| Berean Study Bible | NET Bible |
| 1Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has torn us to pieces, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bind up our wounds. | 1"Come on! Let's return to the LORD! He himself has torn us to pieces, but he will heal us! He has injured us, but he will bandage our wounds! |
| 2After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His presence. | 2He will restore us in a very short time; he will heal us in a little while, so that we may live in his presence. |
| 3So let us know—let us press on to know the LORD. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the rain, like the spring showers that water the earth. | 3So let us acknowledge him! Let us seek to acknowledge the LORD! He will come to our rescue as certainly as the appearance of the dawn, as certainly as the winter rain comes, as certainly as the spring rain that waters the land." |
| 4What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? For your loyalty is like a morning mist, like the early dew that vanishes. | 4What am I going to do with you, O Ephraim? What am I going to do with you, O Judah? For your faithfulness is as fleeting as the morning mist; it disappears as quickly as dawn's dew! |
| 5Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of My mouth, and My judgments go forth like lightning. | 5Therefore, I will certainly cut you into pieces at the hands of the prophets; I will certainly kill you in fulfillment of my oracles of judgment; for my judgment will come forth like the light of the dawn. |
| 6For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings. | 6For I delight in faithfulness, not simply in sacrifice; I delight in acknowledging God, not simply in whole burnt offerings. |
| 7But they, like Adam, have transgressed the covenant; there they were unfaithful to Me. | 7At Adam they broke the covenant; Oh how they were unfaithful to me! |
| 8Gilead is a city of evildoers, tracked with footprints of blood. | 8Gilead is a city full of evildoers; its streets are stained with bloody footprints! |
| 9Like raiders who lie in ambush, so does a band of priests; they murder on the way to Shechem; surely they have committed atrocities. | 9The company of priests is like a gang of robbers, lying in ambush to pounce on a victim. They commit murder on the road to Shechem; they have done heinous crimes! |
| 10In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing: Ephraim practices prostitution there, and Israel is defiled. | 10I have seen a disgusting thing in the temple of Israel: there Ephraim practices temple prostitution and Judah defiles itself. |
| 11Also for you, O Judah, a harvest is appointed, when I restore My people from captivity. | 11I have appointed a time to reap judgment for you also, O Judah! If Israel Would Repent of Sin, God Would Relent of Judgment Whenever I want to restore the fortunes of my people, |
|
    |