HOS 7:8 Interlinear View

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 6:4–7:16: The people persisted in their sins

In this section, the LORD again spoke to the people of Israel and Judah. In contrast to the people’s future repentance (6:1–3), he gave examples of their current disloyalty and corruption, including their reliance on other nations instead of him. They continued to commit sins, and they refused to seek him. He announced that he would judge them, and he illustrated his coming judgment in various ways.

In this section, the Hebrew text sometimes uses second person pronouns (“you”) and sometimes third person pronouns (“they” or “he”) to refer to the people of Israel. The BSB follows the Hebrew pronoun usage. It uses “they” in 6:5–10, “you” in 6:4 & 11, and “they” or “he” in 7:1–16. Throughout these verses the LORD is the speaker, and he either addresses the people directly or speaks about them.

English versions all use “you” in 6:11 and “they” in chapter 7, but they differ in the way they use the pronouns in 6:5–10. You should use the most natural and least confusing way in your language to handle the pronouns in 6:5–10. In 6:7–10, the Display will follow the BSB pronoun choice in the first meaning line and give another pronoun choice in the second meaning line. See the note on “you” in 2:16b–c, where the pronoun changes are similar.

Here are some other examples of section headings:

Transitory Faithfulness and Imminent Judgment (NET)

Impenitence of Israel and Judah (NRSV)

Paragraph 7:8–9

The previous verses spoke of the evil within the kingdom of Israel. This paragraph starts a new topic. It describes the relationships between the kingdom of Israel and other nations and the ungodliness that results from those relationships. Some versions use a heading here to indicate the change of topic. For example:

Israel and the Nations (GNT)

Israel Turns to Other Nations for Help (GW)

If you decide to use a heading here, you may need to indicate that the LORD is still speaking. For example:

Then the LORD said, “…

7:8–11

In 7:8, 7:9, and 7:11, the Hebrew pronoun that refers to the nation or people of Israel is “he.” In 7:10, the Hebrew pronoun is “they.” Some versions use “he” throughout these verses. Other versions use “they.” Use whatever pronoun or pronoun referent is natural in your language to refer to a nation or the people of a nation.

7:8a–b

(combined/reordered)

¶ Then Yahweh also said, “The people of Israel are worthless. They are like bread that is baked on only one side. They mix with ungodly foreigners and learn their evil ways.

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

^8a Ephraim mixes with the nations;

^8b Ephraim is an unturned cake.

Both lines describe the ruined condition of Ephraim. The first line gives a literal description of behavior that resulted in ruin. The second line describes Ephraim’s ruin with a metaphor.

7:8a

Ephraim mixes with the nations;

¶ “The people of Ephraim mingle with the ungodly nations nearby.
¶ “The people of Israel do not separate themselves from the people of other nations. They adopt wicked customs.

Ephraim: The word Ephraim here is a figure of speech that represents the nation or people of Israel. In some languages, it may be clearer to translate the meaning without using a figure of speech. For example:

Israel mixes with other nations (NCV)

mixes: The word mixes is commonly used in the context of baking. Here, however, the word indicates that the nation of Israel has adopted the customs of nations around them. It implies that the people of Israel did not keep themselves holy. Some versions make this implied information explicit. For example:

My people of Israel mingle with godless foreigners, picking up their evil ways. (NLT96)

nations: In Hebrew, this word is literally “peoples.” Here it refers to various people groups in that region with whom the Israelite people interacted. This included the Assyrians, Egyptians, and probably Canaanite groups.Andersen and Freedman (page 463).

7:8b

Ephraim is an unturned cake.

They are like a half-baked loaf of bread.
They have become worthless.
They are as worthless as ruined food, burned on one side and uncooked on the other side.

Ephraim is an unturned cake: This statement is a metaphor. In this metaphor, the nation of Israel is compared to an unturned cake of bread. An unturned cake is a flat, round loaf of bread that is hard and burned on one side and uncooked on the other side. The way in which Israel is like an unturned cake is that it is ruined and worthless.

Here are some ways to translate this metaphor:

General Comment on 7:8a–b

Keep the metaphor. For example:
Ephraim is a half-baked cake (NJB)
they are a thin piece of bread scorched on one side (CEV)
Change the metaphor into a simile. For example:
Now they have become as worthless as a half-baked cake! (NLT)
he is like a pancake cooked only on one side (NCV)
Ephraim is like a ruined cake of bread that is scorched on one side. (NET)
Translate the meaning without using a figure of speech. For example:
Israel has become worthless.
Use a similar figure of speech that conveys the right meaning in your language. For example:
Israel is as useless as burned food.

In some languages, it may be more natural to reorder and/or combine the parallel parts. For example:

^8bThen the LORD said, “The people of Israel are worthless. They are like a flat loaf of bread that is baked on only one side. ^8aThey mix with ungodly foreigners and learn their evil ways.”

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)

Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.

Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.

OET interlinear HOS 7:8

Hebrew word order