Chapter 6 – Chapter 11

Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

1 “Come and let us return to Jehovah; For he hath torn, and he will heal us; He hath smitten, and he will bind up our wounds:

2 He will revive us after two days, On the third day he will raise us up,

3 And we shall live in his presence: And we shall know and pursue after the knowledge of Jehovah; As the dawn, his going forth is appointed; And he shall come as the rain to us, As the latter rain — a rain to the earth.” (260)

4 What shall I do to thee, Ephraim? What shall I do to thee, Judah? For your goodness is like the morning dew, Like the cloud which passeth away early.

5 I have therefore hewn them by my Prophets, I have slain them by the words of my mouth; And thy judgments have been as the light which goeth forth:

6 For mercy I desire, and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God before burnt-offerings.

7 But they as men have transgressed the covenant; In this they have dealt perfidiously with me.

8 Gilead is a city of those who work iniquity, filled with blood;

9 And, as robbers wait for a man, The company of priests kill in the way by consent; For their wicked purpose they accomplish.

10 In the house of Israel have I seen infamy; There is the wantonness of Ephraim, — Israel is polluted.

11 Judah also did set a plant for thee, While I was restoring the captivity of my people.

Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

1 While I was healing Israel, Then were discovered the iniquity of Ephraim, And the vices of Samaria; For they dealt falsely, and the thief entered in, The robber plundered abroad:

2 And they said not in their heart, That I remember all their wickedness: Surrounded them have now their vices, — they are in my sight.

3 By their wickedness they cheer the king, And by their falsehoods the princes. All are adulterers, like an oven heated by the baker;

4 .Who ceases from stirring up, After mixing the dough, till it be fermented.

5 The day of our king! — the princes Have made him sick with a bottle of wine; — He stretched forth his hand to scorners.

6 For they have made ready, as an oven, Their heart, for lying in wait: All the night their baker sleeps; In the morning the oven burns as a flaming fire

7 All are hot like an oven; They have consumed their own judges, — All their kings have fallen; — No one among them cries to me.

8 Ephraim mingles himself with the nations; Ephraim is become bread baked under the ashes, Which has not been turned:

9 Eaten have strangers his strength, and he knows it not; And hoariness has spread over him, and he knows it not;

10 And testify does the pride of Israel to his face; But they have not returned to Jehovah their God, Nor sought him notwithstanding all these things.

11 Ephraim is also like a silly dove, without understanding; They cry on Egypt, they go to Assyria:

12 But when they go, I will expand over them my net, As a bird of heaven, I will bring them down, I will hold them fast, as their assembly have heard.

13 Woe to them! for they have gone back from me; Desolation to them! for they have dealt perfidiously with me: Though I redeemed them, They have yet spoken lies against me:

14 And they have not cried to me with their heart; For they howled on their beds; For corn and wine they assemble together; — They have revolted from me: (269)

15 Though I have bound and strengthened their arms, Yet against me they contrive evil.

16 They return not to God; They have been like a deceitful bow: Fallen by the sword have their princes, Through the pride of their tongue; — This will be their reproach in the land of Egypt.

Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

1 To thy mouth the trumpet! As an eagle, against the house of Jehovah; For they have transgressed my covenant, And against my law have they acted perfidiously.

2 To me will Israel exclaim, “My God, we have known thee,”

3 Israel has cast good far away; — The enemy will closely pursue him:

4 They have caused to reign, but not by me; Dominion have they set up, but I knew not; Of their silver and their gold they have made for themselves idols; They shall therefore be cut off.

5 Cast thee far away has thy calf, O Samaria! — Kindled has my fury against them: How long will they not bear cleanness?

6 For even from Israel it is; The artificer has made it, and it is no god; For in fragments shall be the calf of Samaria.

7 Surely the wind they sow, and the tempest they shall reap; There is no stalks — the grain will produce no flour; If indeed it will produce, strangers will devour it.

8 Devoured is Israel, — now shall he be among the Gentiles, Like a vessel in which there is no delight:

9 For they went up to Assyria, like a solitary wild ass; — Ephraim hired lovers:

10 Though they have hired among the nations, I will now gather them; And they shall grieve a little under the burden of the king and princes.

11 Because Ephraim has multiplied altars to sin, Altars for sinning shall be to him.

12 I have written for him the precious things of my law; As something strange have they been accounted.

13 For sacrifices of burnt-offerings they offer flesh, and eat; Jehovah will not regard it as acceptable: He will now remember their iniquity, He will visit their wickedness; — To Egypt shall they return.

14 For Israel has his Maker forgotten, and built altars: Judah also has multiplied fortified cities; But I will send fire on his cities, And it shall devour his palaces.

Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

1 Rejoice not, Israel, with joy like that of the people; For thou hast become wanton from thy God; Thou hast loved wages on all the floors of corn. —

2 The floor and the vat shall not feed them, And the new wine shall disappoint them:

3 They shall not dwell in the land of Jehovah; And return shall Ephraim to Egypt, And in Assyria they shall eat what is unclean:

4 To Jehovah they shall not pour wine, And acceptable to him shall not be their libations; Their sacrifices shall be to them as the bread of mourners, — Whosoever will eat shall be polluted; For their bread for their soul, It shall not come into the house of Jehovah.

