When the LORD first spoke through Hosea is more literally “The beginning of the word of Yahweh by/to Hosea.” In the Hebrew text this clause appears as a separate paragraph and serves as the title for the entire section, not verse 2 only. We recommend showing this in the formatting of the translation; for example, the New Jerusalem Bible (New Jerusalem Bible) begins this verse with “The beginning of what Yahweh said through Hosea: ….” The Hebrew prepositional phrase for through Hosea can mean “to Hosea” or “by means of Hosea.” Here it probably indicates that Hosea was used as an instrument of Yahweh. Good News Translation adds the phrase “to Israel” for clarity.

The LORD said to Hosea is literally “and Yahweh spoke [or, said] to Hosea.” In the Hebrew text this clause begins the first narrative of the book. Revised Standard Version expresses it as the main clause to the previous one. In view of the comments on the previous clause, we suggest starting a new paragraph here, saying “The LORD said to him [Hosea].”

Go, take to yourself a wife of harlotry is a double command for a single action. Some languages will have similar double commands; for example, Chewa says “Go to marry….” Other languages will use a single command, such as “Marry….” Many languages will leave to yourself implicit since it is included in the act of marrying (so Good News Translation).

A wife of harlotry translates literally a Hebrew idiomatic expression that is ambiguous. The Hebrew phrase here describes the inner nature of the woman. She was inclined to prostitution (compare 4.12 and 5.4), not necessarily engaged in the activity at this point. Neither are we told how deeply the woman may have been involved in the Canaanite fertility cult. Was she a temple prostitute? Such activity was thought to encourage the fertility of crops, cattle, and people in the community. Had she merely submitted to initiation rites performed before one married? There she may have surrendered her virginity to a representative of the god of fertility, Baal, thus dedicating her marriage with Hosea to the god Baal. Was she still a virgin who was inclined or even dedicated to prostitution but had not yet become an active prostitute? Or does the expression mean that the woman would later become unfaithful, even though she was faithful at the beginning of her marriage? We do not know the answer to these questions, yet we must translate the text. Some translations interpret a wife of harlotry as describing the activity of the woman before the marriage; for example, the New English Bible (New English Bible) has “a wanton,” and the New Living Translation (New Living Translation) says “a prostitute.” We do not recommend these renderings. A translation that suggests inclination to prostitution is a better option. The last part of the verse implies that the people of Israel, to whom the prophet’s wife is compared, were once faithful to God but then left him to worship idols. Therefore Good News Translation interprets the phrase as describing what the wife would do after the marriage, saying “your wife will be unfaithful.” Translators will make their own decision, but the interpretation of Good News Translation is preferred.

And have children of harlotry: Some scholars have interpreted the literal phrase children of harlotry to mean that the children were fathered by other men than Hosea. One unlikely theory is that Hosea gradually became suspicious that the second and third children were not his, and so the names show how he gradually rejected them as his own, ending with “Not my people.” Another theory is that, if the woman had dedicated her marriage to Baal, then the children would also belong to Baal and therefore would be dedicated to such prostitution as children of harlotry. In any case, 1.3 clearly states that Hosea was the father of the first child. This is not mentioned explicitly about the second and third child. Good News Translation and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch (1982) understand the phrase to mean that the children will become unfaithful in the way that their mother did, either spiritually unfaithful, or unfaithful when they would get married. Good News Translation renders this clause as “and your children will be just like her.” New Jerusalem Bible simply indicates that the children will be children of a prostitute: “and get children with a whore.” Both interpretations are possible.

For the land commits great harlotry by forsaking the LORD: The conjunction for introduces the grounds for the previous command. Good News Translation renders it well with “In the same way.” The land cannot literally commit harlotry. This figurative expression refers to the people living in the land of Israel who were committing harlotry. Good News Translation therefore translates the land as “my people.” Harlotry is a striking image used by many of the prophets to describe the sin of forsaking the LORD and worshiping other gods. The fact that the Canaanite fertility cult made use of temple prostitutes may mean that the Israelites actually did commit sexual sins when they worshiped in such a place. Commits great harlotry (literally “to prostitute herself she prostitutes herself”) translates a Hebrew emphatic expression that stresses the seriousness and the completeness of what they have done. Good News Translation leaves the figure of prostitution implicit by rendering this clause as “In the same way my people have left me and become unfaithful.” Some other translations repeat the word “prostitute” (New Living Translation), “whoredom” (New Revised Standard Version [New Revised Standard Version]), or “adultery” (New International Version) used in describing the woman, as does the Hebrew, to show that Israel is, in effect, doing the same thing. Since harlotry is a thematic term in the book of Hosea, especially in the first half of the book, it is recommended to translate it in such a way that harlotry can be recognized as a theme.

