HOS 11:2 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) The more the godly people called them, the more they went away from them.
⇔ They kept sacrificing to the Baals
⇔ ≈ and burning incense for idols.

Key: khaki:verbs.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

BrLXX Καθὼς μετεκάλεσα αὐτούς, οὕτως ἀπῴχοντο ἐκ προσώπου μου· αὐτοὶ τοῖς Βααλεὶμ ἔθυον, καὶ τοῖς γλυπτοῖς ἐθυμίων.
(Kathōs metekalesa autous, houtōs apōⱪonto ek prosōpou mou; autoi tois Baʼaleim ethuon, kai tois gluptois ethumiōn. )

BrTr As I called them, so they departed from my presence: they sacrificed to Baalim, and burnt incense to graven images.

ULT The more they called them,
⇔ the more they went away from me.
⇔ They kept sacrificing to the Baals
⇔ and burning incense to idols. [fn]

Some ancient and most modern versions have they went away from me . The Hebrew text has they went away from them .

UST But the more I called out to them,
⇔ the more they ran away.
⇔ Day after day they offered their sacrifices to the idols named Baal,
⇔ and they burned incense to honor them.

11:2 LXX; Hebrew The more they called them, the more they went from them.

OEB The more I called them,
⇔ the further they went away from me.
⇔ They kept sacrificing to Baals
⇔ and making offerings to idols.

WEBBE They called to them, so they went from them.
⇔ They sacrificed to the Baals,
⇔ and burnt incense to engraved images.

WMBB (Same as above)

MSG ^(1-9)“When Israel was only a child, I loved him.
  I called out, ‘My son!’—called him out of Egypt.
But when others called him,
  he ran off and left me.
He worshiped the popular sex gods,
  he played at religion with toy gods.
Still, I stuck with him. I led Ephraim.
  I rescued him from human bondage,
But he never acknowledged my help,
  never admitted that I was the one pulling his wagon,
That I lifted him, like a baby, to my cheek,
  that I bent down to feed him.
Now he wants to go back to Egypt or go over to Assyria—
  anything but return to me!
That’s why his cities are unsafe—the murder rate skyrockets
  and every plan to improve things falls to pieces.
My people are hell-bent on leaving me.
  They pray to god Baal for help.
  He doesn’t lift a finger to help them.
But how can I give up on you, Ephraim?
  How can I turn you loose, Israel?
How can I leave you to be ruined like Admah,
  devastated like luckless Zeboim?
I can’t bear to even think such thoughts.
  My insides churn in protest.
And so I’m not going to act on my anger.
  I’m not going to destroy Ephraim.
And why? Because I am God and not a human.
  I’m The Holy One and I’m here—in your very midst.

NET But the more I summoned them,
⇔ the farther they departed from me.
⇔ They sacrificed to the Baal idols
⇔ and burned incense to images.

LSV They have called to them correctly,
They have gone from before them,
They sacrifice to lords,
And make incense to carved images.

FBV As they called them, so they went from them:[fn] they sacrificed to the Baals and offered incense to idols.

11:2 Sometimes this is translated: “The more I called them, the more they went from me,” but this requires significant changes to the original text. What the Hebrew text appears to be saying, in the context of the Exodus from Egypt, is that as they (Israel) called them (Egypt) was the way in which they (Israel) went from them (Egypt). In other words even at the Exodus Israel was hankering after the things of Egypt and only left under pressure. Many would have preferred to stay, and Hosea traces the apostasy he is dealing with to a reluctant and rebellious spirit of some even at the time of the Exodus. This is confirmed by the second part of the verse.

T4T But while I continued to call them,
⇔ they continued to turn away from me more and more.
⇔ They offered sacrifices to their statues of Baal,
⇔ and they burned incense to honor them.

LEB • When I called[fn] them, they went from my face.[fn] They sacrificed to the Baals, and they sacrificed to idols.

11:? Hebrew “When they called”; the LXX and modern translations read “When I called”

11:? Hebrew “their face”

BBE When I sent for them, then they went away from me; they made offerings to the Baals, burning perfumes to images.

Moff But the more I called to them,
⇔ the further they went from me,
⇔ sacrificing to Baals
⇔ and offering incense to idols.

JPS The more they called them, the more they went from them; they sacrificed unto the Baalim, and offered to graven images.

ASV The more the prophets called them, the more they went from them: they sacrificed unto the Baalim, and burned incense to graven images.

DRA As they called them, they went away from before their face: they offered victims to Baalim, and sacrificed to idols.

YLT They have called to them rightly, They have gone from before them, To lords they do sacrifice, And to graven images they make perfume.

Drby As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto the Baals, and burned incense to graven images.

RV As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto the Baalim, and burned incense to graven images.
(As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto the Baals, and burnt incense to graven/carved images. )

SLT They called to them, thus they went from them: they will sacrifice to the Baals, and to the carved images they will burn incense.

Wbstr As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed to Baalim, and burned incense to graven images.

KJB-1769 As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto Baalim, and burned incense to graven images.
(As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto Baals, and burnt incense to graven/carved images. )

KJB-1611 As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed vnto Baalim, and burnt incense to grauen images.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above)

Bshps They called them but they went thus from them: they sacrificed vnto Baal, and burned incense to images.
(They called them but they went thus from them: they sacrificed unto Baal, and burnt incense to images.)

Gnva They called them, but they went thus from them: they sacrificed vnto Baalim, and burnt incense to images.
(They called them, but they went thus from them: they sacrificed unto Baals, and burnt incense to images. )

Cvdl But ye more they were called, the more they wente backe: offerynge vnto Idols, and censynge ymages.
(But ye/you_all more they were called, the more they went back: offering unto Idols, and censing images.)

