Hosea 1:2

Hosea 1:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The beginning of the word of the Lord by Hosea. And the Lord said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the Lord.
• New International Version (NIV)When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the Lord.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, "Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord."
• New King James Version (NKJV)When the Lord began to speak by Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea: “Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry And children of harlotry, For the land has committed great harlotry By departing from the Lord.”

Context of Hosea 1:2

1The word of the Lord which came to Hosea the son of Beeri, during the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and during the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of harlotry and have children of harlotry; for the land commits flagrant harlotry, forsaking the Lord.” 3So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. 4And the Lord said to him, “Name him Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will punish the house of Jehu for the bloodshed of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel.

Hosea 1:2 word by word

תְּחִלַּ֥ת דִּבֶּר־יְהוָ֖ה בְּהוֹשֵׁ֑עַ פ וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוָ֜ה אֶל־הוֹשֵׁ֗עַ לֵ֣ךְ קַח־לְךָ֞ אֵ֤שֶׁת זְנוּנִים֙ וְיַלְדֵ֣י זְנוּנִ֔ים כִּֽי־זָנֹ֤ה תִזְנֶה֙ הָאָ֔רֶץ מֵֽאַחֲרֵ֖י יְהוָֽה׃Read the interlinear

• When the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• firstתְּחִלָּהtechillâh · beginningH8462
• spokeדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• through Hoseaהוֹשֵׁעַhôshêa‛ · HoseaH1954
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Goהָלַךְhâlak · to go: wentH1980
• takeלָקַחlâqach · to take: marryH3947
• to yourself a wifeאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · woman: wifeH802
• of harlotryזְנוּנִיםzânûn · fornicationH2183
• childrenיֶ֫לֶדyeled · youthH3206
• the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• commitsזָנָהzânâh · to fornicateH2181
• forsakingמִן־min minnîy minnêy · fromH4480
• forsakingאַחַר'achar · afterH310

Cross-references for Hosea 1:2

• Mark 1:1The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
• Hosea 3:1Then the Lord said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by her husband, yet an adulteress, even as the Lord loves the sons of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love raisin cakes.”
• Isaiah 20:2at that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go and loosen the sackcloth from your hips and take your shoes off your feet.” And he did so, going naked and barefoot.
• Jeremiah 13:1Thus the Lord said to me, “Go and buy yourself a linen waistband and put it around your waist, but do not put it in water.”
• Ezekiel 4:1“Now you son of man, get yourself a brick, place it before you and inscribe a city on it, Jerusalem.
• Hosea 2:4Also, I will have no compassion on her children, Because they are children of harlotry.
• 2 Peter 2:14having eyes full of adultery that never cease from sin, enticing unstable souls, having a heart trained in greed, accursed children;
• Exodus 34:15otherwise you might make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land and they would play the harlot with their gods and sacrifice to their gods, and someone might invite you to eat of his sacrifice,
• Deuteronomy 31:16The Lord said to Moses, “Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers; and this people will arise and play the harlot with the strange gods of the land, into the midst of which they are going, and will forsake Me and break My covenant which I have made with them.
• 2 Chronicles 21:13but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and have caused Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to play the harlot as the house of Ahab played the harlot, and you have also killed your brothers, your own family, who were better than you,
• Psalms 73:27For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You.
• Psalms 106:39Thus they became unclean in their practices, And played the harlot in their deeds.
• Jeremiah 2:13“For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, The fountain of living waters, To hew for themselves cisterns, Broken cisterns That can hold no water.
• Jeremiah 3:1God says, “If a husband divorces his wife And she goes from him And belongs to another man, Will he still return to her? Will not that land be completely polluted? But you are a harlot with many lovers; Yet you turn to Me,” declares the Lord.
• Ezekiel 6:9Then those of you who escape will remember Me among the nations to which they will be carried captive, how I have been hurt by their adulterous hearts which turned away from Me, and by their eyes which played the harlot after their idols; and they will loathe themselves in their own sight for the evils which they have committed, for all their abominations.
• Ezekiel 16:1Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

Commentaries on Hosea 1:2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2A wife of whoredoms - That is, says Newcome, a wife from among the Israelites, who were remarkable for spiritual fornication, or idolatry. God calls himself the husband of Israel; and this chosen nation owed him the fidelity of a wife. See Exodus 34:15; Deuteronomy 31:16; Judges 2:17; Isaiah 54:5; Jeremiah 3:14; Jeremiah 31:32, Ezekiel 16:17; Ezekiel 23:5, Ezekiel 23:27; Hosea 2, Hosea 5:1-15; Revelation 17:1, Revelation 17:2. He therefore says, with…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2The beginning of the word of the Lord by Hosea or in Hosea - God first revealed Himself and His mysteries to the prophet‘s soul, by His secret inspiration, and then declared, through him, to others, what He had deposited in him. God enlightened him, and then others through the light in him. And the Lord said unto Hosea - For this thing was to be done by Hosea alone, because God had commanded it, not by others of their own mind. To Isaiah God first…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-3a prostitute: Some find it hard to believe that God would tell a prophet to marry a prostitute. Because of this, many interpret this story symbolically. Early church members often thought the marriage did not actually happen. They saw it as an allegory, with Hosea representing the Lord and Gomer representing Israel. Today, most believe the marriage was real, but they have different views on Gomer’s job before marriage. Some think Gomer was a regular…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. beginning--not of the prophet's predictions generally, but of those spoken by Hosea. take ... wife of whoredoms--not externally acted, but internally and in vision, as a pictorial illustration of Israel's unfaithfulness [Hengstenberg]. Compare Eze 16:8, 15, &c. Besides the loathsomeness of such a marriage, if an external act, it would require years for the birth of three children, which would weaken the symbol (compare Eze 4:4). Henderson objects that…Read the comment

Topics related to Hosea 1:2

• Backsliders
• Idolatry
• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• Marriage
• Minister, Christian
• Prophets
• Symbols and Similitudes
• Women

In the dictionaries

• Hosea
• Adultery
• Blood
• Fornication
• Crime; Crimes
• Song of Songs
• Text of the Old Testament
• Zechariah, Book of

Commentaries on Hosea 1

• 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