The four poetic lines of this verse form a chiasmus, with the first and last lines describing Israel as coming to Yahweh. The two middle lines speak of Yahweh roaring like a lion.

They shall go after the LORD …: Israel will follow Yahweh, not Baal (as in 2.5, 13), and not foreign powers (as in 5.13; 7.11). Revised Standard Version follows the Hebrew by referring to the LORD in the third person, while Good News Translation uses the first person since Yahweh is speaking in the preceding and following verses. Go after renders two words in Hebrew. Good News Translation combines them with the verb “follow.” New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh opts for a more literal interpretation: “they shall march behind Him.” In view of the last line of the verse this translation fits well.

He will roar like a lion; yea, he will roar: The verb roar here must be understood as a male lion’s way of calling his family of lions to come together around him (contrary to Amos 3.8 where the roaring lion causes fear and announces judgment). The Good News Translation interpretation that the roar of the lion is “at their enemies” must be rejected. This is clearly a roar that calls the family of lions to come after their leader. In this context the roar is better understood as a summons to the Israelite exiles, calling them to follow Yahweh once more.

Yea renders the Hebrew word ki, which is an emphatic particle in this context. Good News Translation combines these two lines, but if possible, it is better to repeat the idea of roaring to keep the original emphasis.

And his sons shall come trembling from the west: His sons (literally “sons” or “children”) refers to the people of Israel. For clarity Good News Translation moves this phrase to the beginning of the verse, rendering it “My people.” Some languages may prefer “my children,” which is a more emotional expression.

The Hebrew verb translated come trembling means “tremble” or “be terrified.” Good News Translation says “hurry,” but this rendering loses the sense of awe and timidity at the sound of the roaring.

The Hebrew word for west is literally “sea,” referring here to the Mediterranean Sea, and this was the standard way of referring to that direction. Most translators will find it wise to use their normal way of referring to the west. Some translations retain the literal word “sea” (Bible en français courant, Zürcher Bibel), possibly because their readers in Europe understand the western location of the Mediterranean Sea, as they live near it. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch combines both ideas, saying “they will come trembling across the sea from the west.” The following verse mentions specific countries to the north and south, from which Israelites will return home. There were Israelite exiles to the west of Palestine in such places as Asia Minor (modern Turkey) and Libya.

A translation model for this verse is:

• They will walk after me, the LORD,
as I roar like a lion.
When I roar,
they will come timidly from the west.

Quoted with permission from Dorn, Louis & van Steenbergen, Gerrit. A Handbook on Hosea. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .