The Prophet Hosea

⭑ Unlocked Literal Bible :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 2 -

Say to your brothers, ‘My people!’ and to your sisters, ‘You have been shown compassion.’”

Bring a lawsuit against your mother, bring a lawsuit, for she is not my wife, and neither am I her husband. Let her put away her prostitution from before herself, and her acts of adultery from between her breasts.

If not, I will strip her naked and show her nakedness as on the day that she was born. I will make her like the wilderness, like a parched land, and I will make her die from thirst.

I will not have any mercy on her children, for they are children of prostitution.

For their mother has been a prostitute, and she who conceived them has acted shamefully. She said, “I will go after my lovers, for they give me my bread and water, my wool and flax, my oil and drink.”

Therefore, I will build up a hedge to block her way with thorns. I will build up a wall against her so she cannot find her way.

She will pursue her lovers, but she will not overtake them. She will seek them, but she will not find them. Then she will say, “I will return to my first husband, for it was better for me then than it is now.”

For she had not known that it was I who gave her the grain, the new wine and the oil, and who lavished on her silver and gold, which they then used for Baal.

So I will take back her grain at harvest time, and my new wine in its season. I will take back my wool and flax that were used to cover her nakedness.

Then I will strip her naked in the sight of her lovers, and no one will rescue her out of my hand.

I will also cause all her celebrations to cease-her feasts, her new moon celebrations, her Sabbaths, and all her appointed festivals.

“I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, of which she has said, ‘These are the wages that my lovers gave me.’ I will make them a forest, and the animals of the field will eat them.

I will punish her for the feast days of the Baals, when she burned incense to them, when she adorned herself with her rings and jewelry, and she went after her lovers and forgot me.” This is the declaration of Yahweh.

God’s Mercy to Israel

So I am going to win her back. I will bring her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her.

I will give her back her vineyards, and the Valley of Achor as a door of hope. She will answer me there as she did in the days of her youth, as in the days that she came out of the land of Egypt.

“It will be in that day” -this is the declaration of Yahweh- "that you will call me, ‘My husband,’ and you will no longer call me, ‘My Baal.’

For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth; their names will not be remembered anymore.”

“On that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts in the fields, with the birds in the sky, and with the crawling things on the ground. I will drive away the bow, the sword, and the battle from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety.

I will promise to be your husband forever. I will promise to be your husband in righteousness, justice, covenant faithfulness, and mercy.

I will promise to be your husband in faithfulness, and you will know me, Yahweh.

On that day, I will answer” -this is the declaration of Yahweh. "I will answer the heavens, and they will answer the earth.

The earth will answer the grain, the new wine and the oil, and they will answer Jezreel.

I will plant her for myself in the land, and I will have mercy on Lo Ruhamah. I will say to Lo Ammi, ‘You are Ammi Attah,’ and they will say to me, ‘You are my God.’”

“Say to your brothers, ‘My people!’(a) and to your sisters, ‘My loved one!’(b)

Contend with your mother! Contend, for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband; and let her put away her prostitution from her face, and her adulteries from between her breasts;

lest I strip her naked, and make her bare as in the day that she was born, and make her like a wilderness, and set her like a dry land, and kill her with thirst.

Indeed, on her children I will have no mercy, for they are children of unfaithfulness.

For their mother has played the prostitute. She who conceived them has done shamefully; for she said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.’

Therefore behold,(c) I will hedge up your way with thorns, and I will build a wall against her, that she can’t find her way.

She will follow after her lovers, but she won’t overtake them; and she will seek them, but won’t find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, for then it was better with me than now.’

For she didn’t know that I gave her the grain, the new wine, and the oil, and multiplied to her silver and gold, which they used for Baal.

Therefore I will take back my grain in its time, and my new wine in its season, and will pluck away my wool and my flax which should have covered her nakedness.

Now I will uncover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and no one will deliver her out of my hand.

I will also cause all her celebrations to cease: her feasts, her new moons, her Sabbaths, and all her solemn assemblies.

I will lay waste her vines and her fig trees, about which she has said, ‘These are my wages that my lovers have given me,’ and I will make them a forest, and the animals of the field shall eat them.

I will visit on her the days of the Baals, to which she burned incense when she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels, and went after her lovers and forgot me,” says the LORD.

God’s Mercy to Israel

“Therefore behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.

I will give her vineyards from there, and the valley of Achor 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.

It will be in that day,” says the LORD, “that you will call me ‘my husband,’ and no longer call me ‘my master.’

For I will take away the names of the Baals out of her mouth, and they will no longer be mentioned by name.

In that day I will make a covenant for them with the animals of the field, and with the birds of the sky, and with the creeping things of the ground. I will break the bow, the sword, and the battle out of the land, and will make them lie down safely.

I will betroth you to me forever. Yes, I will betroth you to me in righteousness, in justice, in loving kindness, and in compassion.

I will even betroth you to me in faithfulness; and you shall know the LORD.

It will happen in that day, that I will respond,” says the LORD. “I will respond to the heavens, and they will respond to the earth;

and the earth will respond to the grain, and the new wine, and the oil; and they will respond to Jezreel.

I will sow her to me in the earth; and I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; and I will tell those who were not my people, ‘You are my people;’ and they will say, ‘You are My God!’”

Footnotes

(a)2:1 ‘Ammi’ in Hebrew

(b)2:1 ‘Ruhamah’ in Hebrew

(c)2:6 “Behold”, from “הִנֵּה”, means look at, take notice, observe, see, or gaze at. It is often used as an interjection.