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Hosea - Chapter 12

¹ Ephraim besieges me with lying, the House of Israel with duplicity. (But Judah still is on God's side, he is faithful to the Holy One.)

² Ephraim feeds himself on wind, all day he chases the wind from the East, he heaps up cheating and violence; they make a treaty with Assyria, at the same time sending oil to Egypt.

³ Yahweh has a case against Judah, he will punish Jacob as his conduct merits, he will repay him as his deeds deserve.

⁴ In the very womb he overreached his brother, in maturity he wrestled against God.

⁵ He wrestled with the angel and beat him, he wept and pleaded with him. He met him at Bethel and there God spoke to us-

⁶ yes, Yahweh, God Sabaoth, Yahweh is his title!

⁷ So turn back with God's help, maintain faithful love and loyalty and always put your trust in your God.

⁸ Merchants use fraudulent scales. To defraud is his delight.

⁹ 'How rich I have become!' says Ephraim, 'I have made a fortune.' But of all his gains he will keep nothing because of the sin of which he is guilty.

¹⁰ But I have been Yahweh your God since your days in Egypt and will make you live in tents again as in the days of Meeting.

¹¹ I will speak through prophets, I will give vision after vision and through the ministry of prophets will speak in parables.

¹² Is Gilead a sink of iniquity? Yes, they are a worthless lot! At Gilgal they sacrifice to bulls, that is why their altars are like heaps of stones in a ploughed field.

¹³ Jacob fled to the countryside of Aram, Israel slaved to win a wife, to win a wife he looked after sheep.

¹⁴ By a prophet Yahweh brought Israel out of Egypt and by a prophet Israel was preserved.

¹⁵ Ephraim gave bitter provocation- Yahweh will bring his bloodshed down on him, his Lord will repay him for his insult.