Hosea 11
Evangelical Heritage Version
God’s Love for Israel
11 When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.
2 The more I called to them,
the more they went away from me.[a]
They kept sacrificing to the Baals
and burning incense to idols.
3 Yet I was the one who taught Ephraim to walk.
I took them in my arms,[b]
but they did not realize that it was I who healed them.
4 I drew them with cords suitable for a man,[c] with ropes of love.
For them I became like someone who lifts a yoke off their neck,
and I bent down to feed them.
5 They will not[d] return into the land of Egypt.
Instead, an Assyrian will be their king,
because they refused to repent.
6 The sword will slash against their cities.
It will destroy the bars of their gates,
and it will devour them because of their plans.
7 My people are determined to turn away from me.
Though they call him the Most High, he certainly will not exalt them.
8 How can I give you up, Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I treat you like Zeboiim?[e]
My heart is changed inside me.
All my compassion is stirred up.
9 I will not carry out my burning anger.
I will not destroy Ephraim again,
because I am God, and not man, the Holy One among you.
I will not enter a city.[f]
10 They will follow the Lord.
He will roar like a lion.
Yes, he will roar, and his children will come trembling from the west.
11 They will come trembling like a bird from Egypt,
and like a dove from the land of Assyria.
I will settle them in their houses, declares the Lord.
Israel Must Repent
12 Ephraim surrounds me with falsehood,
and the house of Israel with deceit.
Judah still strays from[g] God,
even from the Holy One, who is faithful.[h]
Footnotes
- Hosea 11:2 A variant reading is the more they called them, the more they went away from them.
- Hosea 11:3 The text of the pronouns in this verse is uncertain. The translation follows the Greek Old Testament.
- Hosea 11:4 Literally cords of mankind. The words translated man and love have homonyms meaning leather, so there may be a play on words here.
- Hosea 11:5 Not is missing from some manuscripts.
- Hosea 11:8 Admah and Zeboiim were daughter cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
- Hosea 11:9 Or come in wrath. The Hebrew is difficult.
- Hosea 11:12 Literally wanders with. Translations disagree whether the term is negative or positive.
- Hosea 11:12 English verse 11:12 is verse 12:1 in Hebrew. In chapter 12 the subsequent Hebrew verse numbers are one higher than the English numbers.
Hosea 11
New International Version
God’s Love for Israel
11 “When Israel was a child,(A) I loved(B) him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.(C)
2 But the more they were called,
the more they went away from me.[a](D)
They sacrificed to the Baals(E)
and they burned incense to images.(F)
3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them by the arms;(G)
but they did not realize
it was I who healed(H) them.
4 I led them with cords of human kindness,
with ties of love.(I)
To them I was like one who lifts
a little child to the cheek,
and I bent down to feed(J) them.(K)
5 “Will they not return to Egypt(L)
and will not Assyria(M) rule over them
because they refuse to repent?(N)
6 A sword(O) will flash in their cities;
it will devour(P) their false prophets
and put an end to their plans.
7 My people are determined to turn(Q) from me.(R)
Even though they call me God Most High,
I will by no means exalt them.
8 “How can I give you up,(S) Ephraim?(T)
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah?
How can I make you like Zeboyim?(U)
My heart is changed within me;
all my compassion(V) is aroused.(W)
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger,(X)
nor will I devastate(Y) Ephraim again.
For I am God, and not a man(Z)—
the Holy One(AA) among you.
I will not come against their cities.
10 They will follow the Lord;
he will roar(AB) like a lion.(AC)
When he roars,
his children will come trembling(AD) from the west.(AE)
11 They will come from Egypt,
trembling like sparrows,
from Assyria,(AF) fluttering like doves.(AG)
I will settle them in their homes,”(AH)
declares the Lord.
Israel’s Sin
Footnotes
- Hosea 11:2 Septuagint; Hebrew them
- Hosea 11:12 In Hebrew texts this verse (11:12) is numbered 12:1.
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