Hosea 7
1 Should I desire to heal Israel, then would the iniquity of Ephraim and the wickedness of Samaria be laid open; for they commit falsehood; and the thief entereth [secretly], and the troop of robbers is spread abroad without.
When I have healed Israel, then shall the iniquity of Ephraim be revealed, and the wickedness of Samaria; for they have wrought falsehood: and a thief shall come in to him, [even] a robber spoiling in his way;
2 And they never think in their own heart that I remember all their wickedness: though now their own doings are all round about them; before my face are they present.
that they may concert together as [men] singing in their heart: I remember all their wickedness: now have their own counsels compassed them about; they came before my face.
3 With their wickedness they make the king glad, and with their lies the princes.
They gladdened kings with their wickedness, and princes with their lies.
4 They are all adulterers, as an oven well heated by the baker: [when] he that stirreth [the fire] resteth awhile from kneading the dough, until it be leavened.
They are all adulterers, as an oven glowing with flame for hot-baking, on account of the kneading of the dough, until it is leavened.
5 On the day of our king's [entering on his rule] the princes are made sick with the fumes of wine: [the king] joineth his hand with scorners.
[In] the days of our kings, the princes began to be inflamed with wine: he stretched out his hand with pestilent fellows.
6 For they make ready their heart for their tricky deeds, like the oven, the baker whereof sleepeth all the night, while in the morning it gloweth as a flaming fire.
Therefore their hearts are inflamed as an oven, while they rage all the night: Ephraim is satisfied with sleep; the morning is come; he is burnt up as a flame of fire.
7 They are all hot as an oven, they devour their judges; all their kings are fallen: there is none among them that calleth unto me.
They are all heated like an oven, and have devoured their judges: all their kings are fallen; there was not among them one that called on me.
8 Ephraim mixeth himself indeed among the nations: Ephraim is a cake not turned.
Ephraim is mixed among his people; Ephraim became a cake not turned.
9 Strangers devour his strength, and he knoweth it not: yea, gray hairs are sprinkled about on his [head], yet he knoweth not.
Strangers devoured his strength, and he knew [it] not; and grey hairs came upon him, and he knew [it] not.
10 And humbled was the pride of Israel before his own face; but they did not return to the Lord their God, and sought him not, notwithstanding all this.
And the pride of Israel shall be brought down before his face: yet they have not returned to the Lord their God, neither have they diligently sought him for all this.
11 And Ephraim is become like a silly dove without understanding: Egypt did they call hither, to Assyria did they go.
And Ephraim was as a silly dove, not having a heart: he called to Egypt, and they went to the Assyrians.
12 As they go, so will I spread out my net over them; as the fowls of the heaven will I bring them down: I will chastise them, as it hath been announced to their congregation.
Whenever they shall go, I will cast my net upon them; I will bring them down as the birds of the sky, I will chasten them with the rumor of their [coming] affliction.
13 Woe unto them! for they have fled from me; destruction shall come unto them, because they have transgressed against me: though I desired to redeem them, they yet spoke lies against me.
Woe to them! for they have started aside from me: they are cowards; for they have sinned against me: yet I redeemed them, but they spoke falsehoods against me.
14 And they cried not unto me with their heart, when they howled upon their beds: for corn and new wine they assemble themselves, and they rebel against me.
And their hearts did not cry to me, but they howled on their beds: they pined for oil and wine.
15 And I desired to instruct and to strengthen their arms; yet would they devise evil against me.
They were instructed by me, and I strengthened their arms; and they devised evils against me.
16 They never return upward: they are like a deceitful bow: by the sword shall their princes fall because of the rage of their tongue; this shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.
They turned aside to that which is not, they became as a bent bow: their princes shall fall by the sword, by reason of the unbridled state of their tongue: this is their setting at nothing in the land of Egypt.
