Online Bible

No Compassion for Children of Harlotry

¹Say to your brothers, “²Ammi,” and to your sisters, “³Ruhamah.”

2 “Contend with your mother, ^acontend,For she is ^bnot my wife, and I am not her husband;And let her remove her ^charlotry from her faceAnd her adultery from between her breasts,3 Lest I strip her ^anakedAnd set her forth as on the ^bday when she was bornAnd ^cmake her like a wildernessAnd ¹make her like dry landAnd put her to death with ^dthirst.4 “Also, I will have no compassion on her childrenBecause they are ^achildren of harlotry.5 “For their mother has ^aplayed the harlot;She who conceived them has acted shamefully.For she said, ‘^bI will go after my lovers,Who ^cgive me my bread and my water,My wool and my flax, my ^doil and my drink.’6 “Therefore, behold, I will ^ahedge up ¹her way with ^bthorns,And I will build ²a wall against her so that she cannot find her ^cpaths.7 “So she will ^apursue her lovers, but she will not overtake them;And she will seek them, but will not find them.Then she will say, ‘^bI will go, and I will return to my ^cfirst husband,For it was ^dbetter for me then than now!’

8 “Now she does ^anot know that it was ^bI who gave her the grain, the new wine, and the oil,And multiplied silver and gold for her,Which they ¹used for Baal.9 “Therefore, I will ^atake back My grain at ¹harvest timeAnd My new wine in its season.I will also deliver My wool and My flax from themGiven to cover her nakedness.10 “So now I will ^auncover her lewdnessIn the sight of her lovers,And no one will deliver her out of My hand.11 “I will also ^acease all her joy,Her ^bfeasts, her ^cnew moons, her sabbaths,And all her appointed times.12 “And I will ^amake desolate her vines and fig trees,Of which she said, ‘These are my wagesWhich my lovers have given me.’And I will ^bmake them a forest,And the ^cbeasts of the field will devour them.13 “So I will visit the ^adays of the Baals upon herWhen she used to ¹^boffer offerings in smoke to themAnd ^cadorn herself with her ²earrings and jewelryAnd go after her lovers, so that she ^dforgot Me,” declares Yahweh.

Yahweh’s Faithful Betrothal

14 “Therefore, behold, I will allure her^aAnd bring her into the wildernessAnd speak to her heart.15 “Then I will give her her ^avineyards from thereAnd ^bthe valley of Achor as a door of hope.And she will ¹^csing there as in the days of her youth,As in the ^dday when she came up from the land of Egypt.16 “And it will be in that day,” declares Yahweh,“That you will call Me ¹^aIshiAnd will no longer call Me ²Baali.17 “So ^aI will remove the names of the Baals from her mouthSo that they will be remembered by their names no more.18 “And in that day I will cut a covenant for themWith the ^abeasts of the field,The birds of the sky,And the creeping things of the ground.And I will ^bbreak the bow, the sword, and war from the land,And I will make them ^clie down in security.19 “And I will ^abetroth you to Me forever;Indeed, I will betroth you to Me in ^brighteousness and in justice,In lovingkindness and in compassion,20 And I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness.Then you will ^aknow Yahweh.

21 “And it will be in that day, that ^aI will answer,” declares Yahweh.“I will answer the heavens, and they will answer the earth,22 And the ^aearth will answer the grain, the new wine, and the oil,And they will answer ¹Jezreel.23 “And I will ^asow her for Myself in the land.^bI will also have compassion on ¹her who had not obtained compassion,And ^cI will say to ²those who were ^dnot My people,‘You are My people!’And ³they will say, ‘You are my God!’”

Israel’s Unfaithfulness Condemned

“ Hosea, say to your brothers, ‘Ammi (you are my people) ,’ and to your sisters, ‘Ruhamah (you have been pitied and have obtained mercy) .’

2 “Contend with your mother (nation) ; ^acontend,For she is ^bnot my wife and I am not her husband;And have her remove her marks of ^cprostitution from her faceAnd her adultery from between her breasts Is 50:13 Or I will strip her ^anakedAnd expose her as on the ^bday she was born,And ^cmake her like a wildernessAnd make her like a parched landAnd slay her with ^dthirst.4 “Also, I will have no mercy on her children,Because they are the ^achildren of prostitution.5 “For their mother has ^aplayed the prostitute;She who conceived them has acted shamefully,For she said, ‘^bI will pursue my loversWho ^cgive me my food and my water,My wool and my flax, my ^doil and my refreshing drinks.’6 “Therefore, behold, I the LORD God will ^ahedge up her way with ^bthorns;And I will build a wall against her shutting off her way so that she cannot find her ^cpaths.7 “She will passionately ^apursue her lovers, but she will not overtake them;And she will seek them, but will not find them.Then she will say, ‘Let ^bme go and return to my ^cfirst husband,For it was ^dbetter for me then than now!’

8 “For she (Israel) has ^anot noticed nor understood nor realized that it was ^bI the LORD God who gave her the grain and the new wine and the oil,And lavished on her silver and gold,Which they used for Baal and made into his image.9 “Therefore, I will return and ^atake back My grain at harvest timeAnd My new wine in its season.I will also take away My wool and My flaxGiven to cover her nakedness.10 “And now I will ^auncover her lewdness and shameIn the sight of her lovers,And no one will rescue her from My hand.11 “I will also ^aput an end to all her rejoicing,Her ^bfeasts, her ^cNew Moons, her Sabbaths,And all her festivals.12 “I will ^adestroy her vines and her fig treesOf which she has said, ‘These are my wagesWhich my lovers have given me.’And I will ^bmake them a forest,And the ^canimals of the open country will devour them.13 “And I will punish her for the feast ^adays of the Baals,When she used to ^boffer sacrifices and burn incense to themAnd ^cadorn herself with her earrings and nose rings and her jewelry,And follow her lovers, so that she ^dforgot Me,” says the LORD.

Restoration of Israel

14 “Therefore, behold, I will allure IsraelAnd ^abring her into the wilderness,And I will speak tenderly to her to reconcile her to Me.15 “Then I will give her her ^avineyards from there,And make ^bthe Valley of Achor a door of hope and expectation anticipating the time when I will restore My favor on her.And she will ^csing there and respond as in the days of her youthAs in the ^dday when she came up from the land of Egypt. Ex 15:2; Josh 7:24-2616 “It shall come about in that day,” says the LORD,“That you will call Me ^aIshi (my husband)And will no longer call Me Baali (my ¹Baal) .17 “For ^aI will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth,So that they will no longer be mentioned or remembered by their names. Ex 23:1318 “And in that day I will make a covenant for IsraelWith the ^aanimals of the open countryAnd with the birds of the heavensAnd with the creeping things of the ground.And I will ^babolish the bow and the sword and banish war from the landAnd will make them ^clie down in safety.19 “And I will ^abetroth you (Israel) to Me forever;Yes, I will betroth you to Me in ^brighteousness and in justice,In lovingkindness and loyalty, and in compassion.20 “I will betroth you to Me in stability and in faithfulness.Then you will ^aknow (recognize, appreciate) the LORD and respond with loving faithfulness.

21 “It will come about in that day that I will respond,” says the LORD.“^aI will respond to the heavens which ask for rain to pour on the earth, and they will respond to the earth which begs for the rain,22 And the ^aearth shall respond to the grain and the new wine and the oil which beg it to bring them forth,And they will respond to Jezreel My Israel, who will now be restored.23 “I will ^asow her for Myself in the land.^bI will also have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy;And ^cI will say to those who were ^dnot My people,‘You are My people,’And they will say, ‘You are my God!’” 1+@Pet 2:9, 10