Beginning
The Word of the Lord to Hosea
1 A message from the Lord came[a] to Beeri’s son Hosea[b] during the reigns of[c] Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and during the reign of[d] Joash’s son Jeroboam, who was king of Israel.
Hosea’s Wife and Family
2 When a message from the Lord came to Hosea, the Lord told him,[e] “Go marry a prostitute and have children with her,[f] because the land is prostituting itself by departing from the Lord.” 3 So he went out and married Diblaim’s daughter Gomer. She conceived with him and gave birth to a son.
Naming the Children
4 The Lord told Hosea,[g] “Name the child[h] ‘Jezreel,’[i] because in a little while I’ll avenge the blood that was shed by Jehu’s dynasty at Jezreel. I’ll put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. 5 At that time I’ll shatter the military strength[j] of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”
6 Gomer[k] conceived again and gave birth to a daughter, so the Lord[l] told Hosea,[m] “Name her ‘Lo-ruhamah,’[n] because I will no longer be showing mercy to the house of Israel, nor will I forgive them. 7 But I’ll have mercy on the house of Judah, and I’ll save them by the Lord their God—I will not save them by the bow, by the sword, by battle, by horses, or by cavalry.”
8 After Gomer[o] had weaned Lo-ruhamah, she conceived again and gave birth to a son, 9 so the Lord[p] told Hosea,[q] “Name him ‘Lo-ammi,’[r] because you are not my people, and I will not be your God.[s] 10 [t]Despite this, the number of the people of Israel will be like ocean sand, which can neither be measured nor counted. And the time will come when instead of it being said,[u] ‘You are not my people,’ it will be said,[v] ‘You are children of the living God.’ 11 [w]And the people of Judah and the people of Israel will be united as one. They will appoint for themselves a single leader and will take dominion over[x] the land, for great will be the day of Jezreel. 2 1 [y]So call your brothers ‘Ammi,’[z] and your sisters ‘Ruhamah.’”[aa]
Gomer is Rebuked
2 “Call your mother to account, call her—
for she is not my wife,
and I’m not her husband.
Let her do away with her seductive looks
and remove her adultery from between her breasts.
3 Otherwise, I’ll strip her naked—
as she was on the day she was born—
make her like a wilderness,
turn her into a parched land,
and cause her to die of thirst.
4 Furthermore, I’ll not show pity on her children,
since they are children of prostitution.
5 Indeed, their mother has committed prostitution—
the one who has been conceiving them has acted disgracefully—
when she said,
‘I’m going after my lovers,
who provide me food and water,
as well as my wool, my flax,
my oil, and my wine.’
6 “Look how I’m blocking her[ab] path with thorns
and building a wall to hinder[ac] her,
so she can’t find her way.
7 She will pursue her lovers,
but she won’t catch up with them.
She will seek them,
but she won’t find them.
Then she will say,
‘I’ll go back and return to my first husband,
because it was better for me then than now.’
8 She didn’t recognize
that it was I who provided her grain, wine, and oil,
and it was I who gave her silver,
while they crafted gold for Baal.
9 “Therefore I’ll return
and take back my grain at harvest time
and my new wine in its season.
I’ll take back my wool and my flax
that was to have covered her nakedness.
10 So now I’ll reveal her lewdness to the eyes of her lovers,
and no man will rescue her from my control.[ad]
11 I’ll put a stop to her mirth,
along with her celebrations, her New Moons, her Sabbaths,[ae] and all of her festive assemblies.
12 I’ll destroy her vines and her fig trees,
about which she said,
‘These are the earnings that my lovers paid me.
I’ll make them grow into a forest,
and the wild animals will eat from them.’
13 I’ll punish her for the time she has devoted to the Baals,[af]
to whom she burned incense,
and for whom she put on her earrings and jewels
so she could go after her lovers and forget me,”
declares the Lord.
Alluring a Wayward Wife
14 “Therefore, look! I will now allure her.
I will make her go out to the wilderness,
and will speak to her heart.
15 There I will restore her vineyards to her,
and the Valley of Achor will become a doorway to hope.
There she will respond as she did in her youth,
when she came up from Egypt.”
The Restoration of Israel
16 “It will come about at that time,”
declares the Lord,
“that you will address me as ‘My husband,’
and you will no longer call me ‘My master’.[ag]
17 I will remove the names of the Baals[ah] from her vocabulary[ai]—
they will not be remembered by their names anymore.
18 I will make a covenant with them at that time,
a covenant[aj] with the wild animals of the field,
with the birds of the air,
and with the creatures of the ground.
I will banish[ak] the battle bow, the sword, and war from the earth.
