Hosea 4

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¹Listen to the word of the Lord, you sons of Israel, Because the Lord has a case against the inhabitants of the land, For there is no faithfulness, nor loyalty, Nor knowledge of God in the land. ✦ ²There is oath-taking, denial, murder, stealing, and adultery. They employ violence, so that bloodshed follows bloodshed. ✦ ³Therefore the land mourns, And everyone who lives in it languishes Along with the animals of the field and the birds of the sky, And even the fish of the sea disappear. ✦ ⁴¶Yet let no one find fault, and let no one rebuke; For your people are like those who contend with a priest. ✦ ⁵So you will stumble by day, And the prophet also will stumble with you by night; And I will destroy your mother. ✦ ⁶My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Since you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the Law of your God, I also will forget your children. ✦ ⁷¶The more they multiplied, the more they sinned against Me; I will change their glory into shame. ✦ ⁸They feed on the sin of My people, And long for their wrongdoing. ✦ ⁹And it will be, like people, like priest; So I will punish them for their ways And repay them for their deeds. ✦ ¹⁰They will eat, but not have enough; They will play the prostitute, but not increase, Because they gave up devoting themselves to the Lord. ✦ ¹¹¶Infidelity, wine, and new wine take away the understanding. ✦ ¹²My people consult their wooden idol, and their diviner’s wand informs them; For a spirit of infidelity has led them astray, And they have been unfaithful, departing from their God. ✦ ¹³They offer sacrifices on the tops of the mountains And burn incense on the hills, Under oak, poplar, and terebinth, Because their shade is pleasant. Therefore your daughters play the prostitute, And your brides commit adultery. ✦ ¹⁴I will not punish your daughters when they play the prostitute, Or your brides when they commit adultery, Because the men themselves slip away with the prostitutes And offer sacrifices with temple prostitutes; So the people without understanding are ruined. ✦ ¹⁵¶Though you, Israel, play the prostitute, Judah must not become guilty; Also you are not to go to Gilgal, Nor go up to Beth-aven And take the oath: “As the Lord lives!” ✦ ¹⁶Since Israel is stubborn Like a stubborn cow, Will the Lord now pasture them Like a lamb in a large field? ✦ ¹⁷Ephraim is allied with idols; Leave him alone. ✦ ¹⁸Their liquor is gone, They prostitute themselves continually; Their rulers dearly love shame. ✦ ¹⁹The wind wraps them in its wings, And they will be put to shame because of their sacrifices. ✦

Tap any verse for its study page. Underlined terms mark a concept, person, or place; ✦ marks verses with cross-references.

Where this chapter connects

Hos 4 ·13 Jer 5 ·9 Jer 3 ·8 Jer 2 ·8 Isa 1 ·7 Jer 4 ·6 Mic 3 ·5 Hos 5 ·5

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 4 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.

Resources, by level

Lay

★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical
A clear ~10-minute audio teaching for every one of the Bible's 1,189 chapters — the most systematic free way to study chapter by chapter.

Pastoral

SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical
Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.

Commentaries & study tools

VideoBibleProject — Hosea videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
VideoWatch teaching on Hosea 4YouTube · Lay · Free
Sermons and chapter teaching from across YouTube.
CommentaryEnduring Word — Hosea 4David Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical
Readable, verse-by-verse exposition of the whole chapter.
CommentaryMatthew Henry on HoseaMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
ReferenceBlue Letter Bible — Hosea 4Blue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free
Interlinear, lexicon, and study tools across the chapter.

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