Hosea 12
1 Ephraim loh khohli dongah luem tih kanghawn a hloem. Hnin takuem ah laithae tih rhoelrhanah te a ping sak. Assyria neh paipi a saii uh tih Egypt la situi a khuen.
[The leaders of] Israel are constantly wavering [about seeking help from other countries]. [Seeking their help is as useless as] [MET] chasing the wind. They pile up their lies and violent acts. [First, ] they make a treaty with Assyria, and [then they] send olive oil to [the rulers of] Egypt [to seek their help].
2 BOEIPA he Judah neh tuituknah om. Jakob te a longpuei bangla a cawh vetih a khoboe bangla anih te a thuung ni.
Yahweh [says that he] will bring accusations against [the leaders of] Judah, and that he will punish [the descendants of] Jacob for what they have done.
3 Bungko khuiah a maya te a uelh sak tih Pathen te a thahuem neh a hnueih.
[When Jacob was] in his mother’s womb, he grabbed his brother [Esau’s] heel [because he wanted to be born first]. When Jacob grew up, he wrestled with God.
4 Puencawn te khaw a hnueih tih a noeng. Rhap tih anih te a hloep. Amah te Bethel ah a hmuh tih mamih taengah pahoi a thui.
He struggled with [the one who had appeared to him in the form of] an angel, and Jacob defeated him, but [then] he cried and asked the angel to bless him. [Later], God came to Jacob at Bethel and talked with him there.
5 Yahweh ngawn tah caempuei Pathen la a om dongah amah mingthen khaw Yahweh ni.
[That was] the Commander of the armies of angels whose name is Yahweh [who talked with him]!
6 Tedae nang tah na Pathen taengla mael laeh. Sitlohnah neh tiktamnah he ngaithuen lamtah na Pathen te lamtawn yoeyah lah.
But you [people of Israel] must return to your God! You must faithfully love [him], and you must do what is fair/just and always depend on him.
7 Hnoyoi loh a kut dongah thailatnah cooi a khueh tih hnaemtaek ham a lungnah.
The merchants [among you] use scales that do not weigh correctly; they love/like to cheat people.
8 Ephraim loh, “Ka boei ngawn, kamah hamla thahuem ka dang, ka thaphu boeih ni, ka khuiah tholhnah la thaesainah hmuh uh mahpawh,” a ti.
[The people of] Israel boast, saying “We are [very] rich [DOU]; and we got all that money by our own efforts, and without committing any sin.”
9 Egypt kho lamkah parhi te nangmih kah Pathen Yahweh kamah long ni nang te dap khuiah tingtunnah khohnin kah bangla koep kho kan sak sak eh.
“I am Yahweh your God, [the one who brought your ancestors] out of Egypt. [And some day] I will force you to live in tents again [like your ancestors did] when [they celebrated] the Festival [of Living in Temporary Shelters].
10 Tonghma rhoek lamloh kan thui tih ka mangthui khaw yet coeng. Tonghma rhoek kut lamlong khaw ka puet sak.
[Many times] I spoke to the prophets, and I gave them many visions, and I gave them parables to tell [to the people].”
11 Gilead kah boethae a om atah Gilgal ah om khaw a poeyoek. Vaito a nawn uh akhaw amih kah hmueihtuk te lai kong ah lungkuk bangla om.
[The people of] Gilead [city] are [RHQ] extremely wicked; they are worthless. The people sacrifice bulls in Gilgal [city], but their altars will [soon] become like [SIM] piles of stone [at the edge of] a plowed field.
12 Jakob te Aram khohmuen la yong coeng. Israel he huta hamla thotat tih a yuu hamla a dawn.
[Your ancestor] Jacob fled [from his brother Esau] and went to northwest Mesopotamia. He worked [for his uncle Laban for many years] to get a wife; he took care of [his uncle’s] sheep [to pay] for her.
13 BOEIPA loh Israel te Egypt lamloh tonghma kut neh a khuen tih tonghma kut neh a ngaithuen.
[Many years later, ] Yahweh enabled a prophet to bring the [ancestors of you] people of Israel here from Egypt; that prophet, [Moses], took care of them.
14 Ephraim loh kosidung te a veet dongah a thii te amah soah coe ni. A kokhahnah te a boei loh amah taengah a thuung ni.
[But now the people of] Israel have caused [Yahweh] to become very angry; Yahweh says that they deserve to die because they caused [many others] to die [MTY]; he will pay them back for the sins that they have committed against him and for insulting him.
