1. Israel is like a large vinethat produced plenty of fruit.As the people became richer,they built more altars for idols.As their land became better,they put up better stone pillars to honor gods.
2. Their heart was false,and now they must pay for their guilt.The Lord will break down their altars;he will destroy their holy stone pillars.
3. Then they will say, “We have no king,because we didn’t honor the Lord.As for the king,he couldn’t do anything for us.”
4. They make many false promisesand agreements which they don’t keep.So people sue each other in court;they are like poisonous weeds growing in a plowed field.
5. The people from Israel are worried aboutthe calf-shaped idol at Beth Aven.The people will cry about it,and the priests will cry about it.They used to shout for joy about its glory,
6. but it will be carried off to Assyriaas a gift to the great king.Israel will be disgraced,and the people will be ashamed for not obeying.
7. Israel will be destroyed;its king will be like a chip of wood floating on the water.
8. The places of false worship will be destroyed,the places where Israel sins.Thorns and weeds will grow upand cover their altars.Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”and to the hills, “Fall on us!”
9. “Israel, you have sinned since the time of Gibeah,and the people there have continued sinning.But war will surely overwhelm them in Gibeah,because of the evil they have done there.