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.

“Come, and we turn back to YHWH, For He has torn, and He heals us, He strikes, and He binds us up.

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

He revives us after two days, In the third day He raises us up, And we live before Him.

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.

And we know—we pursue to know YHWH, His going forth is prepared as the dawn, And He comes in as a shower to us, As spring rain [and] autumn 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 do I do to you, O Ephraim? What do I do to you, O Judah? Your goodness [is] as a cloud of the morning, And as dew rising early—going.

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.

Therefore I have hewed by prophets, I have slain them by sayings of My mouth, And My judgments go forth to the light.

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

For kindness I desired, and not sacrifice, And a knowledge of God above burnt-offerings.

7 But they are as a man transgressing a covenant:

And they, as Adam, transgressed a covenant, There they dealt treacherously against Me.

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

Gilead [is] a city of workers of iniquity, Slippery from 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 as bands wait for a man, A company of priests murder—the way to Shechem, For they have done wickedness.

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

In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing, There [is] the whoredom of Ephraim—Israel is defiled.

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

Also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed to you, In My turning back [to] the captivity of My people!”