1:1 ¹ 

This is the word of the Lord which was revealed to Hosea ²  son of Beeri during the time when ³  Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah ruled Judah, ⁴  and during the time when Jeroboam son of Joash ⁵  ruled Israel. ⁶ 

1:2 When the Lord first spoke ⁷  through ⁸  Hosea, he ⁹  said to him, ¹⁰  “Go marry ¹¹  a prostitute ¹²  who will bear illegitimate children conceived through prostitution, ¹³  because the nation ¹⁴  continually commits spiritual prostitution ¹⁵  by turning away from ¹⁶  the Lord.” 1:3 So Hosea married ¹⁷  Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim. Then she conceived and gave birth to a son for him. 1:4 Then the Lord said to Hosea, ¹⁸  “Name him ‘Jezreel,’ because in a little while I will punish ¹⁹  the dynasty ²⁰  of Jehu on account of the bloodshed ²¹  in the valley of Jezreel, ²²  and I will put an end to the kingdom ²³  of Israel. ²⁴  1:5 At that time, ²⁵  I will destroy the military power ²⁶  of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.”

1:6 She conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord ²⁷  said to him, “Name her ‘No Pity’ (Lo-Ruhamah) because I will no longer have pity ²⁸  on the nation ²⁹  of Israel. For ³⁰  I will certainly not forgive ³¹  their guilt. ³²  1:7 But I will have pity on the nation ³³  of Judah. ³⁴  I will deliver them by the Lord their God; I will not deliver them by the warrior’s bow, by sword, by military victory, ³⁵  by chariot horses, or by chariots.” ³⁶ 

1:8 When ³⁷  she had weaned ‘No Pity’ (Lo-Ruhamah) she conceived again and gave birth to another son. 1:9 Then the Lord ³⁸  said: “Name him ‘Not My People’ (Lo-Ammi), because you ³⁹  are not my people and I am not your ⁴⁰  God.” ⁴¹ 

1:10 ⁴²  However, ⁴³  in the future the number of the people ⁴⁴  of Israel will be like the sand of the sea which can be neither measured nor numbered. Although ⁴⁵  it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it will be said to them, “You are ⁴⁶  children ⁴⁷  of the living God!” 1:11 Then the people ⁴⁸  of Judah and the people of Israel will be gathered together. They will appoint for themselves one leader, ⁴⁹  and will flourish in the land. ⁵⁰  Certainly, ⁵¹  the day of Jezreel will be great! 2:1 Then you will call ⁵²  your ⁵³  brother, “My People” (Ammi)! You will call your sister, “Pity” (Ruhamah)!

2:2 Plead earnestly ⁵⁴  with your ⁵⁵  mother

(for ⁵⁶  she is not my wife, and I am not her husband),

so that ⁵⁷  she might put an end to her adulterous lifestyle, ⁵⁸ 

and turn away from her sexually immoral behavior. ⁵⁹ 

2:3 Otherwise, I will strip her naked,

and expose her like she was when she was born.

I will turn her land into a wilderness

and make her country a parched land,

so that I might kill ⁶⁰  her with thirst.

2:4 I will have no pity on her children, ⁶¹ 

because they are children conceived in adultery. ⁶² 

2:5 For their mother has committed adultery;

she who conceived them has acted shamefully.

For she said, “I will seek out ⁶³  my lovers; ⁶⁴ 

they are the ones who give me my bread and my water,

my wool, my flax, my olive oil, and my wine. ⁶⁵ 

2:6 Therefore, I will soon ⁶⁶  fence her in ⁶⁷  with thorns;

I will wall her in ⁶⁸  so that ⁶⁹  she cannot find her way. ⁷⁰ 

2:7 Then she will pursue her lovers, but she will not catch ⁷¹  them;

she will seek them, but she will not find them. ⁷² 

Then she will say,

“I will go back ⁷³  to my husband, ⁷⁴ 

because I was better off then than I am now.” ⁷⁵ 

2:8 Yet ⁷⁶  until now ⁷⁷  she has refused to acknowledge ⁷⁸  that I ⁷⁹  was the one

who gave her the grain, the new wine, and the olive oil;

and that it was I who ⁸⁰  lavished on her the silver and gold –

which they ⁸¹  used in worshiping Baal! ⁸² 

2:9 Therefore, I will take back ⁸³  my grain during the harvest time ⁸⁴ 

and my new wine when it ripens; ⁸⁵ 

I will take away my wool and my flax

which I had provided ⁸⁶  in order to clothe her. ⁸⁷ 

2:10 Soon ⁸⁸  I will expose her lewd nakedness ⁸⁹  in front of her lovers,

and no one will be able to rescue her from me! ⁹⁰ 

2:11 I will put an end to all her celebration:

her annual religious festivals,

monthly new moon celebrations,

and weekly Sabbath festivities –

all her appointed festivals.

2:12 I will destroy her vines and fig trees,

about which she said, “These are my wages for prostitution ⁹¹ 

that my lovers gave to me!”

I will turn her cultivated vines and fig trees ⁹²  into an uncultivated thicket,

so that wild animals ⁹³  will devour them.

2:13 “I will punish her for the festival days

when she burned incense to the Baal idols; ⁹⁴ 

she adorned herself with earrings and jewelry,

and went after her lovers,

but ⁹⁵  she forgot me!” ⁹⁶  says the Lord.

2:14 However, in the future I will allure her; ⁹⁷ 

I will lead ⁹⁸  her back into the wilderness,

and speak tenderly to her.

2:15 From there I will give back her vineyards to her,

and turn the “Valley of Trouble” ⁹⁹  into an “Opportunity ¹⁰⁰  for Hope.”

There she will sing as she did when she was young, ¹⁰¹ 

when ¹⁰²  she came up from the land of Egypt.

2:16 “At that time,” ¹⁰³  declares the Lord,

“you will call, ¹⁰⁴  ‘My husband’; ¹⁰⁵ 

you will never again call me, ¹⁰⁶  ‘My master.’ ¹⁰⁷ 

2:17 For ¹⁰⁸  I will remove the names of the Baal idols ¹⁰⁹  from your lips, ¹¹⁰ 

so that you will never again utter their names!” ¹¹¹ 

2:18 “At that time ¹¹²  I will make a covenant for them with the wild animals,

the birds of the air, and the creatures that crawl on the ground.

I will abolish ¹¹³  the warrior’s bow and sword

– that is, every weapon of warfare ¹¹⁴  – from the land,

and I will allow them to live securely.” ¹¹⁵ 

2:19 I will commit myself to you ¹¹⁶  forever;

I will commit myself to you in ¹¹⁷  righteousness and justice,

in steadfast love and tender compassion.

2:20 I will commit myself to you in faithfulness;

then ¹¹⁸  you will acknowledge ¹¹⁹  the Lord.” ¹²⁰ 

2:21 “At that time, ¹²¹  I will willingly respond,” ¹²²  declares the Lord.

“I will respond to the sky,

and the sky ¹²³  will respond to the ground;

2:22 then the ground will respond to the grain, the new wine, and the olive oil;

and they will respond to ‘God Plants’ (Jezreel)! ¹²⁴ 

2:23 Then I will plant her as my own ¹²⁵  in the land.

I will have pity on ‘No Pity’ (Lo-Ruhamah).

I will say to ‘Not My People’ (Lo-Ammi), ‘You are my people!’

And he ¹²⁶  will say, ‘You are ¹²⁷  my God!’”