The Daily Audio Bible

6 Come, and let us return unto Jehovah; for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. ² After two days will he revive us: on the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live before him. ³ And let us know, let us follow on to know Jehovah: his going forth is sure as the morning; and he will come unto us as the rain, as the latter rain that watereth the earth.

⁴ O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your ^[a]goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the dew that goeth early away. ⁵ Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth: and ^[b]thy judgments are as the light that goeth forth. ⁶ For I desire ^[c]goodness, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt-offerings. ⁷ But they ^[d]like ^[e]Adam have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me. ⁸ Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity; it is stained with blood. ^9 [f]And as troops of robbers wait for a man, so the company of priests murder in the way toward Shechem; yea, they have committed lewdness. ¹⁰ In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing: there whoredom is found in Ephraim, Israel is defiled. ¹¹ Also, O Judah, there is a harvest appointed for thee, when I ^[g]bring back the captivity of my people.

7 When I would heal Israel, then is the iniquity of Ephraim uncovered, and the wickedness of Samaria; for they commit falsehood, and the thief entereth in, and the troop of robbers ^[h]ravageth without. ² And they consider not in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness: now have their own doings beset them about; they are before my face. ³ They make the king glad with their wickedness, and the princes with their lies. ⁴ They are all adulterers; they are as an oven heated by the baker; he ceaseth to stir the fire, from the kneading of the dough, until it be leavened. ⁵ On the day of our king the princes made ^[i]themselves sick with the heat of wine; he stretched out his hand with scoffers. ⁶ For they have ^[j]made ready their heart like an oven, while they lie in wait: their baker sleepeth all the night; in the morning it burneth as a flaming fire. ⁷ They are all hot as an oven, and devour their judges; all their kings are fallen: there is none among them that calleth unto me.

⁸ Ephraim, he mixeth himself among the peoples; Ephraim is a cake not turned. ⁹ Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not: yea, gray hairs are ^[k]here and there upon him, and he knoweth it not. ¹⁰ And the ^[l]pride of Israel doth testify to his face: yet they have not returned unto Jehovah their God, nor sought him, for all this. ¹¹ And Ephraim is like a silly dove, without ^[m]understanding: they call unto Egypt, they go to Assyria. ¹² When they shall go, I will spread my net upon them; I will bring them down as the birds of the heavens; I will chastise them, ^[n]as their congregation hath heard. ¹³ Woe unto them! for they have wandered from me; destruction unto them! for they have trespassed against me: though I would redeem them, yet they have spoken lies against me. ¹⁴ And they have not cried unto me with their heart, but they howl upon their beds: they assemble themselves for grain and new wine; they rebel against me. ¹⁵ Though I have ^[o]taught and strengthened their arms, yet do they devise mischief against me. ¹⁶ They return, but not to him that is on high; they are like a deceitful bow; their princes shall fall by the sword for the rage of their tongue: this shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.

8 ^[p]Set the trumpet to thy mouth. As an eagle he cometh against the house of Jehovah, because they have transgressed my covenant, and trespassed against my law. ² They shall cry unto me, My God, we Israel know thee. ³ Israel hath cast off that which is good: the enemy shall pursue him. ⁴ They have set up kings, but not by me; ^[q]they have made princes, and I knew it not: of their silver and their gold have they made them idols, that they may be cut off. ⁵ He hath cast off thy calf, O Samaria; mine anger is kindled against them: how long will it be ere they attain to innocency? ⁶ For from Israel is even this; the workman made it, and it is no God; yea, the calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces. ⁷ For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: ^[r]he hath no standing grain; the blade shall yield no meal; if so be it yield, strangers shall swallow it up.

⁸ Israel is swallowed up: now are they among the nations as a vessel wherein none delighteth. ⁹ For they are gone up to Assyria, like a wild ass alone by himself: Ephraim hath hired ^[s]lovers. ¹⁰ Yea, though they hire among the nations, now will I gather them; and they ^[t]begin to be diminished by reason of the burden of the king of princes.