In this verse Yahweh himself speaks to Hosea, yet he speaks of himself in the third person with the phrase by forsaking the LORD. This manner of Yahweh referring to himself occurs frequently in the prophetic writings. Since he is speaking, many languages will have to refer to him in the first person by saying “have left me” (Good News Translation) or “have left me, Yahweh.”

A translation model for this verse is:

• This is the beginning of what Yahweh spoke through Hosea.
Yahweh said to Hosea, “Marry an adulterous wife and get children of adultery, because the people of the land are adulterous, they abandon Yahweh.”

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 .

So I bought her at first seems to imply paying a bride price, but it is equally possible that the woman had become the property of another person, not of her own family, or that she was hired. The Hebrew word for bought is difficult to interpret exactly. Many translations have the same rendering as Revised Standard Version (for example, New International Version and New Jerusalem Bible). New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has “hired,” which follows the Septuagint. This reading comes from a different Hebrew verbal form. The meaning “to hire” (also based on a related word in Arabic) fits the context of 3.3-4 well. However, many scholars opt for a different root of the Hebrew verb here, which implies “purchase for marriage.” Bargaining over the price was involved. In this case the price is approximately that paid for a slave. There is no clear record that a wife or a concubine was ever sold to someone else in this manner in Israel. In many cultures negotiating a dowry requires the involvement of relatives from both sides of the negotiating parties. This is certainly not implied here. New English Bible makes it explicit the woman in view here is Gomer by saying “So I got her back,” but we do not recommend this interpretation. If buying the woman as a slave is intended here, she may have become someone’s personal slave, or else a temple prostitute.

The price agreed upon was fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley. A shekel weighed about 11.4 grams (0.4 ounce), so fifteen shekels of silver is about 170 grams (6 ounces) of silver. This phrase is literally “fifteen silver,” so Good News Translation provides a good model with “fifteen pieces of silver.” It is best not to convert this amount into modern currency values, since modern currencies tend to fluctuate in value.

A homer is equivalent to about 220 liters (6 bushels). Originally a homer probably referred to the amount of grain carried by a donkey. According to tradition a lethech was half of a homer, but this is just a guess. A homer and a lethech may equal approximately “seven bushels” (Good News Translation). The translation of this phrase depends on the translation brief. A translation may maintain the original measurements, convert them into a metric or other current system, or use other alternatives. De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling translates “one and a half donkey loads.”

Barley is a type of grass like wheat and rice. In Old Testament times barley was less valuable than wheat, and it was commonly fed to animals. It was also made into bread when wheat was not available or was too expensive. It has been estimated that seven bushels of barley would be worth about fifteen silver shekels. If this is the case, Hosea paid in all the equivalent of thirty silver shekels, the standard price of a slave (Exo 21.32). The fact that Hosea paid part in silver and part in two different measures of barley may show that he was not rich and had difficulty in bringing the amount together. The combination of silver and barley in a context like this is unusual. That fact encourages us to search for other solutions.

Some scholars doubt that the traditional Hebrew text for a homer and a lethech of barley is accurate, since it is literally “a homer of barley and a lethech of barley.” This text seems to have a useless repetition of “barley,” so the Septuagint changes “a lethech of barley” to read “a wineskin/vessel of wine.” New Living Translation and New English Bible follow this reading by saying “a measure of wine,” and so does New Jerusalem Bible with “a skin of wine.” However, the evidence is weak for such a rendering, and Hebrew Old Testament Text Project supports the traditional Hebrew text (a {B} decision). A footnote that gives the Septuagint reading may be useful.

