1
“Do not rejoice, O Israel, do not be joyful like the peoples, || For you have gone whoring from your God, || You have loved a wage near all floors of grain.
2
Floor and winepress do not feed them, || And new wine fails in her,
3
They do not abide in the land of YHWH, || And Ephraim has turned back [to] Egypt, || And they eat an unclean thing in Asshur.
4
They do not pour out wine to YHWH, || Nor are they sweet to Him, || Their sacrifices [are] as bread of mourners to them, || All eating it are unclean: For their bread [is] for themselves, || It does not come into the house of YHWH.
5
What do you do at the day appointed? And at the day of YHWH’s festival?
6
For behold, they have gone because of destruction, || Egypt gathers them, Moph buries them, || The desirable things of their silver, || Nettles possess them—a thorn [is] in their tents.
7
The days of inspection have come in, || The days of repayment have come in, Israel knows! The prophet [is] a fool, || Mad [is] the man of the spirit, || Because of the abundance of your iniquity, || And great [is] the hatred.
8
Ephraim is looking [away] from My God, || The prophet! A snare of a fowler [is] over all his ways, || Hatred [is] in the house of his God.
9
They have gone deep—have done corruptly, || As [in] the days of Gibeah, || He remembers their iniquity, He inspects their sins.
10
As grapes in a wilderness I found Israel, || As the first-fruit in a fig tree, at its beginning, I have seen your fathers, || They have gone in [to] Ba‘al-Peor, || And are separated to a shameful thing, || And have become abominable like their love.
11
Ephraim [is] as a bird, their glory flies away, without birth, and without womb, and without conception.
12
For though they nourish their sons, I have made them childless—without man, || Surely also, woe to them when I turn aside from them.
13
Ephraim! When I have looked to the rock, || Is planted in comeliness, || And Ephraim [is] to bring out his sons to a slayer.
14
Give to them, YHWH—what do You give? Give to them miscarrying womb, and dry breasts.
15
All their evil [is] in Gilgal, || Surely there I have hated them, || Because of the evil of their doings, || Out of My house I drive them, || I no longer love them, || All their heads [are] apostates.
16
Ephraim has been struck, || Their root has dried up, they do not yield fruit, || Indeed, though they bring forth, || I have put to death the desired of their womb.
17
My God rejects them, || Because they have not listened to Him, || And they are wanderers among nations!”
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