Hosea 4:1-11

The Charge Against Israel 1Hear the word of the LORD, you Israelites, because the LORD has a charge to bring against you who live in the land: “There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgment of God in the land.

2There is only cursing, That is, to pronounce a curse on lying and murder, stealing and adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed.

3Because of this the land dries up, and all who live in it waste away; the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky and the fish in the sea are swept away.

4“But let no one bring a charge, let no one accuse another, for your people are like those who bring charges against a priest.

5You stumble day and night, and the prophets stumble with you. So I will destroy your mother—

6my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. “Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children.

7The more priests there were, the more they sinned against me; they exchanged their glorious God Syriac (see also an ancient Hebrew scribal tradition); Masoretic Text me; / I will exchange their glory for something disgraceful.

8They feed on the sins of my people and relish their wickedness.

9And it will be: Like people, like priests. I will punish both of them for their ways and repay them for their deeds.

10“They will eat but not have enough; they will engage in prostitution but not flourish, because they have deserted the LORD to give themselves

11to prostitution; old wine and new wine take away their understanding.