In the first line of this verse there is no doubt that Hosea is speaking against Judah, the country to the south of Israel. But then, in the next verse, the writer changes to ancient history, showing how Jacob began his bad behavior even before he was born, and even struggled against God himself. It is as if this ancestor who did wrong in his day is continuing to do wrong through his descendants.

The LORD has an indictment against Judah: In Hebrew this verse begins with the waw conjunction (literally “And”). Both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation do not translate this conjunction, which is acceptable. It may be rendered “also” (King James Version, NET Bible) or “But also” (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch) to indicate that the LORD also has a complaint against the people of Judah. New Living Translation begins with the adverb “Now” to mark the shift from Israel to Judah. Several other translations mark this shift by inserting a paragraph break (Good News Translation), a stanza break (Revised Standard Version, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), or a section heading (New Revised Standard Version, English Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, Bijbel in Gewone Taal). However, the Hebrew conjunction does not necessarily mark a major transition in the text.

The Hebrew word for indictment (Good News Translation “accusation”) refers to a legal charge, a complaint, brought before a judge, although the Hebrew word can also refer to a quarrel (see 4.1, where it is rendered “controversy”). However, in this context it clearly has legal overtones, linking it with of the covenant mentioned in the previous verse.

Good News Translation renders Judah as “the people of Judah.” The descendants of Judah, living in the territory of Judah, are charged with a crime. Some commentators suspect that Judah was originally “Israel” in the Hebrew text. However, there is no substantial textual evidence to support this point.

And will punish Jacob according to his ways, and requite him according to his deeds: Jacob is parallel with Judah. He was the ancestor of both the northern and the southern kingdoms, Israel and Judah. It is not entirely clear whether only the kingdom of Judah is meant here, or whether the meaning of the name Jacob is extended to include the entire nation, that is, both the southern and northern kingdoms. Although the following verses describe some details from the life of the patriarch Jacob, it is highly unlikely that he as an individual is in focus here. In a poetic way, it is as if Jacob is alive and still doing the mischief, through his people, that he began from the time he was born. So we may assume that what follows includes both the northern and the southern kingdoms, even though in outward form this poetry talks about their ancestor. The reference to both kingdoms is probably most clearly understood by rendering Jacob as “Israel” (Good News Translation).

The parallel expressions punish Jacob according to his ways and requite him according to his deeds mean that God will punish the Israelites in accordance with the sins they have committed (see comments on 4.9). The verbs punish and requite (Good News Translation “pay … back”) indicate that ways (literally “paths”) and deeds refer to their negative behavior. Ways refers figuratively to their sinful lifestyle, and deeds points to their individual sins as they took the wrong pathways.

A translation model for this verse is:

• The LORD also has a case against Judah.
He will punish Israel because of their misbehavior,
he will repay them according to their evil deeds.

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 .