Israels ge Elob ǃoagu ǂgomǂgomsa tama hâ
1 “Khoeb ga taras âba xu ǀgora tsîs ga ǁîba xu ǃgû tsî ǀkhara aob tara kaio, o ǁîs ǁga ǁkhawa oa ǂgaob nî? ǁNā ǃhūba kaise ǀuriǀurihe tide? ǂGui ǀnamsagu âs ǀkhas ge ge ǀai, tsî nēsi tita ǁga ra oahā ǂgao,
tib geǃKhūba ra mî.2 “Kōkhâi re ǀkhaiǀkhā ǃnâugu ǃoa î kō! Mâpas ge ǁgoe-ūhe tama hâ i? Arabiaǁî-i ǃgaroǃhūb ǃnâ ra dī khamis ge daogu amǃgâ ǀnamsagu âsa gere ǃâuǂnû; tsîs ge sa ǀaib tsî ǂkhabasib ǀkha ǃhūba ge ǀuriǀuri. 3 ǁNā-amagas ge ǀnanub ge ǃkhō-oahe tsîb ǃkhāǁaeb ǀnanuba ǀapi tamasa. Tsîs ge ǁnātikōse ī tsî ǀai-aos ǃūǃâba ūhâ; tsîs ge tao-i xare-e ūhâ tama hâ.
4 “Tsîs kha nēsisa xu ‘Ti Îtse, ti ǂkhamsisa xu ti ǀhōsatse’ ti ǂgai te tide? 5 ǀAmoseb kha nî ǁaixahâhâ? ǁAib âbab ǀamose nî ūhâ? ǁNāsas ge sasa ra mî, xawes ge ǂkhababa ra sîsen.”
Israelǁaes tsî Judab din ge nî ǃhobasen
6 Ob ge ǃKhūba gao-aob Josiab di tsēdi ǃnâ ge mîǀî te: “Mûts ge Israels, ǁnā ǂgomoǃnâ taras ge dīsa? ǁÎs ge mâ ǀgapi ǃnâub hoab ai ǃapa tsî mâ hais hoas ǃnaka ǀai-ao-i khami gere tanisen. 7 Tsî ta ge tita nē xūn hoanas ge dītoas khaoǃgâs nî tita tawa oahā ti ge ǂâi hâ i, xawes ge ǁnāsa dī tama ge i. Tsîs ge ǁîs di ǃgâsas Judas, ǂgomoǃnâsa nēn hoana ge mû. 8 Judas ge hoaraga ǀaib ǁnā ǂgomoǃnâ Israels dib ǃaroma ta ǁîsa ǀgoraǂkhanisa ge māsa ge mû. Xawes ge ǀhôagao Judasa ǃao tama ge i, tsîs ge ge aiǃgû ǀai-aosis ǃâsa ǀhurus ǀkha. 9 Tsîs ge ǀaib âs ǀkha ǃhūba ge ǀuriǀuri. ǁÎs ge ǀuin tsî hain ǀkha gere ǀai. 10 Tsîs ge nēn hoan khaoǃgâ Judas, Israels di ǂgomoǃnâ ǃgâsasa ǂgaob hoab ǀkha tita ǃoa ǃhobasen tama tsî ǂkhabase ge ǃhobasen,”
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.11 Ob ge ǃKhūba ge mîba te: “ǂGomoǃnâ Israels ge ǀoms âsa ǂgomoǃnâ Judas dis ǃgâ-ai ge ǂhanu-ai kai. 12 ǃGû, î nē mîde ǀapas ǃnâ ǂhôa re: ‘ǂGomoǃnâ Israelse tita ǃoa oa re,’ tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî. Tita ge ǀkhomxaǂgao tsî ta ge ǀamose sadu ǀkha ǁaixa tide”
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.13 “ǀHapixa du a tsî du ge ǃKhūb, sadu Elob ǃoagu khâikhâisen ǃkhaisa ǂanǃgâ re. ǁKhāti mâ ǃam hais hoas ǃnakas sa ǀnamma ǃhao elona mā, tsî ǁîba ge ǁnâuǀnam tama isa.
14 “Oahā re ǁnāǁgôa hâ ǀgôado, o ta ge ti ūhâxūse nî dī du. Tita ge sado nî ū, ǀgui-e ǃāsa xu, tsî ǀgamna ǃhaosa xu tsî Sions tawa nî hā-ū”
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.15 “Tsî ta ge ti ǂgaob ǃoa hâ ǃûi-aoga nî mā du, tsî gu ge ǁîga ǂans tsî ǁnâuǃāb ǀkha nî ǃûi du. 16 Tsî du ga nē tsēdi ǃnâ ǀarosen tsî ǂûǂûxa, on ge ǃaruǀî ǃGaeǀhaos ǂGaes xa ǃhoa tide. ǁKhātin ge ǂâihō tide tsîn ge ǁnās xa ǂâi tsî ǁîsa ôa tide tamas ka io ǀnîsa kuru tide. 17 Nē ǁaeb ǃnân ge Jerusalemsa ‘ǃKhūb di Trons’ ti nî ǂgai; hoa ǁaedi ǁnāpa, ǃKhūb ǀons ǃaroma Jerusalems ǃnâ nî ǀhaose, tsîn ge ǃaruǀî ǁîn ǂkhaba ǂgaogu ǃoa ûi tide. 18 Nē tsēdi ǃnân ge Judas ommi dina Israels din ǀkha nî ǀhao, tsîn ge ǀguipa, ǀapas di ǃhūba xu tita ge sadu aboxaga ǀumis ase mā ǃhūb ǁga nî hā.”