5 What will ye do on the solemn day, On the festal-day of Jehovah?

6 For, behold, they are gone away on account of desolation; — Egypt will gather them, Memphis will bury them. The wished-for store of their silver will the nettle possess, — The thorn shall be in their tents.

7 The days of visitation have come, The days of retribution have come: Israel shall know the prophet to be foolish, And mad the man of the spirit, — For the number of thy iniquity and great hatred.

8 The watchman of Ephraim for my God, the prophet, Is a snare of a fowler on all his ways, A hateful thing in the house of his God. — (327)

9 They are deeply fixed, corrupt are they as in the days of Gibeah: He will remember their iniquity, he will visit their sins.

10 As grapes in the desert I found Israel, As the first fruit of the fig-tree, at its beginning, I saw your fathers: — They went in into Baalpeor, And separated themselves unto shame, And became abominable like their lovers.

11 Ephraim! — as a bird has fled their glory — (336) From the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception:

12 For if they bring up their children, I shall exterminate them, that they shall not be men: — Surely, woe to them, when I shall depart from them!

13 Ephraim, as I have seen in Tyrus, Is a tree planted in a house: (339) Yet Ephraim is to bring forth to the slaughter his children!

14 “Give to them, Jehovah, — what wilt thou give? Give to them an abortive womb and dry breasts.”

15 All their evil is in Gilgal; For there I conceived hatred against them: On account of the wickedness of their works, From my house I will cast them out; I will not continue to love them; — All their princes are apostates.

16 Smitten has Ephraim been; Their root has dried up, — fruit they will not bear: And if they bring forth, I will slay The wished—for fruit of their womb. —

17 Cast them away will my God; For they hearkened not to him: And they shall be wanderers among the nations.

Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

1 A vine robbed is Israel; Fruit will he lay up for himself: (351) According to the abundance of his fruit Hath he abounded towards altars; According to the goodness of his land Hath he done good to statues.

2 Divided has been their heart; They shall now be proved guilty: — He will overturn their altars, He will destroy their statues.

3 For now they will say, — “We have no king, Because we feared not Jehovah; And a king, what will he do for us?” —

4 They have spoken words only, — Swearing falsely, — making a covenant: (356) Judgment grows up as wormwood in the furrows of the field.

5 For the calves of Bethaven, (359) Tremble will the inhabitants of Samaria; For mourn over it will its people, And its priests, who rejoice in it, over its glory: For it shall depart from it;

6 And itself shall to Assyria be carried, A present to king Jareb: — Shame shall Ephraim receive, And ashamed shall Israel be of his counsel.

7 Cut down shall be the king of Samaria, As a foam on the surface of the waters. (363)

8 Perish shall the high places of Aven — the sin of Israel; The thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars; And they shall say to the mountains, “Cover us,” And to the hills, “Fall on us.”

9 From the days of Gibeah hast thou, Israel, sinned: There they stood, — the battle in Gibeah, Against the children of iniquity, laid not hold on them.

10 It is my wish, and I will chastise them; And assembled against them shall nations be, When they shall be bound together by their two furrows. (371)

11 Ephraim is an heifer, trained to love the treading of corn; But I passed over on her beautiful neck; — To ride will I make Ephraim, — Plough shall Judah, — harrow for himself shall Jacob.

12 Sow for yourselves in righteousness, Gather for your measure kindness; Plough for yourselves what has been ploughed: And time it is to seek Jehovah, till he come, And rain righteousness upon you: —

13 Ye have ploughed ungodliness, iniquity have ye reaped; Ye have eaten the fruit of falsehood: For you have trusted in your own way, In the multitude of thy valiant ones.

14 A tumult shall therefore rise among thy people, And every one of thy fortresses shall be laid waste, According to the devastation of Shalman in Betharbel: In the day of battle shall the mother, With the children, be dashed in pieces. —

15 Thus shall Bethel do to you, On account of wickedness — of your wickedness: In one morning shall utterly perish the king of Israel.

Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11

1 When Israel was a child, then I loved him: And from Egypt I called my son. —

2 They called them; — so they turned away from their presence; — To Baalim they offered sacrifices, And to graven images they burnt incense.

3 And I, my walking was on foot, To raise up Ephraim by his arms: And they knew not that I healed them.

4 By the cords of man I drew them, by the chains of love: And I was to them as those who raise up the yoke on the cheeks; And I have extended meat to them.

5 They shall not return to the land of Egypt, Assur shall rule over them; For they have been unwilling to return:

6 And fall shall the sword on their cities, And destroy their bars; And it shall destroy on account of their counsels.

7 For my people are bent on defection from me; When to the Most High they call them, No one at all raises up himself.

8 How shall I set thee aside, Ephraim? Shall I deliver thee up, Israel? How shall I make thee as Sodom? Shall I set thee as Zeboim? Inverted within me is my heart, Rolled back again are my repentings:

9 I will not execute the fury of my wrath, I will not return to destroy Ephraim; For God am I, and not man, In the midst of thee, holy; — And I will not enter the city.

10 After Jehovah shall they walk, And as a lion will he roar; When he shall roar, then dread shall children from the sea, —

11 They shall dread as a sparrow in Egypt, And as a dove in the land of Assur; And I will make them to dwell in their own houses, saith Jehovah.

12 Surrounded me hath Ephraim with falsehood; And with fraud, the house of Israel: But Judah as yet rules with his God; And together with the saints he is faithful.