complete verse (Hosea 9:15)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Hosea 9:15:

  • Kupsabiny: “God says,
    ‘The sin of these people started at Gilgal
    and that was where I began to hate them.
    And because they did acts of sin.
    I shall chase them away from my land.
    I no longer love/accept those people.
    because their leaders have all become stubborn and refused my words.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “I hated them because of all the bad,
    evil work that they did in Gilgal.
    By reason of their bad,
    evil work I will drive them out of my temple.
    I will love them no more.
    All their leaders have become rebellious. ” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The LORD said, ‘All the wickedness of my people started at Gilgal. There already I hated them. And because of their wickedness I will-drive- them -away from Israel which I consider my dwelling-place. I no-longer love them; all their leaders rebelled-against me.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Yahweh says, ‘Because of all the wicked things that my people did at Gilgal,
    that is where I started to hate them.
    And now, because of all the sinful things that they have done,
    I will expel them from my country.
    I will not love them any longer;
    all their leaders rebel against me.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

1st person pronoun referring to God (Japanese)

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Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also pronoun for “God”.

Translation commentary on Hosea 9:15

This verse introduces a major shift in perspective. The LORD is again the speaker. Good News Translation‘s quote frame “The LORD says” is implied in the context, identifying the speaker of 9.15-16.

Every evil of theirs is in Gilgal: Since this line is the start of a new section, it may be helpful to specify the northern kingdom of Israel as the referent for the pronoun theirs. God’s Word says “Ephraim’s,” and Contemporary English Version has “Israel” (similarly Bijbel in Gewone Taal). For the Hebrew word rendered evil, see 7.1, where it is translated “wicked deeds.”

Although this line is in the present tense in Revised Standard Version, the context shows that Hosea refers to history that affects the present. Elsewhere he warns against worship conducted at Gilgal, where a sanctuary must have been located (see 4.15; 12.11; Amos 4.4), and this may be related to the line I will drive them out of my house. Gilgal was an important town in Israel’s history for several reasons. When the Israelites crossed the Jordan River to enter Canaan, their first encampment was at Gilgal (Josh 4.19), and so this was, in a sense, the place of Israel’s very beginning in the Promised Land, and this may be the reason why a worship center, or cultic center, was located there. This is perhaps one reason why we find Gilgal to be at the center of the chiastic outline for this major section B′. However, Gilgal is also the place where Saul was anointed king (1 Sam 11.14-15), and Hosea speaks strongly against the monarchy (3.4; 7.3-7; 8.4; 10.3, 7, 15). This may be related to the line all their princes are rebels. Thus it is possible that both the monarchy and cultic worship are attacked in the first line of this verse. Good News Translation says “All their evildoing began in Gilgal.” New Living Translation is similar with “All their wickedness began at Gilgal.”

There I began to hate them is literally “for [or, indeed] there I hated them.” Like the previous line, this one also speaks of history influencing the present, so Good News Translation says “It was there that I began to hate them.” This line begins with the Hebrew word ki, which most likely is an emphatic marker here, so it may be rendered “indeed” or “truly.” The verb hate may imply being an enemy, so Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “there I started to become your enemy.” However, it may also refer to a broken covenant relationship. It is important to maintain the contrast between hate and love in this verse.

Because of the wickedness of their deeds is parallel to Every evil of theirs is in Gilgal. This line contains the grounds for the punishment that is announced in the next line. In some languages it may be necessary to reverse the order: first the description of the punishment and then the grounds for it. For example, Revised English Bible says “I shall drive them from my house because of their evil deeds.”

I will drive them out of my house: There are several possible interpretations for this line, depending on the interpretation of my house. It may refer to the broken covenant relationship between God and the Israelites. Like a husband divorcing and driving his unsatisfactory wife from his house (Deut 24.3), Yahweh will reject unfaithful Israel. A model that follows this interpretation is “I will drive them away from me.” My house may refer to the Temple, which God’s Word makes clear by saying “I will force them out of my temple” (similarly New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). However, this phrase most likely refers to “my land” (Good News Translation), as in 8.1, so this line speaks about God forcing the people into exile. New Living Translation has “I will drive them from my land.” Bible en français courant uses a French idiom, saying “I will drive them from my place [or, home],” referring to either the Temple or the land.

I will love them no more refers to the broken covenant relationship between God and Israel. Compare the second line.

All their princes are rebels: In Hebrew there is a play on the word for princes (sarehem) and the one for rebels (sorrim). Some commentators try to reflect this wordplay in translation; for example, Wolff says “All their leaders are false leaders,” and Mays has “All their leaders are misleaders!” However, these translations change the meaning of the original text, and only rarely will a similar wordplay be possible in another language. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch comes close: “for their leaders [Führer] are all alike disturbers [Aufrührer]” (similarly Einheitsübersetzung, Zürcher Bibel). For the Hebrew word rendered princes, see 3.4 and 7.3. The Hebrew word for rebels can also be translated “stubborn,” as in 4.16.

A translation model for this verse is:

• The LORD says to Ephraim,
“All your evil began in Gilgal,
yes, there I started hating you.
I will drive you out of my land [or, house]
because of your evil deeds.
I no longer love you,
[because] all your leaders are stubborn.

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 .