Translation models for this verse are:

• So I hired her for myself for fifteen pieces of silver and one and a half donkey loads of barley.

• So I bought her for myself for fifteen pieces of silver and one and a half homers of barley.

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 .

At the beginning of this verse Good News Translation adds the quote frame “The LORD says” to make clear who is speaking (see the introductory comments on the previous section). Wolff believes the audience may have interrupted the prophet at this point, indicating that Judah was the guilty party with respect to the border towns just mentioned in verse 8, and that the first two lines of this verse may be the prophet repeating their accusation, thus agreeing that Judah bears guilt.

The princes of Judah have become …: Now the political leaders of the southern kingdom, Judah, are accused as well. For the Hebrew word rendered princes, see 3.4.

Like those who remove the landmark makes use of the figure of the sacred boundaries established by God for his people (Deut 19.14; 27.17). According to this simile, Judah has invaded Israel and captured some of its territory. Good News Translation makes this explicit by rendering the first two lines of this verse as “the leaders of Judah have invaded Israel and stolen land from her.” Since Judah did invade the territory of Benjamin and capture Gibeah, Ramah and Bethel, we would not expect a simile here, although most translations take it that way. However, the Hebrew prefix rendered like can also be an emphatic marker, so another possible model here is “The leaders of Judah are the ones who indeed moved the boundary markers.”

Upon them I will pour out my wrath like water: This figurative expression indicates that God is so angry that he will punish Judah very severely. Good News Translation expresses God’s wrath earlier in the verse as “I am angry,” and at this point Good News Translation uses the idea of “punishment,” since in English, anger remains within a person, while “punishment” can be “poured out,” especially when someone does something to another because of the anger that he feels. Pour out … like water uses the image of completely dumping a full bucket of water upon someone. Like water may be better rendered “like a flood” (Good News Translation) to preserve the effect of destructive punishment from God. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch is similar with “like a cloudburst.”

A translation model for this verse is:

• The leaders of Judah are the ones
who indeed moved the boundary markers [of Israel].
I will pour my rage on them like water.

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 .

They turn to Baal: The Hebrew verb for turn is the same one rendered “restore” in 6.11b. Since the corresponding section D-a (6.11b–7.2) speaks of Yahweh’s attempts to have Israel “return” to him, it will be good if the same expression can be used for turn in this verse to demonstrate how the two sections are related in a sad way.

Instead of They turn to Baal, the Hebrew text reads “They return, [but] not upwards” (similarly Traduction œcuménique de la Bible), which Hebrew Old Testament Text Project gives a {C} rating. However, its meaning is not clear. King James Version claims to be following the Hebrew with “They return, but not to the Most High” (similarly New International Version, De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling), but it is questionable whether the Hebrew means this. They turn to Baal (also NET Bible, Bible de Jérusalem) is based on an emendation that makes sense but is not supported by any ancient version. Biblia Dios Habla Hoy is similar with “They turn to the idols.” In Good News Translation‘s “They keep on turning away from me to a god that is powerless,” the words “away from me” are understood as implied by the context. “To a god that is powerless” is an emendation that makes sense. Bible en français courant says “If they return to someone, it is not to me,” and New Jerusalem Bible has “They turn to what does not exist.” The message of the prophet, in any case, appears to be that if the people do return, they turn in the wrong direction toward something other than Yahweh.

Recent study of Hebrew opens a new perspective on this line. The Hebrew word for “upwards” is ʿal. This word has appeared as a shorter divine name, probably referring to Baal. If this shorter name is what we find here, then Hosea is saying that the people are returning to “Not-god” (loʾ ʿal in Hebrew) instead of to Ba-al. In this way he is saying that “Baal” is a “No-god”! This is therefore a play on words. Not all translators will be able to capture this wordplay in their own language, but some may be successful. A possible model for this line is “They return to a non-god” or “They return to one that is not God.” The meaning behind all this is simply “They return to Baal, who is not really a god.” If the translation can make it seem that the prophet is making Baal look ridiculous or foolish, or even non-existent, that will capture the intended meaning even better. This interpretation seems to provide the best meaning of this line in the Hebrew text.

