Study Desk

When Israel was a youth I loved him, And ^(C1)out of Egypt I ^(C2)called My son.

The more ^(F1)(C1)they called them, The more they went away from ^(F1)them; They kept ^(C2)sacrificing to the Baals And ^(C3)burning incense to idols.

Yet it is I who taught Ephraim to walk, ^(F1)I ^(C1)took them in My arms; But they did not know that I ^(C2)healed them.

I ^(C1)pulled them along with cords of a man, with ropes of love, And ^(C2)I became to them as one who lifts the yoke from their jaws; And I bent down and ^(C3)fed them.

^(F1)They will not return to the land of Egypt; But Assyria—he will be ^(F2)their king Because they ^(C1)refused to return to Me.

And the ^(C1)sword will whirl against ^(F1)their cities, And will destroy ^(F1)their oracle priests And ^(C2)consume them, because of their ^(C3)counsels.

So My people are determined to ^(C1)turn from Me. Though ^(F1)they call ^(F2)them to the One on high, None at all exalts Him.

^(C1)How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I surrender you, Israel? How can I ^(F1)make you like ^(C2)Admah? How can I treat you like ^(C2)Zeboiim? My heart is turned over within Me, ^(F2)All My compassions are kindled.

I will ^(C1)not carry out My fierce anger; I will not destroy Ephraim ^(C2)again. For ^(C3)I am God and not a man, the ^(C4)Holy One in your midst, And I will not come in ^(F1)wrath.

They will ^(C1)walk after the LORD, He will ^(C2)roar like a lion; Indeed He will roar, And His sons will come ^(C3)trembling from the west.

They will come trembling like birds from ^(C1)Egypt, And like ^(C2)doves from the land of ^(C1)Assyria; And I will ^(C3)settle them in their houses, declares the LORD.

^(F1)Ephraim surrounds Me with ^(C1)lies And the house of Israel with deceit; ^(F2)Judah is still unruly against God, Even against the Holy One who is faithful.

^(F1)Ephraim feeds on ^(C1)wind, And pursues the ^(C2)east wind continually; He multiplies lies and violence. Moreover, ^(F2)he makes a covenant with Assyria, And oil is brought to Egypt.

The LORD also has a ^(C1)case against Judah, And will punish Jacob ^(C2)according to his ways; He will repay him according to his deeds.

In the womb he ^(C1)took his brother by the heel, And in his mature strength he ^(C2)contended with God.

Yes, he wrestled with the angel and prevailed; He wept and ^(C1)implored His favor. He found Him at ^(C2)Bethel, And there He spoke with us,

And the LORD, the God of armies, The LORD is His ^(F1)(C1)name.

So as for you, ^(C1)return to your God, ^(C2)Maintain ^(F1)kindness and justice, And ^(C3)wait for your God continually.

A ^(F1)merchant, in whose hands are fraudulent ^(C1)balances, Loves to exploit.

And Ephraim said, "I have certainly become ^(C1)rich, I have found wealth for myself; In all my labors they will find in me ^(C2)No wrongdoing, which would be sin."

But I have been the LORD your God since the land of Egypt; I will make you ^(C1)live in tents again, As in the days of the appointed festival.

I have also spoken to the ^(C1)prophets, And I ^(F1)provided many visions, And through the prophets I spoke in ^(C2)parables.

Is there injustice in Gilead? Certainly they are worthless. In Gilgal they sacrifice bulls, Yes, ^(C1)their altars are like stone heaps Beside the furrows of a field.

Now ^(C1)Jacob fled to the ^(F1)land of Aram, And ^(C2)Israel worked for a wife, And for a wife he kept sheep.

But by a ^(C1)prophet the LORD brought Israel up from Egypt, And by a prophet he was protected.

^(C1)Ephraim has provoked God to bitter anger; So his Lord will leave his ^(C2)guilt for bloodshed on him And bring his ^(C3)disgrace back to him.

^(C1)When Ephraim ^(F1)spoke, there was trembling. He ^(C2)exalted himself in Israel, But through ^(C3)Baal he incurred guilt and died.

