Hosea 4:10
New International Version
“They will eat but not have enough; they will engage in prostitution but not flourish, because they have deserted the LORD to give themselves

New Living Translation
They will eat and still be hungry. They will play the prostitute and gain nothing from it, for they have deserted the LORD

English Standard Version
They shall eat, but not be satisfied; they shall play the whore, but not multiply, because they have forsaken the LORD to cherish

Berean Standard Bible
They will eat but not be satisfied; they will be promiscuous but not multiply. For they have abandoned the LORD to give themselves

King James Bible
For they shall eat, and not have enough: they shall commit whoredom, and shall not increase: because they have left off to take heed to the LORD.

New King James Version
For they shall eat, but not have enough; They shall commit harlotry, but not increase; Because they have ceased obeying the LORD.

New American Standard Bible
They will eat, but not have enough; They will play the prostitute, but not increase, Because they gave up devoting themselves to the LORD.

NASB 1995
They will eat, but not have enough; They will play the harlot, but not increase, Because they have stopped giving heed to the LORD.

NASB 1977
And they will eat, but not have enough; They will play the harlot, but not increase, Because they have stopped giving heed to the LORD.

Legacy Standard Bible
They will eat, but not be satisfied; They will play the harlot, but not break forth in number, Because they have forsaken Yahweh to keep harlotry.

Amplified Bible
They will eat, but not have enough; They will play the prostitute, but not increase [their descendants], Because they have stopped giving heed to the LORD.

Christian Standard Bible
They will eat but not be satisfied; they will be promiscuous but not multiply. For they have abandoned their devotion to the LORD.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
They will eat but not be satisfied; they will be promiscuous but not multiply. For they have abandoned their devotion to the LORD.

American Standard Version
And they shall eat, and not have enough; they shall play the harlot, and shall not increase; because they have left off taking heed to Jehovah.

Contemporary English Version
Their food won't satisfy, and having sex at pagan shrines won't produce children. My people have rebelled

English Revised Version
And they shall eat, and not have enough; they shall commit whoredom, and shall not increase: because they have left off to take heed to the LORD.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"They will eat, but they'll never be full. They will have sex with prostitutes, but they'll never have children. They have abandoned the LORD.

Good News Translation
You will eat your share of the sacrifices, but still be hungry. You will worship the fertility gods, but still have no children, because you have turned away from me to follow other gods."

International Standard Version
They will eat, but will not be satisfied. They will engage in prostitution, but they won't increase, because they have stopped listening to the LORD.

Majority Standard Bible
They will eat but not be satisfied; they will be promiscuous but not multiply. For they have abandoned the LORD to give themselves

NET Bible
They will eat, but not be satisfied; they will engage in prostitution, but not increase in numbers; because they have abandoned the LORD by pursuing other gods.

New Heart English Bible
They will eat, and not have enough. They will play the prostitute, and will not increase; because they have abandoned giving to the LORD.

Webster's Bible Translation
For they shall eat, and not have enough: they shall be guilty of lewdness, and shall not increase: because they have ceased to take heed to the LORD.

World English Bible
They will eat, and not have enough. They will play the prostitute, and will not increase; because they have abandoned listening to Yahweh.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And they have eaten, and are not satisfied, "" They have gone whoring, and do not increase, "" For they have left off taking heed to YHWH.

Young's Literal Translation
And they have eaten, and are not satisfied, They have gone a-whoring, and increase not, For they have left off taking heed to Jehovah.

Smith's Literal Translation
For they ate and they shall not be satisfied, and they committed fornication and they shall not spread abroad: for with Jehovah they left off to watch.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And they shall eat and shall not be filled: they have committed fornication, and have not ceased: because they have forsaken the Lord in not observing his law.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And they will eat and not be satisfied. They have been committing fornication, and they did not cease. Since they have abandoned the Lord, they will not be safeguarded.

