HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1160
H O S EA 5
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“Though you, Israel, are a prostitute,
may Judah not be guilty of such things.
Do not join the false worship at Gilgal or
Beth-aven,*
and do not take oaths there in the
Lord’s name.
Israel is stubborn,
like a stubborn heifer.
So should the Lord feed her
like a lamb in a lush pasture?
Leave Israel* alone,
because she is married to idolatry.
When the rulers of Israel finish their
drinking,
off they go to find some prostitutes.
They love shame more than honor.*
So a mighty wind will sweep them away.
Their sacrifices to idols will bring them
shame.
The Failure of Israel’s Leaders
1 “Hear this, you priests.
Pay attention, you leaders of Israel.
Listen, you members of the royal family.
Judgment has been handed down
against you.
For you have led the people into a snare
by worshiping the idols at Mizpah
and Tabor.
2 You have dug a deep pit to trap them at
Acacia Grove.*
But I will settle with you for what you
have done.
3 I know what you are like, O Ephraim.
You cannot hide yourself from me,
O Israel.
You have left me as a prostitute leaves her
husband;
you are utterly defiled.
4 Your deeds won’t let you return to your God.
You are a prostitute through and through,
and you do not know the Lord.
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“The arrogance of Israel testifies against her;
Israel and Ephraim will stumble under
their load of guilt.
Judah, too, will fall with them.
When they come with their flocks
and herds
to offer sacrifices to the Lord,
they will not find him,
because he has withdrawn from them.
They have betrayed the honor of the Lord,
bearing children that are not his.
Now their false religion will devour them
along with their wealth.*
“Sound the alarm in Gibeah!
Blow the trumpet in Ramah!
Raise the battle cry in Beth-aven*!
Lead on into battle, O warriors of
Benjamin!
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One thing is certain, Israel*:
On your day of punishment,
you will become a heap of rubble.
“The leaders of Judah have become like
thieves.*
So I will pour my anger on them like a
waterfall.
The people of Israel will be crushed and
broken by my judgment
because they are determined to worship
idols.*
I will destroy Israel as a moth consumes
wool.
I will make Judah as weak as rotten
wood.
“When Israel and Judah saw how sick
they were,
Israel turned to Assyria—
to the great king there—
but he could neither help nor cure them.
I will be like a lion to Israel,
like a strong young lion to Judah.
I will tear them to pieces!
I will carry them off,
and no one will be left to rescue them.
Then I will return to my place
until they admit their guilt and turn
to me.
For as soon as trouble comes,
they will earnestly search for me.”
A Call to Repentance
1 “Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces;
now he will heal us.
He has injured us;
now he will bandage our wounds.
2 In just a short time he will restore us,
so that we may live in his presence.
3 Oh, that we might know the Lord!
Let us press on to know him.
He will respond to us as surely as the arrival
of dawn
or the coming of rains in early spring.”
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“O Israel* and Judah,
what should I do with you?” asks the
Lord.
“For your love vanishes like the morning
mist
and disappears like dew in the sunlight.
4:15 Beth-aven means “house of wickedness”; it is being
used as another name for Bethel, which means “house of
God.” 4:17 Hebrew Ephraim, referring to the northern
kingdom of Israel. 4:18 As in Greek version; the meaning of
the Hebrew is uncertain. 5:2 Hebrew at Shittim. The meaning
of the Hebrew for this sentence is uncertain. 5:7 The meaning
of the Hebrew is uncertain. 5:8 Beth-aven means “house of
wickedness”; it is being used as another name for Bethel, which
means “house of God.” 5:9 Hebrew Ephraim, referring to the
northern kingdom of Israel; also in 5:11, 12, 13, 14. 5:10 Hebrew
like those who move a boundary marker. 5:11 Or determined
to follow human commands. The meaning of the Hebrew is
uncertain. 6:4 Hebrew Ephraim, referring to the northern
kingdom of Israel.