| Christian Standard Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Israel is a lush vine; it yields fruit for itself. The more his fruit increased, the more he increased the altars. The better his land produced, the better they made the sacred pillars. | 1How prosperous Israel is— a luxuriant vine loaded with fruit. But the richer the people get, the more pagan altars they build. The more bountiful their harvests, the more beautiful their sacred pillars. |
| 2Their hearts are devious; now they must bear their guilt. The LORD will break down their altars and demolish their sacred pillars. | 2The hearts of the people are fickle; they are guilty and must be punished. The LORD will break down their altars and smash their sacred pillars. |
| 3In fact, they are now saying, "We have no king! For we do not fear the LORD. What can a king do for us?" | 3Then they will say, “We have no king because we didn’t fear the LORD. But even if we had a king, what could he do for us anyway?” |
| 4They speak mere words, taking false oaths while making covenants. So lawsuits break out like poisonous weeds in the furrows of a field. | 4They spout empty words and make covenants they don’t intend to keep. So injustice springs up among them like poisonous weeds in a farmer’s field. |
| 5The residents of Samaria will have anxiety over the calf of Beth-aven. Indeed, its idolatrous priests rejoiced over it; the people will mourn over it, over its glory. It will certainly go into exile. | 5The people of Samaria tremble in fear for their calf idol at Beth-aven, and they mourn for it. Though its priests rejoice over it, its glory will be stripped away. |
| 6The calf itself will be taken to Assyria as an offering to the great king. Ephraim will experience shame; Israel will be ashamed of its counsel. | 6This idol will be carted away to Assyria, a gift to the great king there. Ephraim will be ridiculed and Israel will be shamed, because its people have trusted in this idol. |
| 7Samaria's king will disappear like foam on the surface of the water. | 7Samaria and its king will be cut off; they will float away like driftwood on an ocean wave. |
| 8The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, will be destroyed; thorns and thistles will grow over their altars. They will say to the mountains, "Cover us!" and to the hills, "Fall on us!" | 8And the pagan shrines of Aven, the place of Israel’s sin, will crumble. Thorns and thistles will grow up around their altars. They will beg the mountains, “Bury us!” and plead with the hills, “Fall on us!” |
| 9Israel, you have sinned since the days of Gibeah; they have taken their stand there. Will not war against the unjust overtake them in Gibeah? | 9The LORD says, “O Israel, ever since Gibeah, there has been only sin and more sin! You have made no progress whatsoever. Was it not right that the wicked men of Gibeah were attacked? |
| 10I will discipline them at my discretion; nations will be gathered against them to put them in bondage for their double iniquity. | 10Now whenever it fits my plan, I will attack you, too. I will call out the armies of the nations to punish you for your multiplied sins. |
| 11Ephraim is a well-trained calf that loves to thresh, but I will place a yoke on her fine neck. I will harness Ephraim; Judah will plow; Jacob will do the final plowing. | 11“Israel is like a trained heifer treading out the grain— an easy job she loves. But I will put a heavy yoke on her tender neck. I will force Judah to pull the plow and Israel to break up the hard ground. |
| 12Sow righteousness for yourselves and reap faithful love; break up your unplowed ground. It is time to seek the LORD until he comes and sends righteousness on you like the rain. | 12I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the LORD, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you.’ |
| 13You have plowed wickedness and reaped injustice; you have eaten the fruit of lies. Because you have trusted in your own way and in your large number of soldiers, | 13“But you have cultivated wickedness and harvested a thriving crop of sins. You have eaten the fruit of lies— trusting in your military might, believing that great armies could make your nation safe. |
| 14the roar of battle will rise against your people, and all your fortifications will be demolished in a day of war, like Shalman's destruction of Beth-arbel. Mothers will be dashed to pieces along with their children. | 14Now the terrors of war will rise among your people. All your fortifications will fall, just as when Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel. Even mothers and children were dashed to death there. |
| 15So it will be done to you, Bethel, because of your extreme evil. At dawn the king of Israel will be totally destroyed. | 15You will share that fate, Bethel, because of your great wickedness. When the day of judgment dawns, the king of Israel will be completely destroyed. |
| The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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