¹¹ Because Ephraim hath multiplied altars for sinning, altars have been unto him for sinning. ¹² I wrote for him the ten thousand things of my law; but they are counted as a strange thing. ¹³ As for the sacrifices of mine offerings, they sacrifice flesh and eat it; but Jehovah accepteth them not: now will he remember their iniquity, and visit their sins; they shall return to Egypt. ¹⁴ For Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and builded ^[u]palaces; and Judah hath multiplied fortified cities: but I will send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour the ^[v]castles thereof.

9 Rejoice not, O Israel, ^[w]for joy, like the peoples; ^[x]for thou hast played the harlot, departing from thy God; thou hast loved hire upon every grain-floor. ² The threshing-floor and the winepress shall not feed them, and the new wine shall fail her. ³ They shall not dwell in Jehovah’s land; but Ephraim shall return to Egypt, and they shall eat unclean food in Assyria. ⁴ They shall not pour out wine-offerings to Jehovah, ^[y]neither shall they be pleasing unto him: their sacrifices shall be unto them as the bread of mourners; all that eat thereof shall be polluted; for their bread shall be for their appetite; it shall not come into the house of Jehovah. ⁵ What will ye do in the day of solemn assembly, and in the day of the feast of Jehovah? ⁶ For, lo, they are gone away from destruction; yet Egypt shall gather them up, Memphis shall bury them; their pleasant things of silver, nettles shall possess them; thorns shall be in their tents. ⁷ The days of visitation are come, the days of recompense are come; Israel shall know it: the prophet is a fool, the man that hath the spirit is mad, for the abundance of thine iniquity, and because the enmity is great. ⁸ Ephraim ^[z]was a watchman with my God: as for the prophet, a fowler’s snare is in all his ways, and enmity in the house of his God. ⁹ They have deeply corrupted themselves, as in the days of Gibeah: he will remember their iniquity, he will visit their sins.

¹⁰ I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the first-ripe in the fig-tree at its first season: but they came to Baal-peor, and ^[aa]consecrated themselves unto the ^[ab]shameful thing, and became abominable like that which they loved. ¹¹ As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird: there shall be no birth, and none with child, and no conception. ¹² Though they bring up their children, yet will I bereave them, so that not a man shall be left: yea, woe also to them when I depart from them! ¹³ Ephraim, ^[ac]like as I have seen Tyre, is planted in a pleasant place: but Ephraim shall bring out his children to the slayer. ¹⁴ Give them, O Jehovah—what wilt thou give? give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts. ¹⁵ All their wickedness is in Gilgal; for there I hated them: because of the wickedness of their doings I will drive them out of my house; I will love them no more; all their princes are revolters. ¹⁶ Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear no fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay the beloved fruit of their womb. ¹⁷ My God will cast them away, because they did not hearken unto him; and they shall be wanderers among the nations.

¹ The elder unto Gaius the beloved, whom I love in truth.

² Beloved, I pray that in all things thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. ³ For I ^[a]rejoiced greatly, when brethren came and bare witness unto thy truth, even as thou walkest in truth. ⁴ Greater joy have I none than ^[b]this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.

⁵ Beloved, thou doest a faithful work in whatsoever thou doest toward them that are brethren and strangers withal; ⁶ who bare witness to thy love before the church: whom thou wilt do well to set forward on their journey worthily of God: ⁷ because that for the sake of the Name they went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles. ⁸ We therefore ought to welcome such, that we may be fellow-workers ^[c]for the truth.

⁹ I wrote somewhat unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not. ¹⁰ Therefore, if I come, I will bring to remembrance his works which he doeth, prating against us with wicked words: and not content therewith, neither doth he himself receive the brethren, and them that would he forbiddeth and casteth them out of the church. ¹¹ Beloved, imitate not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: he that doeth evil hath not seen God. ¹² Demetrius hath the witness of all men, and of the truth itself: yea, we also bear witness; and thou knowest that our witness is true.

¹³ I had many things to write unto thee, but I am unwilling to write them to thee with ink and pen: ¹⁴ but I hope shortly to see thee, and we shall speak face to face. Peace be unto thee. The friends salute thee. Salute the friends by name.

Thanksgiving for return from captivity.

A Song of Ascents.