God Yearns over His People

11 When Israel was a youth I loved him,
And (A)out of Egypt I (B)called My son.
The more [a](C)they called them,
The more they went from [b]them;
They kept (D)sacrificing to the Baals
And (E)burning incense to idols.
Yet it is I who taught Ephraim to walk,
[c]I (F)took them in My arms;
But they did not know that I (G)healed them.
I (H)led them with cords of a man, with bonds of love,
And (I)I became to them as one who lifts the yoke from their jaws;
And I bent down and (J)fed them.

[d]They will not return to the land of Egypt;
But Assyria—he will be [e]their king
Because they (K)refused to return to Me.
The (L)sword will whirl against [f]their cities,
And will demolish [g]their gate bars
And (M)consume them because of their (N)counsels.
So My people are bent on (O)turning from Me.
Though [h]they call [i]them to the One on high,
None at all exalts Him.

(P)How can I give you up, O Ephraim?
How can I surrender you, O Israel?
How can I [j]make you like (Q)Admah?
How can I treat you like (R)Zeboiim?
My heart is turned over within Me,
[k]All My compassions are kindled.
I will (S)not execute My fierce anger;
I will not destroy Ephraim (T)again.
For (U)I am God and not man, the (V)Holy One in your midst,
And I will not come in [l]wrath.
10 They will (W)walk after the Lord,
He will (X)roar like a lion;
Indeed He will roar
And His sons will come (Y)trembling from the west.
11 They will come trembling like birds from (Z)Egypt
And like (AA)doves from the land of (AB)Assyria;
And I will (AC)settle them in their houses, declares the Lord.

12 [m]Ephraim surrounds Me with (AD)lies
And the house of Israel with deceit;
Judah is also unruly against God,
Even against the Holy One who is faithful.

Ephraim Reminded

12 [n]Ephraim feeds on (AE)wind,
And pursues the (AF)east wind continually;
He multiplies lies and violence.
Moreover, [o]he makes a covenant with Assyria,
And oil is carried to Egypt.
The Lord also has a (AG)dispute with Judah,
And will punish Jacob (AH)according to his ways;
He will repay him according to his deeds.
In the womb he (AI)took his brother by the heel,
And in his maturity he (AJ)contended with God.
Yes, he wrestled with the angel and prevailed;
He wept and (AK)sought His favor.
He found Him at (AL)Bethel
And there He spoke with us,
Even the Lord, the God of hosts,
The Lord is His [p](AM)name.
Therefore, (AN)return to your God,
(AO)Observe [q]kindness and justice,
And (AP)wait for your God continually.
A [r]merchant, in whose hands are false (AQ)balances,
He loves to oppress.
And Ephraim said, “Surely I have become (AR)rich,
I have found wealth for myself;
In all my labors they will find in me
(AS)No iniquity, which would be sin.”
But I have been the Lord your God since the land of Egypt;
I will make you (AT)live in tents again,
As in the days of the appointed festival.
10 I have also spoken to the (AU)prophets,
And I [s]gave numerous visions,
And through the prophets I gave (AV)parables.
11 Is there iniquity in Gilead?
Surely they are worthless.
In Gilgal they sacrifice bulls,
Yes, (AW)their altars are like the stone heaps
Beside the furrows of the field.

12 Now (AX)Jacob fled to the [t]land of Aram,
And (AY)Israel worked for a wife,
And for a wife he kept sheep.
13 But by a (AZ)prophet the Lord brought Israel from Egypt,
And by a prophet he was kept.
14 (BA)Ephraim has provoked to bitter anger;
So his Lord will leave his (BB)bloodguilt on him
And bring back his (BC)reproach to him.

Ephraim’s Idolatry

13 (BD)When Ephraim [u]spoke, there was trembling.
He (BE)exalted himself in Israel,
But through (BF)Baal he [v]did wrong and died.
And now they sin more and more,
And make for themselves (BG)molten images,
Idols [w](BH)skillfully made from their silver,
All of them the (BI)work of craftsmen.
They say of them, “Let the [x]men who sacrifice kiss the (BJ)calves!”
Therefore they will be like the (BK)morning cloud
And like dew which [y]soon disappears,
Like (BL)chaff which is blown away from the threshing floor
And like (BM)smoke from a [z]chimney.

Yet I have been the (BN)Lord your God
Since the land of Egypt;
And you were not to know (BO)any god except Me,
For there is no savior (BP)besides Me.
I [aa](BQ)cared for you in the wilderness,
(BR)In the land of drought.
As they had their pasture, they became (BS)satisfied,
And being satisfied, their (BT)heart became proud;
Therefore they (BU)forgot Me.
So I will be (BV)like a lion to them;
Like a (BW)leopard I will [ab]lie in wait by the wayside.
I will encounter them (BX)like a bear robbed of her cubs,
And I will tear open [ac]their chests;
There I will also (BY)devour them like a lioness,
As a wild beast would tear them.

It is your destruction, O Israel,
[ad]That you are (BZ)against Me, against your (CA)help.
10 Where now is your (CB)king
That he may save you in all your cities,
And your (CC)judges of whom you [ae]requested,
“Give me a king and princes”?
11 I (CD)gave you a king in My anger
And (CE)took him away in My wrath.

