Israel hath cast off the thing that is good: the enemy shall pursue him.
Parallel translations
- WEB Israel has cast off that which is good. The enemy will pursue him.
- BSB But Israel has rejected good; an enemy will pursue him.
- NKJV Israel has rejected the good; The enemy will pursue him.
- NASB Israel has rejected the good; The enemy will pursue him.
- NLT But it is too late. The people of Israel have rejected what is good, and now their enemies will chase after them.
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
Israel has rejected what is good, so the enemy will pursue him.
Overview
Having spurned the good, which is God Himself and His ways, Israel is left to the consequence of being chased down by an enemy. The rejection of good is the root cause of the coming pursuit and judgment. This sober principle, that forsaking God forfeits His protection, drives home the value of clinging to the good that is fully revealed in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Lam 3:66Persecute and destroy them in anger from under the heavens of the LORD.
- Ps 81:10–11I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.
- Amos 1:11Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Edom, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he did pursue his brother with the sword, and did cast off all pity, and his anger did tear perpetually, and he kept his wrath for ever:
- 1 Tim 5:12Having damnation, because they have cast off their first faith.
- Lev 26:36And upon them that are left alive of you I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; and the sound of a shaken leaf shall chase them; and they shall flee, as fleeing from a sword; and they shall fall when none pursueth.
- Deut 28:25The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
- Ps 36:3The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit: he hath left off to be wise, and to do good.
- Lam 4:19Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 8:3 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.