Hosea 7

When I would have healed Israel, then the iniquity of Ephraim was discovered, and the wickedness of Samaria: for they commit falsehood; and the thief cometh in, {and} the troop of robbers spoileth without. {wickedness: Heb. evils} {spoileth: Heb. strippeth} And they consider not in their hearts {that} I remember all their wickedness: now their own doings have beset them about; they are before my face. {consider...: Heb. say not to} They make the king glad with their wickedness, and the princes with their lies. They {are} all adulterers, as an oven heated by the baker, {who} ceaseth from raising after he hath kneaded the dough, until it be leavened. {who...: or, the raiser will cease} {raising: or, waking} In the day of our king the princes have made {him} sick with bottles of wine; he stretched out his hand with scorners. {bottles...: or, heat through wine} For they have made ready their heart like an oven, whiles they lie in wait: their baker sleepeth all the night; in the morning it burneth as a flaming fire. {made...: or, applied} They are all hot as an oven, and have devoured their judges; all their kings are fallen: {there is} none among them that calleth unto me. Ephraim, he hath mixed himself among the people; Ephraim is a cake not turned. Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth {it} not: yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth not. {here...: Heb. sprinkled} And the pride of Israel testifieth to his face: and they do not return to the LORD their God, nor seek him for all this. Ephraim also is like a silly dove without heart: they call to Egypt, they go to Assyria. When they shall go, I will spread my net upon them; I will bring them down as the fowls of the heaven; I will chastise them, as their congregation hath heard. Woe unto them! for they have fled from me: destruction unto them! because they have transgressed against me: though I have redeemed them, yet they have spoken lies against me. {destruction: Heb. spoil} And they have not cried unto me with their heart, when they howled upon their beds: they assemble themselves for corn and wine, {and} they rebel against me. Though I have bound {and} strengthened their arms, yet do they imagine mischief against me. {have...: or, chastened} They return, {but} not to the most High: they are like a deceitful bow: their princes shall fall by the sword for the rage of their tongue: this {shall be} their derision in the land of Egypt.