On that day I will also make a covenant for them With the animals of the field, The birds of the sky, And the crawling things of the ground. And I will eliminate the bow, the sword, and war from the land, And will let them lie down in safety.

I will sow her for Myself in the land. I will also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion, And I will say to those who were not My people, ‘You are My people!’ And they will say, ‘You are my God!’”

Hosea’s Redemption of Gomer

Then the Lord said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by her husband, yet is committing adultery, as the Lord loves the sons of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love raisin cakes.”

So I purchased her for myself for fifteen shekels of silver, and a homer and a lethech of barley.

Then I said to her, “You shall live with me for many days. You shall not play the prostitute, nor shall you have another man; so I will also be toward you.”

For the sons of Israel will live for many days without a king or leader, without sacrifice or memorial stone, and without ephod or household idols.

Afterward the sons of Israel will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king; and they will come trembling to the Lord and to His goodness in the last days.

God’s Controversy with Israel

Listen to the word of the Lord, you sons of Israel, Because the Lord has a case against the inhabitants of the land, For there is no faithfulness, nor loyalty, Nor knowledge of God in the land.

There is oath-taking, denial, murder, stealing, and adultery. They employ violence, so that bloodshed follows bloodshed.

Therefore the land mourns, And everyone who lives in it languishes Along with the animals of the field and the birds of the sky, And even the fish of the sea disappear.

So you will stumble by day, And the prophet also will stumble with you by night; And I will destroy your mother.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Since you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the Law of your God, I also will forget your children.

The more they multiplied, the more they sinned against Me; I will change their glory into shame.

They feed on the sin of My people, And long for their wrongdoing.

And it will be, like people, like priest; So I will punish them for their ways And repay them for their deeds.

My people consult their wooden idol, and their diviner’s wand informs them; For a spirit of infidelity has led them astray, And they have been unfaithful, departing from their God.

They offer sacrifices on the tops of the mountains And burn incense on the hills, Under oak, poplar, and terebinth, Because their shade is pleasant. Therefore your daughters play the prostitute, And your brides commit adultery.

I will not punish your daughters when they play the prostitute, Or your brides when they commit adultery, Because the men themselves slip away with the prostitutes And offer sacrifices with temple prostitutes; So the people without understanding are ruined.

Since Israel is stubborn Like a stubborn cow, Will the Lord now pasture them Like a lamb in a large field?

Their liquor is gone, They prostitute themselves continually; Their rulers dearly love shame.

The wind wraps them in its wings, And they will be put to shame because of their sacrifices.

The People’s Apostasy Rebuked

Hear this, you priests! Pay attention, house of Israel! Listen, you of the house of the king! For the judgment applies to you, Because you have been a trap at Mizpah, And a net spread out on Tabor.

Their deeds will not allow them To return to their God. For a spirit of infidelity is within them, And they do not know the Lord.

Moreover, the pride of Israel testifies against him, And Israel and Ephraim stumble in their wrongdoing; Judah also has stumbled with them.

They will go with their flocks and herds To seek the Lord, but they will not find Him; He has withdrawn from them.