Superficial Repentance Breeds False Assurance of God’s Forgiveness 6:1 “Come on! Let’s return to the LORD! He himself has torn us to pieces, but he will heal us! He has injured us, but he will bandage our wounds! 6:2 He will restore us in a very short time; he will heal us in a little while, so that we may live in his
Whenever I want to restore the fortunes of my people, 7:1 whenever I want to heal Israel, the sin of Ephraim is revealed, and the evil deeds of Samaria are exposed. For they do what is wrong; thieves break into houses, and gangs rob people out in the streets. 7:2 They do not realize that I remember all of their wicked deeds. Their evil
God Will Raise Up the Assyrians to Attack Israel 8:1 Sound the alarm! An eagle looms over the temple of the LORD! For they have broken their covenant with me, and have rebelled against my law. 8:2 Israel cries out to me, “My God, we acknowledge you!” 8:3 But Israel has rejected what is morally good; so an enemy will pursue him. The Political
Fertility Cult Festivals Have Intoxicated Israel 9:1 O Israel, do not rejoice jubilantly like the nations, for you are unfaithful to your God. You love to receive a prostitute's wages on all the floors where you thresh your grain. 9:2 Threshing floors and wine vats will not feed the people, and new wine only deceives them. Assyrian Exile Will Reverse the Egyptian
Israel is Guilty of Fertility Cult Worship 10:1 Israel was a fertile vine that yielded fruit. As his fruit multiplied, he multiplied altars to Baal. As his land prospered, they adorned the fertility pillars. 10:2 Their heart is slipping; soon they will be punished for their guilt. The LORD will break their altars; he will completely destroy their fertility pillars. The Lord Will Punish Israel by
Reversal of the Exodus: Return to Egypt and Exile in Assyria 11:1 When Israel was a young man, I loved him like a son, and I summoned my son out of Egypt. 11:2 But the more I summoned them, the farther they departed from me. They sacrificed to the Baal idols and burned incense to images. 11:3 Yet it was I who
12:1 Ephraim continually feeds on the wind; he chases the east wind all day; he multiplies lies and violence. They make treaties with Assyria, and send olive oil as tribute to Egypt. 12:2 The LORD also has a covenant lawsuit against Judah; he will punish Jacob according to his ways and repay him according to his deeds. Israel Must Return to the God
Baal Worshipers and Calf Worshipers to be Destroyed 13:1 When Ephraim spoke, there was terror; he was exalted in Israel, but he became guilty by worshiping Baal and died. 13:2 Even now they persist in sin! They make metal images for themselves, idols that they skillfully fashion from their own silver; all of them are nothing but the work of craftsmen! There is
Prophetic Call to Genuine Repentance 14:1 Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for your sin has been your downfall! 14:2 Return to the LORD and repent! Say to him: “Completely forgive our iniquity; accept our penitential prayer, that we may offer the praise of our lips as sacrificial bulls. 14:3 Assyria cannot save us; we will not ride warhorses. We will never
1:1 This is the LORD’s message that was given to Joel the son of Pethuel: A Locust Plague Foreshadows the Day of the Lord 1:2 Listen to this, you elders; pay attention, all inhabitants of the land. Has anything like this ever happened in your whole life or in the lifetime of your ancestors? 1:3 Tell your children about it, have your children