I will cause my people[al] to lie down where it is safe.
19 I will make you my wife forever—
I will make you my wife in a way that is righteous,
in a manner that is just,
by a love that is gracious,
and by a motive that is mercy.
20 I will make you my wife because of my[am] faithfulness,
and you will know the Lord.
21 “It will come about at that time that I will respond,”
declares the Lord,
“I will respond to the heavens,
and they will respond to the earth.
22 The earth will respond with grain, new wine, and oil,
and they will respond to Jezreel.[an]
23 I will plant my people[ao] in the land for myself.
I will show mercy on her who has received no mercy[ap]
I will say to those who are not my people,[aq] ‘You are my people!’
and they will say, ‘You are[ar] my God.’”
Hosea Reconciles with His Wife
3 Then the Lord told me: “Go love your wife[as] again, even though she is being loved by another and is committing adultery. Love her the same way[at] the Lord loves the people of Israel, even though they look to other gods and love raisin cakes.”[au] 2 So I bought her back for myself for fifteen pieces of silver and one and a half omers[av] of barley.
3 I told her, “You will remain with me a long time,[aw] you won’t be promiscuous, you won’t be involved with any man, and I’ll do the same.”[ax]
4 Likewise, the people of Israel will dwell a long time[ay] without a king, without a prince, without sacrifice, without sacred[az] pillars, and with neither ephod nor teraphim.[ba] 5 Afterward, the people of Israel will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come in awe to the Lord and to his goodness in the last days.
God Accuses Israel
4 “Hear this message from the Lord, people of Israel.
Indeed, the Lord brings a charge
against the people who live in the land—
for there is no truth and no gracious love
or knowledge of God in the land.
2 Swearing, lying, murder, theft, and adultery are rampant,
and blood mingles with blood.
3 Therefore the land will mourn,
and all who live there will languish,
along with the wild animals of the field and the birds of the air.
Even the fish in the sea will disappear.
4 “Let no one fight or bring charges against another,
for my dispute is with you, priest.
5 So you will stumble during the day,
the prophet also will stumble with you at night,
and I will destroy your mother.[bb]
6 My people are destroyed because they lack knowledge of me.[bc]
Because you rejected that knowledge,
I will reject you as a priest for me.
Since you forget the Law of your God,
I will also forget your children.
7 “The more they increased in number,[bd]
the more they sinned against me,
so I will change their glory into shame.
8 They feed on the sin of my people;
they purpose in their heart to transgress.
9 So it will be: like people, like priest.
I will punish them for their lifestyles,
rewarding them according to their behavior.
10 They will eat,
but will not be satisfied.
They will engage in prostitution,
but they won’t increase,
because they have stopped listening to the Lord.
11 “Sexual immorality, wine, and fresh wine seduce the heart of my people.[be]
12 My people seek counsel from their piece of wood,
and their diviner’s rod[bf] speaks to them.
For a spirit of prostitution causes them to go astray;
in their immorality they desert their God.
13 They offer sacrifices on the mountain tops,
burning offerings on the hills,
under oaks, poplars, and terebinth[bg] trees,
since their shade is very good.
Therefore your daughters are prostitutes
and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.
14 However, I’m not going to punish your daughters
when they commit prostitution,
nor your daughters-in-law
when they commit adultery,
because their men are themselves immoral—
they offer sacrifices with prostitutes.
These people who aren’t discerning will stumble.
15 “Even though you prostitute yourself, Israel—
let not Judah incur guilt—
don’t go to Gilgal,
or visit Beth-aven,
or swear an oath using the Lord’s name.[bh]
16 For Israel is as obstinate as a stubborn mule![bi]
Nevertheless, will not the Lord feed them like a lamb in a broad pasture?
17 Ephraim has become entwined with idols;
leave him alone!
18 While drinking to excess, they prostitute themselves.
They’re in love with dishonor.
19 A wind storm will carry them away in its embrace,
and their sacrifices will bring them shame.”
Judgment against Israel
5 “Hear this, priests,
pay attention, house of Israel,
listen, royal family!
For judgment is coming your way,[bj]
because you have been a trap to Mizpah,
a snare spread out on Mount[bk] Tabor.
2 The rebels are deep into their slaughter;
I am punishing them all.
3 I know Ephraim,
and Israel cannot hide from me,
since you, Ephraim, have been acting like a prostitute,
defiling Israel.
4 “Their actions hinder them from turning to their God,
because a spirit of fornication is in their midst,
and the Lord they do not know.
5 The arrogance of Israel testifies against him;
therefore Israel and Ephraim will stumble in their iniquity,
and Judah with them.
