel has defiled itself.
Their deeds will not allow them
To return to their God.
For a (E)spirit of [b]infidelity is within them,
And they (F)do not know the Lord.
Moreover, the (G)pride of Israel testifies against him,
And Israel and Ephraim stumble in their wrongdoing;
(H)Judah also has stumbled with them.
They will (I)go with their flocks and herds
To seek the Lord, but they will (J)not find Him;
He has (K)withdrawn from them.
They have (L)dealt treacherously with the Lord,
For they have given birth to [c](M)illegitimate children.
Now the (N)new moon will devour them with their [d]land.

(O)Blow the horn in (P)Gibeah,
And the trumpet in Ramah.
Sound an alarm at Beth-aven:
(Q)Behind you, Benjamin!”
Ephraim will become a (R)desolation in the (S)day of rebuke;
Among the tribes of Israel I (T)make known what is trustworthy.
10 The leaders of Judah have become like those who (U)displace a boundary marker;
On them I will (V)pour out My anger (W)like water.
11 Ephraim is (X)oppressed, broken by judgment,
(Y)Because he was determined to follow [e]man’s command.
12 Therefore I am like a (Z)moth to Ephraim,
And like rottenness to the house of Judah.
13 When Ephraim saw his sickness,
And Judah his [f]sore,
Ephraim then went to (AA)Assyria
And sent word to [g](AB)King Jareb.
But he is (AC)unable to heal you,
Or to cure you of your [h]sore.
14 For I will be (AD)like a lion to Ephraim
And like a young lion to the house of Judah.
(AE)I, yes I, will tear to pieces and go away,
I will carry away, and there will be (AF)no one to rescue.
15 I will go away and return to My place
Until they [i](AG)acknowledge their guilt and seek My face;
In their distress they will (AH)search for Me.

Footnotes

  1. Hosea 5:2 Or slaughter
  2. Hosea 5:4 Or prostitution
  3. Hosea 5:7 Lit strange
  4. Hosea 5:7 Lit portions
  5. Hosea 5:11 Or with some ancient versions, nothingness
  6. Hosea 5:13 Or ulcer
  7. Hosea 5:13 Or another reading is the great king; or the contentious king
  8. Hosea 5:13 Or ulcer
  9. Hosea 5:15 Or suffer their punishment

Impending Judgment on Israel and Judah

Hear this, O priests!
    Give heed, O house of Israel!
Listen, O house of the king!
    For the judgment pertains to you,
for you have been a snare at Mizpah
    and a net spread upon Tabor(A)
and a pit dug deep in Shittim,[a]
    but I will punish all of them.

I know Ephraim,
    and Israel is not hidden from me,
for now, O Ephraim, you have prostituted yourself;
    Israel is defiled.(B)
Their deeds do not permit them
    to return to their God.
For the spirit of prostitution is within them,
    and they do not know the Lord.(C)

Israel’s pride testifies against him;
    Ephraim[b] stumbles in his guilt;
    Judah also stumbles with them.(D)
With their flocks and herds they shall go
    to seek the Lord,
but they will not find him;
    he has withdrawn from them.(E)
They have dealt faithlessly with the Lord,
    for they have borne illegitimate children.
    Now the new moon shall devour them along with their fields.(F)

Blow the horn in Gibeah,
    the trumpet in Ramah.
Sound the alarm at Beth-aven;
    look behind you, Benjamin!(G)
Ephraim shall become a desolation
    in the day of punishment;
among the tribes of Israel
    I declare what is sure.(H)
10 The princes of Judah have become
    like those who remove the landmark;
on them I will pour out
    my wrath like water.(I)
11 Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment,
    because he was determined to go after vanity.[c]
12 Therefore I am like maggots to Ephraim
    and like rottenness to the house of Judah.(J)
13 When Ephraim saw his sickness
    and Judah his wound,
then Ephraim went to Assyria
    and sent to the great king.[d]
But he is not able to cure you
    or heal your wound.(K)
14 For I will be like a lion to Ephraim
    and like a young lion to the house of Judah.
I myself will tear and go away;
    I will carry off, and no one shall rescue.(L)
15 I will return again to my place
    until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face.
    In their distress they will beg my favor:(M)

Footnotes

  1. 5.2 Cn: Meaning of Heb uncertain
  2. 5.5 Heb Israel and Ephraim
  3. 5.11 Gk: Meaning of Heb uncertain
  4. 5.13 Cn: Heb to a king who will contend