Add parallel Print Page Options

“Listen to this, you priests!

    Listen, house of Israel,
    and give ear, house of the king!
For the judgment is against you;
    for you have been a snare at Mizpah,
    and a net spread on Tabor.
The rebels are deep in slaughter;
    but I discipline all of them.
I know Ephraim,
    and Israel is not hidden from me;
for now, Ephraim, you have played the prostitute.
    Israel is defiled.
Their deeds won’t allow them to turn to their God;
    for the spirit of prostitution is within them,
    and they don’t know Yahweh.
The pride of Israel testifies to his face.
    Therefore Israel and Ephraim will stumble in their iniquity.
    Judah also will stumble with them.
They will go with their flocks and with their herds to seek Yahweh;
    but they won’t find him.
    He has withdrawn himself from them.
They are unfaithful to Yahweh;
    for they have borne illegitimate children.
    Now the new moon will devour them with their fields.

“Blow the cornet in Gibeah,
    and the trumpet in Ramah!
    Sound a battle cry at Beth Aven, behind you, Benjamin!
Ephraim will become a desolation in the day of rebuke.
    Among the tribes of Israel, I have made known that which will surely be.
10 The princes of Judah are like those who remove a landmark.
    I will pour out my wrath on them like water.
11 Ephraim is oppressed,
    he is crushed in judgment;
    Because he is intent in his pursuit of idols.
12 Therefore I am to Ephraim like a moth,
    and to the house of Judah like rottenness.

13 “When Ephraim saw his sickness,
    and Judah his wound,
    Then Ephraim went to Assyria,
    and sent to king Jareb:
but he is not able to heal you,
    neither will he cure you of your wound.
14 For I will be to Ephraim like a lion,
    and like a young lion to the house of Judah.
I myself will tear in pieces and go away.
    I will carry off, and there will be no one to deliver.
15 I will go and return to my place,
    until they acknowledge their offense,
    and seek my face.
    In their affliction they will seek me earnestly.”

Judgment on Israel and Judah

Hear this, priests!
        Pay attention, house of Israel!
    Listen, house of the king!
        The judgment concerns you because you have been a trap at Mizpah,
            and a net spread out upon Tabor.
In their wicked condition, they have sunk deep into corruption;
        I will correct them through judgment.
I know Ephraim;
    Israel doesn’t escape my eye;
        for now Ephraim
        you have acted like a prostitute;
    Israel is defiled.
Their deeds don’t allow them
        to return to their God,
        because the spirit of prostitution is within them,
            and they don’t know the Lord.
Israel’s pride is a witness against him;
        both Israel and Ephraim stagger because of their guilt;
        Judah staggers with them.
With their sheep and their cattle they will go
        to seek the Lord,
        but they will not find him;
        he has withdrawn from them.
They have acted faithlessly against the Lord;
        for their children have produced illegitimate children.
        Now the new moon will devour them[a] along with their fields.

Blow a horn in Gibeah;
        blow a trumpet in Ramah.
    Sound the warning at Beth-aven:
        “Look behind you, Benjamin!”
Ephraim will become a horrible place
        on the Judgment Day.
    Against the tribes of Israel
        I will certainly announce what is to take place.
10 The princes of Judah act like raiders who steal the land;
        I will pour out my anger like water upon them.
11 Ephraim is under pressure from its enemies;
        Ephraim’s rights aren’t protected.
        This is because Ephraim chose to pursue worthless things.
12 Therefore, I am like a moth to Ephraim,
        and like decay to the house of Judah.
13 When Ephraim saw his sickness,
        and Judah his wound,
    then Ephraim went to Assyria,
        and Ephraim sent for the great king.
    But he could not heal them;
        nor could he cure their wound.
14 I am like a lion to Ephraim,
        like a young lion to the house of Judah.
    I am the one who tears the prey and goes forth;
        no one can snatch it from me.
15 I will leave so that I can return to my place
        until they pay for their deeds,
        until they seek me.
    In their distress,
        they will beg for my favor:

Footnotes

  1. Hosea 5:7 Heb uncertain