12:8

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

8a And Ephraim boasts, “How rich I have become !

8b
I have found wealth for myself.

These lines quote what the people say about themselves. They boast of the wealth that they obtained from cheating and defrauding others that is described in 12:7.

12:8a

Ephraim boasts: In Hebrew, these words are more literally “Ephraim said.” The context implies that the words Ephraim says are boastful. The Berean Standard Bible and some other versions translate the word “said” as “boast” to make this meaning explicit.

How rich I have become!: There is a textual issue about the word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as How :

(1) The Masoretic text has a word that adds intensity. For example:

Surely I have become rich (New American Standard Bible)

(2) The LXX has a word that indicates contrast. For example:

Yet I am become rich (King James Version)

It is recommended that you follow option (1) along with most versions. Some versions express this intensity with special punctuation or by adding words for this purpose. For example:

I am rich! (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
“Ah, I have become rich (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)

Use a natural way in your language to indicate this intensity.

12:8b

I have found wealth for myself: This line repeats the statement of 8a using different words. In Hebrew, this clause is more literally “I have acquired wealth for myself.”

Some versions leave the Hebrew phrase for myself implicit. The phrase may indicate Ephraim’s pride that he gained the wealth without help from anyone else. Some versions, like the Berean Standard Bible above, translate this meaning explicitly. For example:

I’ve made a fortune all by myself! (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
I earned it all on my own (Contemporary English Version)

12:8c

In all my labors, they can find in me no iniquity that is sinful: There are several textual variants of this clause that affect the meaning:

(1) The Masoretic Text has “[in] all my toils people will not find in me iniquity which [is] sin.” Ephraim is the speaker. In this sentence, he boasts that he obtained his wealth without committing sin. For example:

In all of my gain no offense has been found in me that would be sin. (New Revised Standard Version)

(2) The LXX has “none of the fruits of his toil will be available to him, because of the injustice with which he sinned.” God is the speaker (through Hosea). In this sentence, God says that Ephraim will not be able to use his wealth, because he obtained it sinfully. For example:

But of all his gains he will keep nothing because of the sin of which he is guilty (New Jerusalem Bible)

(3) The Peshitta has “but all my labors will not be enough to rid me of the sin which I have sinned.” Ephraim is the speaker (In the Revised Standard Version, God is the speaker through Hosea). This sentence is a comment that Ephraim cannot atone for his sin by gaining wealth. For example:

But all his riches can never offset the guilt he has incurred (Revised Standard Version)

It is recommended that you follow option (1) along with most versions.

iniquity that is sinful: There are two acceptable ways to understand this phrase:

• The Hebrew words for iniquity and “sin” are synonyms. Each word refers to offenses against others. For example:

In all my labors they cannot find in me iniquity or sin (English Standard Version)

Some versions translate this phrase with just one word. For example:

And no one can accuse us of getting rich dishonestly (Good News Translation)

• The Hebrew words for iniquity and “sin” describe different types of offense. Iniquity is unintentional wrongdoing. Sin is intentional wrongdoing that the LORD forbids. For example:

no one can accuse me of any offense that is actually sinful (NET Bible)

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