Hosea 1
1 The word of the Lord 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.
The Lord sent a message to Hosea son of Beeri at the time when Uzziah, Jotham, and Ahaz were the kings of Judah, and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was the king of Israel.
2 The beginning of the Lord’s conversation with Hosea. And the Lord said to Hosea: “Go, take to yourself a wife of fornications, and make for yourself sons of fornications, because, by fornicating, the land will fornicate away from the Lord.”
The Lord began speaking through Hosea by telling him, “Go and take a wife who is a prostitute and have children born to a prostitute because those living in this land have committed terrible prostitution by turning away from the Lord.”
3 And he went out and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; and she conceived and bore him a son.
So Hosea went and married Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim. She became pregnant and bore Hosea a son.
4 And the Lord said to him: “Call his name Jezreel because, after a little while, I will visit the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and I will put the kingdom of the house of Israel to rest.
The Lord told Hosea, “Call him Jezreel, because I am going to punish the house of Jehu for the blood he shed at Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel.
5 And in that day, I will crush the stronghold of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.”
On that day I will break Israel's military power in the valley of Jezreel.”
6 And after a while, she conceived and bore a daughter. And he said to him: “Call her name, Without Mercy, for I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel, but I will utterly forget them.
Gomer became pregnant again and gave birth to a daughter. The Lord told Hosea, “Call her Lo-ruhamah, because I will no longer love the house of Israel and certainly not forgive them.
7 Yet I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. And I will not save them by bow and sword and battle and horses and horsemen.”
But I will have pity on the house of Judah, and I will save them—but I will not save them by bow or sword or war or horses and riders.”
8 And she weaned her, who was called Without Mercy. And she conceived and bore a son.
After Gomer had weaned Lo-ruhamah she became pregnant again and gave birth to a son.
9 And he said: “Call his name, Not My People, for you are not my people, and I will not be yours.
The Lord told Hosea, “Call him Lo-ammi, because you are not my people and I am not your God.
10 And the number of the sons of Israel will be like the sand of the sea, which is without measure and cannot be numbered. And in the place where it will be said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ this will happen: it will be said to them, ‘You are the sons of the living God.’
Even so the number of the people of Israel will be like the sand on the seashore that cannot be measured or counted. Then right there at the place where they were told ‘you are not my people’ they will be called ‘the children of the living God.’
11 And the sons of Judah, and the sons of Israel, will be gathered together. And they will place over themselves one head, and they will rise up from the earth, for great is the day of Jezreel.”
The people of Israel and the people of Judah will be gathered together and they will choose one leader for themselves and they will take possession of the land, and the day of Jezreel will be great.”
