Hosea’s Unfaithful Wife

The word of the Lord that came to Hosea the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

The Family of Hosea

When the Lord began to speak by Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea: “Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry And children of harlotry, For the land has committed great harlotry By departing from the Lord.”

Then the Lord said to him: “Call his name Jezreel, For in a little while I will avenge the bloodshed of Jezreel on the house of Jehu, And bring an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel.

Yet I will have mercy on the house of Judah, Will save them by the Lord their God, And will not save them by bow, Nor by sword or battle, By horses or horsemen.”

The Lord’s Love for His Unfaithful People

Say to your brethren, ‘My people,’ And to your sisters, ‘Mercy is shown.’

I will punish her For the days of the Baals to which she burned incense. She decked herself with her earrings and jewelry, And went after her lovers; But Me she forgot,” says the Lord.

“And it shall be, in that day,” Says the Lord, “That you will call Me ‘My Husband,’ And no longer call Me ‘My Master,’

I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, And you shall know the Lord.

“It shall come to pass in that day That I will answer,” says the Lord; “I will answer the heavens, And they shall answer the earth.

Israel Will Return to God

Then the Lord said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by a lover and is committing adultery, just like the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods and love the raisin cakes of the pagans.”

Afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They shall fear the Lord and His goodness in the latter days.

God’s Charge Against Israel

Hear the word of the Lord, You children of Israel, For the Lord brings a charge against the inhabitants of the land: “There is no truth or mercy Or knowledge of God in the land.

For they shall eat, but not have enough; They shall commit harlotry, but not increase; Because they have ceased obeying the Lord.

“Though you, Israel, play the harlot, Let not Judah offend. Do not come up to Gilgal, Nor go up to Beth Aven, Nor swear an oath, saying, ‘As the Lord lives’—

“For Israel is stubborn Like a stubborn calf; Now the Lord will let them forage Like a lamb in open country.

“They do not direct their deeds Toward turning to their God, For the spirit of harlotry is in their midst, And they do not know the Lord.

“With their flocks and herds They shall go to seek the Lord, But they will not find Him; He has withdrawn Himself from them.

They have dealt treacherously with the Lord, For they have begotten pagan children. Now a New Moon shall devour them and their heritage.

A Call to Repentance

Come, and let us return to the Lord; For He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up.

Let us know, Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, Like the latter and former rain to the earth.

And the pride of Israel testifies to his face, But they do not return to the Lord their God, Nor seek Him for all this.

The Apostasy of Israel

“Set the trumpet to your mouth! He shall come like an eagle against the house of the Lord, Because they have transgressed My covenant And rebelled against My law.

For the sacrifices of My offerings they sacrifice flesh and eat it, But the Lord does not accept them. Now He will remember their iniquity and punish their sins. They shall return to Egypt.

They shall not dwell in the Lord’s land, But Ephraim shall return to Egypt, And shall eat unclean things in Assyria.

They shall not offer wine offerings to the Lord, Nor shall their sacrifices be pleasing to Him. It shall be like bread of mourners to them; All who eat it shall be defiled. For their bread shall be for their own life; It shall not come into the house of the Lord.