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Hosea 9-11
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Hosea 9-11
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Punishment for Israel’s Sin
9 Do not rejoice, O Israel!
Do not exult[a] as other nations do,
for you have prostituted yourself, departing from your God.
You have loved a prostitute’s pay
on all threshing floors.(A)
2 Threshing floor and wine vat shall not feed them,
and the new wine shall fail them.(B)
3 They shall not remain in the land of the Lord,
but Ephraim shall return to Egypt,
and in Assyria they shall eat unclean food.(C)
4 They shall not pour drink offerings of wine to the Lord,
and their sacrifices shall not please him.
Such sacrifices shall be like mourners’ bread;
all who eat of it shall be defiled,
for their bread shall be for their hunger only;
it shall not come to the house of the Lord.(D)
5 What will you do on the day of appointed festival
and on the day of the festival of the Lord?(E)
6 For even if they escape destruction,
Egypt shall gather them;
Memphis shall bury them.
Nettles shall possess their precious things of silver;[b]
thorns shall be in their tents.(F)
7 The days of punishment have come;
the days of recompense have come.
Israel will cry out,[c]
“The prophet is a fool;
the man of the spirit is mad!”
Because of your great iniquity,
your hostility is great.(G)
8 The prophet is a sentinel for my God over Ephraim,
yet a hunter’s snare is on all his ways
and hostility in the house of his God.(H)
9 They have deeply corrupted themselves
as in the days of Gibeah;
he will remember their iniquity;
he will punish their sins.(I)
10 Like grapes in the wilderness,
I found Israel.
Like the first fruit on the fig tree,
in its first season,
I saw your ancestors.
But they came to Baal-peor
and consecrated themselves to a thing of shame
and became detestable like the thing they loved.(J)
11 Ephraim’s glory shall fly away like a bird—
no birth, no pregnancy, no conception!(K)
12 Even if they bring up children,
I will bereave them until no one is left.
Woe to them indeed
when I depart from them!(L)
13 Once I saw Ephraim as a young palm planted in a lovely meadow,[d]
but now Ephraim must lead out his children for slaughter.(M)
14 Give them, O Lord—
what will you give?
Give them a miscarrying womb
and dry breasts.
15 Every evil of theirs began at Gilgal;
there I came to hate them.
Because of the wickedness of their deeds
I will drive them out of my house.
I will love them no more;
all their officials are rebels.(N)
16 Ephraim is stricken,
their root is dried up,
they shall bear no fruit.
Even though they give birth,
I will kill the cherished offspring of their womb.(O)
17 Because they have not listened to him,
my God will reject them;
they shall become wanderers among the nations.(P)
Israel’s Sin and Captivity
10 Israel is a luxuriant vine
that yields its fruit.
The more his fruit increased,
the more altars he built;
as his country improved,
he improved his pillars.(Q)
2 Their heart is false;
now they must bear their guilt.
The Lord[e] will break down their altars
and destroy their pillars.(R)
3 For now they will say:
“We have no king,
for we do not fear the Lord,
and a king—what could he do for us?”
4 They utter mere words;
with empty oaths they make covenants;
so litigation springs up like poisonous weeds
in the furrows of the field.(S)
5 The inhabitants of Samaria tremble
for the calf[f] of Beth-aven.
Its people shall mourn for it,
and its idolatrous priests shall wail[g] over it,
over its glory that has departed from it.(T)
6 The thing itself shall be carried to Assyria
as tribute to the great king.[h]
Ephraim shall be put to shame,
and Israel shall be ashamed of his idol.[i](U)
7 Samaria’s king shall perish
like a chip on the face of the waters.(V)
8 The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel,
shall be destroyed.
Thorn and thistle shall grow up
on their altars.
They shall say to the mountains, “Cover us,”
and to the hills, “Fall on us.”(W)
9 Since the days of Gibeah you have sinned, O Israel;
there they have continued.
Shall not war overtake them in Gibeah?(X)
10 I will come[j] against the wayward people to punish them,
and nations shall be gathered against them
when they are punished[k] for their double iniquity.(Y)
11 Ephraim was a trained heifer
that loved to thresh,
and I spared her fair neck,
but I will make Ephraim break the ground;
Judah must plow;
Jacob must harrow for himself.(Z)
12 Sow for yourselves righteousness;
reap steadfast love;
break up your fallow ground,
for it is time to seek the Lord,
that he may come and rain righteousness upon you.(AA)
13 You have plowed wickedness;
you have reaped injustice;
you have eaten the fruit of lies.
Because you have trusted in your chariots,[l]
in the multitude of your warriors,(AB)
14 therefore the tumult of war shall rise against your people,
and all your fortresses shall be destroyed,
as Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel on the day of battle,
when mothers were dashed in pieces with their children.(AC)
15 Thus it shall be done to you, O Bethel,
because of your great wickedness.
