Christian Standard Bible
Hosea 10:8
8The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, will be destroyed; thorns and thistles will grow over their altars. They will say to the mountains, “Cover us!” and to the hills, “Fall on us!”
Hosea 10:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)The high places also of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed: the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars; and they shall say to the mountains, Cover us; and to the hills, Fall on us.
- New International Version (NIV)The high places of wickedness will be destroyed— it is the sin of Israel. Thorns and thistles will grow up and cover their altars. Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!” and to the hills, “Fall on us!”
- English Standard Version (ESV)The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed. Thorn and thistle shall grow up on their altars, and they shall say to the mountains, "Cover us," and to the hills, "Fall on us."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Also the high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, Shall be destroyed. The thorn and thistle shall grow on their altars; They shall say to the mountains, “Cover us!” And to the hills, “Fall on us!”
Context of Hosea 10:8
6The calf itself will be taken to Assyria as an offering to the great king. Ephraim will experience shame; Israel will be ashamed of its counsel. 7Samaria’s king will disappear like foam on the surface of the water. The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, will be destroyed; thorns and thistles will grow over their altars. They will say to the mountains, “Cover us!” and to the hills, “Fall on us!” 9Israel, you have sinned since the days of Gibeah; they have taken their stand there. Will not war against the unjust overtake them in Gibeah? 10I will discipline them at my discretion; nations will be gathered against them to put them in bondage for their double iniquity.
Read all of Hosea 10Hosea 10:8 word by word
וְנִשְׁמְד֞וּ בָּמ֣וֹת אָ֗וֶן חַטַּאת֙ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל ק֣וֹץ וְדַרְדַּ֔ר יַעֲלֶ֖ה עַל־מִזְבְּחוֹתָ֑ם וְאָמְר֤וּ לֶֽהָרִים֙ כַּסּ֔וּנוּ וְלַגְּבָע֖וֹת נִפְל֥וּ עָלֵֽינוּ׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- The high placesבָּמָהbâmâh · high placeH1116
- also of Avenאָ֫וֶן'âven · AvenH206
- the sinחַטָּאתchaţţâ'âh chaţţâ'th · sinH2403
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- shall be destroyedשָׁמַדshâmad · to destroyH8045
- the thornקוֹץqôts qôts · thornH6975
- and the thistleדַּרְדַּרdardar · thistleH1863
- shall come upעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: riseH5927
- on their altarsמִזְבֵּחַmizbêach · altarH4196
- and they shall sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- to the mountainsהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
- Coverכָּסָהkâsâh · to coverH3680
- us; and to the hillsגִּבְעָהgib‛âh · hillH1389
- Fallנָפַלnâphal · to fall: fallH5307
Cross-references for Hosea 10:8
- Hosea 10:5The residents of Samaria will have anxiety over the calf of Beth-aven. Indeed, its idolatrous priests rejoiced over it; the people will mourn over it, over its glory. It will certainly go into exile.
- Hosea 4:15Israel, if you act promiscuously, don’t let Judah become guilty! Do not go to Gilgal or make a pilgrimage to Beth-aven, and do not swear an oath: As the Lord lives!
- Hosea 5:8Blow the ram’s horn in Gibeah, the trumpet in Ramah; raise the war cry in Beth-aven: Look behind you, Benjamin!
- Deuteronomy 9:21I took the sinful calf you had made and burned it. I crushed it, thoroughly grinding it to powder as fine as dust, and threw its dust into the stream that came down from the mountain.
- 1 Kings 12:28So the king sought advice. Then he made two golden calves, and he said to the people, “Going to Jerusalem is too difficult for you. Israel, here are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt.”
- 1 Kings 13:34This was the sin that caused the house of Jeroboam to be cut off and obliterated from the face of the earth.
- 1 Kings 14:16He will give up Israel because of Jeroboam’s sins that he committed and caused Israel to commit.”
- Amos 8:14Those who swear by the guilt of Samaria and say, “As your god lives, Dan,” or, “As the way of Beer-sheba lives” — they will fall, never to rise again.
- Micah 1:5All this will happen because of Jacob’s rebellion and the sins of the house of Israel. What is the rebellion of Jacob? Isn’t it Samaria? And what is the high place of Judah? Isn’t it Jerusalem?
- Hosea 9:6For even if they flee from devastation, Egypt will gather them, and Memphis will bury them. Thistles will take possession of their precious silver; thorns will invade their tents.
- Isaiah 32:13for the ground of my people growing thorns and briers, indeed, for every joyous house in the jubilant city.
- Isaiah 34:13Her palaces will be overgrown with thorns; her fortified cities, with thistles and briers. She will become a dwelling for jackals, an abode for ostriches.
- 1 Kings 13:2The man of God cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord: “Altar, altar, this is what the Lord says, ‘A son will be born to the house of David, named Josiah, and he will sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who are burning incense on you. Human bones will be burned on you.’”
- 2 Kings 23:15He even tore down the altar at Bethel and the high place that had been made by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. He burned the high place, crushed it to dust, and burned the Asherah.
- 2 Chronicles 31:1When all this was completed, all Israel who had attended went out to the cities of Judah and broke up the sacred pillars, chopped down the Asherah poles, and tore down the high places and altars throughout Judah and Benjamin, as well as in Ephraim and Manasseh, to the last one. Then all the Israelites returned to their cities, each to his own possession.
- 2 Chronicles 34:5He burned the bones of the priests on their altars. So he cleansed Judah and Jerusalem.
Commentaries on Hosea 10:8
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8The high-places - Idol temples. Of Aven - Beth-aven. The thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars - Owing to the uncultivated and unfrequented state of the land, and of their places of idol worship, the people being all carried away into captivity. "And they shall say to the mountains, Cover us, And to the hills, Fall on us." "This sublime description of fear and distress our Lord had in view, Luke 23:30, which may be a reference, and not a…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8The high places of Aven - that is, of vanity or iniquity. He had before called “Bethel, house of God,” by the name of “Bethaven, house of vanity;” now he calls it “Aven, vanity” or “iniquity,” as being the concentration of those qualities. Bethel was situated on a “hill,” the “mount of Bethel,” and, from different sides, people were said to “go up” (Joshua 16:1; 1 Samuel 13:2; above Hosea 4:13; Genesis 35:1; Judges 1:22; 1 Samuel 10:3; 2 Kings 2:23) to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8The Israelites who survived the disaster would only be able to cry out to the mountains and hills, Cover us! … Fall on us!Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. Aven--that is, Beth-aven. the sin--that is, the occasion of sin (De 9:21; 1Ki 12:30). they shall say to ... mountains, Cover us--So terrible shall be the calamity, that men shall prefer death to life (Lu 23:30; Re 6:16; 9:6). Those very hills on which were their idolatrous altars (one source of their confidence, as their "king," Ho 10:7, was the other), so far from helping them, shall be called on by them to overwhelm them.Read the comment
Topics related to Hosea 10:8
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Hosea 10
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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