Hosea 10:12

Justice Repentance God's love Hope

¹⁰ I will chasten them when I please; nations will be gathered against them to put them in bondage for their double transgression.

¹¹ Ephraim is a well-trained heifer that loves to thresh; but I will place a yoke on her fair neck. I will harness Ephraim, Judah will plow, and Jacob will break the hard ground.

Sow for yourselves righteousness and reap the fruit of loving devotion; break up your unplowed ground. For it is time to seek the LORD until He comes and sends righteousness upon you like rain.

¹³ You have plowed wickedness and reaped injustice; you have eaten the fruit of lies. Because you have trusted in your own way and in the multitude of your mighty men,

¹⁴ the roar of battle will rise against your people, so that all your fortresses will be demolished as Shalman devastated Beth-arbel in the day of battle, when mothers were dashed to pieces along with their children.

Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: Sow for yourselves righteousness and reap the fruit of loving devotion; break up your unplowed ground. For it is time to seek the LORD until He comes and sends righteousness upon you like rain.
KJV: Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
WEB: Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap according to kindness. Break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the LORD, until he comes and rains righteousness on you.
ASV: Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap according to kindness; break up your fallow ground; for it is time to seek Jehovah, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
DARBY: Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap according to mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek Jehovah, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
BLB: Sow for yourselves unto righteousness, [and] reap to the mouth of loving devotion; break up for yourself the fallow ground, for [it is] time to seek YHWH, until He should come and shower righteousness upon you⁺.

ÅB: Så dere en sæd, som rettferdigheten krever, få dere en høst etter kjærlighetens bud, bryt dere nytt land! For nå er det tiden til å søke Herren, til han kommer og lar rettferdighet regne over dere.
OTB: Så for dere selv i rettferdighet,
Høst i samsvar med godhet;
Bryt opp deres udyrkede mark,
For det er tid til å søke Herren
Inntil Han kommer og lar rettferdighet regne over dere.
B1930: Så eder en sæd, som rettferdigheten krever, få eder en høst efter kjærlighetens bud, bryt eder nytt land! For nu er det tiden til å søke Herren, til han kommer og lar rettferdighet regne over eder.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Jeremiah 4:3–4
For this is what the LORD says to the men of Judah and Jerusalem: “Break up your unplowed ground, and do not sow among the thorns.
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James 3:18
Peacemakers who sow in peace reap the fruit of righteousness.
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Isaiah 45:8
Drip down, O heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness. Let the earth open up that salvation may sprout and righteousness spring up with it; I, the LORD, have created it.
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Proverbs 11:18
The wicked man earns an empty wage, but he who sows righteousness reaps a true reward.
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Isaiah 55:6
Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.
Read in context
Hosea 6:3
So let us know— let us press on to know the LORD. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the rain, like the spring showers that water the earth.
Read in context
Jeremiah 29:12–14
Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
Read in context
Isaiah 44:3
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.
Read in context