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Hosea

Uses the prophet's marriage as a symbol for Israel's unfaithfulness and God's faithful love.

Chapter 6

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1 Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.

*Join us as we go back to God, because he can rip away our pain and heal us; he can hurt us now, but later he will fix us up.

2 After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.

*After two days, he will bring us back to life: on the third day, he will lift us up, and we will live, visible to him.

3 Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.

*Then we will understand if we continue to seek to know God: his actions are ready like morning light, and he will come to us like rain, both the early and late rain that the land needs.

4 O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away.

*O Ephraim, what should I do for you? O Judah, what should I do for you? Because your goodness is like morning clouds and early dew, which quickly disappear.

5 Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth: and thy judgments are as the light that goeth forth.

*So, I used the prophets to guide people, spoke my words which led to their downfall, and your judgments shine like a bright light for all to see.

6 For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.

*I wanted kindness, not just offerings; and understanding God better was more important to me than burning things as sacrifices.

7 But they like men have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me.

*But, like all people, they broke their promise; they betrayed me.

8 Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity, and is polluted with blood.

*Gilead is a place where many do wrong things, and it is filled with blood from bad actions.

9 And as troops of robbers wait for a man, so the company of priests murder in the way by consent: for they commit lewdness.

*Just like groups of robbers hide and ambush someone, priests in a group sometimes agree to do wrong things, like killing people or being sexually immoral.

10 I have seen an horrible thing in the house of Israel: there is the whoredom of Ephraim, Israel is defiled.

*I saw something terrible in Israel's home: Ephraim's unfaithfulness and Israel is impure.

11 Also, O Judah, he hath set an harvest for thee, when I returned the captivity of my people.

*Additionally, Judah, God has provided a harvest for you when I brought back my people from captivity.

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* work in progress, there will be mistakes

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