6 They will go with their flocks and herds
to seek the Lord,
but they will not find him;
he has withdrawn from them.
7 They have been unfaithful to the Lord,
having raised unbelieving children.
In the coming month they will be devoured,
along with their fields.[bl]
8 “Sound the trumpet in Gibeah,
and the alarm in Ramah.
Cry out at Beth-aven
Go out,[bm] Benjamin!
9 Ephraim will be desolate
when it is rebuked.
I have made known among the tribes of Israel
what will surely come about.
10 The princes of Judah have become
like those who move boundary markers:
I will pour out my anger on them like water.
11 Ephraim is crushed,
broken by judgment,
because he[bn] willingly pursued idols.[bo]
12 Therefore I will consume[bp] Ephraim like a moth,
and the house of Judah as rottenness consumes.
13 When Ephraim examined his illness
and Judah his injury,
then Ephraim went to Assyria,
and inquired of the great king;
but he could not cure you
nor heal your injury.
14 Therefore I will be like a lion to Ephraim,
and like a young lion to the house of Judah.
I—even I—will tear them[bq] to pieces,
and then I will leave.
I will take them[br] away,
and there will be no rescue.
15 “I will leave and go back to my place
until they admit their offense
and seek my face.
When affliction comes to them,
they will eagerly seek me.”
A Call for Israel to Repent
6 “Come, let us return to the Lord;
even though he has torn us,[bs]
he will heal us.
Even though he has wounded us,
he will bind our wounds.[bt]
2 After two days, he will restore us to life,
on the third day he will raise us up,
and we will live in his presence.
3 Let us know,
let us pursue knowledge of the Lord;
his coming is as certain as the dawn.
He will come to us like the rain,
like the autumn and spring rains come on the earth.
4 “What am I to do with you, Ephraim?
What am I to do with you, Judah?
Your love is like a morning rain cloud—
it passes away like the morning dew.
5 Therefore I cut them[bu] to pieces by the prophets,
killing them by the words from my mouth.
The verdict against you shines like a beacon.
6 For it is love that I seek,
and not sacrifice;
knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 “But like Adam,[bv] they broke the covenant;
in this they have acted deceitfully against me.
8 Gilead is a lawless town;
it is polluted by bloodshed.
9 Like a gang of thieves that stalk a man,
priests commit murder along the road to Shechem,
committing shameful crimes.
10 I have seen a horrible evil in the house of Israel—
Ephraim’s promiscuity.
Israel is defiled.
11 “So, Judah, a harvest has been appointed for you
when I restore my people from captivity.”
God Accuses Israel
7 “When I was healing Israel,
Ephraim’s sin was uncovered,
along with Samaria’s wickedness.
While they craft lying schemes,
the thief invades,
and the gang of thieves plunders outside.
2 It never occurs to them that I remember all their sin.
Now their actions have caught up with them,
and they have my attention.[bw]
3 They please the king with their evil,
and the princes with their dishonesty.
4 All of them are adulterers—
they burn like an oven prepared by the baker,
who has ceased stoking it
until the dough is leavened.
5 “On the king’s festival day
the princes got drunk from wine,
so the king[bx] joined the mockers.
6 For they have stirred up themselves[by] like an oven
as they lie in ambush.
Their baker sleeps through the night;
in the morning, the oven[bz] will be blazing like a fire.
7 They all burn like an oven;
they have consumed their judges;
all their kings have fallen—
not even one of them calls on me.
8 “Ephraim compromises with[ca] the nations;
he’s a half-baked cake.[cb]
9 Foreigners have consumed his strength,
and he hasn’t noticed.
Furthermore, his head is sprinkled with gray hair,
but he doesn’t realize it.
10 Israel’s arrogance testifies against him;[cc]
but they do not return to the Lord their God,
nor seek him in all of this.
11 “Ephraim is also like a silly dove,
lacking sense:[cd]
They call out to Egypt,
and turn toward Assyria.
12 When they go,
I’ll cast my net over them.
I’ll bring them down, as one shoots[ce] birds in the sky.
I’ll chasten them,
as the assembly has already heard.
13 Woe to them—
because they have run away from me.
Ruin to them—
because they have sinned against me.
Even though I redeemed them,
they spread lies against me.
14 They will not cry to me from their heart—
instead, they wail on their beds.
They gather together to eat and drink,[cf]
turning away from me.
15 “Though I have taught them
and strengthened their arms,
nevertheless they plot evil against me.
16 They return—but not to the Most High.
They are like a defective weapon.[cg]
Their princes will fall by the sword
because of their raging tongue,
and they will be a laughingstock in the land of Egypt.”
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.