Elob ǁaes di ǃgamekhôas
19 Ob ge ǃKhūba ge mî:
“Mâtikōse ta ti ôan ase ra ūǃoa
tsî ǃgâi ǃhūba ra mā du ǂgao;
hoan xa îsa ǀumis, hoa ǁaedi disa.
Tsî ta ge ‘Ti Îtse’ ti ǂgai te
tsî du ǁkhawa tita xu bē tide ti ge ǂâi hâ i.
20 ǂGomǂgomsa tama taras aob âsa ra ǁnāxūs khami
du ge tita ǃoagu ge ǂgomǂgomsa tama i,
sadu Israeli ommi dido”
tib ge ǃKhūba ra mî.21 Dom-i ge ǃnâugu ai ge ǁnâuhe,
ǃgaes, Israeli khoen ǀkhomadi disa;
ǁîn daoga xun ge dabasen
tsî ǃKhūb, ǁîn Eloba ge ǀuru.
22 Oa re, ǁnāǁgôaxa ǀgôado,
sadu ǁnāǁgôaxasiga ta ge nî ǂgauǂgau.
Mû, sats ǃoa da ge ra hā
sats a ǃKhū, sida Elotsa amaga.
23 Amase ǃnâugu tsî ǃhomga xu ra hāb ge harebeoǃnâ ǂkhupiba. Amases ge ores ǃKhūb Elob disa Israelsa hâba. 24 Sida ǂkhamsisa xub ge taoba sida aboxan di ǀhupuba hapu hâ; ǁîn di ǀuiǀnūǀgoan, goman, ǀgôadi tsî ǀgôagu tsîna. 25 Sida ge taob ǃnâ ǁgoe tsî taob xa ga ǃgū-aihe; ǃKhūb sida Elob ǃoagu da ge sida tsî sida aboxagu tsîda sida ǂkhamsisa xu ǁore amaga; ǃKhūb sida Elob domma da ge ǁnâuǀnam tama ge i.
Unfaithful Israel
1 The Lord says, “If a man divorces his wife, and she leaves him and becomes another man's wife, he cannot take her back again. This would completely defile the land. But, Israel, you have had many lovers, and now you want to return to me! 2 Look up at the hilltops. Is there any place where you have not acted like a prostitute? You waited for lovers along the roadside, as an Arab waits for victims in the desert. You have defiled the land with your prostitution. 3 That is why the rains were held back, and the spring showers did not come. You even look like a prostitute; you have no shame.
4 “And now you say to me, ‘You are my father, and you have loved me ever since I was a child. 5 You won't always be angry; you won't be mad at me forever.’ Israel, that is what you said, but you did all the evil you could.”
Israel and Judah Must Repent
6 When Josiah was king, the Lord said to me, “Have you seen what Israel, that unfaithful woman, has done? She has turned away from me, and on every high hill and under every green tree she has acted like a prostitute. 7 I thought that after she had done all this, she would surely return to me. But she did not return, and her unfaithful sister Judah saw it all. 8 Judah also saw that I divorced Israel and sent her away because she had turned from me and had become a prostitute. But Judah, Israel's unfaithful sister, was not afraid. She too became a prostitute 9 and was not at all ashamed. She defiled the land, and she committed adultery by worshiping stones and trees. 10 And after all this, Judah, Israel's unfaithful sister, only pretended to return to me; she was not sincere. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
11 Then the Lord told me that, even though Israel had turned away from him, she had proved to be better than unfaithful Judah. 12 He told me to go and say to Israel, “Unfaithful Israel, come back to me. I am merciful and will not be angry; I will not be angry with you forever. 13 Only admit that you are guilty and that you have rebelled against the Lord, your God. Confess that under every green tree you have given your love to foreign gods and that you have not obeyed my commands. I, the Lord, have spoken.
14 “Unfaithful people, come back; you belong to me. I will take one of you from each town and two from each clan, and I will bring you back to Mount Zion. 15 I will give you rulers who obey me, and they will rule you with wisdom and understanding. 16 Then when you have become numerous in that land, people will no longer talk about my Covenant Box. They will no longer think about it or remember it; they will not even need it, nor will they make another one. 17 When that time comes, Jerusalem will be called ‘The Throne of the Lord,’ and all nations will gather there to worship me. They will no longer do what their stubborn and evil hearts tell them. 18 Israel will join with Judah, and together they will come from exile in the country in the north and will return to the land that I gave your ancestors as a permanent possession.”
The Idolatry of God's People
19 The Lord says,
“Israel, I wanted to accept you as my child
and give you a delightful land,
the most beautiful land in all the world.
I wanted you to call me father
and never again turn away from me.
20 But like an unfaithful wife,
you have not been faithful to me.
I, the Lord, have spoken.”
21 A noise is heard on the hilltops:
it is the people of Israel crying and pleading
because they have lived sinful lives
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 Return, all of you who have turned away from the Lord;
he will heal you and make you faithful.
You say, “Yes, we are coming to the Lord because he is our God. 23 We were not helped at all by our pagan worship on the hilltops. Help for Israel comes only from the Lord our God. 24 But the worship of Baal, the god of shame, has made us lose flocks and herds, sons and daughters—everything that our ancestors have worked for since ancient times. 25 We should lie down in shame and let our disgrace cover us. We and our ancestors have always sinned against the Lord our God; we have never obeyed his commands.”
