\{Ephraim’s\} pride speaks against him.\par The people had many, many troubles,\par but they still didn’t go back\par to the Lord their God.\par The people didn’t look to him for help.\par
The Lord will bring the Arameans from the east and the Philistines from the west. Those enemies will defeat Israel with their armies. But the Lord will still be angry with Israel. The Lord will still be ready to punish the people.
You sinned, so the rain has not come.\par There have not been any springtime rains.\par But still you refuse to be ashamed.\par The look on your face is like the look\par that a prostitute has when she\par refuses to be ashamed.\par You refuse to be ashamed of what you did.\par
“I will save them from the grave!\par I will rescue them from death!\par Death, where are your diseases?\par Grave, where is your power?\par I am not looking for revenge!\par
Some people turned away from the Lord. They quit following me. Those people stopped asking the Lord for help. So I will remove those people from that place.”
The Lord said, “Don’t be like your ancestors. In the past, the prophets spoke to them. They said, ‘The Lord All-Powerful wants you to change your bad way of living. Stop doing bad things!’ But your ancestors did not listen to me.” The Lord said those things.