HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1164
H O S EA 1 1
Plow up the hard ground of your hearts,
for now is the time to seek the Lord,
that he may come
and shower righteousness upon you.’
13
14
15
“But you have cultivated wickedness
and harvested a thriving crop of sins.
You have eaten the fruit of lies—
trusting in your military might,
believing that great armies
could make your nation safe.
Now the terrors of war
will rise among your people.
All your fortifications will fall,
just as when Shalman destroyed
Beth-arbel.
Even mothers and children
were dashed to death there.
You will share that fate, Bethel,
because of your great wickedness.
When the day of judgment dawns,
the king of Israel will be completely
destroyed.
The LORD’s Love for Israel
1 “When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and I called my son out of Egypt.
2 But the more I called to him,
the farther he moved from me,*
offering sacrifices to the images of Baal
and burning incense to idols.
3 I myself taught Israel* how to walk,
leading him along by the hand.
But he doesn’t know or even care
that it was I who took care of him.
4 I led Israel along
with my ropes of kindness and love.
I lifted the yoke from his neck,
and I myself stooped to feed him.
11
5
6
7
8
9
“But since my people refuse to return to me,
they will return to Egypt
and will be forced to serve Assyria.
War will swirl through their cities;
their enemies will crash through
their gates.
They will destroy them,
trapping them in their own evil plans.
For my people are determined to desert me.
They call me the Most High,
but they don’t truly honor me.
“Oh, how can I give you up, Israel?
How can I let you go?
How can I destroy you like Admah
or demolish you like Zeboiim?
My heart is torn within me,
and my compassion overflows.
No, I will not unleash my fierce anger.
I will not completely destroy Israel,
for I am God and not a mere mortal.
I am the Holy One living among you,
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and I will not come to destroy.
For someday the people will follow me.
I, the Lord, will roar like a lion.
And when I roar,
my people will return trembling from
the west.
Like a flock of birds, they will come
from Egypt.
Trembling like doves, they will return
from Assyria.
And I will bring them home again,”
says the Lord.
Charges against Israel and Judah
12*Israel surrounds me with lies and deceit,
but Judah still obeys God
and is faithful to the Holy One.*
12
people of Israel* feed on the wind;
they chase after the east wind all
day long.
They pile up lies and violence;
they are making an alliance with Assyria
while sending olive oil to buy support
from Egypt.
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
1*The
Now the Lord is bringing charges against
Judah.
He is about to punish Jacob* for all his
deceitful ways,
and pay him back for all he has done.
Even in the womb,
Jacob struggled with his brother;
when he became a man,
he even fought with God.
Yes, he wrestled with the angel and won.
He wept and pleaded for a blessing
from him.
There at Bethel he met God face to face,
and God spoke to him*—
the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies,
the Lord is his name!
So now, come back to your God.
Act with love and justice,
and always depend on him.
But no, the people are like crafty
merchants
selling from dishonest scales—
they love to cheat.
Israel boasts, “I am rich!
I’ve made a fortune all by myself!
No one has caught me cheating!
My record is spotless!”
11:2 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads the more they called to
him, the farther he moved from them. 11:3 Hebrew Ephraim,
referring to the northern kingdom of Israel; also in 11:8, 9, 12.
11:12a Verse 11:12 is numbered 12:1 in Hebrew text.
11:12b Or and Judah is unruly against God, the faithful Holy
One. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain. 12:1a Verses
12:1-14 are numbered 12:2-15 in Hebrew text. 12:1b Hebrew
Ephraim, referring to the northern kingdom of Israel; also
in 12:8, 14. 12:2 Jacob sounds like the Hebrew word for
“deceiver.” 12:4 As in Greek and Syriac versions; Hebrew
reads to us.