At dawn the king of Israel
shall be utterly cut off.(AD)
God’s Compassion Despite Israel’s Ingratitude
11 When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.(AE)
2 The more I[m] called them,
the more they went from me;[n]
they kept sacrificing to the Baals
and offering incense to idols.(AF)
3 Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk;
I took them up in my[o] arms,
but they did not know that I healed them.(AG)
4 I led them with cords of human kindness,
with bands of love.
I was to them like those
who lift infants to their cheeks.[p]
I bent down to them and fed them.(AH)
5 They shall return to the land of Egypt,
and Assyria shall be their king,
because they have refused to return to me.(AI)
6 The sword rages in their cities;
it consumes their oracle priests
and devours because of their schemes.(AJ)
7 My people are bent on turning away from me.
To the Most High they call,
but he does not raise them up at all.[q](AK)
8 How can I give you up, Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, O Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I treat you like Zeboiim?
My heart recoils within me;
my compassion grows warm and tender.(AL)
9 I will not execute my fierce anger;
I will not again destroy Ephraim,
for I am God and no mortal,
the Holy One in your midst,
and I will not come in wrath.[r](AM)
10 They shall go after the Lord,
who roars like a lion;
when he roars,
his children shall come trembling from the west.(AN)
11 They shall come trembling like birds from Egypt
and like doves from the land of Assyria,
and I will return them to their homes, says the Lord.(AO)
12 [s]Ephraim has surrounded me with lies
and the house of Israel with deceit,
but Judah still walks[t] with God
and is faithful to the Holy One.(AP)
Footnotes
- 9.1 Gk: Heb To exultation
- 9.6 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 9.7 Or will know
- 9.13 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 10.2 Heb he
- 10.5 Gk Syr: Heb calves
- 10.5 Cn: Heb exult
- 10.6 Cn: Heb to a king who will contend
- 10.6 Cn: Heb plan
- 10.10 Cn Compare Gk: Heb In my desire
- 10.10 Gk: Heb bound
- 10.13 Gk: Heb your way
- 11.2 Gk: Heb they
- 11.2 Gk: Heb them
- 11.3 Gk Syr Vg: Heb his
- 11.4 Or who ease the yoke on their jaws
- 11.7 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 11.9 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 11.12 12.1 in Heb
- 11.12 Heb roams or rules
Hosea 9-11
New International Version
Hosea 9-11
New International Version
Punishment for Israel
9 Do not rejoice, Israel;
do not be jubilant(A) like the other nations.
For you have been unfaithful(B) to your God;
you love the wages of a prostitute(C)
at every threshing floor.
2 Threshing floors and winepresses will not feed the people;
the new wine(D) will fail them.
3 They will not remain(E) in the Lord’s land;
Ephraim will return to Egypt(F)
and eat unclean food in Assyria.(G)
4 They will not pour out wine offerings(H) to the Lord,
nor will their sacrifices please(I) him.
Such sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners;(J)
all who eat them will be unclean.(K)
This food will be for themselves;
it will not come into the temple of the Lord.(L)
5 What will you do(M) on the day of your appointed festivals,(N)
on the feast days of the Lord?
6 Even if they escape from destruction,
Egypt will gather them,(O)
and Memphis(P) will bury them.(Q)
Their treasures of silver(R) will be taken over by briers,
and thorns(S) will overrun their tents.
7 The days of punishment(T) are coming,
the days of reckoning(U) are at hand.
Let Israel know this.
Because your sins(V) are so many
and your hostility so great,
the prophet is considered a fool,(W)
the inspired person a maniac.(X)
8 The prophet, along with my God,
is the watchman over Ephraim,[a]
yet snares(Y) await him on all his paths,
and hostility in the house of his God.(Z)
9 They have sunk deep into corruption,(AA)
as in the days of Gibeah.(AB)
God will remember(AC) their wickedness
and punish them for their sins.(AD)
10 “When I found Israel,
it was like finding grapes in the desert;
when I saw your ancestors,
it was like seeing the early fruit(AE) on the fig(AF) tree.
But when they came to Baal Peor,(AG)
they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol(AH)
and became as vile as the thing they loved.
11 Ephraim’s glory(AI) will fly away like a bird(AJ)—
no birth, no pregnancy, no conception.(AK)
12 Even if they rear children,
I will bereave(AL) them of every one.
Woe(AM) to them
when I turn away from them!(AN)
13 I have seen Ephraim,(AO) like Tyre,
planted in a pleasant place.(AP)
But Ephraim will bring out
their children to the slayer.”(AQ)
14 Give them, Lord—
what will you give them?
Give them wombs that miscarry
and breasts that are dry.(AR)
15 “Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal,(AS)
I hated them there.
Because of their sinful deeds,(AT)
I will drive them out of my house.
