Hosea’s reconciliation with his wife
1The Lord said to me, ‘Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.’
2So I bought her for fifteen shekels3:2 That is, about 170 grams of silver and about a homer and a lethek3:2 A homer and a lethek possibly weighed about 195 kilograms. of barley. 3Then I told her, ‘You are to live with me for many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will behave the same way towards you.’
4For the Israelites will live for many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred stones, without ephod or household gods. 5Afterwards the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord and to his blessings in the last days.
Hosea Brings His Wife Back to Himself
1The Lord said to me, “Go. Show your love to your wife again. She is loved by another man. And she has committed adultery. But I want you to love her just as I love the people of Israel. They turn to other gods. And they love to offer raisin cakes to Baal and eat them. In spite of that, I love my people.”
2So I bought Gomer for six ounces of silver and 430 pounds of barley. 3Then I told her, “You must wait for me for a long time. You must not be a prostitute. You must not have sex with any man. And I will be faithful to you too.”
4So the people of Israel will live for a long time without a king or prince. They won’t have sacrifices or sacred stones. They won’t have sacred linen aprons or statues of family gods. 5After that, the people of Israel will return to the Lord their God. They will look to him and to a king from the family line of David. In the last days, they will tremble with fear as they come to the Lord. And they will receive his full blessing.
