Hosea 11
International Standard Version
God Loves Israel
11 “When Israel was a young child I loved him,
and from Egypt I called my son.
2 The more I called out to them,
the farther they fled from me;[a]
they sacrificed to Baals,[b]
burning incense to carved images.
3 Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
supporting them by their arms,
but they never knew that I was healing them.
4 I guided them with human kindness,
with loving reins.
I acted toward them
like one who removes a yoke from their neck;
I bent down and fed them.
5 “They will not return to the land of Egypt;
instead, the Assyrian will be their king,
because they kept refusing to repent.
6 The sword will fall on their cities,
consuming and devouring their fortified gates,[c]
despite their planning.
7 My people are determined to turn away from me;
though they call to the Most High,
no one is worshiping.
8 “How can I give up on you, Ephraim?
I will deliver you, will I not, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah?
I can’t make you like Zeboim,[d] can I?
My heart stirs within me;
my compassion also fans into flame!
9 I will not act in my anger;
I will not return to destroy Ephraim,
For I am God,
and not a human—
the Holy One among you—
so I will not enter the city in anger.[e]
10 They will go after the Lord,
who will roar like a lion;
and when he roars,
the children will come trembling from the west.
11 Trembling like a bird, they will come out of Egypt,
and as a dove from the land of Assyria;
and I will settle them in their houses,”
declares the Lord.
12 [f]“Ephraim surrounds me with lies,
and the house of Israel surrounds me[g] with deceit,
But Judah still rules with God,
and remains faithful, along with the godly ones.”
Footnotes
- Hosea 11:2 So LXX. MT reads They called to them, so they went away from them.
- Hosea 11:2 I.e. Canaanite deities
- Hosea 11:6 Lit. devouring the bars
- Hosea 11:8 cf. Deut 29:23
- Hosea 11:9 The Heb. lacks in anger
- Hosea 11:12 This v. is 12:1 in MT
- Hosea 11:12 The Heb. lacks surrounds me
Hosea 11
Contemporary English Version
God's Love for His People
11 (A) When Israel was a child,
I loved him, and I called
my son out of Egypt.
2 But as the saying goes,
“The more they were called,
the more they rebelled.”[a]
They never stopped offering
incense and sacrifices
to the idols of Baal.
3 I took Israel by the arm
and taught them to walk.
But they would not admit
that I was the one
who had healed them.
4 I led them with kindness
and with love,
not with ropes.
I held them close to me;[b]
I bent down to feed them.
5 But they rejected me,
and so must return to Egypt;
now Assyria will rule them.
6 War will visit their cities,
and their plans will fail.[c]
7 My people are determined
to reject me for a god
they think is stronger,
but he can't help.[d]
8 (B) Israel, I can't let you go.
I can't give you up.
How could I possibly destroy you
as I did the towns of Admah
and Zeboiim?[e]
I just can't do it.
My feelings for you
are much too strong.
9 Israel, I won't lose my temper
and destroy you again.
I am the Holy God—
not merely some human,
and I won't stay angry.
10 I, the Lord, will roar like a lion,
and my children will return,
trembling from the west.
11 They will come back,
fluttering like birds from Egypt
or like doves from Assyria.
Then I will bring them
back to their homes.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
Israel and Judah Compared
12 Israel is deceitful to me,
their loyal and holy God;
they surround me with lies,
and Judah worships
other gods.[f]
Footnotes
- 11.2 But … rebelled: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 11.4 I held … to me: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 11.6 fail: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 6.
- 11.7 help: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 7.
- 11.8 Admah and Zeboiim: When the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, he also destroyed these two towns (see Deuteronomy 29.23).
- 11.12 and Judah worships other gods: Or “but Judah remains faithful.”
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.
