Hosea 10

1 Israel is like a spreading vine that produces fruit for itself. The more fruit they produced, the more altars they built. The more productive the land, the more beautiful they made the sacred pillars.

Israel is a branching vine, full of fruit; as his fruit is increased, so the number of his altars is increased; as the land is fair, so they have made fair pillars.

2 The people have minds that are deceptive, and now they must take responsibility for their guilt. The Lord will break apart their altars and destroy their sacred pillars.

Their mind is taken away; now they will be made waste: he will have their altars broken down, he will give their pillars to destruction.

3 Then they will say, “We have no king, for we do not fear the Lord, and yet what would a king do for us?”

Now, truly, they will say, We have no king, we have no fear of the Lord; and the king, what is he able to do for us?

4 They speak empty words, swearing false promises to make a covenant. Their “justice” flourishes like poisonous weeds in the furrows of a field.

Their words are foolish; they make agreements with false oaths, so punishment will come up like a poison-plant in a ploughed field.

5 Those who live in Samaria tremble in awe at the calf of Beth-aven. Its people mourn for it in their pagan rituals, while its idolatrous priests celebrate its glory. But it will certainly be taken away from them. It will be brought to Assyria as tribute for the great king.

The people of Samaria will be full of fear because of the ox of Beth-aven; its people will have sorrow for it, and its priests will give cries of grief for its glory, for the glory has gone in flight.

6 Ephraim will be disgraced, and Israel will be ashamed at its own decisions.

And they will take it to Assyria and give it to the great king; shame will come on Ephraim, and Israel will be shamed because of its image.

7 Samaria and its king will be destroyed, swept away like a twig on the surface of the water.

As for Samaria, her king is cut off, like mist on the water.

8 The high places of Aven, where Israel sinned, will be demolished, and thorns and thistles will grow over their altars. Then they will call to the mountains, “Bury us!” and to the hills, “Fall on us!”

And the high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, will come to destruction; thorns and waste plants will come up on their altars; they will say to the mountains, Be a cover over us; and to the hills, Come down on us.

9 Since the days of Gibeah you have been sinning, Israel, and you haven't changed. Do the people of Gibeah think that war will not come to them?

O Israel, you have done evil from the days of Gibeah; there they took up their position, so that the fighting against the children of evil might not overtake them in Gibeah.

10 When I choose I will punish the wicked. The nations will be gathered together against them when they are punished for their double crime.

I will come and give them punishment; and the peoples will come together against them when I give them the reward of their two sins.

11 Ephraim is like a trained heifer that loved to thresh the grain, but now I will place a yoke on her strong neck. I will harness Ephraim; Judah will have to pull the plough; and Jacob must break up the ground for himself.

And Ephraim is a trained cow, taking pleasure in crushing the grain; but I have put a yoke on her fair neck; I will put a horseman on the back of Ephraim; Judah will be working the plough, Jacob will be turning up the earth.

12 Sow for yourselves what is right and you will reap unfailing love. Break up the unploughed ground. It's time to go to the Lord until he comes and rains down goodness on you.

Put in the seed of righteousness, get in your grain in mercy, let your unploughed earth be turned up: for it is time to make search for the Lord, till he comes and sends righteousness on you like rain.

13 But instead you have planted wickedness and reaped an evil harvest. You have eaten the fruit of lies, because you trusted in your own strength and in your many warriors.

You have been ploughing sin, you have got in a store of evil, the fruit of deceit has been your food: for you put faith in your way, in the number of your men of war.

14 The terrifying noise of battle will rise against your people, and all your fortresses will be destroyed, just as Shalman devastated Beth Arbel in the time of war. Even mothers and children were dashed to pieces.

So a great outcry will go up from among your people, and all your strong places will be broken, as Beth-arbel was broken by Shalman in the day of war, as the mother was broken on the rocks with her children.

15 This is what will happen to you, Bethel, because of your great wickedness. At dawn, the king of Israel will be utterly destroyed.

So will Beth-el do to you because of your evil-doing; at dawn will the king of Israel be cut off completely.