7Hosea 7

1and to heal its wounds. But then I see the crimes in Israel and Samaria. Everyone is deceitful; robbers roam the streets.Select Hosea 7:1

2No one realizes that I have seen their sins surround them like a flood.Select Hosea 7:2

3The king and his officials take great pleasure in their sin and deceit.Select Hosea 7:3

4Everyone burns with desire— they are like coals in an oven, ready to burst into flames.Select Hosea 7:4

5On the day their king was crowned, his officials got him drunk, and he joined in their foolishness.Select Hosea 7:5

6Their anger is a fire that smolders all night, then flares up at dawn.Select Hosea 7:6

7They are flames destroying their leaders. And their kings are powerless; none of them trust me.Select Hosea 7:7

8The people of Israel have mixed with foreigners; they are a thin piece of bread scorched on one side.Select Hosea 7:8

9They don't seem to realize how weak and feeble they are; their hair has turned gray, while foreigners rule.Select Hosea 7:9

10I am the Lord, their God, but in all of their troubles their pride keeps them from returning to me.Select Hosea 7:10

No Help from Foreign Nations / The said:

11Israel is a senseless bird, fluttering back and forth between Egypt and Assyria.Select Hosea 7:11

12But I will catch them in a net as hunters trap birds; I threatened to punish them, and indeed I will.Select Hosea 7:12

13Trouble and destruction will be their reward for rejecting me. I would have rescued them, but they told me lies.Select Hosea 7:13

14They don't really pray to me; they just howl in their beds. They have rejected me for Baal and slashed themselves, in the hope that Baal will bless their crops.Select Hosea 7:14

15I taught them what they know, and I made them strong. Now they plot against meSelect Hosea 7:15

16and refuse to obey. They are more useless than a crooked arrow. Their leaders will die in war for saying foolish things. Egyptians will laugh at them.Select Hosea 7:16