I will no longer love them;(AU)
all their leaders are rebellious.(AV)
16 Ephraim(AW) is blighted,
their root is withered,
they yield no fruit.(AX)
Even if they bear children,
I will slay(AY) their cherished offspring.”
17 My God will reject(AZ) them
because they have not obeyed(BA) him;
they will be wanderers among the nations.(BB)
10 Israel was a spreading vine;(BC)
he brought forth fruit for himself.
As his fruit increased,
he built more altars;(BD)
as his land prospered,(BE)
he adorned his sacred stones.(BF)
2 Their heart is deceitful,(BG)
and now they must bear their guilt.(BH)
The Lord will demolish their altars(BI)
and destroy their sacred stones.(BJ)
3 Then they will say, “We have no king
because we did not revere the Lord.
But even if we had a king,
what could he do for us?”
4 They make many promises,
take false oaths(BK)
and make agreements;(BL)
therefore lawsuits spring up
like poisonous weeds(BM) in a plowed field.
5 The people who live in Samaria fear
for the calf-idol(BN) of Beth Aven.[b](BO)
Its people will mourn over it,
and so will its idolatrous priests,(BP)
those who had rejoiced over its splendor,
because it is taken from them into exile.(BQ)
6 It will be carried to Assyria(BR)
as tribute(BS) for the great king.(BT)
Ephraim will be disgraced;(BU)
Israel will be ashamed(BV) of its foreign alliances.
7 Samaria’s king will be destroyed,(BW)
swept away like a twig on the surface of the waters.
8 The high places(BX) of wickedness[c](BY) will be destroyed—
it is the sin of Israel.
Thorns(BZ) and thistles will grow up
and cover their altars.(CA)
Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”(CB)
and to the hills, “Fall on us!”(CC)
9 “Since the days of Gibeah,(CD) you have sinned,(CE) Israel,
and there you have remained.[d]
Will not war again overtake
the evildoers in Gibeah?
10 When I please, I will punish(CF) them;
nations will be gathered against them
to put them in bonds for their double sin.
11 Ephraim is a trained heifer
that loves to thresh;
so I will put a yoke(CG)
on her fair neck.
I will drive Ephraim,
Judah must plow,
and Jacob must break up the ground.
12 Sow(CH) righteousness(CI) for yourselves,
reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;(CJ)
for it is time to seek(CK) the Lord,
until he comes
and showers his righteousness(CL) on you.
13 But you have planted wickedness,
you have reaped evil,(CM)
you have eaten the fruit of deception.(CN)
Because you have depended on your own strength
and on your many warriors,(CO)
14 the roar of battle will rise against your people,
so that all your fortresses will be devastated(CP)—
as Shalman(CQ) devastated Beth Arbel on the day of battle,
when mothers were dashed to the ground with their children.(CR)
15 So will it happen to you, Bethel,
because your wickedness is great.
When that day dawns,
the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.(CS)
God’s Love for Israel
11 “When Israel was a child,(CT) I loved(CU) him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.(CV)
2 But the more they were called,
the more they went away from me.[e](CW)
They sacrificed to the Baals(CX)
and they burned incense to images.(CY)
3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them by the arms;(CZ)
but they did not realize
it was I who healed(DA) them.
4 I led them with cords of human kindness,
with ties of love.(DB)
To them I was like one who lifts
a little child to the cheek,
and I bent down to feed(DC) them.(DD)
5 “Will they not return to Egypt(DE)
and will not Assyria(DF) rule over them
because they refuse to repent?(DG)
6 A sword(DH) will flash in their cities;
it will devour(DI) their false prophets
and put an end to their plans.
7 My people are determined to turn(DJ) from me.(DK)
Even though they call me God Most High,
I will by no means exalt them.
8 “How can I give you up,(DL) Ephraim?(DM)
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah?
How can I make you like Zeboyim?(DN)
My heart is changed within me;
all my compassion(DO) is aroused.(DP)
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger,(DQ)
nor will I devastate(DR) Ephraim again.
For I am God, and not a man(DS)—
the Holy One(DT) among you.
I will not come against their cities.
10 They will follow the Lord;
he will roar(DU) like a lion.(DV)
When he roars,
his children will come trembling(DW) from the west.(DX)
11 They will come from Egypt,
trembling like sparrows,
from Assyria,(DY) fluttering like doves.(DZ)
I will settle them in their homes,”(EA)
declares the Lord.
Israel’s Sin
Footnotes
- Hosea 9:8 Or The prophet is the watchman over Ephraim, / the people of my God
- Hosea 10:5 Beth Aven means house of wickedness (a derogatory name for Bethel, which means house of God).
- Hosea 10:8 Hebrew aven, a reference to Beth Aven (a derogatory name for Bethel); see verse 5.
- Hosea 10:9 Or there a stand was taken
- Hosea 11:2 Septuagint; Hebrew them
- Hosea 11:12 In Hebrew texts this verse (11:12) is numbered 12:1.
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)
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