1-3. God once let loose against Ephraima terrifying sentence against Israel:Caught and convictedin the lewd sex-worship of Baal—they died!And now they’re back in the sin business again,manufacturing god-images they can use,Religion customized to taste. Professionals see to it:Anything you want in a god you can get.Can you believe it? They sacrifice live babies to these dead gods—kill living babies and kiss golden calves!And now there’s nothing left to these people:hollow men, desiccated women,Like scraps of paper blown down the street,like smoke in a gusty wind.
13-15. “When birth pangs signaled it was time to be born,Ephraim was too stupid to come out of the womb.When the passage into life opened up,he didn’t show.Shall I intervene and pull them into life?Shall I snatch them from a certain death?Who is afraid of you, Death?Who cares about your threats, Tomb?In the end I’m abolishing regret,banishing sorrow,Even though Ephraim ran wild,the black sheep of the family.
15-16. “God’s tornado is on its way,roaring out of the desert.It will devastate the country,leaving a trail of ruin and wreckage.The cities will be gutted,dear possessions gone for good.Now Samaria has to face the chargesbecause she has rebelled against her God:Her people will be killed, babies smashed on the rocks,pregnant women ripped open.”