[1] Come on, let's renew our loyalty to the Eternal One! He tore us like a lion, but He'll heal us; He wounded us, but He'll bandage us. [2] He'll bring us back to life after two days; He'll raise us up on the third day, and we'll live with Him. [3] So let's know Him; let's strive to know the Eternal. As surely as the sun rises, He'll come out from His lair. As surely as the rains come each year- those spring rains that drench the earth-He'll come back to us. [4] Eternal One: What am I supposed to do with you, Ephraim? What am I supposed to do with you, Judah? Your loyalty to Me is like fog in the morning, like dew that evaporates at sunrise. [5] This is why I cut them with the words of the prophets and destroyed them with the words of My mouth. My judgment went forth like the light of the rising sun. [6] For I want not animal sacrifices, but mercy. I don't want burnt offerings; I want people to know Me as God! [7] They broke their covenant with Me, treated it as just a common human affair; they were unfaithful to Me there. [8] The city of Gilead is full of evil, murderous people. Their footprints are bloody. [9] As the priests travel together down the road, they're like a band of robbers setting an ambush. They are like their ancestor Levi who committed murder at Shechem, deceiving the people by their treachery. [10] I've seen a horrible thing in the house of Israel: Ephraim engages in prostitution there by worshiping at other shrines. Israel pollutes itself through violence and idol worship. [11] But a harvest is set for you, too, Judah when I restore my people's fortunes and return them from captivity.
