Ephraim feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind: he continually multiplieth lies and desolation; and they make a covenant with Assyria, and oil is carried into Egypt.
Jehovah hath also a controversy with Judah, and will {Hebrew: visit upon.}punish Jacob according to his ways; according to his doings will he recompense him.
In the womb he took his brother by the heel; and in his {Or, strength}manhood he {Or, strove}had power with God:
yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed; he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him at Beth-el, and there he spake with us,
{Or, for Jehovah is the God of hosts}even Jehovah, the God of hosts; Jehovah is his memorial name.
Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep kindness and justice, and wait for thy God continually.
{Or, As for Canaan, the &c.}He is {Or, a Canaanite Hebrew: Canaan.}a trafficker, the balances of deceit are in his hand: he loveth to {Or, defraud}oppress.
And Ephraim said, Surely I am become rich, I have found me wealth: in all my labors they shall find in me no iniquity that were sin.
But I am Jehovah thy God from the land of Egypt; I will yet again make thee to dwell in tents, as in the days of the solemn feast.
I have also spoken unto the prophets, and I have multiplied visions; and {Hebrew: by the hand.}by the ministry of the prophets have I used similitudes.
Is Gilead iniquity? they are altogether false; in Gilgal they sacrifice bullocks; yea, their altars {Or, shall be}are as heaps in the furrows of the field.
And Jacob fled into the field of Aram, and Israel served for a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep.
And by a prophet Jehovah brought Israel up out of Egypt, and by a prophet was he {Or, kept}preserved.
Ephraim hath provoked to anger most bitterly: therefore shall his blood be left upon him, and his reproach shall his Lord return unto him.
Querverweise zu Hosea 12,8 Hos 12,8
If I have made gold my hope,And have said to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence;
and lest thou say in thy heart, My power and the might of my hand hath gotten me this wealth.
There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes,And yet are not washed from their filthiness.
If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great,And because my hand had gotten much;
For he hath said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I have understanding: and I have removed the bounds of the peoples, and have robbed their treasures, and like a valiant man I have brought down {Or, the inhabitants}them that sit on thrones:
So is the way of an adulterous woman;She eateth, and wipeth her mouth,And saith, I have done no wickedness.
They that trust in their wealth,And boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;
and my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the peoples; and as one gathereth eggs that are forsaken, have I gathered all the earth: and there was none that moved the wing, or that opened the mouth, or chirped.
How canst thou say, I am not defiled, I have not gone after the Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift {Or, young camel}dromedary traversing her ways;
Lo, this is the man that made not God his {Or, stronghold}strength,But trusted in the abundance of his riches,And strengthened himself in his wickedness.
Therefore he sacrificeth unto his net, and burneth incense unto his drag; because by them his portion is fat, and his food {Hebrew: fat.}plenteous.
Yet thou saidst, I am innocent; surely his anger is turned away from me. Behold, I will enter into judgment with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.
Trust not in oppression,And become not vain in robbery:If riches increase, set not your heart thereon.
{Or, And also because his wine…he is a haughty man}Yea, moreover, wine is treacherous, a haughty man, {Or, he shall not abide}that keepeth not at home; who enlargeth his desire as Sheol, and he is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all peoples.
Ye have wearied Jehovah with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? In that ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of Jehovah, and he delighteth in them; or where is the God of justice?
whose {Or, buyers}possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty; and they that sell them say, Blessed be Jehovah, for I am rich; and {Or, their shepherd pitieth}their own shepherds pity them not.
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting {Or, riddle}proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and that ladeth himself with pledges!
Your words have been stout against me, saith Jehovah. Yet ye say, What have we spoken against thee?
And I will say to my {Or, life}soul, {Or, life}Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, be merry.
But he, desiring to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbor?
No {Greek: household-servant.}servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
And he said unto them, Ye are they that justify yourselves in the sight of men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
wranglings of men corrupted in mind and bereft of the truth, supposing that godliness is a way of gain.
Charge them that are rich in this present {Or, age.}world, that they be not highminded, nor have their hope set on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;
Because thou sayest, I am rich, and have gotten riches, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art the wretched one and miserable and poor and blind and naked: