Hosea 4:2

Hosea 4:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
• New International Version (NIV)There is only cursing, lying and murder, stealing and adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed.
• English Standard Version (ESV)there is swearing, lying, murder, stealing, and committing adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed.
• New King James Version (NKJV)By swearing and lying, Killing and stealing and committing adultery, They break all restraint, With bloodshed upon bloodshed.

Context of Hosea 4:2

1Listen to the Lord’s word, you Israelites. The Lord has brought these charges against those who live in the land: “There is no faith, no love, and no knowledge of God in the land. There is cursing, lying, murdering, stealing, and adultery. People break ⌞my laws⌟, and there is one murder after another. 3That is why the land is drying up, and everyone who lives in it is passing away. Wild animals, birds, and fish are dying. 4“No one should accuse other people or bring charges against them. My case is against you priests.

Hosea 4:2 word by word

אָלֹ֣ה וְכַחֵ֔שׁ וְרָצֹ֥חַ וְגָנֹ֖ב וְנָאֹ֑ף פָּרָ֕צוּ וְדָמִ֥ים בְּדָמִ֖ים נָגָֽעוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• By swearingאָלָה'âlâh · to swearH422
• and lyingכָּחַשׁkâchash · to deceiveH3584
• and killingרָצַחrâtsach · to murderH7523
• and stealingגָּנַבgânab · to stealH1589
• and committing adulteryנָאַףnâ'aph · to commit adulteryH5003
• they break outפָּרַץpârats · to break throughH6555
• and bloodדָּםdâm · bloodH1818
• touchethנָגַעnâga‛ · to touchH5060

Cross-references for Hosea 4:2

• Isaiah 24:5The earth is polluted by those who live on it because they’ve disobeyed the Lord’s teachings, violated his laws, and rejected the everlasting promise.
• Isaiah 48:1Listen to this, descendants of Jacob! You are given the name of Israel. You are descended from Judah. You take oaths by the name of the Lord. You acknowledge the God of Israel, but you are not honest or sincere.
• Isaiah 59:2But your wrongs have separated you from your God, and your sins have made him hide his face so that he doesn’t hear you.
• Jeremiah 5:1Walk around the streets of Jerusalem. Look around, and think about these things. Search the city squares. See if you can find anyone who does what is right and seeks the truth. Then I will forgive Jerusalem.
• Jeremiah 6:7As a well keeps its water fresh, so Jerusalem keeps its evil fresh. Violence and destruction can be heard in it. I see that it is sick and wounded.
• Jeremiah 7:6Suppose you do not oppress foreigners, orphans, and widows, or kill anyone in this place. And suppose you do not follow other gods that lead you to your own destruction.
• Jeremiah 9:2I wish I had a place to stay in the desert. I would abandon my people and go away from them. They are all adulterers, a mob of traitors.
• Jeremiah 23:10The land is filled with adulterers. The land mourns because of the curse. Pastures in the wilderness have dried up. The people are evil, and they use their strength to do the wrong things.
• Ezekiel 22:2“Will you judge, son of man? Will you judge the city of murderers? Then tell it about all the disgusting things that it has done.
• Micah 2:1How horrible it will be for those who invent trouble and work out plans for disaster while in bed. When the morning dawns, they carry out their plans because they are able to.
• Micah 3:2You hate good and love evil. You strip the skin off my people and the flesh off their bones.
• Micah 6:10I have cursed all the wicked people who use their money for evil and use inaccurate weights and measures.
• Micah 7:2Faithful people are gone from the earth, and no one is decent. All people lie in ambush to commit murder. They trap each other with nets.
• Zephaniah 3:1How horrible it will be for that rebellious and corrupt place, the city of violence.
• Zechariah 5:3Then he said to me, “This is a curse that will go out all over the earth. The one side of the scroll says that every thief will be forced away. The other side of the scroll says that everyone who takes an oath will be forced away.
• Zechariah 7:9“This is what the Lord of Armies says: Administer real justice, and be compassionate and kind to each other.

Commentaries on Hosea 4:2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2By swearing, and lying - Where there is no truth there will be lies and perjury; for false swearing is brought in to confirm lying statements. And when there is no mercy, killing, slaying, and murders, will be frequent. And where there is no knowledge of God, no conviction of his omnipresence and omniscience, private offenses, such as stealing, adulteries, etc., will prevail. These, sooner or later, break out, become a flood, and carry all before them…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2By swearing, and lying … - Literally, “swearing or cursing”, “and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery!” The words in Hebrew are nouns of action. The Hebrew form is very vivid and solemn. It is far more forcible than if he had said, “They swear, lie, kill, and steal.” It expresses that these sins were continual, that nothing else (so to speak) was going on; that it was all one scene of such sins, one course of them, and of nothing…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2The prophet also accused the Israelites of committing sins. These crimes are all forbidden in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:3–17; Deuteronomy 5:7–21), which are the basic covenant responsibilities. Since the Israelites did not know the Lord, they failed to follow even the simplest covenant standards.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. they break out--bursting through every restraint. blood toucheth blood--literally, "bloods." One act of bloodshed follows another without any interval between (see 2Ki 15:8-16, 25; Mi 7:2).Read the comment

Topics related to Hosea 4:2

• Adultery
• Crime
• Dishonesty
• Falsehood
• Homicide
• Sin
• Theft and Thieves

In the dictionaries

• Languish
• Reject
• Robbery
• Blood
• Break
• Calf, Golden
• Hosea
• Lie; Lying
• Priests and Levites
• Zechariah, Book of

Commentaries on Hosea 4

• 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
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings