Hosea 12

God’s Case against Jacob’s Heirs

¹Ephraim chases ^a the wind ^b

and pursues the east wind. ^c

He continually multiplies lies and violence.

He makes a covenant with Assyria, ^d

and olive oil is carried to Egypt. ^e

²The Lord also has a dispute with Judah.

He is about to punish Jacob according to his conduct; ^f

he will repay him based on his actions.

³In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel, ^g

and as an adult he wrestled with God. ^h

⁴Jacob struggled with the angel and prevailed;

he wept and sought his favor. ⁱ

He found him at Bethel, ^j

and there he spoke with him. ^k,^l

⁵The Lord is the God of Armies;

the Lord is his name. ^m

⁶But you must return to your God. ⁿ

Maintain love and justice, ^o

and always put your hope in God. ^p

⁷A merchant loves to extort ^q

with dishonest scales in his hands. ^r

⁸But Ephraim thinks,

“How rich I have become; ^s

I made it all myself.

In all my earnings,

no one can find any iniquity in me ^t

that I can be punished for! ” ^u

Judgment on Apostate Israel

⁹I have been the Lord your God

ever since ^v the land of Egypt. ^w

I will make you live in tents again, ^x

as in the festival days.

¹⁰I will speak through the prophets ^y

and grant many visions;

I will give parables through the prophets. ^z

¹¹Since Gilead is full of evil, ^aa

they will certainly come to nothing.

They sacrifice bulls in Gilgal; ^ab

even their altars will be like piles of rocks ^ac

on the furrows of a field.

Further Indictment of Jacob’s Heirs

¹²Jacob fled to the territory of Aram. ^ad

Israel worked to earn a wife; ^ae

he tended flocks for a wife. ^af

¹³The Lord brought Israel from Egypt by a prophet, ^ag

and Israel was tended by a prophet.

¹⁴Ephraim has provoked bitter anger, ^ah

so his Lord will leave his bloodguilt on him ^ai

and repay him for his contempt. ^aj