Hosea 2

1 Say ye unto your brethren, O Ammi ["O my people"], and unto your sisters, O Ruhamah ["O compassionated one"]:

'Say ye to your brethren — Ammi, And to your sisters — Ruhamah.

2 Contend ye with your mother, contend, for she is no wife of mine, and I am no husband of hers, Let her then put away her paramours from before her, and her partners in adultery, from her embraces:

Plead ye with your mother — plead, (For she [is] not My wife, and I [am] not her husband, ) And she turneth her whoredoms from before her, And her adulteries from between her breasts,

3 Lest I strip off her under-clothing, and set her forth to view, as in the day she was born, —and make her like a wilderness, and render her like a land that is parched, and suffer her to die of thirst;

Lest I strip her naked. And have set her up as [in] the day of her birth, And have made her as a wilderness, And have set her as a dry land, And have put her to death with thirst.

4 And, on her children, not have compassion, —because, the children of paramours, they are.

And her sons I do not pity, For sons of whoredoms [are] they,

5 For their mother, hath been unchaste, and she that conceived them, hath caused shame, —for she said, Let me go after my lovers! who used to give my bread, and my water, my wool, and my flax, mine oil, and my drink.

For gone a-whoring hath their mother, Acted shamefully hath their conceiver, For she hath said, I go after my lovers, Those giving my bread and my water, My wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.

6 Therefore, behold me! hedging up her way, with thorns, —and I will wall her in, and, her footpaths, shall she not find.

Therefore, lo, I am hedging up thy way with thorns, And I have made for her a wall, And her paths she doth not find.

7 And, when she shall pursue her lovers, and not overtake them, and shall seek them and not find, then will she say, Let me go my way now! and return unto my first husband, for it was better with me, then, than, now!

And she hath pursued her lovers, And she doth not overtake them, And hath sought them, and doth not find, And she hath said: I go, and I turn back unto My first husband, For — better to me then than now.

8 But, she, owneth not, that, I, gave her—the corn, and the new wine and the oil, —silver, also increased I unto her, and gold—[which] they offered to Baal!

And she knew not that I had given to her, The corn, and the new wine, and the oil. Yea, silver I did multiply to her, And the gold they prepared for Baal.

9 Therefore, will I again take away my corn, in the time thereof, and my new wine, in the season thereof, —and will recover my wool and my flax [given] to hide her shame.

Therefore do I turn back, And I have taken My corn in its season, And My new wine in its appointed time, And I have taken away My wool and My flax, covering her nakedness.

10 Now, therefore, will I expose her unseemliness, before the eyes of her lovers, —and no, man, shall deliver her out of my hand!

And now do I reveal her dishonour before the eyes of her lovers, And none doth deliver her out of My hand.

11 And I will cause to cease all her mirth, her pilgrim-festival, her new moon and her sabbath, —and her every appointed meeting;

And I have caused to cease all her joy, Her festival, her new moon, and her sabbath, Even all her appointed times,

12 And will lay waste her vine and her fig- tree, as to which she hath said, A present, are they for myself, which my lovers, have given me, —and I will make of them a thicket, and the wild beasts of the field shall devour them.

And made desolate her vine and her fig-tree, Of which she said, A gift they [are] to me, That my lovers have given to me, And I have made them for a forest, And consumed them hath a beast of the field.

13 So will I visit upon her the days of the Baals, unto whom she used to burn incense, and decked herself with her nose-ring and her jewelry, and went her way after her lovers, —whereas, me, she forgat, Declareth Yahweh.

And I have charged on her the days of the Baalim, To whom she maketh perfume, And putteth on her ring and her ornament, And goeth after her lovers, And Me forgat — an affirmation of Jehovah.

14 Therefore, lo! I, am going to persuade her, and, though I conduct her forth into wilderness, yet will I speak unto her heart.

Therefore, lo, I am enticing her, And have caused her to go to the wilderness, And I have spoken unto her heart,

15 Then will I give to her her vineyards from thence, and the vale of Achor ["trouble"] for a door of hope, —and she will respond there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.

And given to her her vineyards from thence, And the valley of Achor for an opening of hope, And she hath responded there as in the days of her youth, And as in the day of her coming up out of the land of Egypt.

16 And it shall come to pass, in that day, Declareth Yahweh, that she will call me Ishi ["My husband"], and will not call me any more, Baali ["Mine owner"].

And it hath come to pass, in that day, An affirmation of Jehovah, Thou dost call Me — My husband, And dost not call Me any more — My lord.

17 So will I take away the names of the Baals, out of her mouth, —and they shall not be called to mind any more, by their name.

And I have turned aside the names of the lords from her mouth, And they are not remembered any more by their name.

18 And I will solemnize to them a covenant, in that day, with the wild-beast of the field, and with the bird of the heavens, and the creeping thing of the ground, —and, bow and sword and battle, will I break in pieces out of the land, so will I cause them to lie down, in security.

And I have made to them a covenant in that day, with the beast of the field, And with the fowl of the heavens, And the creeping thing of the ground, And bow, and sword, and war I break from off the land, And have caused them to lie down confidently.

19 And I will take thee unto myself, unto times age-abiding, —yea I will take thee unto myself, in righteousness and in justice, and in lovingkindness, and in abounding compassion:

And I have betrothed thee to Me to the age, And betrothed thee to Me in righteousness, And in judgment, and kindness, and mercies,

20 Yea I will take thee unto myself, in faithfulness, —So shalt thou know Yahweh.

And betrothed thee to Me in faithfulness, And thou hast known Jehovah.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will respond, Declareth Yahweh, I will respond to the heavens, —and, they, shall respond to the earth;

And it hath come to pass in that day, I answer — an affirmation of Jehovah, I answer the heavens, and they answer the earth.

22 And, the earth, shall respond to the corn, and to the new wine and to the oil, —and, they, shall respond to Jezreel ["Whom GOD scattereth," "Whom GOD soweth"].

And the earth doth answer the corn, And the new wine, and the oil, And they answer Jezreel.

23 So will I sow her unto me in the land, and will have compassion upon the uncompassionated one ["Lo-ruhamah"], —and will say to him who was No-people-of-mine ["Lo-ammi"], My people, thou art, and, he, shall say, My God!

And I have sowed her to Me in the land, And I have pitied Lo-Ruhamah, And I have said to Lo-Ammi, My people thou [art], and it saith, My God!'