| English Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1When Ephraim spoke, there was trembling; he was exalted in Israel, but he incurred guilt through Baal and died. | 1When Ephraim spoke, there was terror; he was exalted in Israel, but he became guilty by worshiping Baal and died. |
| 2And now they sin more and more, and make for themselves metal images, idols skillfully made of their silver, all of them the work of craftsmen. It is said of them, “Those who offer human sacrifice kiss calves!” | 2Even now they persist in sin! They make metal images for themselves, idols that they skillfully fashion from their own silver; all of them are nothing but the work of craftsmen! There is a saying about them: "Those who sacrifice to the calf idol are calf kissers!" |
| 3Therefore they shall be like the morning mist or like the dew that goes early away, like the chaff that swirls from the threshing floor or like smoke from a window. | 3Therefore they will disappear like the morning mist, like early morning dew that evaporates, like chaff that is blown away from a threshing floor, like smoke that disappears through an open window. |
| 4But I am the LORD your God from the land of Egypt; you know no God but me, and besides me there is no savior. | 4But I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt. Therefore, you must not acknowledge any God but me; except me there is no Savior. |
| 5It was I who knew you in the wilderness, in the land of drought; | 5I cared for you in the wilderness, in the dry desert where no water was. |
| 6but when they had grazed, they became full, they were filled, and their heart was lifted up; therefore they forgot me. | 6When they were fed, they became satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; as a result, they forgot me! |
| 7So I am to them like a lion; like a leopard I will lurk beside the way. | 7So I will pounce on them like a lion; like a leopard I will lurk by the path. |
| 8I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs; I will tear open their breast, and there I will devour them like a lion, as a wild beast would rip them open. | 8I will attack them like a bear robbed of her cubs--I will rip open their chests. I will devour them there like a lion--like a wild animal would tear them apart. |
| 9He destroys you, O Israel, for you are against me, against your helper. | 9I will destroy you, O Israel! Who is there to help you? |
| 10Where now is your king, to save you in all your cities? Where are all your rulers— those of whom you said, “Give me a king and princes”? | 10Where then is your king, that he may save you in all your cities? Where are your rulers for whom you asked, saying, "Give me a king and princes"? |
| 11I gave you a king in my anger, and I took him away in my wrath. | 11I granted you a king in my anger, and I will take him away in my wrath! |
| 12The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is kept in store. | 12The punishment of Ephraim has been decreed; his punishment is being stored up for the future. |
| 13The pangs of childbirth come for him, but he is an unwise son, for at the right time he does not present himself at the opening of the womb. | 13The labor pains of a woman will overtake him, but the baby will lack wisdom; when the time arrives, he will not come out of the womb! |
| 14I shall ransom them from the power of Sheol; I shall redeem them from Death. O Death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your sting? Compassion is hidden from my eyes. | 14Will I deliver them from the power of Sheol? No, I will not! Will I redeem them from death? No, I will not! O Death, bring on your plagues! O Sheol, bring on your destruction! My eyes will not show any compassion! |
| 15Though he may flourish among his brothers, the east wind, the wind of the LORD, shall come, rising from the wilderness, and his fountain shall dry up; his spring shall be parched; it shall strip his treasury of every precious thing. | 15Even though he flourishes like a reed plant, a scorching east wind will come, a wind from the LORD rising up from the desert. As a result, his spring will dry up; his well will become dry. That wind will spoil all his delightful foods in the containers in his storehouse. |
| 16Samaria shall bear her guilt, because she has rebelled against her God; they shall fall by the sword; their little ones shall be dashed in pieces, and their pregnant women ripped open. | 16Samaria will be held guilty, because she rebelled against her God. They will fall by the sword, their infants will be dashed to the ground--their pregnant women will be ripped open. |
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