Hos.12.1
Ephraim feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind: he daily increaseth lies and desolation; and they do make a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt.
Hos.12.1
Ephraim, obsessed with god-fantasies, chases ghosts and phantoms. He tells lies nonstop, soul-destroying lies. Both Ephraim and Judah made deals with Assyria and tried to get an inside track with Egypt.
Hos.12.1
Ephraim feeds on the wind; he pursues the east wind all day and multiplies lies and violence. He makes a treaty with Assyria and sends olive oil to Egypt.
Hos.12.1
"Ephraim feeds on the wind, And pursues the east wind; He daily increases lies and desolation. Also they make a covenant with the Assyrians, And oil is carried to Egypt.
Hos.12.1
The people of Israel feed on the wind; they chase after the east wind all day long. They multiply lies and violence; they make alliances with Assyria and cut deals with the Egyptians.
Hos.12.2
The LORD hath also a controversy with Judah, and will punish Jacob according to his ways; according to his doings will he recompense him.
Hos.12.2
GOD is bringing charges against Israel. Jacob's children are hauled into court to be punished.
Hos.12.2
The LORD has a charge to bring against Judah; he will punish Jacob according to his ways and repay him according to his deeds.
Hos.12.2
"The LORD also brings a charge against Judah, And will punish Jacob according to his ways; According to his deeds He will recompense him.
Hos.12.2
Now the LORD is bringing a lawsuit against Judah. He is about to punish Jacob for all his deceitful ways.
Hos.12.3
He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and by his strength he had power with God:
Hos.12.3
In the womb, that heel, Jacob, got the best of his brother. When he grew up, he tried to get the best of GOD.
Hos.12.3
In the womb he grasped his brother's heel; as a man he struggled with God.
Hos.12.3
He took his brother by the heel in the womb, And in his strength he struggled with God.
Hos.12.3
Before Jacob was born, he struggled with his brother; when he became a man, he even fought with God.
Hos.12.4
Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Bethel, and there he spake with us;
Hos.12.4
But GOD would not be bested. GOD bested him. Brought to his knees, Jacob wept and prayed. GOD found him at Bethel. That's where he spoke with him.
Hos.12.4
He struggled with the angel and overcame him; he wept and begged for his favor. He found him at Bethel and talked with him there-
Hos.12.4
Yes, he struggled with the Angel and prevailed; He wept, and sought favor from Him. He found Him in Bethel, And there He spoke to us--
Hos.12.4
Yes, he wrestled with the angel and won. He wept and pleaded for a blessing from him. There at Bethel he met God face to face, and God spoke to him--
Hos.12.5
Even the LORD God of hosts; the LORD is his memorial.
Hos.12.5
GOD is God-of-the-Angel-Armies, GOD-Revealed, GOD-Known. [JC]
Hos.12.5
the LORD God Almighty, the LORD is his name of renown!
Hos.12.5
That is, the LORD God of hosts. The LORD is His memorable name.
Hos.12.5
the LORD God Almighty, the LORD is his name!
Hos.12.6
Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually.
Hos.12.6
What are you waiting for? Return to your God! Commit yourself in love, in justice! Wait for your God, and don't give up on him--ever!
Hos.12.6
But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always.
Hos.12.6
So you, by the help of your God, return; Observe mercy and justice, And wait on your God continually.
Hos.12.6
So now, come back to your God! Act on the principles of love and justice, and always live in confident dependence on your God.
Hos.12.7
He is a merchant, the balances of deceit are in his hand: he loveth to oppress.
Hos.12.7
The businessmen engage in wholesale fraud. They love to rip people off!
Hos.12.7
The merchant uses dishonest scales; he loves to defraud.
Hos.12.7
"A cunning Canaanite! Deceitful scales are in his hand; He loves to oppress.
Hos.12.7
But no, the people are like crafty merchants selling from dishonest scales--they love to cheat.
Hos.12.8
And Ephraim said, Yet I am become rich, I have found me out substance: in all my labours they shall find none iniquity in me that were sin.
Hos.12.8
Ephraim boasted, "Look, I'm rich! I've made it big! And look how well I've covered my tracks: not a hint of fraud, not a sign of sin!"
