Hosea Chapter 4

The LORD Accuses Israel

            ¹ Israel, listen to the LORD’s message;

      he’s filing charges against you:

      “There’s no faithfulness, kindness,

            or awareness of God there.

² There’s swearing, deception, murder, stealing, and adultery;

      they use violence, so there’s murder after murder.

³ So the land is in mourning.

      Everybody that lives in it is wasting away,

            along with the animals in the field

                  and the birds in the sky;

                  even the fish are disappearing.”                         

Hos 4:1-3

⁴ “But don’t anybody point a finger at somebody else;

      I’m suing you priests.

⁵ You’ll stumble in the daytime;

      prophets will stumble with you at night;

      I’ll destroy your mother Israel.

⁶ My people are getting destroyed because they don’t know me.

      Since you priests have refused to know me,

            I’ll refuse to acknowledge you as my priests.

      Since you’ve forgotten about my Law,

I’ll forget about your children.

⁷ The more priests there are, the more they sin against me;

      I’ll turn their honor into shame.

Hos 4:4-7

⁸ “They feed on my people’s sin

      because their sacrifices for it

            mean more food for the priests!

⁹ It will be, like people like priest;

      I’ll punish them for their ways,

            repay them for their deeds.

¹⁰ They’ll eat, but not have enough;

      they’ll carry on prostitution, but won’t gain anything by it,

            because they’ve stopped listening to the LORD.

¹¹ Prostitution, wine, and new wine

      have robbed my people of understanding.                       

Hos 4:8-11

¹² “My people consult their wooden idols;

      their fortunetellers toss sticks to give them oracles.

A spirit of prostitution has led them astray;

      they’ve carried on prostitution by leaving their God.

¹³ They offer sacrifices to idols on mountaintops

      and burn incense on hills

                  under oaks, poplars, and terebinth trees,

            because they make pleasant shade.

      That’s why your daughters become prostitutes

            and your brides commit adultery.

¹⁴ I won’t punish their daughters when they carry on prostitution

            or their brides when they commit adultery,

      because you men visit prostitutes

            and offer sacrifices with temple prostitutes;

      so you foolish people will be ruined.                   

Hos 4:12-14

¹⁵ “Though you carry on prostitution, Israel,

      don’t draw Judah into your guilt.

Don’t go to Gilgal or up to Beth-aven [Bethel];

      don’t swear, ‘As sure as the LORD lives!’

¹⁶ Israel is like a stubborn heifer;

            so how can the LORD feed it like a lamb in the pasture?

         ¹⁷Leave Ephraim alone

            because she carries on idolatry.

¹⁸ When their rulers are done drinking,

      they go visit prostitutes;

      they have no shame whatsoever.

¹⁹ The wind will carry them off;

      their altars will bring them disgrace.                  

Hos 4:15-19