Hosea 14:1

Hosea 14:1

O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.

a. NLT: Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for your sins have brought you down.

b. NIV: Return, Israel, to the LORD your God. Your sins have been your downfall!

c. YLT: Turn back, O Israel, unto Jehovah thy God, For thou hast stumbled by thine iniquity.

d. Amplified Bible Classic: O Israel, return to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled andfallen, [visited by calamity] due to your iniquity.

e. Septuagint: Return, O Israel, to the Lord thy God; for the people have fallen through thine iniquities.

f. Stone Edition Torah/Prophets/Writings: (Hosea 14:2) Return, Israel, unto HASHEM your God, for you have stumbled in your iniquity.

1). In the Jewish Bible Hosea 14:1 is the Hosea 13:16 of Christian Bibles. As a result because I am using some Jewish sources in my study, the numbers will be off one verse. For instance, Hosea 14:2 in this study will be numbered Hosea 14:3 in the Jewish sources. Why it is like this I don’t know and as yet I have failed to find a reason.

 1. “O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God…”

a. Israel [3478 * Yisra'el] [Strong: from 8280 and 410; he will rule as God; Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity: --Israel.]

b. return [7725 * shuwb] [Strong: a primitive root; to turn back (hence, away) transitively or intransitively, literally or figuratively (not necessarily with the idea of return to the starting point); generally to retreat; often adverbial, again:--((break, build, circumcise, dig, do anything, do evil, feed, lay down, lie down, lodge, make, rejoice, send, take, weep)) X again, (cause to) answer (+ again), X in any case (wise), X at all, averse, bring (again, back, home again), call (to mind), carry again (back), cease, X certainly, come again (back), X consider, + continually, convert, deliver (again), + deny, draw back, fetch home again, X fro, get (oneself) (back) again, X give (again), go again (back, home), (go) out, hinder, let, (see) more, X needs, be past, X pay, pervert, pull in again, put (again, up again), recall, recompense, recover, refresh, relieve, render (again), requite, rescue, restore, retrieve, (cause to, make to) return, reverse, reward, + say nay, send back, set again, slide back, still, X surely, take back (off), (cause to, make to) turn (again, self again, away, back, back again, backward, from, off), withdraw.] [AMG Complete Old Testament Word Study Dictionary: A verb meaning to turn, to return, to go back, to do again, to change, to withdraw, to bring back, to reestablish, to be returned, to bring back, to take, to restore, to recompense, to answer, to hinder.]

c. unto the LORD [3068 * Yhovah] [Strong: from 1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God:--Jehovah, the Lord.]

d. thy God [430 * 'elohiym] [Strong: plural of 433; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative:--angels, X exceeding, God (gods)(-dess, -ly), X (very) great, judges, X mighty.]

1). All through the Scripture God graciously invites the wicked, those who have departed from Him to return to Him and depart from their iniquity.

a). Isaiah 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

b). Jeremiah 3:12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the LORD, and I will not keep anger forever.

c). Jeremiah 3:22 Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the LORD our God.

d). Ezekiel 13:22 Because with lies ye have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, by promising him life:

2. “…for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.”

a. thou hast fallen [3782 * kashal] [Strong: a primitive root; to totter or waver (through weakness of the legs, especially the ankle); by implication, to falter, stumble, faint or fall:--bereave (from the margin), cast down, be decayed, (cause to) fail, (cause, make to) fall (down, -ing), feeble, be (the) ruin(-ed, of), (be) overthrown, (cause to) stumble, X utterly, be weak.] [ AMG Complete Old Testament Word Study Dictionary: A verb meaning to stumble, to stagger, to totter, to cause to stumble, to overthrow, to make weak.]

1). As in this case, sin will cause a person to fall.

a). Hosea 14:9 Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? prudent, and he shall know them? for the ways of the LORD are right, and the just shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein.

b). Jeremiah 8:12 Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall they fall among them that fall: in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down, saith the LORD.

b. by thine iniquity [5771 * ‘avon][Strong: from 5771; perversity, i.e. (moral) evil:--fault, iniquity, mischeif, punishment (of iniquity), sin.][ AMG Complete Old Testament Word Study Dictionary: a masculine noun meaning iniquity, evil, guilt, punishment.]