New American Bible
They will eat but not be satisfied, they will promote prostitution but not increase, Because they have abandoned the LORD, devoting themselves

New Revised Standard Version
They shall eat, but not be satisfied; they shall play the whore, but not multiply; because they have forsaken the LORD to devote themselves to
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
For they shall eat and not be satisfied; they shall commit whoredom, and shall not increase, because they have forsaken the LORD.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And they shall eat and they will not be satisfied; they fornicated and they have not increased, because they have forsaken the LORD JEHOVAH
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And they shall eat, and not have enough, They shall commit harlotry, and shall not increase; Because they have left off to take heed to the LORD.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And they shall eat, and shall not be satisfied: they have gone a-whoring, and shall by no means prosper: because they have left off to take heed to the Lord.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
God's Charges Against Israel
9And it shall be like people, like priest. I will punish both of them for their ways and repay them for their deeds. 10They will eat but not be satisfied; they will be promiscuous but not multiply. For they have stopped obeying the LORD. 11Promiscuity, wine, and new wine take away understanding.…

Cross References
Jeremiah 5:7-9
“Why should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by gods that are not gods. I satisfied their needs, yet they committed adultery and assembled at the houses of prostitutes. / They are well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing after his neighbor’s wife. / Should I not punish them for these things?” declares the LORD. “Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?

Isaiah 65:13-14
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: “My servants will eat, but you will go hungry; My servants will drink, but you will go thirsty; My servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame. / My servants will shout for joy with a glad heart, but you will cry out with a heavy heart and wail with a broken spirit.

Micah 6:14
You will eat but not be satisfied, and your hunger will remain with you. What you acquire, you will not preserve; and what you save, I will give to the sword.

Amos 4:6-8
“I afflicted all your cities with cleanness of teeth and all your towns with lack of bread, yet you did not return to Me,” declares the LORD. / “I also withheld the rain from you when the harvest was three months away. I sent rain on one city but withheld it from another. One field received rain; another without rain withered. / People staggered from city to city for water to drink, but they were not satisfied; yet you did not return to Me,” declares the LORD.

Ezekiel 7:19
They will throw their silver into the streets, and their gold will seem unclean. Their silver and gold cannot save them in the day of the wrath of the LORD. They cannot satisfy their appetites or fill their stomachs with wealth, for it became the stumbling block that brought their iniquity.

Proverbs 27:20
Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.

Ecclesiastes 5:10
He who loves money is never satisfied by money, and he who loves wealth is never satisfied by income. This too is futile.

Isaiah 9:20
They carve out what is on the right, but they are still hungry; they eat what is on the left, but they are still not satisfied. Each one devours the flesh of his own offspring.

Haggai 1:6
You have planted much but harvested little. You eat but never have enough. You drink but never have your fill. You put on clothes but never get warm. You earn wages to put into a bag pierced through.”

Jeremiah 2:19
Your own evil will discipline you; your own apostasies will reprimand you. Consider and realize how evil and bitter it is for you to forsake the LORD your God and to have no fear of Me,” declares the Lord GOD of Hosts.

Romans 1:28-32
Furthermore, since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, He gave them up to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. / They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, / slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant, and boastful. They invent new forms of evil; they disobey their parents. ...

Galatians 6:7-8
Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return. / The one who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

Philippians 3:19
Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and their glory is in their shame. Their minds are set on earthly things.

2 Peter 2:13-14
The harm they will suffer is the wages of their wickedness. They consider it a pleasure to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deception as they feast with you. / Their eyes are full of adultery; their desire for sin is never satisfied; they seduce the unstable. They are accursed children with hearts trained in greed.

James 4:3
And when you do ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may squander it on your pleasures.


Treasury of Scripture

For they shall eat, and not have enough: they shall commit prostitution, and shall not increase: because they have left off to take heed to the LORD.

they shall eat.

Leviticus 26:26
And when I have broken the staff of your bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.

Proverbs 13:25
The righteous eateth to the satisfying of his soul: but the belly of the wicked shall want.

Isaiah 65:13-16
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed: …

they shall commit.

Hosea 4:14
I will not punish your daughters when they commit whoredom, nor your spouses when they commit adultery: for themselves are separated with whores, and they sacrifice with harlots: therefore the people that doth not understand shall fall.

Hosea 9:11-17
As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird, from the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception…

left.

2 Chronicles 24:17
Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah, and made obeisance to the king. Then the king hearkened unto them.

Psalm 36:3
The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit: he hath left off to be wise, and to do good.

Psalm 125:5
As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the LORD shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity: but peace shall be upon Israel.

Jump to Previous
Abandoned A-Whoring Ceased Cherish Commit Deserted Eat Eaten Engage Enough False. Food Forsaken Full Guilty Harlot Harlotry Heed Increase Increased Lewdness Multiply Play Prostitute Satisfied Stopped Themselves Thought Whoredom
Jump to Next
Abandoned A-Whoring Ceased Cherish Commit Deserted Eat Eaten Engage Enough False. Food Forsaken Full Guilty Harlot Harlotry Heed Increase Increased Lewdness Multiply Play Prostitute Satisfied Stopped Themselves Thought Whoredom
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.