Wycl Thei clepiden hem, so thei yeden awei fro the face of hem. Thei offriden to Baalym, and maden sacrifice to symylacris.
(They called hem, so they went away from the face of hem. They offered to Baals, and made sacrifice to images.)

Luth Aber wenn man sie jetzt ruft, so wenden sie sich davon und opfern den Baalim und räuchern den Bildern.
(But when man they/she/them now/currently ruft, so turn_around they/she/them itself/yourself/themselves of_that and sacrifice(v) the Baalim and smoking the images/pictures.)

ClVg Vocaverunt eos, sic abierunt a facie eorum; Baalim immolabant, et simulacris sacrificabant.
(They_called them, so they_are_gone from face their; Baalim they_sacrificed, and images they_sacrificed. )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 11:1–11 The LORD’s love for his people

This section refers back to Israel’s history, as do Section 9:10–17 and Section 10:1–8. In all three sections, the LORD describes the joyful beginning of his relationship with the people of Israel and their response of betrayal against him. The earlier sections focus more on the LORD’s punishment. The people will be taken into exile. This section focuses more on his love.

The LORD speaks of his love for Israel in the past (11:1–4), warns them of their future exile and destruction (11:5–7), and assures them that in the future he will turn from his anger and show them compassion. Because of his love for them, he promises that he will bring the people back to the land of Israel (11:8–11).

Here are some other examples of section headings:

The Lord’s Love for Israel (ESV)

Israel Is Like a Bad Son (GW)

Throughout this section, the LORD is the speaker. When he refers to himself, he uses first person pronouns (“I/me/my”) except for verse 10, which has “Yahweh” and “he.” When he refers to the people or nation of Israel, he uses “Ephraim,” “they/them,” or “he/it.” The only exceptions are in 11:8–9. There the LORD uses the pronoun “you(sg)” to speak directly to Ephraim and to Judah.

Paragraph 11:1–4

In this paragraph, the LORD describes his love and care for the nation of Israel during its early days.

11:2a

But the more I called Israel, the farther they departed from Me.

But even though I repeatedly called the people of Israel, they continued to go farther away from me.
But each time I instructed them, they turned farther away from me.

But the more I called Israel, the farther they departed from Me: There is a textual issue concerning the pronouns in this clause.

The LXX has “As I called/recalled them, so they went from me.” For example:
But the more I summoned them, the farther they departed from me. (NET) (BSB, GNT, GW, NAB, NCV, NET, NIV, NJB, NLT, REB, RSV)
The Masoretic Text has “they called them so they went from before them.” For example:
As they called them, so they went from them. (KJV) (KJV, NASB, NJPS)The ESV and CEV use passive constructions (“the more they were called, the more…”). The agent could be “I,” (as in the LXX), but it could also be something else.

It is recommended that you follow option (1) along with most versions. It makes good sense in the context of 11:1b and is supported by the Syriac translation.The Syriac has “Just as they were called, so they went away from my presence.” Option (2) also has good support from commentaries and the Vulgate.Both Garrett (page 222) and Davies (page 254) mention the Vulgate. However, the unspecified referents of the pronouns they and “them” make the clause ambiguous and the meaning obscure.The ASV makes explicit that the referent of the first “they” is the prophets. Some commentaries propose other pronoun referents. For example, Macintosh (page 439) suggests that the Israelites call Egypt. Hubbard (page 187) proposes that the daughters of Moab or Canaanites call the Israelites. Some versions leave the referents implicit, so that the clause remains ambiguous.

But: The contrast between 11:1 and 11:2 is implied in both options, though many versions do not make it explicit. The BSB and some other versions make it explicit by adding the word But to introduce this contrast. Use a natural way in your language to indicate this contrast.

the more I called Israel, the farther they departed from Me: This clause compares the LORD’s call to the people’s response. Every time the LORD called them, their response was to withdraw from him. The words the more…the farther indicate this comparison. Here are some other ways to translate this comparison:

Every time I called them, they went farther away from me.

But the more I called to him, the more he turned away from me. (GNT)

Express this comparison in a natural way in your own language.

called: This is the same word as in 11:1 and may have the same meaning. See called in 11:1b. However, here the word may indicate calls in addition to the call out of Egypt in 11:1. The meaning may include the sense of “guide” or “instruct.”Stuart (page 175) and Dearman (pages 280–281)

they departed from Me: This clause means that they deserted him to seek other gods instead of him.Wood (page 212

11:2b–c

(combined/reordered)

And they kept offering animals and incense to false Baal gods.

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

^2b They sacrificed to the Baals

^2cand burned incense to carved images.

They sacrificed to the Baals and burned incense to carved images: These parallel lines further explain the meaning of the statement “they departed from Me” in 11:2a.Dearman (pages 280–281) The people did not respond when the LORD called them to worship and obey him. They turned away from him to worship idols instead. The words sacrificed and burned incense frequently occur in parallel lines such as here. They describe two aspects of worship.Andersen and Freedman (page 578) The words translated as Baals and carved images are two ways to describe idols.

burned incense: See the note on 2:13a “the days of the Baals when she burned incense to them.”

General Comment on 11:2b–c

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

They never stopped offering incense and sacrifices to the idols of Baal. (CEV)

11:2b

They sacrificed to the Baals

Instead of worshiping me, they offered sacrifices to the Baal gods
They made sacrifices to the Baals

11:2c

and burned incense to carved images.

and burned incense when they worshiped idols.
and offered incense to idols.