1Israel is a luxuriant vine;

He produces fruit for himself.

The more his fruit,

The more altars he made;

The [a]richer his land,

The better [b]he made the memorial stones.

2Their heart is [c]deceitful;

Now they must suffer for their guilt.

[d]The LORD will break down their altars

And destroy their memorial stones.

3Certainly now they will say, “We have no king,

For we do not revere the LORD.

As for the king, what can he do for us?”

4They speak mere words,

[e]With worthless oaths they make covenants;

And judgment sprouts like poisonous weeds in the furrows of the field.

5The inhabitants of Samaria will fear

For the [f]calf of Beth-aven.

Indeed, its people will mourn for it,

And its idolatrous priests [g]will cry out over it,

Over its glory, since it has left it.

6The thing itself will be brought to Assyria

As a gift of tribute to [h]King Jareb;

Ephraim will [i]be seized with shame,

And Israel will be ashamed of its own plan.

7Samaria will be destroyed with her king,

Like a twig on the surface of the water.

8Also the high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, will be destroyed;

Thorns and thistles will grow on their altars;

Then they will say to the mountains,

“Cover us!” And to the hills, “Fall on us!”

9Since the days of Gibeah you have sinned, Israel;

There they stand!

Will the battle against the sons of injustice not overtake them in Gibeah?

10When it is My desire, I will [j]discipline them;

And the peoples will be gathered against them

When they are bound for their double guilt.

11Ephraim is a trained heifer that loves to thresh,

[k]And I passed over her lovely neck;

I will harness Ephraim,

Judah will plow, Jacob will [l]harrow for himself.

12Sow for yourselves, with a view to righteousness;

Harvest in accordance with [m]kindness.

Break up your uncultivated ground,

For it is time to seek the LORD

Until He comes and rains righteousness on you.

13You have plowed wickedness, you have harvested injustice,

You have eaten the fruit of lies.

Because you have trusted in your way, in your many warriors,

14An uproar will arise among your people,

And all your fortresses will be destroyed,

As Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel on the day of battle,

When mothers were [n]slaughtered with their children.

15So it will be done to you at Bethel because of your great wickedness.

At dawn the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.