They will eat
The Hebrew word used here is "אָכַל" (akal), which means to consume or devour. In the context of Hosea, this consumption is not just physical but also spiritual. The Israelites are consuming the fruits of their idolatry and sin, which ultimately leads to their spiritual starvation. Historically, this reflects the period of prosperity in Israel that led to moral and spiritual decay, as they indulged in pagan practices.

but not be satisfied
The Hebrew word for "satisfied" is "שָׂבַע" (saba), meaning to be full or have enough. This phrase highlights the futility of seeking fulfillment outside of God. Despite their abundance, the Israelites find no true satisfaction because they have turned away from the Lord. This serves as a timeless reminder that material wealth and indulgence cannot fill the spiritual void that only God can satisfy.

They will engage in prostitution
The term "prostitution" here is translated from the Hebrew "זָנָה" (zanah), which can mean both literal and spiritual unfaithfulness. In Hosea, this is a metaphor for Israel's unfaithfulness to God through idolatry. The historical context shows that Israel's alliances with pagan nations often led to the adoption of their gods and practices, which God viewed as spiritual adultery.

but not increase
The Hebrew root "רָבָה" (rabah) means to multiply or grow. Despite their efforts to grow and prosper through alliances and idolatry, they will not see the increase they desire. This reflects the principle that true growth and prosperity come from obedience to God, not from human schemes or alliances with the ungodly.

For they have stopped obeying the LORD
The phrase "stopped obeying" comes from the Hebrew "שָׁמַר" (shamar), meaning to keep, guard, or observe. The Israelites have ceased to guard and observe the commandments of the Lord. This disobedience is the root cause of their lack of satisfaction and increase. Historically, this disobedience led to the downfall of Israel, as they were eventually conquered and exiled. Spiritually, it serves as a warning that turning away from God's commandments leads to spiritual and often physical consequences.

Verse 10. - For they shall eat, and not have enough: they shall commit whoredom, and shall not increase. This part of the verso states the punishment to be inflicted and the reward to be received; it is thus an expansion of the closing clause of the preceding verse, with an obvious allusion to the sin specified in the eighth verse. To eat and not be satisfied may occur in time of famine, or be the effect of disease or the consequence of insatiable craving. "Since," says Kimchi, "they eat in an unlawful manner, their food shall not be to them a blessing." This was one of the punishments threatened for violation of the Law, as we read in Leviticus 26:26, "When I have broken the staff of your bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied." Further, the multiplication of wives or concubines would not increase their posterity; Solomon long previously had been a notable exemplification of this. "So in their cohabitation with their women, since it is in a whorish manner, they shall not increase, for they shall not have children by them; or, if they have, they shall die from the birth." The Hiph. hiznu has rather the intensive sense of Qal than that of causing or encouraging whoredom. Because they have left off to take heed to the Lord. The verbal lishmor either

(1) has Jehovah for its object, as in the Authorized Version; or

(2) durko or darkair may be supplied, as is done by Kimchi and Aben Ezra. The former has, "To observe his ways, for they have no delight in him and in his ways; to observe his ways they have left off;" the latter has, "They have forsaken Jehovah, to observe his way or his Laws." But

(3) Kimchi informs us that "Saadiah Gaon of blessed memory has connected the word with the verse that comes after it; they have forsaken the Lord to observe whoredom and wine and new wine."

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
They will eat
וְאָֽכְלוּ֙ (wə·’ā·ḵə·lū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 398: To eat

but not
וְלֹ֣א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

be satisfied;
יִשְׂבָּ֔עוּ (yiś·bā·‘ū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 7646: To be sated, satisfied or surfeited

they will be promiscuous
הִזְנ֖וּ (hiz·nū)
Verb - Hifil - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 2181: To commit adultery, to commit idolatry

but not
וְלֹ֣א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

multiply.
יִפְרֹ֑צוּ (yip̄·rō·ṣū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 6555: To break through

For
כִּֽי־ (kî-)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

they have stopped
עָזְב֖וּ (‘ā·zə·ḇū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 5800: To loosen, relinquish, permit

obeying
לִשְׁמֹֽר׃ (liš·mōr)
Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 8104: To hedge about, guard, to protect, attend to

the LORD.
יְהוָ֥ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel


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OT Prophets: Hosea 4:10 They will eat and not have enough (Ho Hs Hos.)
Hosea 4:9
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