Hosea 7-8
New American Standard Bible 1995
Ephraim’s Iniquity
7 When I (A)would heal Israel,
The iniquity of Ephraim is uncovered,
And the evil deeds of Samaria,
For they deal (B)falsely;
The thief enters in,
(C)Bandits raid outside,
2 And they do not [a]consider in their hearts
That I (D)remember all their wickedness.
Now their (E)deeds are all around them;
They are before My face.
3 (F)With their wickedness they make the (G)king glad,
And the princes with their (H)lies.
4 They are (I)all adulterers,
Like an oven heated by the baker
Who ceases to stir up the fire
From the kneading of the dough until it is leavened.
5 On the [b]day of our king, the princes (J)became sick with the heat of wine;
He stretched out his hand with (K)scoffers,
6 For their hearts are like an (L)oven
As they approach their [c]plotting;
Their [d]anger [e]smolders all night,
In the morning it burns like a flaming fire.
7 All of them are hot like an oven,
And they consume their (M)rulers;
All their kings have fallen.
(N)None of them calls on Me.
8 Ephraim (O)mixes himself with the [f]nations;
Ephraim has become a cake not turned.
9 (P)Strangers devour his strength,
Yet he (Q)does not know it;
Gray hairs also are sprinkled on him,
Yet he does not know it.
10 Though the (R)pride of Israel testifies against him,
Yet (S)they have not returned to the Lord their God,
Nor have they sought Him, for all this.
11 So (T)Ephraim has become like a silly dove, (U)without [g]sense;
They call to (V)Egypt, they go to (W)Assyria.
12 When they go, I will (X)spread My net over them;
I will bring them down like the birds of the sky.
I will (Y)chastise them in accordance with the [h]proclamation to their assembly.
13 (Z)Woe to them, for they have (AA)strayed from Me!
Destruction is theirs, for they have rebelled against Me!
I (AB)would redeem them, but they speak lies against Me.
14 And (AC)they do not cry to Me from their heart
When they wail on their beds;
For the sake of grain and new wine they [i](AD)assemble themselves,
They (AE)turn away from Me.
15 Although I trained and strengthened their arms,
Yet they (AF)devise evil against Me.
16 They turn, but not [j]upward,
They are like a (AG)deceitful bow;
Their princes will fall by the sword
Because of the [k](AH)insolence of their tongue.
This will be their (AI)derision in the land of Egypt.
Israel Reaps the Whirlwind
8 (AJ)Put the trumpet to your [l]lips!
(AK)Like an eagle the enemy comes (AL)against the house of the Lord,
Because they have (AM)transgressed My covenant
And rebelled against My (AN)law.
2 (AO)They cry out to Me,
“My God, (AP)we of Israel know You!”
3 Israel has rejected the good;
The enemy will pursue him.
4 (AQ)They have set up kings, but not by Me;
They have appointed princes, but I did not know it.
With their (AR)silver and gold they have made idols for themselves,
That [m]they might be cut off.
5 [n]He has rejected your (AS)calf, O Samaria, saying,
“My anger burns against them!”
How long will they be incapable of (AT)innocence?
6 For from Israel is even this!
A (AU)craftsman made it, so it is not God;
Surely the calf of Samaria will be broken to [o]pieces.
7 For (AV)they sow the wind
And they reap the (AW)whirlwind.
The standing grain has no [p]heads;
It yields (AX)no [q]grain.
Should it yield, strangers would swallow it up.
8 Israel is (AY)swallowed up;
They are now among the nations
Like a (AZ)vessel in which no one delights.
9 For they have gone up to (BA)Assyria,
Like (BB)a wild donkey all alone;
Ephraim has (BC)hired [r]lovers.
10 Even though they hire allies among the nations,
Now I will (BD)gather them up;
And they will begin (BE)to [s]diminish
Because of the burden of the (BF)king of princes.
11 Since Ephraim has (BG)multiplied altars for sin,
They have become altars of sinning for him.
12 Though (BH)I wrote for him ten thousand precepts of My (BI)law,
They are regarded as a strange thing.
13 As for My (BJ)sacrificial gifts,
They (BK)sacrifice the flesh and eat it,
But the Lord has taken no delight in them.
Now He will (BL)remember their iniquity,
And (BM)punish them for their sins;
They will return to (BN)Egypt.
14 For Israel has (BO)forgotten his Maker and (BP)built palaces;
And Judah has multiplied fortified cities,
But I will send a (BQ)fire on its cities that it may consume its palatial dwellings.
Footnotes
- Hosea 7:2 Lit say to their heart
- Hosea 7:5 I.e. a festive occasion
- Hosea 7:6 Lit ambush
- Hosea 7:6 So with some ancient versions; M.T. baker
- Hosea 7:6 Lit sleeps
- Hosea 7:8 Lit peoples
- Hosea 7:11 Lit heart
- Hosea 7:12 Lit report
- Hosea 7:14 Or with Gr and many ancient mss gash themselves
- Hosea 7:16 Or possibly to the Most High
- Hosea 7:16 Lit indignation; or cursing
- Hosea 8:1 Lit palate
- Hosea 8:4 Lit he
- Hosea 8:5 Or Your calf has rejected you
- Hosea 8:6 Or splinters
- Hosea 8:7 Lit growth
- Hosea 8:7 Or meal
- Hosea 8:9 Lit loves
- Hosea 8:10 Or suffer for awhile
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
