6 “‘Come, let us return to the Lord; it is he who has torn us—he will heal us. He has wounded—he will bind us up. ² In just a couple of days,^[a] or three at the most, he will set us on our feet again to live in his kindness! ³ Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him, and he will respond to us as surely as the coming of dawn or the rain of early spring.’”

⁴ “O Ephraim and Judah, what shall I do with you? For your love vanishes like morning clouds, and disappears like dew. ⁵ I sent my prophets to warn you of your doom; I have slain you with the words of my mouth, threatening you with death. Suddenly, without warning, my judgment will strike you as surely as day follows night.

⁶ “I don’t want your sacrifices—I want your love; I don’t want your offerings—I want you to know me.

⁷ “But like Adam, you broke my covenant; you refused my love. ⁸ Gilead is a city of sinners, tracked with footprints of blood. ⁹ Her citizens are gangs of robbers, lying in ambush for their victims; packs of priests murder along the road to Shechem and practice every kind of sin. ¹⁰ Yes, I have seen a horrible thing in Israel—Ephraim chasing other gods, Israel utterly defiled.

¹¹ “O Judah, for you also there is a plentiful harvest of punishment waiting—and I wanted so much to bless you!