Hosea 9 · Verse 4

Hosea 9:4

They shall not offer wine offerings to the Lord, neither shall they be pleasing unto him: their sacrifices shall be unto them as the bread of mourners; all that eat thereof shall be polluted: for their bread for their soul shall not come into the house of the Lord.
Hosea 9:4, King James Version

Hosea 9:4 in other translations

BSBThey will not pour out wine offerings to the LORD, and their sacrifices will not please Him, but will be to them like the bread of mourners; all who eat will be defiled. For their bread will be for themselves; it will not enter the house of the LORD.
WEBThey won’t pour out wine offerings to the LORD, neither will they be pleasing to him. Their sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners; all who eat of it will be polluted; for their bread will be for their appetite. It will not come into the LORD’s house.
ASVThey shall not pour out wine- offerings to Jehovah, neither shall they be pleasing unto him: their sacrifices shall be unto them as the bread of mourners; all that eat thereof shall be polluted; for their bread shall be for their appetite; it shall not come into the house of Jehovah.
YLTThey pour not out wine to Jehovah, Nor are they sweet to Him, Their sacrifices are as bread of mourners to them, All eating it are unclean: For their bread is for themselves, It doth not come into the house of Jehovah.
DARBYThey shall pour out no offerings of wine to Jehovah, neither shall their sacrifices be pleasing unto him: they shall be unto them as the bread of mourners; all that eat thereof shall be defiled: for their bread shall be for themselves; it shall not come into the house of Jehovah.
BBEThey will give no wine offering to the Lord, they will not make offerings ready for him; their bread will be like the bread of those in sorrow; all who take it will be unclean, because their bread will be only for their desire, it will not come into the house of the Lord.
WebsterThey shall not offer wine-offerings to the LORD, neither shall they be pleasing to him: their sacrifices shall be to them as the bread of mourners; all that eat of it shall be polluted: for their bread for their soul shall not come into the house of the LORD.

What does Hosea 9:4 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
4. offer wine offerings--literally, "pour as a libation (Ex 30:9; Le 23:13). neither shall they be pleasing unto him--as being offered on a profane soil. sacrifices ... as the bread of mourners--which was unclean (De 26:14; Jr 16:7; Eze 24:17). their bread for their soul--their offering for the expiation of their soul [Calvin], (Le 17:11). Rather, "their bread for their sustenance ('soul' being often used for the animal life, Ge 14:21, Margin) shall not come into the Lord's house"; it shall only subserve their own uses, not My worship.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 4 As the bread of mourners - By the law, a dead body, and every thing that related to it, the house where it lay, and the persons who touched it, were all polluted and unclean, and whatever they touched was considered as defiled. See Deu 26:14; Num 19:11, Num 19:13, Num 19:14. For their bread for their soul - The bread for the common support of life shall not be sanctified to them by having the first-fruits presented at the temple.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Hosea 9:1-6

The distress to come upon Israel. (Hos. 9:1-6) The approach of the day of trouble. (Hos. 9:7-10) Judgments on Israel. (Hos. 9:11-17) Verses 1-6 Israel gave rewards to their idols, in the offerings presented to them. It is common for those who are niggardly in religion, to be prodigal upon their lusts. Those are reckoned as idolaters, who love a reward in the corn-floor better than a reward in the favour of God and…

Read the full comment on Hosea 9:1-6 →

Hosea 9:4 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.

לֹא\־lo'-notH3808
יִסְּכ֨וּyi.se.Khuthey will pour outH5258
לַיהוָ֥ה\׀la.Yah.wehto YahwehH3068
יַיִן֮ya.YinwineH3196
וְלֹ֣אve.Lo'and notH3808
יֶֽעֶרְבוּ\־ye.'er.vu-they will be pleasingH6149
לוֹ֒loto him
זִבְחֵיהֶ֗םziv.chei.Hemsacrifices theirH2077
כְּלֶ֤חֶםke.Le.chem[will be] like bread ofH3899
אוֹנִים֙'o.Nimmourning<s>H205
לָהֶ֔םla.Hemto them
כָּל\־kol-allH3605
אֹכְלָ֖יו'o.khe.Lav[those who] eat itH398
יִטַמָּ֑אוּyi.ta.Ma.'uthey will make themselves uncleanH2930
כִּֽי\־ki-forH3588
לַחְמָ֣םlach.Mambread theirH3899
לְנַפְשָׁ֔םle.naf.Sham[will be] for self theirH5315
לֹ֥אlo'notH3808
יָב֖וֹאya.Vo'it will goH935
בֵּ֥יתbeit[the] house ofH1004
יְהוָֽה\׃Yah.wehYahwehH3068