12 The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up;
His sin is (CF)stored up.
13 The pains of (CG)childbirth come upon him;
He is (CH)not a wise son,
For [af]it is not the time that he should (CI)delay at the opening of the womb.
14 Shall I (CJ)ransom them from the [ag]power of Sheol?
Shall I redeem them from death?
(CK)O Death, where are your thorns?
O Sheol, where is your sting?
(CL)Compassion will be hidden from My sight.

15 Though he (CM)flourishes among the [ah]reeds,
An (CN)east wind will come,
The wind of the Lord coming up from the wilderness;
And his fountain will (CO)become dry
And his spring will be dried up;
It will (CP)plunder his treasury of every precious article.
16 [ai]Samaria will be held (CQ)guilty,
For she has (CR)rebelled against her God.
(CS)They will fall by the (CT)sword,
Their little ones will be (CU)dashed in pieces,
And their pregnant (CV)women will be ripped open.

Footnotes

  1. Hosea 11:2 I.e. God’s prophets
  2. Hosea 11:2 I.e. God’s prophets
  3. Hosea 11:3 So ancient versions; Heb He...His
  4. Hosea 11:5 Lit He
  5. Hosea 11:5 Lit his
  6. Hosea 11:6 Lit his
  7. Hosea 11:6 Lit his
  8. Hosea 11:7 I.e. God’s prophets
  9. Hosea 11:7 Lit him; i.e. Israel
  10. Hosea 11:8 Lit give
  11. Hosea 11:8 Lit Together
  12. Hosea 11:9 Lit excitement
  13. Hosea 11:12 Ch 12:1 in Heb
  14. Hosea 12:1 Ch 12:2 in Heb
  15. Hosea 12:1 Lit they make
  16. Hosea 12:5 Lit memorial
  17. Hosea 12:6 Or loyalty
  18. Hosea 12:7 Or Canaanite
  19. Hosea 12:10 Lit multiplied the vision
  20. Hosea 12:12 Lit field
  21. Hosea 13:1 Or spoke with trembling
  22. Hosea 13:1 Or became guilty
  23. Hosea 13:2 Or according to their own understanding
  24. Hosea 13:2 Lit sacrificers of or, (among) mankind
  25. Hosea 13:3 Lit goes away early
  26. Hosea 13:3 Lit window
  27. Hosea 13:5 Or knew
  28. Hosea 13:7 Or watch
  29. Hosea 13:8 Lit the enclosure of their heart
  30. Hosea 13:9 Or But in Me is your help
  31. Hosea 13:10 Lit said
  32. Hosea 13:13 Lit it is the time that he should not tarry at the breaking forth of children
  33. Hosea 13:14 Lit hand
  34. Hosea 13:15 Or brothers
  35. Hosea 13:16 Ch 14:1 in Heb

Concerning Divorce

19 (A)When Jesus had finished these words, He departed from Galilee and (B)came into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan; and [a]large crowds followed Him, and (C)He healed them there.

Some Pharisees came to [b]Jesus, testing Him and asking, “(D)Is it lawful for a man to [c]divorce his wife for any reason at all?” And He answered and said, “Have you not read (E)that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘(F)For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and (G)the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” They *said to Him, “(H)Why then did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?” He *said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to [d]divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way. And I say to you, (I)whoever [e]divorces his wife, except for [f]immorality, and marries another woman [g]commits adultery[h].”

10 The disciples *said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.” 11 But He said to them, (J)Not all men can accept this statement, but (K)only those to whom it has been given. 12 For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it.”

Jesus Blesses Little Children

13 (L)Then some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But Jesus said, [i](M)Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for (N)the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 15 After laying His hands on them, He departed from there.

The Rich Young Ruler

16 (O)And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain (P)eternal life?” 17 And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but (Q)if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” 18 Then he *said to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, (R)You shall not commit murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; 19 (S)Honor your father and mother; and (T)You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man *said to Him, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?” 21 Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be [j]complete, go and (U)sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have (V)treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” 22 But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.

23 And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, (W)it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I say to you, (X)it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” 25 When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” 26 And looking at them Jesus said to them, (Y)With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

The Disciples’ Reward

27 Then Peter said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” 28 And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when (Z)the Son of Man will sit on [k]His glorious throne, (AA)you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And (AB)everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother [l]or children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive [m]many times as much, and will inherit eternal life. 30 (AC)But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.

Footnotes

  1. Matthew 19:2 Lit many
  2. Matthew 19:3 Lit Him
  3. Matthew 19:3 Or send away
  4. Matthew 19:8 Or send away
  5. Matthew 19:9 Or sends away
  6. Matthew 19:9 Lit fornication
  7. Matthew 19:9 Some early mss read makes her commit adultery
  8. Matthew 19:9 Some early mss add and he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery
  9. Matthew 19:14 Or Permit the children
  10. Matthew 19:21 Or perfect
  11. Matthew 19:28 Lit the throne of His glory
  12. Matthew 19:29 One early ms adds or wife
  13. Matthew 19:29 One early ms reads a hundred times