4 That city sits on a hill\par with a rich valley around it.\par And that “Beautiful Crown of Flowers”\par is just a dying plant.\par That city will be like the first figs of summer.\par When a person sees one of those figs,\par he quickly picks it and eats it.\par
4 and the glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be a fading flower, and as the hasty fruit before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up.
4 And the fading flower of its glorious beauty, which is on the head of the rich valley, will be like the early fig before the fruit harvest, which, when anyone sees it, he snatches and eats it up greedily at once. [So in an amazingly short time will the Assyrians devour Samaria, Israel's capital.]
4 and the fading flower of his glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be as the first-ripe fig before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up.
4 The withered flower, which is a thing of beauty as it sits on the head of those bloated with fat, will be like an early fig before the summer harvest: whoever sees it swallows it as soon as it is in hand.
4 And the falling flower, the glory of his exultation, who is at the summit of the fat valley, will be like a premature fruit before the ripeness of autumn, which, when the onlooker beholds it, as soon he takes it in his hand, he will devour it.
4 And the fading flower, the glory of his joy, who is on the head of the fat valley, shall be as a hasty fruit before the ripeness of autumn: which when he that seeth it shall behold, as soon as he taketh it in his hand, he will eat it up.
Look at Samaria!\par The drunk people of Ephraim\par are proud of that city.\par That city sits on a hill\par with a rich valley around it.\par The people of Samaria think their city\par is a beautiful crown of flowers.\par But they are drunk with wine.\par And this “Beautiful Crown”\par is just a dying plant.\par
\{Why?\} Because before the boy learns to say, ‘Mama’ and ‘Daddy,’ God will take all the wealth and riches from Damascus {\cf2\super [95]} and Samaria, {\cf2\super [96]} and God will give those things to the king of Assyria. {\cf2\super [97]} ”
“Ephraim {\cf2\super [141]} made himself very important in Israel. Ephraim spoke and people shook with fear. But Ephraim sinned—he began worshiping Baal. {\cf2\super [142]}
\{Israel\} grows among his brothers.\par But a powerful east wind will come—\par the Lord’s wind will blow from the desert.\par Then \{Israel’s\} well will become dry.\par His spring of water will become dry.\par The wind will take every valuable thing\par from \{Israel’s\} treasure.\par
“Ephraim, {\cf2\super [63]} what should I do with you?\par Judah, what should I do with you?\par Your faithfulness is like a morning mist,\par Your faithfulness is like the dew\par that goes away early in the morning.\par
Ephraim {\cf2\super [97]} will be punished.\par Their root is dying.\par They will not have any more babies.\par They might give birth to babies,\par but I will kill the precious babies\par that come from their bodies.\par
I am upset because I am\par like fruit that has been gathered,\par like grapes that have already been picked.\par There are no grapes left to eat.\par There are none of the early figs\par that I love.\par
But \{Nineveh\}, all your strong places will be like fig trees. New figs become ripe. A person comes and shakes the tree. The figs fall into the mouth of that person. He eats them, and they are gone!