6. Your calf is not God. A skilled worker from Israel made it. But it will be broken to pieces."
7. The Lord says, "Worshiping other gods is like worshiping the wind. It is like planting worthless seeds. Assyria is like a windstorm. That is all my people will harvest. There are no heads of grain on the stems that will come up. So they will not produce any flour. Even if they did produce grain, the Assyrians would eat all of it up.
8. So the people of Israel are swallowed up. Now they are like a worthless pot to me among the nations.
9. They have gone up to Assyria for help. They are like a wild donkey that wanders around by itself. Ephraim's people have sold themselves to their Assyrian lovers.
10. They have sold themselves to the nations to get their help. But now I will gather them together. They will get weaker and weaker. The mighty kings of Assyria will crush them.
11. "Ephraim built many altars where they sacrificed sin offerings to other gods. So their altars have become places where they commit sin.
12. I wrote down many things in my law for their good. But they considered my laws as something strange.
13. They offer sacrifices to me. They eat the meat of the animals they bring. But I am not pleased with any of that. I will remember the evil things they have done. I will punish them for their sins. And they will return to Egypt.