Hosea 7:8

Israel Lacks Discernment and Refuses to Repent

7:8 Ephraim has mixed itself like flour ¹  among the nations;

Ephraim is like a ruined cake of bread that is scorched on one side. ² 

Hosea 10:15

10:15 So will it happen to you, O Bethel, ³ 

because of your great wickedness!

When that day dawns, ⁴ 

the king of Israel will be destroyed. ⁵ 

[7:8]  ¹ tn The words “like flour” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied by the imagery.

[7:8]  ² tn Heb “a cake of bread not turned.” This metaphor compares Ephraim to a ruined cake of bread that was not turned over in time to avoid being scorched and burned (see BDB 728 s.v. עֻגָה). Cf. NLT “as worthless as a half-baked cake.”

[10:15]  ³ map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[10:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “when the dawn is cut off” or “when the day ceases.” Cf. NLT “When the day of judgment dawns.”

[10:15]  ⁵ tn The root דָמָה (damah, “to be cut off, cease to exist, be destroyed”; BDB 198 s.v. דָמָה; HALOT 225 s.v. דמה) is repeated in the Hebrew text. The form נִדְמֹה (nidmoh, Niphal infinitive absolute) appears in the first colon, and the form נִדְמָה (nidmah, Niphal perfect 3rd person masculine singular) appears in the second colon. This striking repetition creates a dramatic wordplay which, for stylistic reasons, cannot be reproduced in English translations: “The moment the dawn ceases to exist (i.e., at the break of dawn), the king of Israel will cease to exist.”