Hosea 4:1 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Hosea 4:1
Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
to hear intelligently (often with implication of attent… · verb, qal imperative, 2nd person masculine plural
word
דְבַרde.var-
H1697
a word · noun, common masculine singular construct
LORD
יְהוָ֖הYah.weh
H3068
Jehovah · proper noun, a title
children
בְּנֵ֣יbe.Nei
H1121
a son (as a builder of the family name) · noun, common masculine plural construct
Israel
יִשְׂרָאֵ֑לYis.ra.'El
H3478
Jisrael · proper noun, a place name
LORD
לַֽיהוָה֙la.Yah.weh
H3068
Jehovah · preposition + proper noun, a title
controversy
רִ֤יבriv
H7379
a contest (personal or legal) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
inhabitants
יוֹשְׁבֵ֣יyo.she.Vei
H3427
properly · verb, qal active participle, masculine plural construct
land
הָאָ֔רֶץha.'A.retz
H776
the earth (at large · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
truth
אֱמֶ֧ת'e.Met
H571
stability · noun, common feminine singular absolute
mercy
חֶ֛סֶדChe.sed
H2617
kindness · noun, common masculine singular absolute
knowledge
דַּ֥עַתDa.'at
H1847
knowledge · noun, common feminine singular construct
God
אֱלֹהִ֖ים'E.lo.Him
H430
gods in the ordinary sense · noun, common masculine plural absolute
land
בָּאָֽרֶץba.'A.retz
H776
the earth (at large · preposition with the article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Jeremiah 4:22 For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but…
Micah 6:2 Hear ye, O mountains, the LORD’s controversy, and ye strong foundations of the earth: for the LORD hath a controversy with his people, and h…
Isaiah 3:13-14 The LORD standeth up to plead, and standeth to judge the people.
1 Corinthians 15:34 Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame.
Isaiah 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red lik…
Isaiah 34:1 Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come for…
Jeremiah 5:4 Therefore I said, Surely these are poor; they are foolish: for they know not the way of the LORD, nor the judgment of their God.
Jeremiah 25:31 A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will gi…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Hosea 4:1-5
Here is, I. The court set, and both attendance and attention demanded: "Hear the word of the Lord, you children of Israel, for to you is the word of this conviction sent, whether you will hear or whether you will forbear." Whom may God expect to give him a fair hearing, and take from him a fair warning, but the children of Israel, his own professing people? Yea, they will be ready enough to hear when God speaks comfortably to them; but are they willing to hear when he has a controversy with them? Yes, they must hear him when he pleads against them, when he has something to lay to their charge: The Lord has a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, of this land, of this holy land. Note,…
The Lord hath a controversy - ריב rib, what we should call a lawsuit, in which God is plaintiff, and the Israelites defendants. It is Jehovah versus Israel and Judah.
But when has God a controversy with any land? - Answer. When there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. These refer to the minds of the people. But wherever these righteous principles are wanting, there will soon be a vicious practice; hence it is added,
John Gill on Hosea 4:1
Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel,.... The people of the ten tribes, as distinct from Judah, Hosea 4:15, the prophet having finished his parables he was ordered to take up and deliver, and his explanations of them, and concluded with a gracious promise of the conversion of the Jews in the latter day, enters upon a new discourse, which begins with reproof for various sins; since what had been delivered in parables and types had had no effect upon them, they are called upon to hear what the Lord would say to them by the prophet, in more clear and express terms; silence is ordered, and attention required to what follows:
for the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of th…
"Hear the word of the Lord, sons of Israel; for judgment is for the Lord with the inhabitants of the earth: for there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. Cursed, and lying, and murder, and theft, and adultery have overflowed: and blood has touched blood." LXX: "Hear the word of the Lord, sons of Israel; for judgment is for the Lord with the inhabitants of the earth: for there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God over the earth. Curse, and lying, and murder, and theft, and adultery have been spilt over the earth, and they have mixed blood with blood." From the beginning of the prophet to this point, under the description of a prostitute and an adulteress, whose punishment is severe and long-lasting, a later restoration to their former or a better state is made for the ten tribes or two, and the sins of all are counted. Again now to Israel, that is, the speech turns to the ten tribes, explaining that God, angered, does not threaten and inflict such great punishments in vain: lest perhaps the sentence be not seen to have been passed justly, but by the power of God on those who have not sinned. Hear, said the prophet, the word of the Lord, O sons of Israel: for the Lord desires to judge with his people and to expose the reasons for his anger. There is no truth, and there is no mercy, and there is no knowledge of God in the land. For truth cannot be sustained without mercy, and mercy without truth makes the negligent; therefore, the one is mingled with the other, and whoever does not have either also does not have knowledge of God. But on the contrary, for truth there is falsehood, and for mercy there is cursing, murder, theft, adultery. He did not say, "there is"; but to demonstrate the abundance of sins, he uses the expression, "they have inundated" (Al. "they have overflowed"); and for the knowledge of God, which is not on earth, blood touched blood, or blood mingled with blood, so that they could increase sins with sins and add new ones to old. Indeed, those who are inhabitants of the earth and not sojourners are called to judgment: for from the face of the North evils blaze forth upon the inhabitants of the earth. And in the Apocalypse of John: Woe, woe, woe is said to the inhabitants of the earth. But he who is able to say with the prophet: "I am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all my fathers were" (Psa. 38:13), and…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Character Of The Wicked · Ignorant of God — Ignorant of God
Crime · PARTIAL LISTS OF — PARTIAL LISTS OF
Dishonesty · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Falsehood · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Homicide · 24:22; — 24:22;
Lying · Often accompanied by gross crimes — Often accompanied by gross crimes
Mercy · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Reasoning · God rea — God rea
Sins, National · Exemplified: Kingdom of Israel — Exemplified: Kingdom of Israel
Swearing, Profane · Nations visited for — Nations visited for
Theft And Thieves · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Truth · .Are
Hosea 4:1-2
1. Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
1. Audite verbum Jehova, filii Israel, quia lis Jehovae cum incolis terrae; quia nulla fides, (aut, veritas, nulla fidelitas,) et nulla beneficientia, etnulla cognito Dei in terra.
2. By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
2. Maledicere, et mentiri, et occidere, et furari, et adulterium committere perruperunt, et sanguines sanguinibus fuerunt continui.
This is a new discourse by the Prophet, separate from his…
Hos 4:1-5 form the first strophe, and contain, so to speak, the theme and the sum and substance of the whole of the following threatening of punishment and judgment. Hos 4:1. "Hear the word of Jehovah, ye sons of Israel! for Jehovah has a controversy with the inhabitants of the land; for there is no truth, and no love, and no knowledge of God in the land." Israel of the ten tribes is here addressed, as Hos 4:15 clearly shows. The Lord has a controversy with it, has to accuse and judge it (cf. Mic 6:2), because truth, love, and the knowledge of God have vanished from the land. 'Emeth and chesed are frequently associated, not merely as divine attributes, but also as human virtues. They are use…
This diverse collection of Hosea’s prophecies is presented in roughly chronological order, from early in his ministry during the reign of Jeroboam II until just before the destruction of Israel in 722 BC. Hosea presents God’s charges against Israel, tells them of the severe consequences for their sin, and concludes with a divine promise of future restoration.
4:1 The Lord has brought charges against you: Hosea issued a divine indictment against Israel for breaking their covenant with the Lord (see also Isa 3:13; Mic 6:2). The charges first focus on sins of omission, the qualities that should characterize the people of Israel but were absent. In Israel there is no faithfulness, no kindness,…
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
