HOS 4:9 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=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) It will be like people, like priests.
⇔ → I will punish them for their ways
⇔ ≈ and I will repay them for their actions.

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 Καὶ ἔσται καθὼς ὁ λαὸς, οὕτως καὶ ὁ ἱερεύς· καὶ ἐκδικήσω ἐπʼ αὐτὸν τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὰ διαβούλια αὐτοῦ ἀνταποδώσω αὐτῷ.
(Kai estai kathōs ho laos, houtōs kai ho hiereus; kai ekdikaʸsō epʼ auton tas hodous autou, kai ta diaboulia autou antapodōsō autōi. )

BrTr And the priest shall be as the people: and I will avenge on them their ways, and I will recompense to them their counsels.

ULT It will be like people, like priests:
⇔ I will punish them for their ways;
⇔ I will repay them for their deeds.

UST I will punish you priests just as I punish the people.
⇔ I will punish all of you for your behavior;
⇔ I will pay you all back for all the wicked deeds you have done.

OEB Thus it comes to be, like people, like priest:
⇔ I will visit upon each punishment for their ways,
⇔ and their deeds I will repay them.

WEBBE It will be like people, like priest;
⇔ and I will punish them for their ways,
⇔ and will repay them for their deeds.

WMBB (Same as above)

MSG ^(4-10)“But don’t look for someone to blame.
  No finger pointing!
You, priest, are the one in the dock.
  You stumble around in broad daylight,
And then the prophets take over and stumble all night.
  Your mother is as bad as you.
My people are ruined
  because they don’t know what’s right or true.
Because you’ve turned your back on knowledge,
  I’ve turned my back on you priests.
Because you refuse to recognize the revelation of God,
  I’m no longer recognizing your children.
The more priests, the more sin.
  They traded in their glory for shame.
They pig out on my people’s sins.
  They can’t wait for the latest in evil.
The result: You can’t tell the people from the priests,
  the priests from the people.
I’m on my way to make them both pay
  and take the consequences of the bad lives they’ve lived.
They’ll eat and be as hungry as ever,
  have sex and get no satisfaction.
They walked out on me, their God,
  for a life of rutting with whores.

NET I will deal with the people and priests together:
⇔ I will punish them both for their ways,
⇔ and I will repay them for their deeds.

LSV And it has been, like people, like priest,
And I have charged on it its ways,
And its habitual doings I return to it.

FBV So it will be for the people like the priests: I will punish them for what they have done, repaying them for their actions.

T4T The priests are as sinful as the other people,
⇔ and I will punish all of them for what they have done;
⇔ I will pay them back for the evil things that they have done.

LEB • And it will be like people, like priest; I will punish them[fn] for their[fn] ways,
• and I will requite them[fn] for their[fn] deeds.

4:? Hebrew “him”

4:? Hebrew “his”

BBE And the priest will be like the people; I will give them punishment for their evil ways, and the reward of their acts.

Moff But priests shall fare like people,
⇔ I punish them for their doings
⇔ and requite them for their deeds;

JPS And it is like people, like priest; and I will punish him for his ways, and will recompense him his doings.

ASV And it shall be, like people, like priest; and I will punish them for their ways, and will requite them their doings.

DRA And there shall be like people like priest: and I will visit their ways upon them, and I will repay them their devices.

YLT And it hath been, like people, like priest, And I have charged on it its ways, And its habitual doings I return to it.

Drby And it shall be as the people so the priest; and I will visit their ways upon them, and recompense to them their doings;

RV And it shall be, like people, like priest: and I will punish them for their ways, and will reward them their doings.

SLT And it was as the people so the priest: and I reviewed upon them their way; and their doings I will turn back to them.

Wbstr And there shall be, like people, like priest: and I will punish them for their ways, and reward them their doings.

KJB-1769 And there shall be, like people, like priest: and I will punish them for their ways, and reward them their doings.[fn][fn]

4.9 punish: Heb. visit upon

4.9 reward: Heb. cause to return

KJB-1611 [fn][fn]And there shall be like people, like priest: and I will punish them for their wayes, and reward them their doings.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation and footnotes)

4:9 Heb. visite vpon.

4:9 Heb. cause to returne.

Bshps Thus the priest is become lyke the people: Wherfore I wyll punishe them for their wicked wayes, and rewarde them according to their owne imaginations.
(Thus the priest is become like the people: Wherefore I will punish them for their wicked ways, and reward them according to their own imaginations.)

Gnva And there shalbe like people, like Priest: for I wil visite their wayes vpon them, and reward them their deedes.
(And there shall be like people, like Priest: for I will visit their ways upon them, and reward them their deeds. )

Cvdl Thus the prest is become like the people. Wherfore I will punysh them for their wicked wayes, & rewarde them acordinge to their owne ymaginacions.
(Thus the priest is become like the people. Wherefore I will punish them for their wicked ways, and reward them according to their own imaginations.)

Wycl And it schal be, as the puple so the prest; and Y schal visite on hym the weies of hym, and Y schal yelde to him the thouytis of hym.
(And it shall be, as the people so the priest; and I shall visit on him the ways of him, and I shall yield to him the thoughts of him.)

