Hosea 14 :: New Living Translation (NLT)

Healing for the Repentant

Hos 14:1 [fn]Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God,
for your sins have brought you down.

Hos 14:2Bring your confessions, and return to the LORD.
Say to him,
“Forgive all our sins and graciously receive us,
so that we may offer you our praises.[fn]

Hos 14:3

Hos 14:3Assyria cannot save us,
nor can our warhorses.
Never again will we say to the idols we have made,
‘You are our gods.’
No, in you alone
do the orphans find mercy.”

Hos 14:4

Hos 14:4The LORD says,
“Then I will heal you of your faithlessness;
my love will know no bounds,
for my anger will be gone forever.

Hos 14:5

Hos 14:5I will be to Israel
like a refreshing dew from heaven.
Israel will blossom like the lily;
it will send roots deep into the soil
like the cedars in Lebanon.

Hos 14:6

Hos 14:6Its branches will spread out like beautiful olive trees,
as fragrant as the cedars of Lebanon.

Hos 14:7

Hos 14:7My people will again live under my shade.
They will flourish like grain and blossom like grapevines.
They will be as fragrant as the wines of Lebanon.

Hos 14:8

Hos 14:8“O Israel,[fn] stay away from idols!
I am the one who answers your prayers and cares for you.
I am like a tree that is always green;
all your fruit comes from me.”

Hos 14:9

Hos 14:9Let those who are wise understand these things.
Let those with discernment listen carefully.
The paths of the LORD are true and right,
and righteous people live by walking in them.
But in those paths sinners stumble and fall.

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NLT Footnotes

(14:1)

Verses 14:1-9 are numbered 14:2-10 in Hebrew text.

(14:2)

As in Greek and Syriac versions, which read may repay the fruit of our lips; Hebrew reads may repay the bulls of our lips.

(14:8)

Hebrew Ephraim, referring to the northern kingdom of Israel.

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For more information on this translation, see the NLT Preface.