2:5 For their mother has committed adultery;
she who conceived them has acted shamefully.
For she said, “I will seek out 1 my lovers; 2
they are the ones who give me my bread and my water,
my wool, my flax, my olive oil, and my wine. 3
2:15 From there I will give back her vineyards to her,
and turn the “Valley of Trouble” 4 into an “Opportunity 5 for Hope.”
There she will sing as she did when she was young, 6
when 7 she came up from the land of Egypt.
4:14 I will not punish your daughters when they commit prostitution,
nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery.
For the men consort with harlots,
they sacrifice with temple prostitutes.
It is true: 8 “A people that lacks understanding will come to ruin!”
1 tn Heb “I will go after” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).
2 sn This statement alludes to the practice of sexual rites in the Canaanite fertility cult which attempted to secure agricultural fertility from the Canaanite gods (note the following reference to wool, flax, olive oil, and wine).
3 tn Heb “my drinks.” Many English versions use the singular “drink” here, but cf. NCV, TEV, CEV “wine.”
4 tn Heb “Valley of Achor,” so named because of the unfortunate incident recorded in Josh 7:1-26 (the name is explained in v. 26; the Hebrew term Achor means “disaster” or “trouble”). Cf. TEV, CEV “Trouble Valley.”
5 tn Heb “door” or “doorway”; cf. NLT “gateway.” Unlike the days of Joshua, when Achan’s sin jeopardized Israel’s mission and cast a dark shadow over the nation, Israel’s future return to the land will be marked by renewed hope.
6 tn Heb “as in the days of her youth” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV).
7 tn Heb “as in the day when” (so KJV, NASB).
8 tn The words “it is true” are supplied in the translation to indicate that this is a conclusion drawn on the preceding behavior. Cf. NAB “So must a people”; NRSV “thus a people”; TEV “As the proverb says, ‘A people.’”