And now they sin more and more, And make for themselves ^(C1)cast metal images, Idols ^(F1)(C2)skillfully made from their silver, All of them the ^(C3)work of craftsmen. They say of them, "Let the ^(F2)people who sacrifice kiss the ^(C4)calves!"

Therefore they will be like the ^(C1)morning cloud And like dew which ^(F1)soon disappears, Like ^(C2)chaff which is blown away from the threshing floor, And like ^(C3)smoke from a chimney.

Yet I have been the ^(C1)LORD your God Since the land of Egypt; And you were not to know ^(C2)any god except Me, For there is no savior ^(C3)besides Me.

I ^(F1)(C1)cared for you in the wilderness, ^(C2)In the land of drought.

As they had their pasture, they became ^(C1)satisfied, And as they became satisfied, their ^(C2)heart became proud; Therefore they ^(C3)forgot Me.

So I will be ^(C1)like a lion to them; Like a ^(C2)leopard I will ^(F1)lie in wait by the wayside.

I will confront them ^(C1)like a bear deprived of her cubs, And I will tear open ^(F1)their chests; I will also ^(C2)devour them there like a lioness, As a wild animal would tear them to pieces.

^(F1)It is to your own destruction, Israel, That you are ^(C1)against Me, against your ^(C2)help.

Where then is your ^(C1)king, That he might save you in all your cities; And your ^(C2)judges, to whom you said, "Give me a king and princes"?

I ^(C1)gave you a king in My anger, And ^(C2)took him away in My wrath.

The guilt of Ephraim is wrapped up; His sin is ^(C1)stored up.

The pains of ^(C1)childbirth come on him; He is ^(C2)not a wise son, For ^(F1)it is not the time that he should ^(C3)delay at the opening of the womb.

Shall I ^(C1)ransom them from the ^(F1)power of Sheol? Shall I redeem them from death? ^(C2)Death, where are your ^(F2)thorns? Sheol, where is your sting? ^(C3)Compassion will be hidden from My sight.

Though he ^(C1)flourishes among the ^(F1)reeds, An ^(C2)east wind will come, The wind of the LORD coming up from the wilderness; And his fountain will ^(C3)become dry And his spring will dry up; It will ^(C4)plunder his treasury of every precious article.

^(F1)Samaria will pay the penalty for her ^(C1)guilt, Because she has ^(C2)rebelled against her God. ^(C3)They will fall by the ^(C4)sword, Their children will be ^(F2)(C5)slaughtered, And their pregnant ^(C6)women will be ripped open.

^(F1)(C1)Return, Israel, to the LORD your God, For you have stumbled ^(F2)because of your ^(C2)wrongdoing.

Take words with you and return to the LORD. Say to Him, "^(C1)Take away all guilt And ^(F1)receive us graciously, So that we may ^(C2)present ^(F2)the fruit of our lips.

-"Assyria will not save us, We will ^(C1)not ride on horses; Nor will we say again, '^(C2)Our god' To the ^(C3)work of our hands; For in ^(C4)You the ^(F1)orphan finds mercy."

I will ^(C1)heal their apostasy, I will ^(C2)love them freely, Because My anger has ^(C3)turned away from them.

I will be like the ^(C1)dew to Israel; He will blossom like the ^(C2)lily, And he will ^(F1)take root like the cedars of ^(C3)Lebanon.

His shoots will ^(F1)sprout, His ^(F2)majesty will be like the ^(C1)olive tree, And his fragrance like the cedars of ^(C2)Lebanon.

Those who ^(C1)live in his shadow Will ^(F1)again raise ^(C2)grain, And they will blossom like the vine. His fame will be like the wine of Lebanon.

Ephraim, what more have I to do with ^(C1)idols? It is I who answer and look after ^(F1)you. I am like a luxuriant ^(C2)juniper; From ^(C3)Me ^(F2)comes your fruit.

^(C1)Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; Whoever is discerning, let him know them. For the ^(C2)ways of the LORD are right, And the ^(C3)righteous will walk in them, But ^(C4)wrongdoers will stumble in them.