UST HOS Chapter 8

◄ HOS 8 ► ║ ═ ©

8 Yahweh said to me, “Blow a trumpet to warn the people!

My people have rejected the agreement that I made with them,

and they have rebelled against obeying my laws.

Therefore, an enemy is ready to invade the land where my people live, as a vulture watches its prey.

2 The Israelites cry out to me,

‘Our God, we people of Israel know you!’

3 But the people of Israel have rejected what is good,

so an enemy will chase after them.

4 As for them, they set up kings without asking me,

and they chose leaders, but I did not approve them.

They used their silver and gold to make idols for themselves,

and that is why I will destroy them.”

5 “I reject your calf idol, you people of Samaria!

I am very angry with you.

You need to stop acting in ways that make you guilty!

6 And it was in Israel that a craftsman made that idol!

It is not God!

I will make sure that someone smashes that calf idol of Samaria into pieces.

7 What the people of Israel have done is completely foolish, like trying to plant wind.

What they get in return will be terrible, like reaping a whirlwind.

Their plans will produce nothing good,

like grain stalks that have no heads and that can produce no flour.

Even if they did produce something,

foreigners would come and steal it all.

8 The other nations have already stolen Israel.

Even now the Israelites live as one of the other nations,

and there is nothing special about them at all.

9 Indeed, the Israelites have gone to Assyria

like a lonely wild donkey looking for a mate.

The people of Ephraim have paid other nations to be their allies.

10 But although they pay other nations to help them,

I will now begin to punish them.

They will soon suffer greatly

because of everything that the great king will demand from them.

11 Because the people of Ephraim built many altars on which to make sacrifices to take away sin,

those altars became places where they sinned even more.

12 Even if I wrote down my law for them ten thousand times,

they would still consider that it did not apply to them.

13 They offer sacrifices to me

and eat some of the meat from those sacrifices,

but I, Yahweh, am not pleased with those people.

I remember the wrong things that they have done

and now I will punish them because they have sinned.

As for them, they will become slaves again like they were in Egypt.

14 The people of Israel have forgotten God, the one who created their nation,

and they have built palaces for themselves instead.

The people of Judah have built many cities with strong walls to protect them,

but I will send fire to burn down their cities

and it will completely consume their strong towers.”

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