The Hebrew Prophets

So I will take back my grain at harvest-time and my wine in its season; I will snatch away my wool and flax, given to cover her naked body.

Now I will uncover her shame, while her lovers watch; and no one will save her from me.

I will end her happiness, her festivals, Rosh-Hodesh, and shabbats, and all her designated times.

I will ravage her vines and fig trees, of which she says, 'These are my wages that my lovers have given me.' But I will turn them into a forest, and wild animals will eat them.

I will punish her for offering incense on the feast days of the ba'alim, when she decked herself with her earrings and jewels, pursuing her lovers and forgetting me," says ADONAI.

"But now I am going to woo her - I will bring her out to the desert and I will speak to her heart.

I will give her her vineyards from there and the Akhor Valley as a gateway to hope. She will respond there as she did when young, as she did when she came up from Egypt.

"On that day," says ADONAI "you will call me Ishi [My Husband]; you will no longer call me Ba'ali [My Master].

For I will remove the names of the ba'alim from her mouth; they will never again be mentioned by name.

When that day comes, I will make a covenant for them with the wild animals, the birds in the air and the creeping things of the earth. I will break bow and sword, sweep battle from the land, and make them lie down securely.

I will betroth you to me forever; yes, I will betroth you to me in righteousness, in justice, in grace and in compassion;

I will betroth you to me in faithfulness, and you will know ADONAI.

When that day comes, I will answer," says ADONAI "I will answer the sky, and it will answer the earth;

the earth will answer the corn, wine and oil, and they will answer Yizre'el [God will sow].

I will sow her for me in the land. I will have pity on Lo-Ruchamah [Unpitied]; I will say to Lo-'Ammi [Not-My-People], 'You are my people'; and they will say, 'You are my God.'"

ADONAI said to me, "Go once more, and show love to [this] wife [of yours] who has been loved by her boyfriend, to this adulteress - just as ADONAI loves the people of Isra'el, even though they turn to other gods and love the raisin cakes [offered to them]."

So I bought her back for myself with fifteen pieces of silver and eight bushels of barley .

Then I told her, "You are to remain in seclusion for a long time and be mine. You are not to be a prostitute, and you are not to be with any other man; and I won't come in to have sex with you either."

For the people of Isra'el are going to be in seclusion for a long time without a king, prince, sacrifice, standing-stone, ritual vest or household gods.

Afterwards, the people of Isra'el will repent and seek ADONAI their God and David their king; they will come trembling to ADONAI and his goodness in the acharit-hayamim.

Hear the word of ADONAI, people of Isra'el! For ADONAI has a grievance against the inhabitants of the land: there is no truth, no faithful love or knowledge of God in the land;

only swearing and lying, killing and stealing and committing adultery! They break all bounds, with one blood crime following another.

Therefore the land mourns, and everyone living there languishes, wild animals too, and the birds in the air; even the fish in the sea are removed.

But no one should quarrel or rebuke, because your people are having to quarrel with the cohen.

Therefore you will stumble by day, and the prophet will stumble with you at night. "I will destroy your mother.