Hosea 4

New King James Version

God’s Charge Against Israel

4 Hear the word of the Lord,
You children of Israel,
For the Lord brings a ^(A)charge^[a] against the inhabitants of the land:

“There is no truth or mercy
Or ^(B)knowledge of God in the land.
²By swearing and lying,
Killing and stealing and committing adultery,
They break all restraint,
With bloodshed ^[b]upon bloodshed.
³Therefore ^(C)the land will mourn;
And ^(D)everyone who dwells there will waste away
With the beasts of the field
And the birds of the air;
Even the fish of the sea will be taken away.

⁴“Now let no man contend, or rebuke another;
For your people are like those ^(E)who contend with the priest.
⁵Therefore you shall stumble ^(F)in the day;
The prophet also shall stumble with you in the night;
And I will destroy your mother.
⁶^(G)My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you from being priest for Me;
^(H)Because you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.

⁷“The more they increased,
The more they sinned against Me;
^(I)I^[c] will change ^[d]their glory into shame.
⁸They eat up the sin of My people;
They set their ^[e]heart on their iniquity.
⁹And it shall be: ^(J)like people, like priest.
So I will punish them for their ways,
And ^[f]reward them for their deeds.
¹⁰For ^(K)they shall eat, but not have enough;
They shall commit harlotry, but not increase;
Because they have ceased obeying the Lord.

The Idolatry of Israel

¹¹“Harlotry, wine, and new wine ^(L)enslave the heart.
¹²My people ask counsel from their ^(M)wooden idols,
And their ^[g]staff informs them.
For ^(N)the spirit of harlotry has caused them to stray,
And they have played the harlot against their God.
¹³^(O)They offer sacrifices on the mountaintops,
And burn incense on the hills,
Under oaks, poplars, and terebinths,
Because their shade is good.
^(P)Therefore your daughters commit harlotry,
And your brides commit adultery.

¹⁴“I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry,
Nor your brides when they commit adultery;
For the men themselves go apart with harlots,
And offer sacrifices with a ^(Q)ritual harlot.
Therefore people who do not understand will be trampled.

¹⁵“Though you, Israel, play the harlot,
Let not Judah offend.
^(R)Do not come up to Gilgal,
Nor go up to ^(S)Beth^[h] Aven,
^(T)Nor swear an oath, saying, ‘As the Lord lives’—

¹⁶“For Israel ^(U)is stubborn
Like a stubborn calf;
Now the Lord will let them forage
Like a lamb in ^[i]open country.

¹⁷“Ephraim is joined to idols,
^(V)Let him alone.
¹⁸Their drink ^[j]is rebellion,
They commit harlotry continually.
^(W)Her ^[k]rulers ^[l]dearly love dishonor.
¹⁹^(X)The wind has wrapped her up in its wings,
And ^(Y)they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices.