Hosea 12

New Catholic Bible

¹ Ephraim has surrounded me with lies,
    and the house of Israel with deceit.
But Judah still remains aligned with God
    and is faithful to the Holy One.
² Ephraim chases the wind,
    ever pursuing the east wind throughout the day.
Numerous are his lies and treachery;
    he makes a treaty with Assyria
    while sending oil to Egypt.
³ The Lord has a charge to bring against Judah;
    he will punish Jacob as his conduct deserves;
    he will requite him according to his deeds.
⁴ While still in the womb he supplanted his brother,
    and as a man he struggled with God.
⁵ He contended with the angel and prevailed;
    he wept and entreated his favor.
He met God at Bethel
    and spoke with him there.
⁶ The Lord, the God of hosts,
    the Lord is his name.
⁷ Turn back with God’s help;
    remain loyal and act justly,
    and always put your trust in him.
⁸ Merchants use dishonest scales,
    for they love to defraud.
⁹ Ephraim says,
    “I have become very rich;
    I have made a fortune.”
But all his wealth will avail him nothing
    because of the guilt incurred by his sin.
¹⁰ I am the Lord, your God
    who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
I will make you live in tents yet again
    as in the days of the appointed festival.
¹¹ I spoke to the prophets,
    to whom I granted many visions
    and through whom I will speak in parables.
¹² Gilead is a hotbed of iniquity;
    the people there are worthless.
In Gilgal they sacrifice bulls;
    their altars are like piles of stones
    on a plowed field.
¹³ Jacob fled to the country of Aram;
    Israel did service to obtain a wife,
    paying for her by tending sheep.
¹⁴ By a prophet^[a] the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt,
    and by a prophet they were protected.
¹⁵ Ephraim gave bitter provocation to the Lord;
    therefore he will suffer for the blood he has shed,
    and the Lord will punish him for his insults.