Hosea 12
English Standard Version
12 Ephraim feeds on the wind
and pursues (A)the east wind all day long;
they multiply (B)falsehood and violence;
(C)they make a covenant with Assyria,
and (D)oil is carried to Egypt.
The Lord's Indictment of Israel and Judah
2 (E)The Lord has an indictment against Judah
and will punish Jacob according to his ways;
he will repay him according to his deeds.
3 (F)In the womb he took his brother by the heel,
and in his manhood he strove with God.
4 He strove with the angel and prevailed;
he wept and sought his favor.
(G)He met God[a] at Bethel,
and there God spoke with us—
5 the Lord, the God of hosts,
(H)the Lord is his memorial name:
6 “So you, (I)by the help of your God, return,
(J)hold fast to love and justice,
and wait continually for your God.”
7 A merchant, in whose hands are (K)false balances,
he loves (L)to oppress.
8 Ephraim has said, “Ah, but (M)I am rich;
I have found wealth for myself;
in all my labors (N)they cannot find in me iniquity or sin.”
9 (O)I am the Lord your God
from the land of Egypt;
I will again make you (P)dwell in tents,
as in the days of the appointed feast.
10 (Q)I spoke to the prophets;
it was I who multiplied (R)visions,
and through the prophets gave parables.
11 (S)If there is iniquity in Gilead,
they shall surely come to nothing:
(T)in Gilgal they sacrifice bulls;
(U)their altars also are like stone heaps
(V)on the furrows of the field.
12 (W)Jacob fled to the land of Aram;
there Israel (X)served for a wife,
and for a wife he guarded sheep.
13 By (Y)a prophet (Z)the Lord brought Israel up from Egypt,
and by a prophet he was guarded.
14 (AA)Ephraim has given bitter provocation;
so his Lord (AB)will leave his bloodguilt on him
(AC)and will repay him for his disgraceful deeds.
Footnotes
- Hosea 12:4 Hebrew him
Hosea 12
King James Version
12 Ephraim feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind: he daily increaseth lies and desolation; and they do make a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt.
2 The Lord hath also a controversy with Judah, and will punish Jacob according to his ways; according to his doings will he recompense him.
3 He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and by his strength he had power with God:
4 Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Bethel, and there he spake with us;
5 Even the Lord God of hosts; the Lord is his memorial.
6 Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment and wait on thy God continually.
7 He is a merchant, the balances of deceit are in his hand: he loveth to oppress.
8 And Ephraim said, Yet I am become rich, I have found me out substance: in all my labours they shall find none iniquity in me that were sin.
9 And I that am the Lord thy God from the land of Egypt will yet make thee to dwell in tabernacles, as in the days of the solemn feast.
10 I have also spoken by the prophets, and I have multiplied visions, and used similitudes, by the ministry of the prophets.
11 Is there iniquity in Gilead? surely they are vanity: they sacrifice bullocks in Gilgal; yea, their altars are as heaps in the furrows of the fields.
12 And Jacob fled into the country of Syria, and Israel served for a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep.
13 And by a prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt, and by a prophet was he preserved.
14 Ephraim provoked him to anger most bitterly: therefore shall he leave his blood upon him, and his reproach shall his Lord return unto him.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
