¹ Take up now a song of grief for the ruler of Israel, and say,

² What was your mother? Like a she-lion among lions, stretched out among the young lions she gave food to her little ones.

³ And one of her little ones came to growth under her care, and became a young lion, learning to go after beasts for his food; and he took men for his meat.

⁴ And the nations had news of him; he was taken in the hole they had made: and, pulling him with hooks, they took him into the land of Egypt.

⁵ Now when she saw that her hope was made foolish and gone, she took another of her little ones and made him into a young lion.

⁶ And he went up and down among the lions and became a young lion, learning to go after beasts for his food; and he took men for his meat.

⁷ And he sent destruction on their widows and made waste their towns; and the land and everything in it became waste because of the loud sound of his voice.

⁸ Then the nations came against him from the kingdoms round about: their net was stretched over him and he was taken in the hole they had made.

⁹ They made him a prisoner with hooks, and took him to the king of Babylon; they put him in the strong place so that his voice might be sounding no longer on the mountains of Israel.

¹⁰ Your mother was in comparison like a vine, planted by the waters: she was fertile and full of branches because of the great waters.

¹¹ And she had a strong rod for a rod of authority for the rulers, and it became tall among the clouds and it was seen lifted up among the number of its branches.

¹² But she was uprooted in burning wrath, and made low on the earth; the east wind came, drying her up, and her branches were broken off; her strong rod became dry, the fire made a meal of it.

¹³ And now she is planted in the waste land, in a dry and unwatered country.

¹⁴ And fire has gone out from her rod, causing the destruction of her branches, so that there is no strong rod in her to be the ruler's rod of authority. This is a song of grief, and it was for a song of grief.

¹ When the words of my law came from Ephraim, he was lifted up in Israel; but when he did evil through the Baal, death overtook him.

² And now their sins are increased; they have made themselves a metal image, false gods from their silver, after their designs, all of them the work of the metal-workers; they say of them, Let them give offerings, let men give kisses to the oxen.

³ So they will be like the morning cloud, like the dew which goes early away, like the dust of the grain which the wind is driving out of the crushing-floor, like smoke going up from the fireplace.

⁴ But I am the Lord your God, from the land of Egypt; you have knowledge of no other God and there is no saviour but me.

⁵ I had knowledge of you in the waste land where no water was.

⁶ When I gave them food they were full, and their hearts were full of pride, and they did not keep me in mind.

⁷ So I will be like a lion to them; as a cruel beast I will keep watch by the road;

⁸ I will come face to face with them like a bear whose young ones have been taken from her, and their inmost hearts will be broken; there the dogs will make a meal of them; they will be wounded by the beasts of the field.

⁹ I have sent destruction on you, O Israel; who will be your helper?

¹⁰ Where is your king, that he may be your saviour? and all your rulers, that they may take up your cause? of whom you said, Give me a king and rulers.

¹¹ I have given you a king, because I was angry, and have taken him away in my wrath.

¹² The wrongdoing of Ephraim is shut up; his sin is put away in secret.

¹³ The pains of a woman in childbirth will come on him: he is an unwise son, for at this time it is not right for him to keep his place when children come to birth.

¹⁴ I will give the price to make them free from the power of the underworld, I will be their saviour from death: O death! where are your pains? O underworld! where is your destruction? my eyes will have no pity.

¹⁵ Though he gives fruit among his brothers, an east wind will come, the wind of the Lord coming up from the waste land, and his spring will become dry, his fountain will be without water: it will make waste the store of all the vessels of his desire.

¹⁶ Samaria will be made waste, for she has gone against her God: they will be cut down by the sword, their little children will be broken on the rocks, their women who are with child will be cut open.