The play on words in this line can go even farther. The Hebrew words loʾ ʿal, which can mean “not over [or, above/up],” probably made the original listeners think of “Baal,” as explained already. By using loʾ ʿal the prophet is saying that the “Baal” to which the people turn is really not so “high up” after all! To make the statement stronger, he then refers to Egypt in the last line—a country thought of as “lower” than the highlands of Israel and Judah. Even that lower country will ridicule them.

They are like a treacherous bow: For bow see 1.7. A treacherous bow (also Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible, Bible de Jérusalem) is a bow that does not shoot straight (Good News Translation “a crooked bow,” New International Version and New Jerusalem Bible “a faulty bow,” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “a warped bow”), or it is deceptively weak so that an arrow will not reach its target (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh “a slack bow,” Traduction œcuménique de la Bible “a failing bow”). Biblia Dios Habla Hoy makes the entire image explicit: “they are like a twisted bow, whose arrow does not hit the mark.” Since this expression is used in northern Israel, its Hebrew dialect seems to favor the idea of a “slack” bow, meaning one whose string is not tight enough to shoot an arrow properly (compare Psa 78.57). Israel was untrustworthy in its relations with God like such a bow for its user.

Their princes shall fall by the sword because of the insolence of their tongue: For the Hebrew word rendered princes, see 7.3. Fall by the sword is an idiom for being killed in war. The sword is used as a metonym for “war” (Bible en français courant). If the receptor language uses another metonym for “war” it can be used here, provided it suits the historical setting of this text.

It is not clear what event is referred to by the insolence of their tongue. Wolff suggests it is “Their resistance against the divine word.” These leaders may have spoken against Yahweh and against Egypt when they went to Assyria for help. The Hebrew word for insolence refers to angry, indignant speech, possibly even curses. Good News Translation says “their leaders talk arrogantly.” Another interpretation is followed by NET Bible: “their prayers to Baal have made me angry.” The NET footnote on this line explains that it views tongue as a metonym for “prayers” (in this context to Baal). Contemporary English Version is less specific with “Their leaders will die in war for saying foolish things,” which is a helpful model.

This shall be their derision in the land of Egypt means the people in Egypt will make fun of the Israelites when their leaders die in war. The Israelites had gone to Assyria for help against Egypt, but eventually the Assyrians captured Israel and killed its leaders. The demonstrative pronoun This refers to the death of the Israelite leaders and the pronoun their points to the Israelites. Good News Translation expresses this line more simply: “and the Egyptians will laugh.”

A translation model for this verse is:

• They turn to a non-god,
they are like a slack bow.
Their leaders will be killed in war,
because of their foolish talk.
Then the people of Egypt will mock them.

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 .

Their heart is false …: The plural pronouns Their/their and they refer to Israel. In the previous verse the Hebrew text uses mostly singular pronouns for Israel. Good News Translation makes the referent for these pronouns clear by using “The people” and plural pronouns in both verses. Translators are advised to use a solution that best fits their language.

It is clear that heart should not be understood as the physical organ, but in a figurative sense, it represents the thinking and/or the will of human beings. Not all receptor languages are able to make the same figurative extension of this word, so translators should find an acceptable solution. For the first line of this verse Bible en français courant adjusts the imagery, saying “Its [Israel’s] people are false to the heart.” Bijbel in Gewone Taal uses nonfigurative language: “That is how they have betrayed the Lord.”

In this context is false (Good News Translation “are deceitful”) renders well a Hebrew verb meaning “to be smooth or slippery.” King James Version‘s “is divided” translates another verb with the same consonants, reflected in the Vulgate and some other ancient translations. New Jerusalem Bible follows this reading with “Theirs is a divided heart” (similarly Jerusalem Bible, Bible de Jérusalem), and so does Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch with “But they were only with a half heart with the LORD.” The meaning of this reading is similar to the one in Revised Standard Version, but we believe Revised Standard Version‘s reading fits the context better.

Now they must bear their guilt: The adverb now introduces a message of judgment. They must bear their guilt renders a single Hebrew verb that means basically “they have sinned,” but it also marks the sinners as the guilty persons who must bear the consequences of what they have done. The same verb has been used in 4.15 and 5.15.

