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Saturday, August 9th, 2025
the Week of Proper 13 / Ordinary 18
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New Life Version

Hosea 4:8

They feed on the sin of My people, and so they want them to sin more.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Minister, Christian;   Sin;   Wicked (People);   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Punishment of the Wicked, the;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Hosea;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Baal;   Prostitution;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Cain (1);   Hosea;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Atonement;   Priests and Levites;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Eating;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Hosea;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
They feed on the sin of my people;they have an appetite for their iniquity.
Hebrew Names Version
They feed on the sin of my people, And set their heart on their iniquity.
King James Version
They eat up the sin of my people, and they set their heart on their iniquity.
English Standard Version
They feed on the sin of my people; they are greedy for their iniquity.
New American Standard Bible
They feed on the sin of My people, And long for their wrongdoing.
New Century Version
Since the priests live off the sin offerings of the people, they want the people to sin more and more.
Amplified Bible
They (the priests) feed on the sin offering of My people And set their heart on their wickedness.
Geneva Bible (1587)
They eate vp the sinnes of my people, and lift vp their mindes in their iniquitie.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
They feed on the sin of My people And direct their desire toward their iniquity.
Legacy Standard Bible
They eat the sin of My peopleAnd lift up their soul toward their iniquity.
Berean Standard Bible
They feed on the sins of My people and set their hearts on iniquity.
Contemporary English Version
You encourage others to sin, so you can stuff yourselves on their sin offerings.
Complete Jewish Bible
They feed on the sin of my people and are greedy for their crimes.
Darby Translation
They eat the sin of my people, and their soul longeth for their iniquity.
Easy-to-Read Version
"The priests fed on the people's sins. They wanted more and more of their sin offerings.
George Lamsa Translation
They devoured my people unmercifully, and they have engulfed themselves in their iniquity.
Good News Translation
You grow rich from the sins of my people, and so you want them to sin more and more.
Lexham English Bible
They feed on the sin of my people, they are greedy for their iniquity.
Literal Translation
They eat up the sin of My people, and they lift their vitality to their iniquity.
American Standard Version
They feed on the sin of my people, and set their heart on their iniquity.
Bible in Basic English
The sin of my people is like food to them; and their desire is for their wrongdoing.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
They feed on the sin of My people, and set their heart on their iniquity.
King James Version (1611)
They eate vp the sinne of my people, and they set their heart on their iniquitie.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
They eate vp the sinnes of my people, and encourage them in their wickednesse.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
They will devour the sins of my people, and will set their hearts on their iniquities.
English Revised Version
They feed on the sin of my people, and set their heart on their iniquity.
World English Bible
They feed on the sin of my people, And set their heart on their iniquity.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Thei schulen ete the synnes of my puple, and thei schulen reise the soulis of hem to the wickidnesse of hem.
Update Bible Version
They feed on the sin of my people, and set their heart on their iniquity.
Webster's Bible Translation
They eat up the sin of my people, and they set their heart on their iniquity.
New English Translation
They feed on the sin offerings of my people; their appetites long for their iniquity!
New King James Version
They eat up the sin of My people; They set their heart on their iniquity.
New Living Translation
"When the people bring their sin offerings, the priests get fed. So the priests are glad when the people sin!
New Revised Standard
They feed on the sin of my people; they are greedy for their iniquity.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The sin of my people, they do eat, - and. unto their iniquity, lift they up every man his desire.
Douay-Rheims Bible
They shall eat the sins of my people, and shall lift up their souls to their iniquity.
Revised Standard Version
They feed on the sin of my people; they are greedy for their iniquity.
Young's Literal Translation
The sin of My people they do eat, And unto their iniquity lift up their soul.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
They eate vp the synnes of my people, & corage them in their wickednesse.

Contextual Overview

6 My people are destroyed because they have not learned. You were not willing to learn. So I am not willing to have you be My religious leader. Since you have forgotten the Law of your God, I also will forget your children. 7 "The more there were, the more they sinned against Me. I will change their shining-greatness into shame. 8 They feed on the sin of My people, and so they want them to sin more. 9 The religious leaders will be punished the same as the people. I will punish them for what they have done. 10 They will eat, but not have enough. They will do sex sins, but the number of their children will not grow because they have not been faithful to the Lord. 11 "Their sinful ways and both old and new wine take away My people's understanding.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

eat: Leviticus 6:26, Leviticus 7:6, Leviticus 7:7

set their heart on their iniquity: Heb. lift up their soul to their iniquity, 1 Samuel 2:29, Psalms 24:4, Psalms 25:1, Isaiah 56:11, Ezekiel 14:3, Ezekiel 14:7, Micah 3:11, Malachi 1:10, Romans 16:18, Titus 1:11, 2 Peter 2:3

Reciprocal: Leviticus 5:13 - shall be Judges 18:4 - hired me 2 Kings 12:16 - trespass money 2 Chronicles 11:16 - set Proverbs 19:28 - the Jeremiah 5:23 - a revolting Amos 2:8 - they drink John 15:5 - same Acts 19:25 - ye know 1 Corinthians 13:6 - Rejoiceth not

