2:8 Yet 8 until now 9 she has refused to acknowledge 10 that I 11 was the one
who gave her the grain, the new wine, and the olive oil;
and that it was I who 12 lavished on her the silver and gold –
which they 13 used in worshiping Baal! 14
5:6 Although they bring their flocks and herds 16
to seek 17 the favor of the Lord, 18
They will not find him –
he has withdrawn himself from them!
10:2 Their heart is slipping;
soon they will be punished for their guilt.
The Lord 19 will break their altars;
he will completely destroy their fertility pillars.
1 tn Heb “to him.” The referent (Hosea) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Heb “I will visit.” The verb פָּקַד (paqad, “to visit”) has a very broad range of meanings: (1) “to pay attention to; to look at” (a) favorably: to look after; to provide for; to care for; (b) unfavorably: to seek vengeance for; to punish for; (2) militarily: (a) “to muster; to enroll”; (b) “to inspect; to review”; (3) leadership: (a) “to rule over; to oversee”; (b) Hiphil: “to appoint an overseer” (see BDB 823 s.v. פָּקַד; HALOT 955-58 s.v. פקד). In this context, the nuance “to punish” or “to take vengeance” (see 1b above) is most appropriate. Cf. KJV, ASV “I will avenge”; NAB, NASB, NRSV “I will punish.”
3 tn Heb “house” (so NAB, NRSV); NCV “family”; CEV “descendants.”
4 tn The plural form of דָּם (dam, “blood”) refers to “bloodshed” (BDB 196 s.v. דָּם 2.f). This is an example of a plural of abnormal condition (GKC 400 §124.n). The plural is used to represent natural objects which are found in an unnatural or abnormal condition. The plural is used because the natural object is normally found as a whole or in one unit, but in the abnormal condition the object is found in many parts. Normally, blood is contained as a whole within the body. However, when a brutal murder occurs, blood is shed and literally spilled all over the place. Cf. NIV “the massacre”; TEV, CEV, NLT “the murders.”
5 tn Heb “I will visit the bloodshed of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu.”
6 tn Heb “the kingdom of the house of Israel” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV). This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.
7 sn The proper name יִזְרְעֶאל (yizré’e’l, “Jezreel”) sounds like יִשְׂרָאֵל (yisra’el, “Israel”). This phonetic wordplay associates the sin at Jezreel with the judgment on Israel, stressing poetic justice.
8 tn Or “For” (so KJV, NASB); or “But” (so NCV).
9 tn The phrase “until now” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.
10 tn Heb “she does not know” (so NASB, NCV); or “she does not acknowledge.”
11 tn The 1st person common singular independent personal pronoun אָנֹכִי (’anokhi, “I”) is emphatic, since the subject of this verbal clause is already explicit in the verb נָתַתִּי (natatti, Qal perfect 1st person common singular: “I gave”).
12 tn The phrase “that it was I who” does not appear in the Hebrew text here, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
13 sn The third person plural here is an obvious reference to the Israelites who had been unfaithful to the
14 tn Heb “for Baal” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV); cf. TEV “in the worship of Baal.”
15 tn Heb “sons of Israel” (so NASB); KJV “children of Israel”; NAB “people of Israel” (likewise in the following verse).
16 sn The terms flocks and herds are used figuratively for animal sacrifices (metonymy of association). Hosea describes the futility of seeking God’s favor with mere ritual sacrifice without the prerequisite moral obedience (e.g., 1 Sam 15:24; Ps 50:6-8; 51:17-18; Isa 1:12; Mic 6:6-8).
17 tn Heb “they go out to seek the
18 tn Heb “the
19 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the