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Hosea 9
Expanded Bible
Hosea 9
Expanded Bible
Israel’s Punishment
9 Israel, do not rejoice;
don’t shout for joy as the other nations do.
You have been ·like a prostitute against [unfaithful to] your God.
You love the pay of prostitutes on every threshing floor.
2 But the threshing floor and the winepress will not feed the people,
and ·there won’t be enough new wine [or the new wine will deceive them].
3 The people will not stay in the Lord’s land.
·Israel [L Ephraim] will return ·to being captives as they were in [L to] Egypt,
and in Assyria they will eat ·food that they are not allowed to eat [L unclean food; C food forbidden by the law; Lev. 11].
4 The Israelites will not ·give [pour out] offerings of wine to the Lord;
and their sacrifices will not please him.
Their sacrifices will be like ·food that is eaten at a funeral [mourners bread; Deut. 26:14];
it is unclean, and everyone who eats it becomes unclean [C because touched by someone who has touched a dead body; Num. 19:22].
Their food will only satisfy their hunger;
·they cannot sacrifice it in [L it will not come into] the Temple.
5 What will you do then on the day of ·feasts [your appointed festivals]
and on the day of the Lord’s festival?
6 [L Look; T Behold] Even if the people ·are not destroyed [escape destruction],
Egypt will ·capture [or receive; L gather] them;
Memphis [C a city in Egypt famous for its tombs] will bury them.
·Weeds [Briers; Nettles] will grow over their silver treasures,
and thorns will ·drive them out of [possess; inherit] their tents.
7 The time of punishment has come,
the ·time to pay for sins [L days of recompense/vengeance].
Let Israel know this:
·You think the [L The] prophet is a fool,
and ·you say the [L the] ·spiritual person [Spirit-inspired person] is crazy.
·You [or This is because you] have sinned very much,
and your hatred is great.
8 ·Is Israel a watchman?
Are God’s people prophets? [or The prophet is a watchman over Ephraim on God’s behalf]
·Everywhere Israel goes, traps are set for him [or …yet traps/snares await him on all his paths].
·He is an enemy [or …and hatred even] in God’s house.
9 ·The people of Israel [L They] have gone deep into ·sin [depravity; corruption]
as ·the people of Gibeah did [L in the days of Gibeah; Judg. 19–20].
The Lord will remember ·the evil things they have done [their wickedness/iniquity],
and he will punish their sins.
10 “When I found Israel,
it was like finding grapes in the ·desert [wilderness].
Your ·ancestors [fathers; forefathers] were like
finding the first figs on the fig tree.
But when they came to Baal Peor,
they ·began worshiping an idol [L consecrated/dedicated themselves to a shameful thing; Num. 25:3–18],
and they became as ·hateful [detestable] as the thing they ·worshiped [L loved].
11 ·Israel’s [L Ephraim’s; 4:17] glory will fly away like a bird;
there will be no more pregnancy, no more births, no more conception.
12 But even if ·the Israelites [L they] bring up children,
I will take them all away.
·How terrible it will be for [L Woe to] them
when I ·go away [turn away; depart] from them!
13 I have seen Israel, like ·Tyre [or a young palm],
·given [L planted in] a pleasant place.
But ·the people of Israel [L Ephraim; 4:17] will soon bring out
their children to ·be killed [slaughter; or the slayer].”
14 Lord, ·give them what they should have [L give them].
What will you give them?
·Make their women unable to have children [L Give them wombs that miscarry];
give them ·dried-up breasts that cannot feed their babies [L dry breasts].
15 “The Israelites were very wicked in Gilgal [C a center of false worship in Israel; 4:15],
so I have hated them there.
Because of the sinful things they have done,
I will ·force them to leave [drive them out of] my land.
I will no longer love them;
their ·leaders [princes] ·have turned against me [are rebels/rebellious].
16 ·Israel [L Ephraim] is ·beaten down [struck down; or blighted];
its root is ·dying [withered; dried up], and it ·has [bears] no fruit.
If they have more children,
I will kill the ·children they love [L cherished offspring of their womb].”
17 My God will reject them,
because they have not obeyed him;
they will ·wander [be wanderers/fugitives] among the nations.
Hosea 9
New International Version
Hosea 9
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.”
Footnotes
- Hosea 9:8 Or The prophet is the watchman over Ephraim, / the people of my God
Expanded Bible (EXB)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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