Ephraim will be struck down ¹  – their root will be dried up; they will not yield any fruit. Even if they do bear children, I will kill their precious offspring.

O Ephraim, I do not want to have anything to do ¹  with idols anymore! I will answer him and care for him. I am like ²  a luxuriant cypress tree; ³  your fruitfulness comes from me! ⁴ 

They will return to Egypt! ¹  Assyria will rule over them ²  because they refuse to repent! ³ 

They enthroned kings without my consent! ¹  They appointed princes without my approval! ²  They made idols out of their silver and gold, but they will be destroyed! ³ 

Ephraim has mixed itself like flour ¹  among the nations; Ephraim is like a ruined cake of bread that is scorched on one side. ² 

The arrogance of Israel testifies against him, yet they refuse to return to the Lord their God! In spite of all this they refuse to seek him!

I will have no pity on her children, ¹  because they are children conceived in adultery. ² 

Yet ¹  until now ²  she has refused to acknowledge ³  that I ⁴  was the one who gave her the grain, the new wine, and the olive oil; and that it was I who ⁵  lavished on her the silver and gold – which they ⁶  used in worshiping Baal! ⁷ 

They turn to Baal; ¹  they are like an unreliable bow. Their leaders will fall by the sword because their prayers to Baal ²  have made me angry. So people will disdain them in the land of Egypt. ³ 

Even if they raise their children, I will take away every last one of them. ¹  Woe to them! For I will turn away from them.

Therefore, I will soon ¹  fence her in ²  with thorns; I will wall her in ³  so that ⁴  she cannot find her way. ⁵ 

My people are obsessed ¹  with turning away from me; ²  they call to Baal, ³  but he will never exalt them!

When ¹  she had weaned ‘No Pity’ (Lo-Ruhamah) she conceived again and gave birth to another son.

The punishment ¹  of Ephraim has been decreed; ²  his punishment is being stored up for the future.

You have destroyed ¹  my people by failing to acknowledge me! Because you refuse to acknowledge me, ²  I will reject you as my priests. Because you reject ³  the law of your God, I will reject ⁴  your descendants.

Ephraim boasts, ¹  “I am very rich! I have become wealthy! ²  In all that I have done to gain my wealth, ³  no one can accuse me of any offense ⁴  that is actually sinful.” ⁵ 

You stumble day and night, and the false prophets stumble with you; You have destroyed your own people! ¹ 

Israel has rebelled ¹  like a stubborn heifer! Soon ²  the Lord will put them out to pasture like a lamb in a broad field! ³ 

All of them are blazing like an oven; they devour their rulers. All of their kings fall – and none of them call on me!

I spelled out my law for him in great detail, but they regard it as something totally unknown ¹  to them!