Hoshea 6

1Come, and let us return unto Hashem;

for He hath torn, and He will heal us;

He hath struck, and He will bind us up.

2After two days He will revive us;

in the Yom HaShelishi He will raise us up,

and we shall live in His sight.

3Then shall we know, if we follow on to know Hashem;

His going forth is established as the shachar (dawn);

and He shall come unto us as the geshem (winter rain),

as the malkosh (spring rain)1 unto ha'aretz.

4O Ephrayim, what shall I do unto thee?

O Yehudah, what shall I do with thee?

For your chesed (faithfulness, loyalty) is as an anan boker (morning cloud), and as the early dew that disappears.

5Therefore have I cut them to pieces with the nevi'im;

I have slain them by the words of My mouth;

thy mishpatim are as the ohr (light, lightning) that goeth forth.

6For I desired chesed, and not zevach;

and the da'as Elohim more than olot (burnt offerings).2

7But they are like Adam, they have transgressed the brit (covenant);

there have they dealt treacherously against Me.

8Gil'ad is a city of evil-doers,

is trodden with dahm.

9And as gedudim (marauders) lie in wait for a man,

so the chever (band) [of] kohanim

murder in the way to Shechem;

for they commit shameful crimes.

10I have seen a horrible thing in Bais Yisroel:

there is the zenut (whoredom) of Ephrayim;

Yisroel is tameh (unclean, defiled).

11Also, O Yehudah, he hath set a katzir (harvest) [of punishment] for thee,

When I turn the Shevut Ami (Captivity of My people),3