A Call to Repentance
1Come, let us return to the LORD. m
For he has torn us, n
and he will heal us; o
he has wounded us,
and he will bind up our wounds. p
2 He will revive us after two days, q
and on the third day he will raise us up
so we can live in his presence. r
3 Let us strive to know the LORD. s
His appearance is as sure as the dawn. t
He will come to us like the rain, u
like the spring showers that water the land.
The LORD’S First Lament
4 What am I going to do with you, Ephraim? v
What am I going to do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist w
and like the early dew that vanishes.
5 This is why I have used the prophets
I have killed them with the words from my mouth.
My judgment strikes like lightning. E
6 For I desire faithful love and not sacrifice,
the knowledge of God y rather than burnt offerings. z
7 But they, like Adam, F have violated the covenant; a
there they have betrayed me. b
8 Gilead is a city of evildoers, c
tracked with bloody footprints. d
9 Like raiders who wait in ambush for someone, e
a band of priests murders on the road to Shechem. f
They commit atrocities. g
10 I have seen something horrible h in the house of Israel:
Ephraim’s promiscuity is there; i Israel is defiled.