Hosea 4:16
Context4:16 Israel has rebelled 1 like a stubborn heifer!
Soon 2 the Lord will put them out to pasture
like a lamb in a broad field! 3
Hosea 5:3
Context5:3 I know Ephraim all too well; 4
the evil of 5 Israel is not hidden from me.
For you have engaged in prostitution, O Ephraim;
Israel has defiled itself. 6
Hosea 5:6
Context5:6 Although they bring their flocks and herds 7
to seek 8 the favor of the Lord, 9
They will not find him –
he has withdrawn himself from them!
Hosea 7:8
Context7:8 Ephraim has mixed itself like flour 10 among the nations;
Ephraim is like a ruined cake of bread that is scorched on one side. 11
Hosea 7:11
Context7:11 Ephraim has been like a dove,
easily deceived and lacking discernment.
They called to Egypt for help;
they turned to Assyria for protection.
Hosea 8:5
Context8:5 O Samaria, he has rejected your calf idol!
My anger burns against them!
They will not survive much longer without being punished, 12
even though they are Israelites!
Hosea 12:2
Context12:2 The Lord also has a covenant lawsuit 13 against Judah;
he will punish Jacob according to his ways
and repay him according to his deeds.
1 tn The Hebrew verb “has rebelled” (סָרַר, sarar) can also mean “to be stubborn.” This is the same root used in the simile: “like a stubborn (סֹרֵרָה, sorerah) heifer.” The similarity between Israel and a stubborn heifer is emphasized by the repetition of the same term.
2 tn The particle עַתָּה (’attah) often refers to the imminent or the impending future: “very soon” (BDB 774 s.v. עַתָּה 1.b). In Hosea it normally introduces imminent judgment (Hos 2:12; 4:16; 5:7; 8:8, 13; 10:2).
3 tn Or “How can the
4 tn The phrase “all too well” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity and stylistic reasons.
5 tn The phrase “the evil of” does not appear in the Hebrew text here, but is implied by the metonymical (cause-effect) use of the term “Israel.” It is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity. Cf. NCV “what they have done is not hidden from me.”
6 tn Or “Israel has become corrupt”; NCV “has made itself unclean”; TEV “are unfit to worship me.”
7 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).
8 tn Heb “they go out to seek the
9 tn Heb “the
10 tn The words “like flour” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied by the imagery.
11 tn Heb “a cake of bread not turned.” This metaphor compares Ephraim to a ruined cake of bread that was not turned over in time to avoid being scorched and burned (see BDB 728 s.v. עֻגָה). Cf. NLT “as worthless as a half-baked cake.”
12 tn Heb “How long will they be able to be free from punishment?” This rhetorical question affirms that Israel will not survive much longer until God punishes it.
13 tn The noun רִיב (riv, “dispute”) is used in two contexts: (1) nonlegal contexts: (a) “dispute” between individuals (e.g., Gen 13:7; Isa 58:1; Jer 15:10) or (b) “brawl, quarrel” between people (e.g., Exod 17:7; Deut 25:1); and (2) legal contexts: (a) “lawsuit, legal process” (e.g., Exod 23:3-6; Deut 19:17; 21:5; Ezek 44:24; Ps 35:23), (b) “lawsuit, legal case” (e.g., Deut 1:12; 17:8; Prov 18:17; 25:9), and (c) God’s “lawsuit” on behalf of a person or against his own people (Hos 4:1; 12:3; Mic 6:2; HALOT 1225-26 s.v. רִיב). The term in Hosea refers to a covenant lawsuit in which Yahweh, the suzerain, lodges a legal case against his disobedient vassal, accusing Israel and Judah of breach of covenant which will elicit the covenant curses. Cf. NLT “is bringing a lawsuit.”