The LORD will break down their altars, and destroy their pillars: In Hebrew The LORD is literally “he” (King James Version, Revised Standard Version footnote). Revised Standard Version makes the referent for this pronoun clear, and so does Good News Translation with “God.” God will destroy the Israelites’ pagan altars and sacred stones. The Hebrew here states that God will do this himself, but in 10.6 it becomes clear that the Assyrians will be God’s instruments for doing it. Translators may wish to use an instrumental form of the verbs here, but it is important to retain the language of God doing it himself, if at all possible in the receptor language. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch and Einheitsübersetzung begin these two lines with “The LORD himself….”

The Hebrew verb for break down is also used for breaking an animal’s neck, thus slaughtering the animal in a way that did not drain the blood, making it unfit as a sacrificial animal (see, for example, Exo 13.13; 34.20; Deut 21.4). Wolff suggests that this verb may signify breaking off the horns of altars. It carries the connotation of ending the effective life of such places of worship and making them ceremonially unclean. If the receptor language allows the use of the verb “slaughter” in a figurative sense in this context, it would be a nice solution.

The Hebrew verb for destroy has the connotation of violence accompanying the destruction as expressed by the verb “smash” in New Living Translation.

A translation model for this verse is:

• These people are so deceitful!
Now they must pay for their guilt.
The LORD will break down their altars,
he will shatter their sacred pillars.

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 .

For 12.7-14 Good News Translation has the heading “Further Words of Judgment.” Verse 6 speaks about how things ought to be. The following verses are like earlier ones, for they again speak about the sins the people have committed and how God will punish them.

Verses 7-8 contrast with the theme of verse 6, since they describe how the people do not show steadfast love and justice toward each other.

At the beginning of this verse Good News Translation adds the quote frame “The LORD says” to indicate the speaker in verses 7-11. However, it is not until verse 9 that Yahweh is clearly speaking. This is why we prefer to begin a new section with its heading at verse 7.

Some translations make the addressees explicit here by adding the vocative “Ephraim” (Bible en français courant, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch), “Israel” (Contemporary English Version), or “Israelites” (Bijbel in Gewone Taal). All the people of the northern kingdom of Israel are addressed here.

A trader, in whose hands are false balances, he loves to oppress: The Hebrew word for trader is virtually the same as the name for “Canaan.” Good News Translation assumes that this is a play on words, and that Israel is being compared with the Canaanites. This is probably true, but a play on words can seldom be translated into another language. Mays comments that this “is a scornful nickname hurled at Ephraim.” But the basic meaning for the Hebrew word here is trader, referring to a typical merchant in the nation of Israel. His cheating is an example of the way the people of Israel treat each other. Translators who use footnotes to the text may wish to insert one here, for example, “The Hebrew words for ‘trader’ and ‘Canaan’ are spelled the same way, and the prophet may be comparing the Israelites to their pagan Canaanite neighbors.” New International Version uses the following footnote: “merchant. As Hosea had played on the meaning of Jacob in v. 2, he here uses a wordplay on Canaan (the Hebrew for ‘merchant’ sounds like Canaan) to charge that Israel was no better than a Canaanite.”

False balances (Good News Translation “false scales”), which is literally “balance scales of deceit,” refers to the scales the merchant is using as he measures out the things he is buying or selling. By moving the scales in a certain way, or by using weights that are too heavy or too light, he can cheat his customers by giving them less than what they are paying for. In the Old Testament false scales became symbolic for dishonesty (Pro 11.1; 20.23; Amos 8.5).

In whose hands are false balances means the merchant carries these dishonest scales with him; they are his property.

He loves to oppress means he enjoys cheating people. Oppress is one meaning of the Hebrew verb here, but it also means to “wrong” people, or to “extort” from them, especially those who are poor and cannot help themselves against the person doing wrong. In this context of the false scales, the idea of cheating people seems to be the main thought. Good News Translation makes this clear by saying “they love to cheat their customers with false scales.”

Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch renders this verse as “The LORD says: ‘You have become a merchant-people, Ephraim, after the example of the Canaanites! With falsified weights you deceive the people.’ ” Another possible model is:

• The LORD says, “Ephraim, you are a trader using false scales!
You love ripping off your people.”

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 .