Study Desk

"But since my people refuse to return to me, they will return to Egypt and will be forced to serve Assyria.

For my people are determined to desert me. They call me the Most High, but they don't truly honor me.

Israel surrounds me with lies and deceit, but Judah still obeys God and is faithful to the Holy One.

But no, the people are like crafty merchants selling from dishonest scales— they love to cheat.

"But I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from slavery in Egypt. And I will make you live in tents again, as you do each year at the Festival of Shelters.

But the people of Gilead are worthless because of their idol worship. And in Gilgal, too, they sacrifice bulls; their altars are lined up like the heaps of stone along the edges of a plowed field.

But the people of Israel have bitterly provoked the Lord , so their Lord will now sentence them to death in payment for their sins.

When the tribe of Ephraim spoke, the people shook with fear, for that tribe was important in Israel. But the people of Ephraim sinned by worshiping Baal and thus sealed their destruction.

"I have been the Lord your God ever since I brought you out of Egypt. You must acknowledge no God but me, for there is no other savior.

But when you had eaten and were satisfied, you became proud and forgot me.

Pain has come to the people like the pain of childbirth, but they are like a child who resists being born. The moment of birth has arrived, but they stay in the womb!

Ephraim was the most fruitful of all his brothers, but the east wind—a blast from the Lord — will arise in the desert. All their flowing springs will run dry, and all their wells will disappear. Every precious thing they own will be plundered and carried away.

Let those who are wise understand these things. Let those with discernment listen carefully. The paths of the Lord are true and right, and righteous people live by walking in them. But in those paths sinners stumble and fall.

Fire burns in front of them, and flames follow after them. Ahead of them the land lies as beautiful as the Garden of Eden. Behind them is nothing but desolation; not one thing escapes.

Don't tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead." Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish.

But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, for some on Mount Zion in Jerusalem will escape, just as the Lord has said. These will be among the survivors whom the Lord has called.

"But I will bring them back from all the places to which you sold them, and I will pay you back for everything you have done.

The Lord 's voice will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth will shake. But the Lord will be a refuge for his people, a strong fortress for the people of Israel.

But Egypt will become a wasteland and Edom will become a wilderness, because they attacked the people of Judah and killed innocent people in their land.

"But Judah will be filled with people forever, and Jerusalem will endure through all generations.