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

Cross references for Hosea 9:4

  • Jeremiah 6:20

    To what purpose cometh there to me incense from Sheba, and the sweet cane from a far country? your burnt offerings are not acceptable, nor your sacrifices sweet unto me.

  • Hosea 8:13

    They sacrifice flesh for the sacrifices of mine offerings, and eat it; but the Lord accepteth them not; now will he remember their iniquity, and visit their sins: they shall return to Egypt.

  • Deuteronomy 26:14

    I have not eaten thereof in my mourning, neither have I taken away ought thereof for any unclean use, nor given ought thereof for the dead: but I have hearkened to the voice of the Lord my God, and have done according to all that thou hast commanded me.

  • Haggai 2:13-14

    Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean. Then answered Haggai, and said, So is this people, and so is this nation before me, saith the Lord; and so is every work of their hands; and that which they offer there is unclean.

  • Hosea 3:4

    For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim:

  • Ezekiel 24:17

    Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.

  • Joel 2:14

    Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the Lord your God?

  • Leviticus 21:8

    Thou shalt sanctify him therefore; for he offereth the bread of thy God: he shall be holy unto thee: for I the Lord, which sanctify you, am holy.

  • Isaiah 1:11-15

    To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats. When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. …

  • Ezekiel 24:22

    And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.

  • Malachi 1:9-10

    And now, I pray you, beseech God that he will be gracious unto us: this hath been by your means: will he regard your persons? saith the Lord of hosts. Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for nought? neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the Lord of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand.

  • Amos 8:11-12

    Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
shall not.
3:4; Joe 1:13; 2:14
neither.
8:13; Isa 1:11-15; 57:6; 66:3; Jer 6:20; Am 4:4,5; 5:22; Mal 1:9,10
as.
Nu 19:11; De 26:14; Ne 8:9-12; Eze 24:17,22; Mal 2:13
their bread.
Ex 40:23; Le 17:11; 21:6,8,17,21; Nu 4:7; 28:2; Am 8:11,12; Joh 6:51

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

Context

  • Hosea 9:3

    They shall not dwell in the Lord’s land; but Ephraim shall return to Egypt, and they shall eat unclean things in Assyria.

  • Hosea 9:4

    They shall not offer wine offerings to the Lord, neither shall they be pleasing unto him: their sacrifices shall be unto them as the bread of mourners; all that eat thereof shall be polluted: for their bread for their soul shall not come into the house of the Lord.

  • Hosea 9:5

    What will ye do in the solemn day, and in the day of the feast of the Lord?

Read all of Hosea 9

Hosea 9:4 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		No derramarán vino á Jehová, ni él tomará contento en sus sacrificios; como pan de enlutados les serán á ellos: todos los que comieren de él, serán inmundos. Será pues el pan de ellos para sí mismos; no entrará en la casa de Jehová.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Ils ne feront pas de libations de vin à l’ Éternel, et leurs sacrifices ne lui seront pas agréables: ce sera pour eux comme le pain de deuil; tous ceux qui en mangeront se souilleront; car leur pain est pour eux-mêmes; il n’entrera pas dans la maison de l’ Éternel.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Sie werden Jehova keinen Wein spenden, und ihre Schlachtopfer werden ihm nicht angenehm sein: wie Trauerspeise wird es ihnen sein; alle, die davon essen, werden sich verunreinigen; denn für ihren Hunger wird ihre Speise sein, in das Haus Jehovas wird sie nicht kommen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Non libabunt Domino vinum, et non placebunt ei. Sacrificia eorum quasi panis lugentium; omnes qui comedent eum, contaminabuntur: quia panis eorum animæ ipsorum: non intrabit in domum Domini.