O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.
Parallel translations
- WEB Israel, return to Yahweh your God; for you have fallen because of your sin.
- BSB Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled by your iniquity.
- NKJV O Israel, return to the Lord your God, For you have stumbled because of your iniquity;
- NASB Return, Israel, to the Lord your God, For you have stumbled because of your wrongdoing.
- NLT Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for your sins have brought you down.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Hosea pleads with Israel to return to the LORD their God, since their sin has caused their fall. It is a tender, gracious call to repentance after the warnings of judgment.
Overview
After chapters of indictment, the book closes with an open invitation to return. The phrase "Yahweh your God" reminds them that the covenant relationship still stands and the door of mercy remains open. This summons embodies the gospel pattern of acknowledging sin as the cause of ruin and turning to God for restoration.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Joel 2:12–13Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:
- Hos 6:1Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.
- Hos 12:6Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually.
- 2 Chr 30:6–9So the posts went with the letters from the king and his princes throughout all Israel and Judah, and according to the commandment of the king, saying, Ye children of Israel, turn again unto the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and he will return to the remnant of you, that are escaped out of the hand of the kings of Assyria.
- Zech 1:3–4Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts.
- Acts 26:18–20To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.
- Isa 55:6–7Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
- Jer 4:1If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the LORD, return unto me: and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remove.
- Hos 13:9O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.
- Jer 3:12–14Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the LORD, and I will not keep anger for ever.
- Lam 5:16The crown is fallen from our head: woe unto us, that we have sinned!
- Ezek 28:14–16Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
- Jer 2:19Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.
- Hos 5:5And the pride of Israel doth testify to his face: therefore shall Israel and Ephraim fall in their iniquity; Judah also shall fall with them.
- 1 Sam 7:3–4And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
God's relentless love for an unfaithful bride dramatizes the gospel: 'Out of Egypt I called my son' is fulfilled in Jesus, who redeems an adulterous people at his own cost.
How Hosea 14:1 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.