Hosea 1 · Verse 2

Hosea 1:2

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.
Hosea 1:2, King James Version

Hosea 1:2 in other translations

BSBWhen the LORD first spoke through Hosea, He told him, “Go, take a prostitute as your wife and have children of adultery, because this land is flagrantly prostituting itself by departing from the LORD.”
WEBWhen the LORD spoke at first by Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, “Go, take for yourself a wife of prostitution and children of unfaithfulness; for the land commits great adultery, forsaking the LORD.”
ASVWhen Jehovah spake at the first by Hosea, Jehovah said unto Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredom and children of whoredom; for the land doth commit great whoredom, departing from Jehovah.
YLTThe commencement of Jehovah's speaking by Hosea. And Jehovah saith unto Hosea, ‘Go, take to thee a woman of whoredoms, and children of whoredoms, for utterly go a-whoring doth the land from after Jehovah.'
DARBYThe beginning of the word of Jehovah through Hosea. And Jehovah said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms, and children of whoredoms; for the land is entirely given up to whoredom, away from Jehovah.
BBEThe start of the word of the Lord by Hosea: And the Lord said to Hosea, Go, take for yourself a wife of loose ways, and children of the same, for the land has been untrue to the Lord.
WebsterThe beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said to Hosea, Go take to thee a wife addicted to lewdness and children of lewdness; for the land hath committed great lewdness, departing from the LORD.

What does Hosea 1:2 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
2. 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 there is no hint of the transaction being fictitious: Gomer fell into lewdness after her union with Hosea, not before; for thus only she was a fit symbol of Israel, who lapsed into spiritual whoredom after the marriage contract with God on Sinai, and made even before at the call of the patriarchs of Israel. Gomer is called "a wife of whoredoms," anticipatively. children of whoredoms--The kingdom collectively is viewed as a mother; the individual subjects of it are spoken of as her children. "Take" being applied to both implies that they refer to the same thing viewed under different aspects. The "children" were not the prophet's own, but born of adultery, and presented to him as his [Kitto, Biblical Cyclopædia]. Rather, "children of whoredoms" means that the children, like their mother, fell into spiritual fornication. Compare "bare him a son" (see Ho 2:4, 5). Being children of a spiritual whore, they naturally fell into her whorish ways.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 2 A 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 Exo 34:15; Deu 31:16; Jdg 2:17; Isa 54:5; Jer 3:14; Jer 31:32, Eze 16:17; Eze 23:5, Eze 23:27; Hosea 2, Hos 5:1-15; Rev 17:1, Rev 17:2. He therefore says, with indignation, Go join thyself in marriage to one of those who have committed fornication against me, and raise up children who, by the power of example, will themselves swerve to idolatry. See Hos 5:7. And thus show them that they are radically depraved.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Hosea 1:1-7

Under a figure, is represented the shameful idolatry of the ten tribes. (Hos. 1:1-7) The calling of the Gentiles, and the uniting Israel and Judah under the Messiah. (Hos. 1:8-11) Verses 1-7 Israel was prosperous, yet then Hosea boldly tells them of their sins, and foretells their destruction. Men are not to be flattered in sinful ways because they prosper in the world; nor will it last long if they go on still in…

Read the full comment on Hosea 1:1-7 →

Hosea 1:2 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

תְּחִלַּ֥תte.chi.Lat[the] beginningH8462
דִּבֶּר\־di.ber-<of> [when] he spokeH1696
יְהוָ֖הYah.wehYahwehH3068
בְּהוֹשֵׁ֑עַ\ \פbe.ho.She.a'by HoseaH1954
וַיֹּ֨אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
יְהוָ֜הYah.wehYahwehH3068
אֶל\־'el-toH413
הוֹשֵׁ֗עַho.She.a'HoseaH1954
לֵ֣ךְlekhgoH1980
קַח\־kach-takeH3947
לְךָ֞le.Khafor yourself
אֵ֤שֶׁת'E.sheta wife ofH802
זְנוּנִים֙ze.nu.Nimprostitution<s>H2183
וְיַלְדֵ֣יve.yal.Deiand children ofH3206
זְנוּנִ֔יםze.nu.Nimprostitution<s>H2183
כִּֽי\־ki-forH3588
זָנֹ֤הza.Nohcontinually <prostitute itself>H2181
תִזְנֶה֙tiz.Nehit prostitutes itselfH2181
הָאָ֔רֶץha.'A.retzthe landH776
מֵֽאַחֲרֵ֖יme.'a.cha.Reifrom afterH310
יְהוָֽה\׃Yah.wehYahwehH3068

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Hosea 1:2

  • Hosea 2:4-5

    And I will not have mercy upon her children; for they be the children of whoredoms. For their mother hath played the harlot: she that conceived them hath done shamefully: for she said, I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my drink.

  • Hosea 3:1

    Then said the Lord unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the Lord toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine.

  • Deuteronomy 31:16

    And the Lord said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them.

  • Psalms 106:39

    Thus were they defiled with their own works, and went a whoring with their own inventions.

  • Jeremiah 3:9

    And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.

  • Exodus 34:15-16

    Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice; And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods.

  • 2 Peter 2:14

    Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children:

  • Ezekiel 6:9

    And they that escape of you shall remember me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives, because I am broken with their whorish heart, which hath departed from me, and with their eyes, which go a whoring after their idols: and they shall lothe themselves for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations.

  • Ezekiel 23:1-49

    The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother: And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity. And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus were their names; Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem Aholibah. …

  • Revelation 17:1-2

    And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.

  • Revelation 17:5

    And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

  • Ezekiel 16:1-63

    Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, And say, Thus saith the Lord God unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite. And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. …

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
beginning.
Mr 1:1
Go.
3:1; Isa 20:2,3; Jer 13:1-11; Eze 4:1-5:17
a wife.That is, says Apb. Newcome, a wife from among the Israelites, who were a people remarkable for spiritual fornication or idolatry.
children.
2:4; 2Pe 2:14; *marg:
for.
Ex 34:15,16; De 31:16; 2Ch 21:13; Ps 73:27; 106:39; Jer 2:13
Jer 3:1-4,9; Eze 6:9; 16:1-63; 23:1-49; Re 17:1,2,5

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Hosea 1:1

    The word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

  • Hosea 1:2

    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.

  • Hosea 1:3

    So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son.

Read all of Hosea 1

Hosea 1:2 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		El principio de la palabra de Jehová con Oseas. Y dijo Jehová á Oseas: Ve, tómate una mujer fornicaria, é hijos de fornicaciones: porque la tierra se dará á fornicar apartándose de Jehová.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Commencement de la parole de l’ Éternel par Osée. Et l’ Éternel dit à Osée: Va, prends-toi une femme prostituée et des enfants de prostitution; car le pays s’est entièrement prostitué en abandonnant l’ Éternel.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Als Jehova anfing mit Hosea zu reden, da sprach Jehova zu Hosea: Gehe hin, nimm dir ein Hurenweib und Hurenkinder; denn das Land treibt beständig Hurerei, von Jehova hinweg.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Principium loquendi Domino in Osee. Et dixit Dominus ad Osee: Vade, sume tibi uxorem fornicationum, et fac tibi filios fornicationum, quia fornicans fornicabitur terra a Domino.