1Israel was a spreading vine;
he brought forth fruit for himself.
As his fruit increased,
he built more altars;
as his land prospered,
he adorned his sacred stones.
2Their heart is deceitful,
and now they must bear their guilt.
The Lord will demolish their altars
and destroy their sacred stones.
3Then they will say, “We have no king
because we did not revere the Lord.
But even if we had a king,
what could he do for us?”
4They make many promises,
take false oaths
and make agreements;
therefore lawsuits spring up
like poisonous weeds in a plowed field.
5The people who live in Samaria fear
for the calf-idol of Beth Aven.10:5 Beth Aven means house of wickedness (a derogatory name for Bethel, which means house of God).
Its people will mourn over it,
and so will its idolatrous priests,
those who had rejoiced over its splendor,
because it is taken from them into exile.
6It will be carried to Assyria
as tribute for the great king.
Ephraim will be disgraced;
Israel will be ashamed of its foreign alliances.
7Samaria’s king will be destroyed,
swept away like a twig on the surface of the waters.
8The high places of wickedness10:8 Hebrew aven, a reference to Beth Aven (a derogatory name for Bethel); see verse 5. will be destroyed—
it is the sin of Israel.
Thorns and thistles will grow up
and cover their altars.
Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”
and to the hills, “Fall on us!”
9“Since the days of Gibeah, you have sinned, Israel,
and there you have remained.10:9 Or there a stand was taken
Will not war again overtake
the evildoers in Gibeah?
10When I please, I will punish them;
nations will be gathered against them
to put them in bonds for their double sin.
11Ephraim is a trained heifer
that loves to thresh;
so I will put a yoke
on her fair neck.
I will drive Ephraim,
Judah must plow,
and Jacob must break up the ground.
12Sow righteousness for yourselves,
reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the Lord,
until he comes
and showers his righteousness on you.
13But you have planted wickedness,
you have reaped evil,
you have eaten the fruit of deception.
Because you have depended on your own strength
and on your many warriors,
14the roar of battle will rise against your people,
so that all your fortresses will be devastated—
as Shalman devastated Beth Arbel on the day of battle,
when mothers were dashed to the ground with their children.
15So will it happen to you, Bethel,
because your wickedness is great.
When that day dawns,
the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.
1以色列是茂盛的葡萄树，硕果累累。
可是，他结果越多，
建造的祭坛就越多；
土地出产越丰富，
他就把神柱装饰得越美丽。
2他们心怀诡诈，必受惩罚。
耶和华要拆毁他们的祭坛，
打碎他们的神柱。
3那时他们会说：
“我们没有君王，
因为我们不敬畏耶和华。
君王能为我们做什么呢？”
4他们说虚话，起假誓，立空盟，
因此不法之事滋长，
犹如田间犁沟中蔓延的毒草。
5撒玛利亚的居民要因伯·亚文的牛犊偶像而恐惧颤抖；
祭拜它的人要哀伤，
供奉它的祭司要痛哭，
因为它的荣耀将离开他们。
6它要被带到亚述去，
作为贡物献给强大的亚述王。
以法莲因此而受人嘲笑，
以色列因自己的偶像而蒙羞。
7撒玛利亚和它的君王要被毁灭，
像漂浮在水面上的枯枝一样消逝。
8亚文10:8 “亚文”指伯·亚文，伯·亚文的意思见本卷书4:15节脚注。的丘坛——以色列犯罪之地要被拆毁。
他们的祭坛上要长满荆棘和蒺藜。
他们要向高山说：“遮盖我们吧！”
对小丘说：“倒在我们身上吧！”
9耶和华说：
“以色列人啊，从基比亚的日子以来，
你们一直不断地犯罪，从未改变。
难道战祸没有临到基比亚的邪恶之辈吗？
10我要按自己的心意惩罚你们。
列国要联合攻击你们，
惩罚你们的重重罪恶。
11以法莲本是驯服的母牛犊，喜欢打谷，
现在我要把轭套在它肥美的颈项上。
我要使犹大耕田，使雅各10:11 “雅各”在旧约中常与“以色列”互换使用，有时指以色列人的先祖雅各，有时指以色列民族。本节的以法莲和雅各都代指北国以色列。耙地。”
12你们要为自己种植公义，
就能收获慈爱。
现在是寻求耶和华的时候，
你们要犁开刚硬的心田，
等祂来使公义如雨浇灌你们。
13可是，你们种的是邪恶，
收的是不义，
吃的是谎言的果实。
因为你们倚靠自己的力量，
仰仗众多的勇士。
14因此，战争的喧嚣将从你们中间传出，
你们的一切堡垒将被摧毁，
恰如沙勒幔摧毁伯·亚比勒，
将城中的母子一同摔死。
15伯特利10:15 “伯特利”此处代指以色列人。啊，你罪大恶极，
必将遭遇同样的下场。
那日来临时，以色列的王将被彻底消灭。
