Hosea 6

1 'Come, and we turn back unto Jehovah, For He hath torn, and He doth heal us, He doth smite, and He bindeth us up.

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.

2 He doth revive us after two days, In the third day He doth raise us up, And we live before Him.

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

3 And we know — we pursue to know Jehovah, As the dawn prepared is His going forth, And He cometh in as a shower to us, As gathered rain — sprinkling earth.'

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.

4 What do I do to thee, O Ephraim? What do I do to thee, O Judah? Your goodness [is] as a cloud of the morning, And as dew rising early — going.

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.

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

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.

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

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

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

But they are as a man transgressing a covenant:

8 Gilead [is] a city of workers of iniquity, Slippery from blood.

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

9 And as bands do wait for a man, A company of priests do murder — the way to Shechem, For wickedness they have done.

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.

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

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

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

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