The Meaning of Hosea 4:13 Explained

Hosea 4:13

KJV: They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under oaks and poplars and elms, because the shadow thereof is good: therefore your daughters shall commit whoredom, and your spouses shall commit adultery.

YLT: On tops of the mountains they do sacrifice, And on the hills they make perfume, Under oak, and poplar, and terebinth, For good is its shade.

Darby: they sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under oak and poplar and terebinth, because the shade thereof is good; therefore your daughters play the harlot and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.

ASV: They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under oaks and poplars and terebinths, because the shadow thereof is good: therefore your daughters play the harlot, and your brides commit adultery.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

They sacrifice  upon the tops  of the mountains,  and burn incense  upon the hills,  under oaks  and poplars  and elms,  because the shadow  thereof [is] good:  therefore your daughters  shall commit whoredom,  and your spouses  shall commit adultery. 

What does Hosea 4:13 Mean?

Verse Meaning

They worshipped their idols on the tops of hills and under trees because they enjoyed worshipping at their convenience (cf. 2 Kings 17:10-11). This was as bad as the daughters of the Israelites practicing harlotry and adultery with male cult prostitutes (cf. Deuteronomy 23:17-18; 1 Kings 14:24).

Context Summary

Hosea 4:11-19 - "joined To Idols"
The prophet does not mince his words in describing the morals of his time. We are reminded of Bunyan's words: "My original and inward pollution was my plague. It was always putting itself forth in me, and I was more loathsome in my own eyes than a toad, and I thought I was in God's eyes also. Corruption bubbled up in my heart as naturally as water in a fountain, and I thought that everyone had a better heart than I." Of course in Christ "we have redemption through His blood," and that means more than forgiveness; it implies the deliverance of the soul from the love and power of evil. But if the soul of man refuses this, obstinately and persistently, a time arrives when God gives him up to reap as he has sown.
The greatest gift we can make to our generation is that of unblemished character. Sir Leslie Stephen, the brilliant agnostic, in his mature life, went back to the grave of an undergraduate, who had been his pupil and had died in early life without having distinguished himself in his studies or athletics, but had lived the Christian life with transparent simplicity and lovableness. [source]

Chapter Summary: Hosea 4

1  God denounces judgments on Israel, for their aggravated impieties and iniquities
12  He exposes the ignorance and wickedness of the priests,
13  and moral dissolution of the people,
14  he will leave their wives and daughters to commit lewdness, without present punishment
15  He warns Judah, not to imitate Israel's crimes, which are still further reproved

What do the individual words in Hosea 4:13 mean?

On the tops the mountaintops they offer sacrifices and on the hills burn incense Under oaks and poplars and terebinths because [is] good Their shade upon thus commit harlotry your daughters and your brides commit adultery
עַל־ רָאשֵׁ֨י הֶהָרִ֜ים יְזַבֵּ֗חוּ וְעַל־ הַגְּבָעוֹת֙ יְקַטֵּ֔רוּ תַּ֣חַת אַלּ֧וֹן וְלִבְנֶ֛ה וְאֵלָ֖ה כִּ֣י ט֣וֹב צִלָּ֑הּ עַל־ כֵּ֗ן תִּזְנֶ֙ינָה֙ בְּנ֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם וְכַלּוֹתֵיכֶ֖ם תְּנָאַֽפְנָה

רָאשֵׁ֨י  the  tops 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: רֹאשׁ 
Sense: head, top, summit, upper part, chief, total, sum, height, front, beginning.
הֶהָרִ֜ים  the  mountaintops 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: הַר  
Sense: hill, mountain, hill country, mount.
יְזַבֵּ֗חוּ  they  offer  sacrifices 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: זָבַח  
Sense: to slaughter, kill, sacrifice, slaughter for sacrifice.
וְעַל־  and  on 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
הַגְּבָעוֹת֙  the  hills 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine plural
Root: גִּבְעָה  
Sense: hill.
יְקַטֵּ֔רוּ  burn  incense 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: מֻקְטָר 
Sense: .
תַּ֣חַת  Under 
Parse: Preposition
Root: מִתְחָה 
Sense: the under part, beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat, unto, where, whereas.
אַלּ֧וֹן  oaks 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אַלֹּון  
Sense: oak, great tree.
וְלִבְנֶ֛ה  and  poplars 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular
Root: לִבְנֶה  
Sense: poplar, white poplar.
וְאֵלָ֖ה  and  terebinths 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֵלָה  
Sense: terebinth, terebinth tree.
כִּ֣י  because 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: כִּי 
Sense: that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since.
ט֣וֹב  [is]  good 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: טָבַב 
Sense: good, pleasant, agreeable.
צִלָּ֑הּ  Their  shade 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person feminine singular
Root: צֵל  
Sense: shadow, shade.
עַל־  upon 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
כֵּ֗ן  thus 
Parse: Adverb
Root: כֵּן 
Sense: so, therefore, thus.
תִּזְנֶ֙ינָה֙  commit  harlotry 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine plural
Root: זָנָה 
Sense: to commit fornication, be a harlot, play the harlot.
בְּנ֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם  your  daughters 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct, second person masculine plural
Root: בַּת  
Sense: daughter.
וְכַלּוֹתֵיכֶ֖ם  and  your  brides 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine plural construct, second person masculine plural
Root: כַּלָּה  
Sense: bride, daughter-in-law.
תְּנָאַֽפְנָה  commit  adultery 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person feminine plural
Root: נָאַף  
Sense: to commit adultery.