| Chapter 13 |
| 1 | When Ephraim spake trembling,
he exalted himself in Israel; but when he offended in Baal, he died. |
| 2 |
And now they sin more and more, and have made them molten images of their
silver, and idols according to their own understanding, all of it the work of
the craftsmen: they say of them, Let the men that sacrifice kiss the
calves. |
| 3 |
Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud and as the early
dew that passeth away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of
the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney. |
| 4 | Yet I am the
LORD thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for
there is no saviour beside me. |
|
5 | I did know thee in the wilderness, in
the land of great drought. |
|
6 | According to their pasture, so were
they filled; they were filled, and their heart was exalted; therefore have they
forgotten me. |
|
7 | Therefore I will be unto them as a lion: as a
leopard by the way will I observe them: |
|
8 | I will meet them as a bear
that is bereaved of her whelps, and will rend the caul of their heart, and
there will I devour them like a lion: the wild beast shall tear them.
|
| 9 | O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.
|
| 10 | I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all thy
cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes?
|
| 11 | I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath.
|
| 12 | The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is hid. |
| 13 | The
sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for he
should not stay long in the place of the breaking forth of children. |
| 14 |
I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death:
O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance
shall be hid from mine eyes. |
|
15 | Though he be fruitful among his
brethren, an east wind shall come, the wind of the LORD shall come up from the
wilderness, and his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried
up: he shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels. |
| 16 | Samaria
shall become desolate; for she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall
by the sword: their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with
child shall be ripped up. |
