Hosea 4:18

The Shameful Sinners Will Be Brought to Shame

4:18 They consume their alcohol,

then engage in cult prostitution;

they dearly love their shameful behavior.

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 

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

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.”