1 Come, let us return toAdonai;
for he has torn, and he will heal us;
he has struck, and he will bind our wounds.
2 After two days, he will revive us;
on the third day, he will raise us up;
and we will live in his presence.
3 Let us know, let us strive to knowAdonai.
That he will come is as certain as morning;
he will come to us like the rain,
like the spring rains that water the earth.
4 “Efrayim, what should I do to you?
Y’hudah, what should I do to you?
For your ‘faithful love’ is like a morning cloud,
like dew that disappears quickly.
5 This is why I have cut them to pieces by the prophets,
slaughtered them with the words from my mouth —
the judgment on you shines out like light.
6 For what I desire is mercy, not sacrifices,
knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 “But they, just like men, have broken the covenant,
they have been faithless in dealing with me.
8 Gil‘ad is a city of criminals,
covered with bloody footprints;
9 just as bands of robbers wait to ambush someone,
so does a gang ofcohanim.
They commit murder on the road to Sh’khem!
Their conduct is an outrage!
10 In the house of Isra’el
I have seen a horrible thing;
whoring is found there in Efrayim,
Isra’el is defiled.
11 For you, too, Y’hudah,
a harvest will come!
“When I restore the fortunes of my people,