Hosea 7
1 “When I give healing to Israel, Then the iniquity of Ephraim is revealed, And the wickedness of Samaria, For they have worked falsehood, And a thief comes in, A troop has stripped off in the street,
Whenever I want to heal Israel, the sin of Ephraim is exposed, as well as the evil deeds of Samaria, for they practice deceit; a thief comes in, and a marauding band attacks in the street.
2 And they do not say to their heart, [That] I have remembered all their evil, Now their doings have surrounded them, They have been before My face.
They do not realize in their hearts that I remember all their evil deeds. Now their deeds surround them; they are before my face.
3 With their wickedness they make a king glad, And with their lies—princes.
With their evil they make the king glad, and by their lies the officials.
4 All of them [are] adulterers, Like a burning oven of a baker, He ceases from stirring up after kneading the dough, until its leavening.
They are all adulterers, like an oven heated by the baker, who ceases to stir the fire from the kneading of the dough until it is leavened.
5 A day of our king! Princes have defiled themselves [with] the poison of wine, He has drawn out his hand with scorners.
On the day of our king the officials made themselves sick with the heat of wine. He reached out with his hand to those who were mocking.
6 For they have drawn near, Their heart [is] as an oven In their lying in wait—their baker sleeps all night, Morning! He is burning as a flaming fire.
For with hearts like an oven, they devise their deceitful plans. Their anger smolders all night; in the morning it burns high like a flaming fire.
7 All of them are warm as an oven, And they have devoured their judges, All their kings have fallen, There is none calling to Me among them.
They all are as hot as an oven, and they devour those who rule over them. All their kings have fallen; none of them calls on me.
8 Ephraim! He mixes himself among peoples, Ephraim has been an unturned cake.
Ephraim mixes himself among the peoples. Ephraim is a flat cake that has not been turned over.
9 Strangers have devoured his power, And he has not known, Also old age has sprinkled [itself] on him, And he has not known.
Foreigners have devoured his strength, but he does not know it. Gray hairs are sprinkled on him, but he does not know it.
10 And the excellence of Israel has been humbled to his face, And they have not turned back to their God YHWH, Nor have they sought Him for all this.
The pride of Israel testifies against him; however, they have not returned to Yahweh their God, nor have they sought him, in spite of all this.
11 And Ephraim is as a simple dove without heart, Egypt they called on—[to] Asshur they have gone.
Ephraim is like a dove, gullible and without sense, calling out to Egypt, then flying to Assyria.
12 When they go I spread over them My net, As the bird of the heavens I bring them down, I discipline them as their congregation has heard.
When they go, I will spread my net over them, I will bring them down like the birds of the sky. I will punish them in their flocking together.
13 Woe to them, for they wandered from Me, Destruction to them, for they transgressed against Me, And I ransom them, and they have spoken lies against Me,
Woe to them! For they have strayed from me. Devastation is coming to them! They have rebelled against me! I would have rescued them, but they spoke lies against me.
14 And have not cried to Me with their heart, but howl on their beds; They assemble themselves for grain and new wine, They turn aside against Me.
They have not cried to me with all their heart, but they wail on their beds. They gather together for grain and new wine, and they turn away from me.
15 And I instructed—I strengthened their arms, And concerning Me they think evil!
Though I trained them and strengthened their arms, they are now plotting evil against me.
16 They turn back—not to the Most High, They have been as a deceitful bow, Their princes fall by sword, From the insolence of their tongue, This [is] their derision in the land of Egypt!”
They return, but they do not return to me, the Most High. They are like a slack bow. Their officials will fall by the sword because of the insolence of their tongues. This will become their mockery in the land of Egypt.
