< Hosea 1 >
1 The word of Jehovah that came to Hosea the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.
2 When Jehovah spoke at the first by Hosea, Jehovah said to Hosea, Go, take to thee a wife of whoredom and children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom, departing from Jehovah.
3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived, and bore him a son.
4 And Jehovah said to him, Call his name Jezreel, for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause the kingdom of the house of Israel to cease.
5 And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.
6 And she conceived again, and bore a daughter. And Jehovah said to him, Call her name Lo-ruhamah, for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel, that I should in any way pardon them.
7 But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by Jehovah their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen.
8 Now when she had weaned Lo-ruhamah, she conceived, and bore a son.
9 And Jehovah said, Call his name Lo-ammi, for ye are not my people, and I will not be yours.
10 Yet the number of the sons of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered. And it shall come to pass that, in the place where it was said to them, Ye are not my people, it shall be said to them, The sons of the living God.
11 And the sons of Judah and the sons of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint themselves one head, and shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel.