Discovery BoxHosea 1:4 
Context1:4 Then the Lord said to Hosea, 1 “Name him ‘Jezreel,’ because in a little while I will punish 2 the dynasty 3 of Jehu on account of the bloodshed 4 in the valley of Jezreel, 5 and I will put an end to the kingdom 6 of Israel. 7
Hosea 1:6
Context1:6 She conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord 8 said to him, “Name her ‘No Pity’ (Lo-Ruhamah) because I will no longer have pity 9 on the nation 10 of Israel. For 11 I will certainly not forgive 12 their guilt. 13
Hosea 2:8
Context2:8 Yet 14 until now 15 she has refused to acknowledge 16 that I 17 was the one
who gave her the grain, the new wine, and the olive oil;
and that it was I who 18 lavished on her the silver and gold –
which they 19 used in worshiping Baal! 20
Hosea 2:12
Context2:12 I will destroy her vines and fig trees,
about which she said, “These are my wages for prostitution 21
that my lovers gave to me!”
I will turn her cultivated vines and fig trees 22 into an uncultivated thicket,
so that wild animals 23 will devour them.
Hosea 9:10
Context9:10 When I found Israel, it was like finding grapes in the wilderness.
I viewed your ancestors 24 like an early fig on a fig tree in its first season.
Then they came to Baal-Peor and they dedicated themselves to shame –
they became as detestable as what they loved.
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 Heb “Then he said”; the referent (the
9 sn The negative particle לאֹ (lo’, “no, not”) and the root רָחַם (rakham, “compassion”) are repeated in 1:6, creating a wordplay between the name Lo-Ruhamah (literally “No-Pity”) and the announcement of divine judgment, “I will no longer have pity on the nation of Israel.”
10 tn Heb “house”; cf. TEV, NLT “the people of Israel.”
11 tn The particle כִּי (ki) probably denotes cause (so NCV, TEV, CEV) or result here (GKC 505 §166.b; BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 3.c).
12 tn The verb נָשָׂא (nasa’, “to take away”) frequently denotes “to forgive” meaning to take away sin (BDB 671 s.v. נָשָׂא 3.c). The construction נָשׂא אֶשָּׂא (naso’ ’esa’, “I will certainly take away,” infinitive absolute + imperfect of the same root) repeats the root נָשָׂא for rhetorical emphasis, stressing the divine resolution not to forgive Israel.
13 tn The phrase “their guilt” does not appear in Hebrew, but is supplied in the translation for clarification. The ellipsis of the accusative direct object of נָשׂא אֶשָּׂא (naso’ ’esa’, “I will certainly take away”) is an example of brachyology. The accusative “guilt” must be supplied frequently with נָשַׂא (see BDB 671 s.v. נָשָׂא 3.c; e.g., Num 14:19; Isa 2:9; Ps 99:8). Many recent English versions simplify this to “forgive them” (e.g., NASB, NIV, NCV, NRSV, TEV, NLT).
14 tn Or “For” (so KJV, NASB); or “But” (so NCV).
15 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.
16 tn Heb “she does not know” (so NASB, NCV); or “she does not acknowledge.”
17 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”).
18 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.
19 sn The third person plural here is an obvious reference to the Israelites who had been unfaithful to the
20 tn Heb “for Baal” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV); cf. TEV “in the worship of Baal.”
21 tn Heb “my wages.” The words “for prostitution” are not in the Hebrew text but are supplied for clarity; cf. CEV “gave…as payment for sex.”
22 tn Heb “I will turn them”; the referents (vines and fig trees) have been specified in the translation for clarity.
23 tn Heb “the beasts of the field” (so KJV, NASB); the same expression also occurs in v. 18).
24 tn Heb “fathers”; a number of more recent English versions use the more general “ancestors” here.
