Osee 14

1 Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God; for the people have fallen through your iniquities.

Return, Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled in your iniquity.

2 Take with you words, and turn to the Lord your God: speak to him, that you may not receive [the reward of] unrighteousness, but that you may receive good things: and we will render in return the fruit of our lips.

Take words of repentance with you, and return to the Lord your God. Say to him: Wholly pardon our iniquity, accept that which is good, instead of sacrificing bulls, we offer our praise.

3 Assur shall never save us; we will not mount on horseback; we will no longer say to the works of our hands, Our gods. He who is in you shall pity the orphan.

Assyria will not save us, nor Egyptian warhorses, and we will no more call the work of our hands our gods. For in you orphan Israel finds mercy.

4 I will restore their dwellings, I will love them truly: for he has turned away my wrath from him.

‘I will heal their apostasy, I will love them freely, now that my anger is turned away from them,

5 I will be as dew to Israel: he shall bloom as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Libanus.

I will be as dew to Israel. He will blossom like the lily, he will plant his roots like the cedars of Lebanon,

6 His branches shall spread, and he shall be as a fruitful olive, and his smell shall be as [the smell] of Libanus.

his saplings will spread out, his beauty will be like that of the olive tree, his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon.

7 They shall return, and dwell under his shadow: they shall live and be satisfied with corn, and he shall flower as a vine: his memorial shall be to Ephraim as the wine of Libanus.

People will return and dwell in my shade, they will bring life to new grain. They shall sprout like the vine, and their renown will be like that of the wine of Lebanon.

8 What [has] he to do any more with idols? I have afflicted him, and I will strengthen him: I am as a leafy juniper tree. From me is your fruit found.

Ephraim – what have I to do with idols! It is I the Lord who respond to him and look after him. I am like an evergreen cypress, from me is your fruit found.

9 Who is wise, and will understand these things? or prudent, and will know them? for the ways of the Lord are straight, and the righteous shall walk in them: but the ungodly shall fall therein.

Whoever is wise, let him discern these things, prudent, let him perceive them; For the Lord’s ways are straight, and the righteous walk in them, but the wicked stumble in them.