< Hosea 2 >

1 Say ye to your brethren: You are my people, and to your sister: Thou hast obtained mercy.
Say vnto your brethren, Ammi, and to your sisters, Ruhamah,
2 Judge your mother, judge her: because she is not my wife, and I am not her husband. Let her put away her fornications from her face, and her adulteries from between her breasts.
Plead with your mother: plead with her: for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband: but let her take away her fornications out of her sight, and her adulteries from betweene her breasts.
3 Lest I strip her naked, and set her as in the day that she was born: and I will make her as a wilderness, and will set her as a land that none can pass through, and will kill her with drought.
Lest I strippe her naked, and set her as in the day that shee was borne, and make her as a wildernes, and leaue her like a drie land, and slaie her for thirst.
4 And I will not have mercy on her children: for they are the children of fornications.
And I wil haue no pitie vpon her children: for they be the children of fornications.
5 For their mother hath committed fornication, she that conceived them is covered with shame: for she said: I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread, and my water, my wool, and my flax, my oil, and my drink.
For their mother hath plaied the harlot: she that conceiued them, hath done shamefully: for shee said, I will goe after my louers that giue me my bread and my water, my wooll and my flaxe, mine oyle and my drinke.
6 Wherefore behold I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and I will stop it up with a wall, and she shall not find her paths.
Therefore beholde, I will stoope thy way with thornes, and make an hedge, that shee shall not finde her pathes.
7 And she shall follow after her lovers, and shall not overtake them: and she shall seek them, and shall not find, and she shall say: I will go, and return to my first husband, because it was better with me then, than now.
Though shee follow after her louers, yet shall shee not come at them: though shee seeke them, yet shall shee not finde them: then shall she say, I will goe and returne to my first husband: for at that time was I better then nowe.
8 And she did not know that I gave her corn and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver, and gold, which they have used in the service of Baal.
Nowe she did not knowe that I gaue her corne, and wine, and oyle, and multiplied her siluer and golde, which they bestowed vpon Baal.
9 Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in its season, and my wine in its season, and I will set at liberty my wool, and my flax, which covered her disgrace.
Therefore wil I returne, and take away my corne in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recouer my wool and my flaxe lent, to couer her shame.
10 And now I will lay open her folly in the eyes of her lovers: and no man shall deliver her out of my hand:
And now will I discouer her lewdnes in the sight of her louers, and no man shall deliuer her out of mine hand.
11 And I will cause all her mirth to cease, her solemnities, her new moons, her sabbaths, and all her festival times.
I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast daies, her newe moones, and her Sabbathes, and all her solemne feasts.
12 And I will destroy her vines, and her fig trees, of which she said: These are my rewards, which my lovers have given me: and I will make her as a forest, and the beasts of the field shall devour her.
And I wil destroy her vines and her figtrees, whereof she hath said, These are my rewards that my louers haue giuen mee: and I will make them as a forest, and the wilde beasts shall eate them.
13 And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim, to whom she burnt incense, and decked herself out with her earrings, and with her jewels, and went after her lovers, and forgot me, saith the Lord.
And I wil visit vpon her the daies of Baalim, wherein shee burnt incense to them: and shee decked her selfe with her earings and her iewels, and shee folowed her louers, and forgate me, saith the Lord.
14 Therefore, behold I will allure her, and will lead her into the wilderness: and I will speak to her heart.
Therefore beholde, I will allure her, and bring her into the wildernesse, and speake friendly vnto her.
15 And I will give her vinedressers out of the same place, and the valley of Achor for an opening of hope: and she shall sing there according to the days of her youth, and according to the days of her coming up out of the land of Egypt.
And I will giue her her vineyardes from thence, and the valley of Achor for the doore of hope, and shee shall sing there as in the daies of her youth, and as in the daies when shee came vp out of the land of Egypt.
16 And it shall be in that day, saith the Lord, That she shall call me: My husband, and she shall call me no more Baali.
And at that day, sayeth the Lord, thou shalt call me Ishi, and shalt call me no more Baali.
17 And I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and she shall no more remember their name.
For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall be no more remembred by their names.
18 And in that day I will make a covenant with them, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of the air, and with the creeping things of the earth: and I will destroy the bow, and the sword, and war out of the land: and I will make them sleep secure.
And in that day wil I make a couenant for them, with the wilde beasts, and with the foules of the heauen, and with that that creepeth vpon the earth: and I will breake the bowe, and the sworde and the battell out of the earth, and will make them to sleepe safely.
19 And I will espouse thee to me for ever: and I will espouse thee to me in justice, and judgment, and in mercy, and in commiserations.
And I wil marry thee vnto me for euer: yea, I will marry thee vnto me in righteousnes, and in iudgement, and in mercy and in compassion.
20 And I will espouse thee to me in faith: and thou shalt know that I am the Lord.
I will euen marry thee vnto me in faithfulnes, and thou shalt knowe the Lord.
21 And it shall come to pass in that day: I will hear, saith the Lord, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth.
And in that day I wil heare, saith the Lord, I will euen heare the heauens, and they shall heare the earth,
22 And the earth shall hear the core, and the wine, and the oil, and these shall hear Jezrahel.
And the earth shall heare the corne, and the wine, and the oyle, and they shall heare Izreel.
23 And I will sow her unto me in the earth, and I will have mercy on her that was without mercy. And I will say to that which was not my people: Thou art my people: and they shall say: Thou art my God.
And I will sowe her vnto me in the earth, and I will haue mercie vpon her, that was not pitied, and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people. And they shall say, Thou art my God.

< Hosea 2 >