Hos.12.8
Ephraim boasts, "I am very rich; I have become wealthy. With all my wealth they will not find in me any iniquity or sin."
Hos.12.8
And Ephraim said, "Surely I have become rich, I have found wealth for myself; In all my labors They shall find in me no iniquity that is sin.'
Hos.12.8
Israel boasts, "I am rich, and I've gotten it all by myself! No one can say I got it by cheating! My record is spotless!"
Hos.12.9
And I that am the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt will yet make thee to dwell in tabernacles, as in the days of the solemn feast.
Hos.12.9
"But not so fast! I'm GOD, your God! Your God from the days in Egypt! I'm going to put you back to living in tents, as in the old days when you worshiped in the wilderness.
Hos.12.9
"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt; I will make you live in tents again, as in the days of your appointed feasts.
Hos.12.9
"But I am the LORD your God, Ever since the land of Egypt; I will again make you dwell in tents, As in the days of the appointed feast.
Hos.12.9
"I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from your slavery in Egypt. And I will make you live in tents again, as you do each year when you celebrate the Festival of Shelters.
Hos.12.10
I have also spoken by the prophets, and I have multiplied visions, and used similitudes, by the ministry of the prophets.
Hos.12.10
I speak through the prophets to give clear pictures of the way things are. Using prophets, I tell revealing stories.
Hos.12.10
I spoke to the prophets, gave them many visions and told parables through them."
Hos.12.10
I have also spoken by the prophets, And have multiplied visions; I have given symbols through the witness of the prophets."
Hos.12.10
I sent my prophets to warn you with many visions and parables."
Hos.12.11
Is there iniquity in Gilead? surely they are vanity: they sacrifice bullocks in Gilgal; yea, their altars are as heaps in the furrows of the fields.
Hos.12.11
I show Gilead rampant with religious scandal and Gilgal teeming with empty-headed religion. I expose their worship centers as stinking piles of garbage in their gardens."
Hos.12.11
Is Gilead wicked? Its people are worthless! Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal? Their altars will be like piles of stones on a plowed field.
Hos.12.11
Though Gilead has idols-- Surely they are vanity-- Though they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal, Indeed their altars shall be heaps in the furrows of the field.
Hos.12.11
But Gilead is filled with sinners who worship idols. And in Gilgal, too, they sacrifice bulls; their altars are lined up like the heaps of stone along the edges of a plowed field.
Hos.12.12
And Jacob fled into the country of Syria, and Israel served for a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep.
Hos.12.12
Are you going to repeat the life of your ancestor Jacob? He ran off guilty to Aram, Then sold his soul to get ahead, and made it big through treachery and deceit.
Hos.12.12
Jacob fled to the country of Aram; Israel served to get a wife, and to pay for her he tended sheep.
Hos.12.12
Jacob fled to the country of Syria; Israel served for a spouse, And for a wife he tended sheep.
Hos.12.12
Jacob fled to the land of Aram and earned a wife by tending sheep.
Hos.12.13
And by a prophet the LORD brought Israel out of Egypt, and by a prophet was he preserved.
Hos.12.13
Your real identity is formed through God-sent prophets, who led you out of Egypt and served as faithful pastors.
Hos.12.13
The LORD used a prophet to bring Israel up from Egypt, by a prophet he cared for him.
Hos.12.13
By a prophet the LORD brought Israel out of Egypt, And by a prophet he was preserved.
Hos.12.13
Then the LORD led Jacob's descendants, the Israelites, out of Egypt by a prophet, who guided and protected them.
Hos.12.14
Ephraim provoked him to anger most bitterly: therefore shall he leave his blood upon him, and his reproach shall his Lord return unto him.
Hos.12.14
As it is, Ephraim has continually and inexcusably insulted God. Now he has to pay for his life-destroying ways. His Master will do to him what he has done.
Hos.12.14
But Ephraim has bitterly provoked him to anger; his Lord will leave upon him the guilt of his bloodshed and will repay him for his contempt.
Hos.12.14
Ephraim provoked Him to anger most bitterly; Therefore his Lord will leave the guilt of his bloodshed upon him, And return his reproach upon him.
Hos.12.14
But the people of Israel have bitterly provoked the LORD, so their Lord will now sentence them to death in payment for their sins.
