Hosea 10 - Christian Standard Bible Anglicised

The Vine and the Calf

¹ Israel is a lush   vine; it yields fruit for itself. The more his fruit increased, the more he increased the altars. The better his land produced, the better they made the sacred pillars.

² Their hearts are devious;  , now they must bear their guilt. The Lord will break down their altars and demolish their sacred pillars.

³ In fact, they are now saying, ‘We have no king! For we do not fear the  Lord. What can a king do for us? ’

⁴ They speak mere words, taking false oaths while making covenants. So lawsuits break out like poisonous weeds in the furrows of a field.

⁵ The residents of Samaria  will have anxiety over the calf  of Beth-aven. Indeed, its idolatrous priests rejoiced over it; the people will mourn over it, over its glory. It will certainly go into exile.

⁶ The calf itself will be taken to Assyria as an offering to the great king.  , Ephraim will experience shame; Israel will be ashamed of its counsel.

⁷ Samaria’s king will disappear  , like foam  on the surface of the water.

⁸ The high places  of Aven, the sin of Israel, will be destroyed; thorns and thistles will grow over their altars. They will say to the mountains,  ‘Cover us! ’ and to the hills, ‘Fall on us! ’

Israel’s Defeat because of Sin

⁹ Israel, you have sinned since the days of Gibeah; they have taken their stand there. Will not war against the unjust overtake them in Gibeah?

¹⁰ I will discipline  them at my discretion; nations will be gathered against them to put them in bondage for their double iniquity.

¹¹ Ephraim is a well-trained calf that loves to thresh, but I will place a yoke on   her fine neck. I will harness Ephraim; Judah will plough; Jacob will do the final ploughing.

¹² Sow righteousness for yourselves and reap faithful love; break up your unploughed ground. It is time to seek the  Lord until he comes  and sends righteousness on you like the rain.

¹³ You have ploughed wickedness and reaped injustice; you have eaten the fruit of lies. Because you have trusted in your own way and in your large number of soldiers,

¹⁴ the roar of battle will rise against your people, and all your fortifications will be demolished in a day of war, like Shalman’s destruction of Beth-arbel. Mothers will be dashed to pieces along with their children.

¹⁵ So it will be done to you, Bethel, because of your extreme evil. At dawn the king of Israel will be totally destroyed.