Hosea 4

1 “Hear a word of YHWH, sons of Israel, For a strife [is] to YHWH with inhabitants of the land, For there is no truth, nor kindness, Nor knowledge of God in the land;

Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel, for the Lord shall enter into judgment with the inhabitants of the land: for there is no truth, and there is no mercy, and there is no knowledge of God in the land.

2 Swearing, and lying, and murdering, And stealing, and committing adultery—have increased, And blood has touched against blood.

Cursing, and lying, and killing, and theft, and adultery have overflowed, and blood hath touched blood.

3 Therefore the land mourns, And every dweller is weak in it, With the beast of the field, And with the bird of the heavens, And the fishes of the sea—they are removed.

Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth in it shall languish with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of the air: yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be gathered together.

4 Only, let no one strive, nor reprove a man, And your people [are] as those striving with a priest.

But yet let not any man judge: and let not a man be rebuked: for thy people are as they that contradict the priest.

5 And you have stumbled in the day, And a prophet has also stumbled with you in the night, And I have cut off your mother.

And thou shalt fall today, and the prophet also shall fall with thee: in the night I have made thy mother to be silent.

6 My people have been cut off for lack of knowledge, Because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being priest to Me, And you forget the Law of your God—I forget your sons, I also!

My people have been silent, because they had no knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will reject thee, that thou shalt not do the office of priesthood to me: and thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I also will forget thy children.

7 According to their abundance so they sinned against Me, I change their glory into shame.

According to the multitude of them so have they sinned against me: I will change their glory into shame.

8 The sin of My people they eat, And to their iniquity lift up their soul.

They shall eat the sins of my people, and shall lift up their souls to their iniquity.

9 And it has been, like people, like priest, And I have charged on it its ways, And its habitual doings I return to it.

And there shall be like people like priest: and I will visit their ways upon them, and I will repay them their devices.

10 And they have eaten, and are not satisfied, They have gone whoring, and do not increase, For they have left off taking heed to YHWH.

And they shall eat and shall not be filled: they have committed fornication, and have not ceased: because they have forsaken the Lord in not observing his law.

11 Whoredom, and wine, and new wine, take the heart,

Fornication, and wine, and drunkenness take away the understanding.

12 My people at its staff asks and its rod declares to it, For a spirit of whoredoms has caused to err, And they go whoring from under their God.

My people have consulted their stocks, and their staff hath declared unto them: for the spirit of fornication hath deceived them, and they have committed fornication against their God.

13 On tops of the mountains they sacrifice, And on the hills they make incense, Under oak, and poplar, and terebinth, For good [is] its shade.

They offered sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burnt incense upon the hills: under the oak, and the poplar, and the turpentine tree, because the shadow thereof was good: therefore shall your daughters commit fornication, and your spouses shall be adulteresses.

14 Therefore your daughters commit whoredom, And your spouses commit adultery, I do not see after your daughters when they commit whoredom, And after your spouses when they commit adultery, For they with the harlots are separated, And with the whores they sacrifice, A people that does not understand kicks.

I will not visit upon your daughters when they shell commit fornication, and upon your spouses when they shall commit adultery: because themselves conversed with harlots, and offered sacrifice with the effeminate, and the people that doth not understand shall be beaten.

15 Though you [are] a harlot, O Israel, Do not let Judah become guilty, And do not come to Gilgal, nor go up to Beth-Aven, Nor swear, YHWH lives.

If thou play the harlot, O Israel, at least let not Juda offend: and go ye not into Galgal, and come not up into Bethaven, and do not swear: The Lord liveth.

16 For Israel has turned aside as a stubborn heifer, Now YHWH feeds them as a lamb in a large place.

For Israel hath gone astray like a wanton heifer: now will the Lord feed them, as a lamb in a spacious place.

17 Ephraim is joined to idols, leave him alone.

Ephraim is a partaker with idols, let him alone.

18 Sour [is] their drink, They have gone whoring diligently, Her protectors have thoroughly loved shame.

Their banquet is separated, they have gone astray by fornication: they that should have protected them have loved to bring shame upon them.

19 Wind has distressed her with its wings, And they are ashamed of their sacrifices!”

The wind hath bound them up in its wings, and they shall be confounded because of their sacrifices.