Hosea

¹ Let us go, and return to the Lord our God; for he has torn, and will heal us; he will smite, and bind us up.

² After two days he will heal us: in the third day we shall arise, and live before him, and shall know him :

³ let us follow on to know the Lord: we shall find him ready as the morning, and he will come to us as the early and latter rain to the earth.

⁴ What shall I do unto thee, Ephraim? What shall I do to thee, Juda? whereas your mercy is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew that goes away.

⁵ Therefore have I mown down your prophets; I have slain them with the word of my mouth: and my judgment shall go forth as the light.

⁶ For I will have mercy rather than sacrifice, and the knowledge of God rather than whole-burnt-offerings.

⁷ But they are as a man transgressing a covenant:

⁸ there the city Galaad despised me, working vanity, troubling water.

⁹ And thy strength is that of a robber: the priests have hid the way, they have murdered the people of Sicima; for they have wrought iniquity in the house of Israel.

¹⁰ I have seen horrible things there, even the fornication of Ephraim: Israel and Juda are defiled;

¹¹ begin to gather grapes for thyself, when I turn the captivity of my people.