3 I know Ephraim,and Israel isn’t a stranger to me.Now, Ephraim, you are acting like a prostitute,and Israel is unclean.
4 “The wicked things that the people have donekeep them from returning to their God.They have a spirit of prostitution,and they don’t know the Lord.
5 The people of Israel’s arrogance testifies against them.Israel and Ephraim stumble because of their sins,and Judah stumbles with them.
6 They go with their sheep and their cattle to search for the Lord,but they can’t find him.He has left them.
7 They have been unfaithful to the Lord,because their children do not belong to him.Now their New Moon ⌊Festivals⌋ will devour them and their fields.
8 “Blow the ram’s horn in Gibeah.Blow the trumpet in Ramah.Sound the alarm at Beth Aven, you descendants of Benjamin.
9 Ephraim will become a wastelandwhen the time for punishment comes.I will make the truth known among the tribes of Israel.