Hosea 6
World English Bible
6 “Come! Let’s return to Yahweh;
for he has torn us to pieces,
and he will heal us;
he has injured us,
and he will bind up our wounds.
2 After two days he will revive us.
On the third day he will raise us up,
and we will live before him.
3 Let’s acknowledge Yahweh.
Let’s press on to know Yahweh.
As surely as the sun rises,
Yahweh will appear.
He will come to us like the rain,
like the spring rain that waters the earth.”
4 “Ephraim, what shall I do to you?
Judah, what shall I do to you?
For your love is like a morning cloud,
and like the dew that disappears early.
5 Therefore I have cut them to pieces with the prophets;
I killed them with the words of my mouth.
Your judgments are like a flash of lightning.
6 For I desire mercy, and not sacrifice;
and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 But they, like Adam, have broken the covenant.
They were unfaithful to me, there.
8 Gilead is a city of those who work iniquity;
it is stained with blood.
9 As gangs of robbers wait to ambush a man,
so the company of priests murder on the path toward Shechem,
committing shameful crimes.
10 In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing.
There is prostitution in Ephraim.
Israel is defiled.
11 “Also, Judah, there is a harvest appointed for you,
when I restore the fortunes of my people.
Hosea 6
Holman Christian Standard Bible
A Call to Repentance
6 Come, let us return to the Lord.(A)
For He has torn us,(B)
and He will heal us;(C)
He has wounded us,
and He will bind up our wounds.(D)
2 He will revive us after two days,(E)
and on the third day He will raise us up
so we can live in His presence.(F)
3 Let us strive to know the Lord.(G)
His appearance is as sure as the dawn.(H)
He will come to us like the rain,(I)
like the spring showers that water the land.
The Lord’s First Lament
4 What am I going to do with you, Ephraim?(J)
What am I going to do with you, Judah?
Your loyalty is like the morning mist(K)
and like the early dew that vanishes.
5 This is why I have used the prophets
to cut them down;[a](L)
I have killed them with the words of My mouth.
My judgment strikes like lightning.[b]
6 For I desire loyalty and not sacrifice,
the knowledge of God(M) rather than burnt offerings.(N)
7 But they, like Adam,[c] have violated the covenant;(O)
there they have betrayed Me.(P)
8 Gilead is a city of evildoers,(Q)
tracked with bloody footprints.(R)
9 Like raiders who wait in ambush for someone,(S)
a band of priests murders on the road to Shechem.(T)
They commit atrocities.(U)
10 I have seen something horrible(V) in the house of Israel:
Ephraim’s promiscuity is there;(W) Israel is defiled.
11 A harvest is also appointed for you, Judah.(X)
Footnotes
- Hosea 6:5 Or have cut down the prophets
- Hosea 6:5 LXX, Syr, Tg; MT reads Your judgments go out as light
- Hosea 6:7 Or they, as at Adam, or they, like men,
- Hosea 6:11 Or you. Judah, when I
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