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“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    He has withdrawn himself from them.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.”

The Failure of Israel’s Leaders

“Hear this, you priests.
    Pay attention, you leaders of Israel.
Listen, you members of the royal family.
    Judgment has been handed down against you.
For you have led the people into a snare
    by worshiping the idols at Mizpah and Tabor.
You have dug a deep pit to trap them at Acacia Grove.[a]
    But I will settle with you for what you have done.
I know what you are like, O Ephraim.
    You cannot hide yourself from me, O Israel.
You have left me as a prostitute leaves her husband;
    you are utterly defiled.
Your deeds won’t let you return to your God.
    You are a prostitute through and through,
    and you do not know the Lord.

“The arrogance of Israel testifies against her;
    Israel and Ephraim will stumble under their load of guilt.
    Judah, too, will fall with them.
When they come with their flocks and herds
    to offer sacrifices to the Lord,
they will not find him,
    because he has withdrawn from them.
They have betrayed the honor of the Lord,
    bearing children that are not his.
Now their false religion will devour them
    along with their wealth.[b]

“Sound the alarm in Gibeah!
    Blow the trumpet in Ramah!
Raise the battle cry in Beth-aven[c]!
    Lead on into battle, O warriors of Benjamin!
One thing is certain, Israel[d]:
    On your day of punishment,
    you will become a heap of rubble.

10 “The leaders of Judah have become like thieves.[e]
    So I will pour my anger on them like a waterfall.
11 The people of Israel will be crushed and broken by my judgment
    because they are determined to worship idols.[f]
12 I will destroy Israel as a moth consumes wool.
    I will make Judah as weak as rotten wood.

13 “When Israel and Judah saw how sick they were,
    Israel turned to Assyria—
to the great king there—
    but he could neither help nor cure them.
14 I will be like a lion to Israel,
    like a strong young lion to Judah.
    I will tear them to pieces!
I will carry them off,
    and no one will be left to rescue them.
15 Then I will return to my place
    until they admit their guilt and turn to me.
For as soon as trouble comes,
    they will earnestly search for me.”

Footnotes

  1. 5:2 Hebrew at Shittim. The meaning of the Hebrew for this sentence is uncertain.
  2. 5:7 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  3. 5:8 Beth-aven means “house of wickedness”; it is being used as another name for Bethel, which means “house of God.”
  4. 5:9 Hebrew Ephraim, referring to the northern kingdom of Israel; also in 5:11, 12, 13, 14.
  5. 5:10 Hebrew like those who move a boundary marker.
  6. 5:11 Or determined to follow human commands. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.