Osea 12
1 Efraim si pasce di vento, e va dietro al vento orientale; tuttodì moltiplica menzogna, e rapina; e fanno patto con l'Assiro, ed olii odoriferi son portati in Egitto.
[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].
2 Il Signore ha bene anche lite con Giuda; ma egli farà punizione sopra Giacobbe, secondo le sue vie; egli gli renderà la retribuzione secondo le sue opere.
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.
3 Nel ventre egli prese il calcagno del suo fratello, e con la sua forza fu vincitore, [lottando] con Iddio.
[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.
4 Egli fu vincitore, [lottando] con l'Angelo, e prevalse; egli pianse, e gli supplicò; lo trovò in Betel e quivi egli parlò con noi.
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.
5 Or il Signore [è] l'Iddio degli eserciti; la sua ricordanza [è: ] IL SIGNORE.
[That was] the Commander of the armies of angels whose name is Yahweh [who talked with him]!
6 Tu adunque, convertiti all'Iddio tuo; osserva benignità, e dirittura; e spera sempre nell'Iddio tuo.
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.
7 [Efraim è] un Cananeo, egli ha in mano bilance false, egli ama far torto.
The merchants [among you] use scales that do not weigh correctly; they love/like to cheat people.
8 Ed Efraim ha detto: Io son pure arricchito; io mi sono acquistate delle facoltà; tutti i miei acquisti non mi hanno cagionata iniquità, che sia peccato.
[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.”
9 Pur nondimeno io [sono] il Signore Iddio tuo, fin dal paese di Egitto; ancora ti farò abitare in tabernacoli, come a' dì della festa solenne.
“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].
10 E parlerò a' profeti, e moltiplicherò le visioni, e proporrò parabole per li profeti.
[Many times] I spoke to the prophets, and I gave them many visions, and I gave them parables to tell [to the people].”
11 Certo, Galaad [è tutto] iniquità; non [sono] altro che vanità; sacrificano buoi in Ghilgal; ed anche i loro altari [son] come mucchi di pietre su per li solchi de' campi.
[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.
12 Or Giacobbe se ne fuggì nella contrada di Siria, e Israele servì per una moglie, e per una moglie fu guardiano [di greggia].
[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.
13 E il Signore, per lo profeta, trasse Israele fuor di Egitto, ed Israele fu guardato per lo profeta.
[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.
14 Efraim ha provocato il suo Signore ad ira acerbissima; perciò, egli gli lascerà addosso il suo sangue, e gli renderà il suo vituperio.
[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.
