Hosea 2

1 Say vnto your brethren, Ammi, and to your sisters, Ruhamah,

“On that day you will call your brothers Ammi, and you will call your sisters Ruhamah.

2 Plead with your mother: plead with her: for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband: but let her take away her fornications out of her sight, and her adulteries from betweene her breasts.

Condemn your mother, condemn her because she is not my wife and I am not her husband. Tell her to stop looking like a prostitute—get rid of the makeup and the provocative clothing.

3 Lest I strippe her naked, and set her as in the day that shee was borne, and make her as a wildernes, and leaue her like a drie land, and slaie her for thirst.

Otherwise I will strip her naked as the day she was born, and make her like a desert, a barren land, and let her die of thirst.

4 And I wil haue no pitie vpon her children: for they be the children of fornications.

I will have no pity on her children because they are children of prostitution.

5 For their mother hath plaied the harlot: she that conceiued them, hath done shamefully: for shee said, I will goe after my louers that giue me my bread and my water, my wooll and my flaxe, mine oyle and my drinke.

For their mother was a prostitute who conceived them in a shameful way. She said, ‘I'll run after my lovers who give me my food and water, my wool and flax and olive oil, and my drink.’

6 Therefore beholde, I will stoope thy way with thornes, and make an hedge, that shee shall not finde her pathes.

That is why I am going to block her path with thorn bushes, and build a stone wall to stop her so she won't find her way.

7 Though shee follow after her louers, yet shall shee not come at them: though shee seeke them, yet shall shee not finde them: then shall she say, I will goe and returne to my first husband: for at that time was I better then nowe.

When she runs after her lovers she won't catch up with them; she'll look for them but she won't find them. Then she'll say, ‘Let me go back to my former husband, because it was better for me then than now.’

8 Nowe she did not knowe that I gaue her corne, and wine, and oyle, and multiplied her siluer and golde, which they bestowed vpon Baal.

She doesn't consider that it was me who gave her grain, new wine, and olive oil; the silver and the gold which I gave her abundantly that they made into an idol of Baal.

9 Therefore wil I returne, and take away my corne in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recouer my wool and my flaxe lent, to couer her shame.

So I will take back my ripened grain and my new wine I gave at harvest time. I will take back my wool and my flax I provided to cover her nakedness.

10 And now will I discouer her lewdnes in the sight of her louers, and no man shall deliuer her out of mine hand.

I will strip her naked while her lovers watch; no one will be able to rescue her from me.

11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast daies, her newe moones, and her Sabbathes, and all her solemne feasts.

I will put a stop to all her festivities: her feasts, new moon celebrations, special Sabbaths—all her festivals.

12 And I wil destroy her vines and her figtrees, whereof she hath said, These are my rewards that my louers haue giuen mee: and I will make them as a forest, and the wilde beasts shall eate them.

I will destroy her vines and fig trees that she said were given to her as payment for being a prostitute. I will turn them into scrub-land; only wild animals will eat the remaining fruit.

13 And I wil visit vpon her the daies of Baalim, wherein shee burnt incense to them: and shee decked her selfe with her earings and her iewels, and shee folowed her louers, and forgate me, saith the Lord.

I will punish her for all the times she offered incense to Baal, dressing herself up, putting on rings and jewelry, going after her lovers, but forgetting about me, declares the Lord.

14 Therefore beholde, I will allure her, and bring her into the wildernesse, and speake friendly vnto her.

See what I'm going to do! I will win her back, taking her into the desert where I will speak to her heart-to-heart.

15 And I will giue her her vineyardes from thence, and the valley of Achor for the doore of hope, and shee shall sing there as in the daies of her youth, and as in the daies when shee came vp out of the land of Egypt.

There I will return her vineyards to her and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will respond to me as she did when she was young, as in the time when she left the land of Egypt.

16 And at that day, sayeth the Lord, thou shalt call me Ishi, and shalt call me no more Baali.

Then on that day, says the Lord, you will call me ‘my husband’ and not ‘my Baal.’

17 For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall be no more remembred by their names.

I will stop her appealing to the Baals—their names won't be mentioned ever again.

18 And in that day wil I make a couenant for them, with the wilde beasts, and with the foules of the heauen, and with that that creepeth vpon the earth: and I will breake the bowe, and the sworde and the battell out of the earth, and will make them to sleepe safely.

At that time I will make a solemn agreement with the wild animals and the birds of the sky and the creeping things of the ground. I will do away with the bow and the sword; I will abolish war from the land so you can lie down in safety.

19 And I wil marry thee vnto me for euer: yea, I will marry thee vnto me in righteousnes, and in iudgement, and in mercy and in compassion.

I will make you my wife forever; I will make you my wife in goodness and justice and love and mercy.

20 I will euen marry thee vnto me in faithfulnes, and thou shalt knowe the Lord.

I will be faithful to you, my wife, and you will know me as the Lord.

21 And in that day I wil heare, saith the Lord, I will euen heare the heauens, and they shall heare the earth,

On that day, declares the Lord, I will answer the heavens and they will answer the earth.

22 And the earth shall heare the corne, and the wine, and the oyle, and they shall heare Izreel.

The earth will answer the grain, and the new wine, and the olive oil, and they shall answer, ‘Jezreel’ (God sows).

23 And I will sowe her vnto me in the earth, and I will haue mercie vpon her, that was not pitied, and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people. And they shall say, Thou art my God.

I will ‘sow’ her for myself in the earth. I will love Lo-ruhamah (unloved) and I will say ‘you are my people’ to Lo-ammi (not my people), and they will say ‘You are my God.’”