1 Turn back, O Israel, to the LORD your God {YHWH Elohekha, Covenant Restorer}, for you have stumbled in your iniquity {avon: culpable sin}.
2 Take words with you and return to the LORD {YHWH, Merciful Receiver}. Say to Him, “Take away all iniquity {avon: crooked guilt} and accept what is good; and we will repay with bulls of our lips.”
3 Assyria{ashur: foreign ally} will not save us; we will not ride on horses; and we will no longer say, “Our gods,” to the work of our hands, for in You {YHWH, Mercy Giver} the fatherless finds mercy.
4 I {YHWH, Merciful Healer} will heal their backslidings {meshubotam: faithless turning}; I will love them freely, because My anger has turned away from him.
5 I {YHWH, Faithful Sustainer} will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like the lily, and he will take root like Lebanon {lebanon: mountain strength}.
6 His young shoots {yoneqotav: new growth} will spread outward, and his splendor will be like an olive tree, and his fragrance {reyach: pleasing scent} will be like Lebanon.
7 They will return; those who dwell in his shadow will revive like grain {dagan: staple harvest}, and they will blossom like the vine; its remembrance {zikro: lasting memory} will be like the wine of Lebanon.
8 Ephraim: What remains for me with idols {atzabbim: false gods}? I {YHWH, Renewing Guardian} have answered him and will look upon him; I am like a green cypress. From Me your fruit is found.
9 Who is wise? Let him understand these things {eleh: these matters}. Who is discerning? Let him know them. For the ways of the LORD {YHWH, Upright Way-Maker} are upright; and the righteous will walk in them, but transgressors {poshe'im: covenant-breakers} will stumble in them.