Hosea, chapter 13

Israel Is Doomed

When your leaders* spoke, everyone in Israel trembled

and showed great respect.

But you sinned by worshiping Baal,

and you were destroyed.

²Now you continue to sin by designing and making

idols of silver in the shape of calvesO.

You are told to sacrifice to these idols*—

yes, even to kiss them.

³And so, all of you will vanish like the mist

or the dew of early morning,

or husks of grainO in the wind

or smoke from a chimney.

⁴I, the Lord, have been your God

since the time you were in Egypt.

I am the only God you know,

the only one who can save.

I, the Lord, have been your God since the time you were in Egypt. I am the only God you know, the only one who can save.

— Hosea 13.4

⁵I took care of you in a thirsty desert.

⁶I fed youH till you were satisfied,

then you became proud and forgot about me.

⁷ CNow I will attack like a lion, ambush you like a leopard,

⁸and rip you apart like a bear robbed of her cubs.

I will gnaw on your bones, as though I were a lion

or some other wild animal.

⁹Israel, you are done for. Don't expect help from me.*

¹⁰You wanted a king and rulers. Where is your king now?

What cities have rulers?

¹¹In my anger, I gave you a king;

in my fury, I took him awayH.

Israel's Terrible Fate

¹²Israel, your terrible sins are written down and stored awayI.

¹³You are like a senseless child

who refuses to be born at the proper time.

¹⁴ C Should I, the Lord, rescue you from death and the grave?

No! I call death and the grave to strike you like a plague.

I refuse to show mercy.

¹⁵No matter if you prosper

more than the other tribes,*

I, the Lord, will wipe you out,

just as a scorching desert wind

dries up streams of water.

I will take away your precious treasuresI.

¹⁶Samaria will be punishedG for turning against me.

It will be destroyed in war—

children will be beaten against rocks,

and pregnant women will be ripped open.