17 Join them as one stick; they will be as one in your hand. 18 When your people say to you, ‘Will you not tell us what these things mean?’ 19 tell them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look, I am about to take the branch of Joseph that is in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and I will place them on the stick of Judah and make them into one stick—they will be one in my hand.’ 20 The sticks you write on will be in your hand in front of them. 21 Then tell them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look, I am about to take the Israelites from among the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from round about and bring them to their land.

12 Then I said to them, “If it seems good to you, pay me my wages, but if not, forget it.” So they weighed out my payment—30 pieces of silver. 13 The Lord then said to me, “Throw to the potter that exorbitant sum at which they valued me!” So I took the 30 pieces of silver and threw them to the potter at the temple of the Lord. 14 Then I cut the second staff “Union” in two in order to annul the covenant of brotherhood between Judah and Israel. 15 Again the Lord said to me, “Take up once more the equipment of a foolish shepherd. 16 Indeed, I am about to raise up a shepherd in the land who will not take heed of the sheep headed to slaughter, will not seek the scattered, and will not heal the injured. Moreover, he will not nourish the one that is healthy, but instead will eat the meat of the fat sheep and tear off their hooves.