1 qIsrael is a luxuriant vine
that yields its fruit.
The more his fruit increased,
rthe more altars he built;
as his country improved,
he improved his pillars.
2 Their heart is false;
now they must bear their guilt.
The Lord1 will break down their altars
and destroy their pillars.
3 For now they will say:
s“We have no king,
for we do not fear the Lord;
and a king—what could he do for us?”
4 They utter tmere words;
with empty2 oaths they make covenants;
so ujudgment springs up like poisonous weeds
vin the furrows of the field.
5 The inhabitants of Samaria tremble
Its people mourn for it, and so do its idolatrous priests—
those who rejoiced over it and yover its glory—
for it has departed4 from them.
6 zThe thing itself shall be carried to Assyria
as tribute to athe great king.5
Ephraim shall be put to shame,
7 cSamaria’s king shall perish
like a twig on the face of the waters.
8 The high places of xAven, dthe sin of Israel,
shall be destroyed.
eThorn and thistle shall grow up
on their altars,
and fthey shall say to the mountains, “Cover us,”
and to the hills, “Fall on us.”
9 From gthe days of Gibeah, you have sinned, O Israel;
there they have continued.
Shall not the war against the unjust7 overtake them in Gibeah?
10 hWhen I please, iI will discipline them,
and nations shall be gathered against them
when they are bound up for jtheir double iniquity.
11 Ephraim was a trained calf
that kloved to thresh,
and I spared her fair neck;
but I will put lEphraim to the yoke;
lJudah must plow;
Jacob must harrow for himself.
12 mSow for yourselves righteousness;
reap steadfast love;
nbreak up your fallow ground,
for it is the time to seek the Lord,
that he may come and orain righteousness upon you.
13 pYou have plowed iniquity;
you have reaped injustice;
you have eaten the fruit of lies.
Because you have trusted in your own way
and in the multitude of your warriors,
14 therefore qthe tumult of war shall arise among your people,
and all your fortresses shall be destroyed,
as rShalman destroyed Beth-arbel on the day of battle;
smothers were dashed in pieces with their children.
15 Thus it shall be done to you, O tBethel,
because of your great evil.
At dawn athe king of Israel
shall be utterly cut off.
The Lord’s Love for Israel
1 uWhen Israel was a child, vI loved him,
and out of Egypt I wcalled xmy son.
2 yThe more they were called,
the more they went away;
zthey kept sacrificing to the Baals
and burning offerings to idols.
3 Yet it was aI who taught Ephraim to walk;
I took them up by their arms,
but they did not know that bI healed them.
4 cI led them with cords of kindness,8
with the bands of love,
and dI became to them as one who eases the yoke on their jaws,
and eI bent down to them and fed them.
5 fThey shall not9 return to the land of Egypt,
but gAssyria shall be their king,
hbecause ithey have refused to return to me.
6 jThe sword shall rage against their cities,
consume the bars of their gates,
and devour them kbecause of their own counsels.
7 My people are bent lon turning away from me,
and though mthey call out to the Most High,
he shall not raise them up at all.
8 How can I give you up, O Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, O Israel?
nHow can I make you olike Admah?
How can I treat you olike Zeboiim?
pMy heart recoils within me;
my compassion grows warm and tender.
9 I will not execute my burning anger;
I will not again destroy Ephraim;
qfor I am God and not a man,
rthe Holy One in your midst,
and I will not come in wrath.10
10 sThey shall go after the Lord;
the will roar like a lion;
when he roars,
his children shall come trembling ufrom the west;
11 they shall come trembling like birds vfrom Egypt,
and wlike doves xfrom the land of Assyria,
and I will return them to their homes, declares the Lord.
12 11 Ephraim yhas surrounded me with lies,
and the house of Israel with deceit,
but Judah still walks with God
and is faithful to the Holy One.
1 Ephraim feeds on the wind
and pursues zthe east wind all day long;
they multiply yfalsehood and violence;
athey make a covenant with Assyria,
and boil is carried to Egypt.
The Lord’s Indictment of Israel and Judah
2 cThe Lord has an indictment against Judah
and will punish Jacob according to his ways;
he will repay him according to his deeds.
3 dIn the womb he took his brother by the heel,
and in his manhood he strove with God.
4 He strove with the angel and prevailed;
he wept and sought his favor.
and there God spoke with us—
5 the Lord, the God of hosts,
fthe Lord is his memorial name:
6 “So you, gby the help of your God, return,
hhold fast to love and justice,
and wait continually for your God.”
7 A merchant, in whose hands are ifalse balances,
he loves jto oppress.
8 Ephraim has said, “Ah, but kI am rich;
I have found wealth for myself;
in all my labors lthey cannot find in me iniquity or sin.”
9 mI am the Lord your God
from the land of Egypt;
I will again make you ndwell in tents,
as in the days of the appointed feast.
10 oI spoke to the prophets;
it was I who multiplied pvisions,
and through the prophets gave parables.
11 qIf there is iniquity in Gilead,
they shall surely come to nothing:
rin Gilgal they sacrifice bulls;
stheir altars also are like stone heaps
ton the furrows of the field.
12 uJacob fled to the land of Aram;
there Israel vserved for a wife,
and for a wife he guarded sheep.
13 By wa prophet xthe Lord brought Israel up from Egypt,
and by a prophet he was guarded.
14 yEphraim has given bitter provocation;
so his Lord zwill leave his bloodguilt on him
aand will repay him for his disgraceful deeds.
Teach Me Your Paths
1 Of David.
1 To you, O Lord, I olift up my soul.
2 O my God, in you I ptrust;
qlet me not be put to shame;
rlet not my enemies exult over me.
3 Indeed, snone who wait for you shall be put to shame;
4 vMake me to know your ways, O Lord;
teach me your paths.
5 Lead me in your wtruth and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation;
for you I wait all the day long.
6 Remember your xmercy, O Lord, and your steadfast love,
yfor they have been from of old.
7 Remember not zthe sins of my youth or my transgressions;
according to your asteadfast love remember me,
for the sake of your goodness, O Lord!
8 bGood and upright is the Lord;
therefore he cinstructs sinners in the way.
9 He leads the humble in what is right,
and teaches the humble his way.
10 All the paths of the Lord are dsteadfast love and faithfulness,
for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.
11 For your ename’s sake, O Lord,
pardon my guilt, for it is fgreat.
12 Who is the man who fears the Lord?
Him cwill he instruct in the way that he should choose.
13 His soul shall gabide in well-being,
and his hoffspring ishall inherit the land.
14 jThe friendship2 of the Lord is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to them his covenant.
15 My keyes are ever toward the Lord,
for he will lpluck my feet out of the net.
16 mTurn to me and be gracious to me,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
17 The troubles of my heart are enlarged;
bring me out of my distresses.
18 nConsider my affliction and my trouble,
and forgive all my sins.
19 Consider how many are my foes,
and with what violent hatred they hate me.
20 Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me!
oLet me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.
21 May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
for I wait for you.
22 pRedeem Israel, O God,
out of all his troubles.