1 All day long Israel chases
wind from the desert;
deceit and violence
are found everywhere.
Treaties are made with Assyria;
olive oil is taken to Egypt.
Israel and Judah Condemned
2 The Lord also brings charges
against the people of Judah,
the descendants of Jacob.
He will punish them
for what they have done.
3 Even before Jacob was born,
he cheated his brother,
and when he grew up,
he fought against God.
4 At Bethel, Jacob wrestled
with an angel and won;
then with tears in his eyes,
he asked for a blessing,
and God spoke to us there.
5 God's name is the Lord,
the Lord God All-Powerful.
6 So return to your God.
Patiently trust him,
and show love and justice.
7 Israel, you enjoy cheating
and taking advantage
of others.
8 You say to yourself, “I'm rich!
I earned it all on my own,
without committing a sin.”
The Lord Is Still the God of Israel
9 Israel, I, the Lord,
am still your God,
just as I have been
since the time
you were in Egypt.
Now I will force you
to live in tents once again,
as you did in the desert.
10 I spoke to the prophets—
often I spoke in visions.
And so, I will send my prophets
with messages of doom.
11 Gilead is terribly sinful
and will end up ruined.
Bulls are sacrificed in Gilgal
on altars made of stones,
but those stones will be scattered
in every field.
12 Jacob escaped to Syria
where he tended sheep
to earn himself a wife.
13 I sent the prophet Moses
to lead Israel from Egypt
and to keep them safe.
14 Israel, I will make you pay
for your violent crimes
and for insulting me.
1 Everything that the people of Israel do from morning to night is useless and destructive. Treachery and acts of violence increase among them. They make treaties with Assyria and do business with Egypt.”
2 The Lord has an accusation to bring against the people of Judah; he is also going to punish Israel for the way her people act. He will pay them back for what they have done. 3 Their ancestor Jacob struggled with his twin brother Esau while the two of them were still in their mother's womb; when Jacob grew up, he fought against God— 4 he fought against an angel and won. He wept and asked for a blessing. And at Bethel God came to our ancestor Jacob and spoke with him. 5 This was the Lord God Almighty—the Lord is the name by which he is to be worshiped. 6 So now, descendants of Jacob, trust in your God and return to him. Be loyal and just, and wait patiently for your God to act.
Further Words of Judgment
7 The Lord says, “The people of Israel are as dishonest as the Canaanites; they love to cheat their customers with false scales. 8 ‘We are rich,’ they say. ‘We've made a fortune. And no one can accuse us of getting rich dishonestly.’ 9 But I, the Lord your God who led you out of Egypt, I will make you live in tents again, as you did when I came to you in the desert.
10 “I spoke to the prophets and gave them many visions, and through the prophets I gave my people warnings. 11 Yet idols are worshiped in Gilead, and those who worship them will die. Bulls are sacrificed in Gilgal, and the altars there will become piles of stone in the open fields.”
12 Our ancestor Jacob had to flee to Mesopotamia, where, in order to get a wife, he worked for another man and took care of his sheep. 13 The Lord sent a prophet to rescue the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt and to take care of them. 14 The people of Israel have made the Lord bitterly angry; they deserve death for their crimes. Their Lord will punish them for the disgrace they have brought on him.