An Israelite craftsman made the idol, and it is not a god at all! The gold bull worshiped in Samaria will be smashed to pieces!

"This is the end for Babylon's gods! Bel and Nebo once were worshiped, but now they are loaded on donkeys, a burden for the backs of tired animals.

The idols cannot save themselves; they are captured and carried away. This is the end for Babylon's gods!

I will set fire to the temples of Egypt's gods, and the king of Babylonia will either burn their gods or carry them off. As shepherds pick their clothes clean of lice, so the king of Babylonia will pick the land of Egypt clean and then leave victorious.

He will destroy the sacred stone monuments at Heliopolis in Egypt and will burn down the temples of the Egyptian gods."

He will carry back to Egypt the images of their gods and the articles of gold and silver dedicated to those gods. After several years of peace

"When Israel saw how sick she was and when Judah saw her own wounds, then Israel went to Assyria to ask the great emperor for help, but he could not cure them or heal their wounds.

Emperor Shalmaneser of Assyria made war against him; Hoshea surrendered to Shalmaneser and paid him tribute every year.

They will be carried away as by the wind, and they will be ashamed of their pagan sacrifices.

You will be sorry that you ever worshiped trees and planted sacred gardens.

All those who make idols are worthless, and the gods they prize so highly are useless. Those who worship these gods are blind and ignorant---and they will be disgraced.

Everyone who worships it will be humiliated. The people who make idols are human beings and nothing more. Let them come and stand trial---they will be terrified and will suffer disgrace.

Those who make idols will all be ashamed; all of them will be disgraced.

The LORD says, "Just as a thief is disgraced when caught, so all you people of Israel will be disgraced---your kings and officials, your priests and prophets.

You will all be disgraced---you that say that a tree is your father and that a rock is your mother. This will happen because you turned away from me instead of turning to me. But when you are in trouble, you ask me to come and save you.

You have cheapened yourself by turning to the gods of other nations. You will be disappointed by Egypt, just as you were by Assyria.

You will turn away from Egypt, hanging your head in shame. I, the LORD, have rejected those you trust; you will not gain anything from them."

But the worship of Baal, the god of shame, has made us lose flocks and herds, sons and daughters---everything that our ancestors have worked for since ancient times.

We should lie down in shame and let our disgrace cover us. We and our ancestors have always sinned against the LORD our God; we have never obeyed his commands."

Then the Moabites will be disillusioned with their god Chemosh, just as the Israelites were disillusioned with Bethel, a god in whom they trusted.

You will remember your evil conduct and the wrongs that you committed, and you will be disgusted with yourselves because of your sins and your iniquities.

War will sweep through their cities and break down the city gates. It will destroy my people because they do what they themselves think best.

Their steps were firm, but now they stumble; they fall---victims of their own advice.

But the king will be powerless to help them, and Egypt's protection will end in disaster.

But they did not obey or pay any attention. Instead, they did whatever their stubborn and evil hearts told them to do, and they became worse instead of better.

This will happen because you have followed the evil practices of King Omri and of his son, King Ahab. You have continued their policies, and so I will bring you to ruin, and everyone will despise you. People everywhere will treat you with contempt."