Luth Darum soll es dem Volk gleichwie dem Priester gehen; denn ich will ihr Tun heimsuchen und ihnen vergelten, wie sie verdienen,
(Therefore should it to_him people same_as to_him priest(s) go; because/than I will you(pl)/their/her Do/Doing attack/beset/plague and to_them retaliate, as/like they/she/them earn/deserve,)

ClVg Et erit sicut populus, sic sacerdos; et visitabo super eum vias ejus, et cogitationes ejus reddam ei.
(And will_be like the_people, so priest; and I_will_visit over him ways/roads his, and thoughts his I_will_pay to_him. )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 4:4–11a: The Sinful Priests

In this section, the LORD promised to punish the priests more severely than anyone else, because they were the ones who led the people to worship false gods.

Here are some other examples of section headings:

The Lord Accuses the Priests (GNT)

Against the Priests (NJB)

Paragraph 4:7–11a

In this paragraph, the LORD gave more details about the sinful behavior of the priests (4:7–8). He then described his response to that behavior (4:9–11a).

As in chapter 2, the Hebrew pronouns alternate between “you” and “she.” In 4:4–6 the LORD used “you” when speaking to the priests, but in 4:7–10, he referred to the same priests as “they.” The BSB uses the pronoun “they.” The GNT continues to use “you.” Use a natural way in your language to refer to the priests. Be consistent throughout this paragraph. It should be clear in your translation that the LORD is speaking here to the same group of priests as in 4:4–6.

4:9a

And it shall be like people, like priest.

In the future, the proverb will come true that says, ‘There will be no difference between what the priests experience and what the people experience.’
The time is coming when the same thing will happen to the priests and the people.

And it shall be like people, like priest: This verse part focuses on the LORD’s judgment against the priests because of their sins described in 4:8. It affirms along with 4:9b that he will punish them in the future in the same way as the people. There are three main ways to interpret the connection of 4:9a with 4:8.

It indicates a change of topic from the sins of the priests to the LORD’s future punishment. The specific relationship with 4:8 is left implied. For example:
And it shall be like people, like priest (NRSV) (BSB, ESV, GNT, KJV, NAB, NASB, NCV, NET, NIV, NLT, NRSV)
Verse 4:9a gives the expected result of 4:8. It is normal to punish sins. This result is specified with a word such as “So” or “Therefore.” For example:
So the priests will be punished like the people. (GW) (CEV, GW, NJPS)
Verse 4:9a gives the unexpected result of 4:8. Most did not consider it normal for priests to be punished. This unexpected result is specified with the word “But.” For example:
But people and priest will fare alike. (REB) (NJB, REB)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) along with most versions. This interpretation will allow your readers to understand either of the two results in addition to the change of topic.

And it shall be: Here are some other ways to indicate the future fulfillment of this verse:

In the future,…

A time is coming when…

like people, like priest: This is a Hebrew proverb. It means that the people and the priests are alike in some way. In this context, it indicates that the LORD will judge the priests in the same way as the people.

Here are some other ways to translate this proverb:

the priests will be punished just like the people

the priests will have no advantage over the people

You will suffer the same punishment as the people! (GNT)

The GNT uses the pronoun “you” as if the LORD is speaking directly to the priests. You will need to decide whether it is more natural here to use indirect speech or direct speech in your language.

4:9b–c

(combined/reordered)

I will judge them because of the evil they have done.
In the future, I will punish you^(plur) priests and give you what you deserve for your wicked/sinful deeds.

The ESV has been used as the source line for 4:9b, because it allows for the recommended interpretation. Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

^9b I will punish them for their ways (ESV)

^9cand repay them for their deeds.

The parallelism emphasizes the LORD’s punishment for their sinful behavior.

4:9b

I will punish both of them for their ways

I will punish them for their wicked way of life.
I will show no favoritism when I judge you^(plur) priests for your sinful behavior.

them: In Hebrew, this pronoun is literally “him.” The immediately preceding referent is “priest” in 4:9a. It refers to the priests as a group.Hubbard (page 101) says the singular pronoun refers to the chief priest, but on page 103 he says that the proverb refers to the “priesthood.” Most English versions and commentaries use plural forms, regardless of the interpretation they follow. But the preceding context also mentions the people, so there are two ways to interpret the referent of them:

It refers to the priests. For example:
I will punish you and make you pay for the evil you do. (GNT) (GNT)
It refers to both the priests and the people. For example:
I will punish them both for what they have done (NCV) (BSB, NCV, NET, NIV, NLT)

Most versions are ambiguous. They use the pronoun them. These versions include the ESV, GW, KJV, NAB, NASB, NJB, NRSV, and REB. If you can maintain the ambiguity in your language, you may do so. Otherwise, it is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). This entire section (4:4–11a) focuses on the sinful priests and their punishment.

The first meaning lines in the Display will use an ambiguous pronoun. The second meaning lines will follow the recommended interpretation.

punish…repay them: The term repay means to do something in exchange for what another person has done. Here repay is another way to say punish. In response to the evil behavior of the priests, the LORD will respond with punishment that is a fair exchange for their evil deeds.

General Comment on 4:9b–c

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

I will punish them for all their wicked deeds.

See 4:9b–c (combined/reordered) in the Display for other examples.

4:9c

and repay them for their deeds.

I will give them what they deserve for the evil they have done.
Your^(plur) punishment will be appropriate for your wicked deeds.