Hosea 14

Turn Back to the Lord

1 Israel, return! Come back
to the Lord, your God. Sin has made you fall.

2 Return to the Lord and say, “Please forgive our sins.
Accept our good sacrifices
of praise instead of bulls. t
3 Assyria can’t save us, and chariots can’t help.
So we will no longer worship
the idols we have made.
Our Lord, you show mercy to orphans.”

The Lord Promises to Forgive

4 4Israel, you have rejected me,
but my anger is gone;
I will heal you and love you
without limit.

5 I will be like the dew— then you will blossom like lilies
and have roots like a tree. t

6 Your branches will spread with the beauty
of an olive tree
and with the aroma
of Lebanon Forest.

7 You will rest in my shade, and your grain will grow.
You will blossom
like a vineyard
and be famous as the wine
from Lebanon.

8 Israel, give up your idols! I will answer your prayers
and take care of you. t I am that glorious tree,
the source of your fruit. t
9 If you are wise, you will know and understand what I mean.
I am the Lord, and I lead you along the right path.
If you obey me,
we will walk together,
but if you are wicked,
you will stumble.

Joel 1

1 I am Joel the son of Pethuel. And this is the message
the Lord gave to me.

Locusts Cover the Land

2 2Listen, you leaders
and everyone else
in the land.
Has anything like this
ever happened before?

3 Tell our children! Let it be told
to our grandchildren
and their children too.

4 Swarm after swarm of locusts t has attacked our crops,
eating everything in sight.

5 Sober up, you drunkards! Cry long and loud;
your wine supply is gone.

6 t6A powerful nation t with countless troops
has invaded our land.
They have the teeth and jaws
of powerful lions.

7 Our grapevines and fig trees are stripped bare;
only naked branches remain.

8 Grieve like a young woman mourning for the man
she was to marry.

9 Offerings of grain and wine are no longer brought
to the Lord’s temple. His servants, the priests,
are deep in sorrow.

10 Barren fields mourn; grain, grapes, and olives
are scorched and shriveled.

11 Mourn for our farms and our vineyards!
There’s no wheat or barley
growing in our fields.

12 Grapevines have dried up and so has every tree—
figs and pomegranates, t date palms and apples.
All happiness has faded away.

Return to God

13 13Mourn, you priests who serve
at the altar of my God.
Spend your days and nights
wearing sackcloth. t Offerings of grain and wine
are no longer brought
to the Lord’s temple.

14 Tell the leaders and people to come together
at the temple.
Order them to go without eating t and to pray sincerely.

15 t15We are in for trouble! Soon the Lord All-Powerful will bring disaster.

16 Our food is already gone; there’s no more celebrating
at the temple of our God.

17 Seeds dry up in the ground; t no harvest is possible.
Our barns are in bad shape,
with no grain
to store in them.

18 Our cattle wander aimlessly, moaning for lack of pasture,
and sheep are suffering. t

19 I cry out to you, Lord. Grasslands and forests are eaten
by the scorching heat.

20 Wild animals have no water because of you;
rivers and streams are dry,
and pastures are parched.

Joel 2

Locusts and an Enemy Army

1 Sound the trumpet on Zion,
the Lord’s sacred hill. Warn everyone to tremble!
The judgment day of the Lord is coming soon.

2 It will be dark and gloomy with storm clouds overhead.
Troops will cover the mountains
like thunderclouds.
No army this powerful
has ever been gathered before
or will ever be again.

3 Fiery flames surround them; no one escapes.
Before they invaded,
the land was like Eden;
now only a desert remains.

4 t4They look like horses and charge like cavalry.

5 They roar over mountains like noisy chariots,
or a mighty army
ready for battle.
They are a forest fire
that feasts on straw.

6 The very sight of them is frightening. t

7 They climb over walls like warriors;
they march in columns
and never turn aside.

8 They charge straight ahead, without pushing each other;
even arrows and spears
cannot make them retreat.

9 They swarm over city walls and enter our homes;
they crawl in through windows,
just like thieves.

10 t10They make the earth tremble and the heavens shake;
the sun and moon turn dark,
and stars stop shining.

11 t11The Lord God leads this army of countless troops,
and they obey his commands.
The day of his judgment
is so terrible
that no one can stand it.

The Lord’s Invitation

12 The Lord said: It isn’t too late.
You can still return to me
with all your heart.
Start crying and mourning!
Go without eating.

13 Don’t rip your clothes to show your sorrow.
Instead, turn back to me
with broken hearts.
I am merciful, kind, and caring.
I don’t easily lose my temper,
and I don’t like to punish.

14 I am the Lord your God. Perhaps I will change my mind
and treat you with mercy.
Then you will be blessed
with enough grain and wine
for offering sacrifices to me.

15 Sound the trumpet on Zion! Call the people together.
Show your sorrow
by going without food.

16 Make sure that everyone is fit to worship me. t Bring adults, children, babies,
and even bring newlyweds
from their festivities.

17 Tell my servants, the priests, to cry inside the temple
and to offer this prayer
near the altar: t “Save your people, Lord God! Don’t let foreign nations
make jokes about us.
Don’t let them laugh and ask,
‘Where is your God?’ ”

The Lord Will Bless the Land

18 18The Lord was deeply concerned about his land
and had pity on his people.

19 In answer to their prayers he said,
“I will give you enough grain,
wine, and olive oil
to satisfy your needs.
No longer will I let you
be insulted by the nations.

20 An army attacked from the north, but I will chase it
into a scorching desert.
There it will rot and stink
from the Dead Sea
to the Mediterranean.”
The Lord works wonders

21 and does great things. So tell the soil to celebrate

22 and wild animals to stop being afraid.
Grasslands are green again;
fruit trees and fig trees
are loaded with fruit.
Grapevines are covered
with grapes.

23 People of Zion, t celebrate in honor
of the Lord your God! He is generous and has sent
the autumn and spring rains
in the proper seasons. t
24 Grain will cover your threshing places;
jars will overflow
with wine and olive oil.

The Lord Will Rescue His People

25 25I, the Lord your God, will make up for the losses
caused by those swarms
and swarms of locusts t I sent to attack you.

26 My people, you will eat until you are satisfied.
Then you will praise me
for the wonderful things
I have done.
Never again will you
be put to shame.

27 Israel, you will know that I stand at your side.
I am the Lord your God— there are no other gods.
Never again will you
be put to shame.

The Lord Will Work Wonders

28  The Lord said: t28Later, I will give my Spirit to everyone.
Your sons and daughters
will prophesy.
Your old men
will have dreams,
and your young men
will see visions.

29 In those days I will even give my Spirit to my servants,
both men and women.

30 I will work wonders in the sky above
and on the earth below.
There will be blood and fire
and clouds of smoke.

31 t31The sun will turn dark, and the moon
will be as red as blood
before that great
and terrible day
when I appear.

32 t Then the Lord will save everyone who faithfully worships him. He has promised there will be survivors on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and among them will be his chosen ones.