Hosea 12
1 [The leaders of] Israel are constantly wavering [about seeking help from other countries]. [Seeking their help is as useless as] [MET] chasing the wind. They pile up their lies and violent acts. [First, ] they make a treaty with Assyria, and [then they] send olive oil to [the rulers of] Egypt [to seek their help].
以法蓮吃風，且追趕東風， 時常增添虛謊和強暴， 與亞述立約，把油送到埃及。
2 Yahweh [says that he] will bring accusations against [the leaders of] Judah, and that he will punish [the descendants of] Jacob for what they have done.
耶和華與猶大爭辯， 必照雅各所行的懲罰他， 按他所做的報應他。
3 [When Jacob was] in his mother’s womb, he grabbed his brother [Esau’s] heel [because he wanted to be born first]. When Jacob grew up, he wrestled with God.
他在腹中抓住哥哥的腳跟， 壯年的時候與上帝較力，
4 He struggled with [the one who had appeared to him in the form of] an angel, and Jacob defeated him, but [then] he cried and asked the angel to bless him. [Later], God came to Jacob at Bethel and talked with him there.
與天使較力，並且得勝， 哭泣懇求， 在伯特利遇見耶和華。 耶和華－萬軍之上帝在那裏曉諭我們 以色列人； 耶和華是他可記念的名。
5 [That was] the Commander of the armies of angels whose name is Yahweh [who talked with him]!
6 But you [people of Israel] must return to your God! You must faithfully love [him], and you must do what is fair/just and always depend on him.
所以你當歸向你的上帝， 謹守仁愛、公平，常常等候你的上帝。
7 The merchants [among you] use scales that do not weigh correctly; they love/like to cheat people.
以法蓮是商人， 手裏有詭詐的天平，愛行欺騙。
8 [The people of] Israel boast, saying “We are [very] rich [DOU]; and we got all that money by our own efforts, and without committing any sin.”
以法蓮說： 我果然成了富足，得了財寶； 我所勞碌得來的， 人必不見有甚麼不義，可算為罪的。
9 “I am Yahweh your God, [the one who brought your ancestors] out of Egypt. [And some day] I will force you to live in tents again [like your ancestors did] when [they celebrated] the Festival [of Living in Temporary Shelters].
自從你出埃及地以來， 我就是耶和華－你的上帝； 我必使你再住帳棚，如在大會的日子一樣。
10 [Many times] I spoke to the prophets, and I gave them many visions, and I gave them parables to tell [to the people].”
我已曉諭眾先知， 並且加增默示， 藉先知設立比喻。
11 [The people of] Gilead [city] are [RHQ] extremely wicked; they are worthless. The people sacrifice bulls in Gilgal [city], but their altars will [soon] become like [SIM] piles of stone [at the edge of] a plowed field.
基列人沒有罪孽嗎？ 他們全然是虛假的。 人在吉甲獻牛犢為祭， 他們的祭壇好像田間誆溝中的亂堆。
12 [Your ancestor] Jacob fled [from his brother Esau] and went to northwest Mesopotamia. He worked [for his uncle Laban for many years] to get a wife; he took care of [his uncle’s] sheep [to pay] for her.
從前雅各逃到亞蘭地， 以色列為得妻服事人， 為得妻與人放羊。
13 [Many years later, ] Yahweh enabled a prophet to bring the [ancestors of you] people of Israel here from Egypt; that prophet, [Moses], took care of them.
耶和華藉先知領以色列從埃及上來； 以色列也藉先知而得保存。
14 [But now the people of] Israel have caused [Yahweh] to become very angry; Yahweh says that they deserve to die because they caused [many others] to die [MTY]; he will pay them back for the sins that they have committed against him and for insulting him.
以法蓮大大惹動主怒， 所以他流血的罪必歸在他身上。 主必將那因以法蓮所受的羞辱歸還他。
