Hosea 4:1–11

¹Hear the word of the LORD,

O children of Israel,

for the LORD has a case

against the people of the land:

“There is no truth, no loving devotion,

and no knowledge of God in the land!

²Cursing and lying,

murder and stealing,

and adultery are rampant;

one act of bloodshed follows another.

³Therefore the land mourns,

and all who dwell in it will waste away

with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air;

even the fish of the sea disappear.

⁴But let no man contend;

let no man offer reproof;

for your people are like those

who contend with a priest.^a

⁵You will stumble by day,

and the prophet will stumble with you by night;

so I will destroy your mother —

⁶My people are destroyed

for lack of knowledge.

Because you have rejected knowledge,

I will also reject you as My priests.

Since you have forgotten the law of your God,

I will also forget your children.

⁷The more they multiplied,

the more they sinned against Me;

they exchanged their Glory^b

for a thing of disgrace.

⁸They feed on the sins^c of My people

and set their hearts on iniquity.

⁹And it shall be

like people, like priest.

I will punish both of them for their ways

and repay them for their deeds.

¹⁰They will eat but not be satisfied;

they will be promiscuous but not multiply.

For they have abandoned the LORD to give themselves

¹¹to promiscuity, wine, and new wine,

which take away understanding.