Osee 6

1 In their affliction they will seek me early, saying, Let us go, and return to the Lord our God; for he has torn, and will heal us; he will strike, and bind us up.

In their affliction they will rise early to me: Come, and let us return to the Lord:

2 After two days he will heal us: in the third day we shall arise, and live before him, and shall know [him]:

For he hath taken us, and he will heal us: he will strike, and he will cure us.

3 let us follow on to know the Lord: we shall find him ready as the morning, and he will come to us as the early and latter rain to the earth.

He will revive us after two days: on the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. We shall know, and we shall follow on, that we may know the Lord. His going forth is prepared as the morning light, and he will come to us as the early and the latter rain to the earth.

4 What shall I do to you, Ephraim? What shall I do to you, Juda? whereas your mercy is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew that goes away.

What shall I do to thee, O Ephraim? what shall I do to thee, O Juda? your mercy is as a morning cloud, and as the dew that goeth away in the morning.

5 Therefore have I mown down your prophets; I have slain them with the word of my mouth: and my judgment shall go forth as the light.

For this reason have I hewed them by the prophets, I have slain them by the words of my mouth: and thy judgments shall go forth as the light.

6 For I will [have] mercy rather than sacrifice, and the knowledge of God rather than whole burnt offerings.

For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice: and the knowledge of God more than holocausts.

7 But they are as a man transgressing a covenant:

But they, like Adam, have transgressed the covenant, there have they dealt treacherously against me.

8 there the city Galaad despised me, working vanity, troubling water.

Galaad is a city of workers of idols, supplanted with blood.

9 And your strength [is that] of a robber: the priests have hid the way, they have murdered [the people of] Sicima; for they have wrought iniquity in the house of Israel.

And like the jaws of highway robbers, they conspire with the priests who murder in the way those that pass out Sichem: for they have wrought wickedness.

10 I have seen horrible [things] there, [even] the fornication of Ephraim: Israel and Juda are defiled;

I have seen a horrible thing in the house of Israel: the fornications of Ephraim there: Israel is defiled.

11 begin together grapes for yourself, when I turn the captivity of my people.

And thou also, O Juda, set thee a harvest, when I shall bring back captivity of my people.