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Hosea 11
Evangelical Heritage Version
Hosea 11
Evangelical Heritage Version
God’s Love for Israel
11 When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.
2 The more I called to them,
the more they went away from me.[a]
They kept sacrificing to the Baals
and burning incense to idols.
3 Yet I was the one who taught Ephraim to walk.
I took them in my arms,[b]
but they did not realize that it was I who healed them.
4 I drew them with cords suitable for a man,[c] with ropes of love.
For them I became like someone who lifts a yoke off their neck,
and I bent down to feed them.
5 They will not[d] return into the land of Egypt.
Instead, an Assyrian will be their king,
because they refused to repent.
6 The sword will slash against their cities.
It will destroy the bars of their gates,
and it will devour them because of their plans.
7 My people are determined to turn away from me.
Though they call him the Most High, he certainly will not exalt them.
8 How can I give you up, Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I treat you like Zeboiim?[e]
My heart is changed inside me.
All my compassion is stirred up.
9 I will not carry out my burning anger.
I will not destroy Ephraim again,
because I am God, and not man, the Holy One among you.
I will not enter a city.[f]
10 They will follow the Lord.
He will roar like a lion.
Yes, he will roar, and his children will come trembling from the west.
11 They will come trembling like a bird from Egypt,
and like a dove from the land of Assyria.
I will settle them in their houses, declares the Lord.
Israel Must Repent
12 Ephraim surrounds me with falsehood,
and the house of Israel with deceit.
Judah still strays from[g] God,
even from the Holy One, who is faithful.[h]
Footnotes
- Hosea 11:2 A variant reading is the more they called them, the more they went away from them.
- Hosea 11:3 The text of the pronouns in this verse is uncertain. The translation follows the Greek Old Testament.
- Hosea 11:4 Literally cords of mankind. The words translated man and love have homonyms meaning leather, so there may be a play on words here.
- Hosea 11:5 Not is missing from some manuscripts.
- Hosea 11:8 Admah and Zeboiim were daughter cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
- Hosea 11:9 Or come in wrath. The Hebrew is difficult.
- Hosea 11:12 Literally wanders with. Translations disagree whether the term is negative or positive.
- Hosea 11:12 English verse 11:12 is verse 12:1 in Hebrew. In chapter 12 the subsequent Hebrew verse numbers are one higher than the English numbers.
Hosea 11
New International Version
Hosea 11
New International Version
God’s Love for Israel
11 “When Israel was a child,(A) I loved(B) him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.(C)
2 But the more they were called,
the more they went away from me.[a](D)
They sacrificed to the Baals(E)
and they burned incense to images.(F)
3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them by the arms;(G)
but they did not realize
it was I who healed(H) them.
4 I led them with cords of human kindness,
with ties of love.(I)
To them I was like one who lifts
a little child to the cheek,
and I bent down to feed(J) them.(K)
5 “Will they not return to Egypt(L)
and will not Assyria(M) rule over them
because they refuse to repent?(N)
6 A sword(O) will flash in their cities;
it will devour(P) their false prophets
and put an end to their plans.
7 My people are determined to turn(Q) from me.(R)
Even though they call me God Most High,
I will by no means exalt them.
8 “How can I give you up,(S) Ephraim?(T)
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah?
How can I make you like Zeboyim?(U)
My heart is changed within me;
all my compassion(V) is aroused.(W)
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger,(X)
nor will I devastate(Y) Ephraim again.
For I am God, and not a man(Z)—
the Holy One(AA) among you.
I will not come against their cities.
10 They will follow the Lord;
he will roar(AB) like a lion.(AC)
When he roars,
his children will come trembling(AD) from the west.(AE)
11 They will come from Egypt,
trembling like sparrows,
from Assyria,(AF) fluttering like doves.(AG)
I will settle them in their homes,”(AH)
declares the Lord.
Israel’s Sin
Footnotes
- Hosea 11:2 Septuagint; Hebrew them
- Hosea 11:12 In Hebrew texts this verse (11:12) is numbered 12:1.
Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.