Cross-References

Genesis 4:3
The day came when Cain brought a gift of the fruit of the ground to the Lord.
Genesis 4:6
Then the Lord said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why are you looking down?
Genesis 4:9
Then the Lord said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" And he said, "I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?"
Genesis 4:10
The Lord said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to Me from the ground.
Genesis 4:12
When you work the ground, it will no longer give its strength to you. You will always travel from place to place on the earth."
Genesis 4:15
So the Lord said to him, "Whoever kills Cain will be punished by Me seven times worse." And the Lord put a mark on Cain so that any one who found him would not kill him.
Genesis 4:24
If those who hurt Cain are punished seven times worse, then those who hurt Lamech will be punished seventy-seven times worse."
Genesis 4:26
A son was born to Seth also, and he gave him the name Enosh. Then men began to call upon the name of the Lord.
2 Samuel 3:27
When Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the center of the gate to speak with him alone. There Joab hit him in the stomach and killed him because of the blood of his brother Asahel.
2 Samuel 14:6
Your woman servant had two sons. But they fought together in the field and there was no one to pull them apart. So one hit the other and killed him.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

They eat up the sin of my people,.... That is, the priests did so, as the Targum, the priests of Jeroboam; they ate up the sacrifices which the people brought for their sins: and their fault was, either that they ate that which belonged to the true priests of the Lord, so Jarchi; or they did that, and had no concern to instruct the people in the right way; all that they regarded were good eating and drinking, and living voluptuously; and were altogether careless about instructing the people in the nature of sacrifices, and in the way of their duty: or this may regard the Bacchanalian feasts, as some think, which the people made in the temples of idols, and so sinned; and of which the priests greatly partook, and encouraged them in, and so were partakers not only of their banquets, but of their sins.

They set their heart on their iniquity: either their offerings for their iniquity, or their iniquity itself: or, "lift up their soul" u to it; diligently looking after it, not caring how much they committed; since the more sin offerings would be brought which would be to their advantage. Though some think the sin of whoredom, frequently and impudently committed at these idol feasts, is meant, which the priests were much addicted to, and very greedy of; they committed cleanness with greediness, Ephesians 4:19.

u ואל עונם ישאו נפשו "et ad iniquitatem eorum levaverunt animam suam", Montanus, Pagninus, Tigurine version; "attollunt", Junius Tremellius, Piscator "et ad iniquitatem eorum tollunt anumam suam", Schmidt.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

They eat up the sin of My people - The priests made a gain of the sins of the people, lived upon them and by them, conniving at or upholding the idolatries of the people, partaking in their idol-sacrifices and idolatrous rites, which, as involving the desertion of God, were “the sin of the people,” and the root of all their other sins. This the priests did knowingly. True or false, apostate or irregularly appointed, they knew that there was no truth in the golden calves; but they withheld the truth, they held it down in unrighteousness, and preached Jeroboam’s false-hood, “these be thy gods, O Israel.” The reputation, station, maintenance of the false priests depended upon it. Not being of the line of Aaron, they could be no priests except to the calves, and so they upheld the sin whereby they lived, and, that they might themselves be accounted priests of God, taught them to worship the calves, as representatives of God.

The word, “sin,” may include indirectly the sin-offerings of the people, as if they loved the sin or encouraged it, in order that they might partake of the outward expiations for it.

And they set their heart on their iniquity - , as the source of temporal profit to themselves. “Benefited by the people, they reproved them not in their sinful doings, but charged themselves with their souls, saying, on us be the judgment, as those who said to Pilate, His blood be upon us.” That which was, above all, “their iniquity,” the source of all the rest, was their departure from God and from His ordained worship. On this they “set their hearts;” in this they kept them secure by their lies; they feared any misgivings, which might rend the people from them, and restore them to the true worship of God. But what else is it, to extenuate or flatter sin now, to dissemble it, not to see it, not openly to denounce it, lest we lose our popularity, or alienate those who commit it? What else is it to speak smooth words to the great and wealthy, not to warn them, even in general terms, of the danger of making Mammon their god; of the peril of riches, of parade, of luxury, of immoral dressing, and, amid boundless extravagance, neglect of the poor; encouraging the rich, not only in the neglect of Lazarus, but in pampering the dogs, while they neglect him? hat is the praise of some petty dole to the poor, but connivance at the withholding from God His due in them? “We see now,” says an old writer , “how many prelates live on the oblations and revenues of the laity, and yet, whereas they are bound, by words, by prayers, by exemplary life, to turn them away from sin, and to lead them to amendment, they, in various ways, scandalize, corrupt, infect them, by ungodly conversation, flattery, connivance, cooperation, and neglect of due pastoral care. Whence Jeremiah says, “My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray.” O how horrible and exceeding great will be their damnation, who shall be tormented for each of those under their care, who perish through their negligence” Jeremiah 50:6.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Hosea 4:8. They eat up the sin of my people — חטאת chattath, the sin-offering, though it be offered contrary to the law; for their hearts are set on iniquity, they wish to do whatever is contrary to God.


 
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