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Retribution for Israel's Sin

¹ Israel is a luxuriant and prolific ^(C1)vine;
He produces fruit for himself.
The more his fruit,
The more altars he ^(C2)made to Baal;
The richer his land,
The better he made the idolatrous ^(C3)pillars.

² Their heart is ^(C1)divided (faithless);
Now they must bear their ^(C2)guilt and punishment.
The LORD will ^(C3)break down the horns of their altars;
He will destroy their idolatrous pillars.

³ Surely now they will say in despair, "We have ^(C1)no true king,
For we do not revere the LORD;
And as for the king, what can he do for us to rescue us?"

⁴ They have spoken empty (disingenuous) words,
^(C1)Swearing falsely to make covenants they intend to break;
Therefore, ^(C2)judgment springs up like poisonous weeds in the furrows of the field.

⁵ The people of Samaria will fear and tremble
For the idolatrous ^(C1)calf of ^(F1)(C2)Beth-aven (House of Wickedness).
Indeed, its people will mourn over it
And its idolatrous ^(C3)priests will cry out and wail over it,
Over its glory, because the ^(C4)glory of their calf god has departed from it.

⁶ The golden calf itself will be carried to ^(C1)Assyria
As tribute to ^(C2)King Jareb;
Ephraim will be ^(C3)seized with shame
And Israel will be ashamed of his ^(C4)own counsel to worship the calf and separate Israel from Judah.

⁷ As for Samaria, her king will be ^(C1)cut off and float away
Like a twig on the surface of the water.

⁸ Also the ^(C1)high places of Aven (Beth-aven), the ^(C2)sin of Israel, will be destroyed;
The ^(C3)thorn and the thistle will grow on their pagan altars,
And in despair they will ^(C4)say to the mountains,
"Cover us!" And to the hills, "Fall on us!" ^(VR1)

⁹ O Israel, you have willfully sinned since the days of Gibeah;
There they (Israel) stand!
Will not the battle against the sons of wickedness overtake them at Gibeah? ^(VR1)

¹⁰ When it is my ^(C1)desire to defend My righteousness, I will ^(C2)chastise them;
And hostile ^(C3)peoples will be gathered against them
When they are bound and punished for their double guilt their revolt against the LORD and their worship of idols. ^(VR1)

¹¹ Ephraim is a trained ^(C1)heifer that loves to tread out the grain,
But I will ^(C2)come over her fair neck with a heavy yoke for hard field work.
I will harness Ephraim;
Judah will plow and Jacob will harrow and rake for himself.

^12 (C1)Sow with a view to righteousness that righteousness, like seed, may germinate;
Reap in accordance with mercy and lovingkindness.
^(C2)Break up your uncultivated ground,
For it is time to ^(C3)seek and search diligently for the LORD and to long for His blessing
Until He ^(C4)comes to ^(C5)rain righteousness and His gift of salvation on you. ^(VR1)

¹³ You have ^(C1)plowed and planted wickedness, you have reaped the willful injustice of oppressors,
You have eaten the fruit of ^(C2)lies.
Because you have trusted in your own way and your chariots, and in your many ^(C3)warriors,

¹⁴ Therefore an uproar will arise among your people,
And all your ^(C1)fortresses will be destroyed,
As Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel on the day of battle,
When ^(C2)mothers were dashed in pieces with their children. ^(VR1)

¹⁵ In this way it will be done to you at idolatrous Bethel because of your great wickedness;
At daybreak the king of Israel will be completely cut off.