Osee 10

1 Israel is a vine with goodly branches, her fruit is abundant: according to the multitude of her fruits she has multiplied [her] altars; according to the wealth of his land, he has set up pillars.

A luxuriant vine, is Israel, fruit, beseemeth him, —According to the abundance of his fruit, hath he brought abundance to the altars, according to the goodliness of his land, hath he made goodly statues.

2 They have divided their hearts; now shall they be utterly destroyed: he shall dig down their altars, their pillars shall mourn.

Hypocritical is their heart, Now, shall they be held guilty, —He, will break down their altars, he will destroy their statutes.

3 Because now they shall say, We have no king, because we feared not the Lord:

For, now, will they say, We have no king, —for we revere not Yahweh, and what could, a king, do for us?

4 and what should a king do for us, speaking false professions [as his] words? he will make a covenant: judgment shall spring up as a weed on the soil of the field.

They have spoken words, swearing falsely, in solemnizing a covenant, —therefore shall judgment, spring up like a poisonous plant, on the ridges of the field.

5 The inhabitants of Samaria shall dwell near the calf of the house of On; for the people of it mourned for it: and as they provoked him, they shall rejoice at his glory, because he has departed from them.

About the calves of Beth-aven, will the inhabitant of Samaria be concerned, —for the people thereof, have mourned over it, and, the ascetics thereof, who, over it, used to exult, [shall mourn] for the glory thereof, because it hath departed therefrom.

6 And having bound it for the Assyrians, they carried it away as presents to king Jarim: Ephraim shall receive a gift, and Israel shall be ashamed of his counsel.

Itself also, to Assyria, shall be borne along, as a present to a hostile king, —shame, shall Ephraim receive, that Israel, may be ashamed, of his own counsel.

7 Samaria has cast off her king as a twig on the surface of the water.

Silenced is Samaria: her king, is as a chip on the face of the waters,

8 And the altars of On, the sins of Israel, shall be taken away: thorns and thistles shall come up on their altars; and they shall say to the mountains, Cover us; and to the hills, Fall on us.

So shall the high places of Aven, be destroyed, the sin of Israel, Thorn and prickle, shall come up on their altars, —Therefore shall they say to the mountains, Cover us, and to the hills, Fall on us.

9 From the time the hills [existed] Israel has sinned: there they stood: war [waged] against the children of iniquity

Beyond the days of Gibeah, hast thou sinned, O Israel: there, came they to a stand, the battle against the sons of perversity, touched them not in Gibeah.

10 to chastise them shall not overtake them on the hill, the nations shall be gathered against them, when they are chastened for their two sins,

When I please, then will I chastise them, —and there shall be gathered together against them—peoples, they being harnessed to their two Iniquities;

11 Ephraim is a heifer taught to love victory, but I will come upon the fairest part of her neck: I will mount Ephraim; I will pass over Juda in silence; Jacob shall prevail against him.

But, Ephraim, shall be a heifer broken in, loving to tread out corn, when, I, have passed over upon her fair neck, —I will drive Ephraim, Judah, shall plow, Jacob, shall harrow to him.

12 Sow to yourselves for righteousness, gather in for the fruit of life: light ye for yourselves the light of knowledge; seek the Lord till the fruits of righteousness come upon you.

Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap ye at the bidding of lovingkindness, furrow to yourselves the newly-ploughed soil, —then will be the time to seek Yahweh, until he come, that he may rain down righteousness for you.

13 Wherefore have ye passed over ungodliness in silence, and reaped the sins of it? ye have eaten false fruit; for thou has trusted in thy sins, in the abundance of thy power.

Ye have plowed lawlessness, perversity, have ye reaped, ye have eaten the fruit of deception, —because thou didst trust in thy chariots, in the multitude of thy mighty men.

14 Therefore shall destruction rise up among thy people, and all thy strong places shall be ruined: as a prince Solomon [departed] out of the house of Jeroboam, in the days of battle they dashed the mother to the ground upon the children,

Therefore shall there arise a tumult among thy peoples, and, all thy fortresses, shall be plundered, as Shalman plundered Beth-arbel, in the day of battle, —the mother, upon her children, dashed to the ground.

15 thus will I do to you, O house of Israel, because of the unrighteousness of your sins.

Even so, hath Bethel, done to you, because of your exceeding wickedness, —in the dawn, shall the king of Israel be, utterly silenced.