Hosea 1 6

Hosea 1:6 kjv

And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Loruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away.

Hosea 1:6 nkjv

And she conceived again and bore a daughter. Then God said to him: "Call her name Lo-Ruhamah, For I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel, But I will utterly take them away.

Hosea 1:6 niv

Gomer conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the LORD said to Hosea, "Call her Lo-Ruhamah (which means "not loved"), for I will no longer show love to Israel, that I should at all forgive them.

Hosea 1:6 esv

She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the LORD said to him, "Call her name No Mercy, for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all.

Hosea 1:6 nlt

Soon Gomer became pregnant again and gave birth to a daughter. And the LORD said to Hosea, "Name your daughter Lo-ruhamah ? 'Not loved' ? for I will no longer show love to the people of Israel or forgive them.

Hosea 1 verses

Hosea 1 6 Meaning

Hosea 1:6 reveals God's decision to withdraw His special, covenantal mercy from the northern kingdom of Israel. This message is symbolically conveyed through the birth of Hosea's second child, a daughter named Lo-ruhamah, meaning "not shown mercy" or "no compassion." It signifies that Israel's persistent spiritual harlotry and rebellion had exhausted divine patience, leading to a definitive cessation of God's protecting and blessing favor upon them. The accompanying declaration, "I will utterly take them away," foreshadows severe judgment, culminating in the complete removal and scattering of the northern tribes from their land, typically understood as the Assyrian exile.

Hosea 1 6 Context

Hosea 1:6 is embedded within the opening narrative of the prophet Hosea's life and ministry, which serves as a living parable for God's relationship with the Northern Kingdom of Israel. In the immediate context, this verse follows the birth of Hosea's first son, Jezreel, whose name prophesied divine judgment upon the House of Jehu. Lo-ruhamah, the second child, signifies a deepening stage of God's displeasure. She represents the direct cessation of divine mercy.

In the broader context of the book, Hosea's marriage to Gomer, a woman who commits spiritual adultery, vividly portrays Israel's unfaithfulness to their covenant with YHWH through widespread idolatry, especially Baal worship, and their reliance on foreign alliances rather than God. The names of Hosea's three children (Jezreel, Lo-ruhamah, Lo-ammi) are not mere labels but escalating prophetic signs illustrating the progressive nature of God's judgment—from retribution against a specific dynasty to a complete withdrawal of compassion from the nation, and finally, a temporary disavowal of His people. Historically, this prophecy was delivered during the 8th century BC, a period marked by political instability, moral decay, and deep spiritual apostasy within the Northern Kingdom, just before its conquest and exile by Assyria in 722 BC.

Hosea 1 6 Word analysis

• And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. This sequence continues the narrative of Hosea's life, unfolding the divine drama through his family. The birth of a "daughter" adds a specific nuance, perhaps reflecting vulnerability or a particular kind of withdrawal, compared to the previously born son.
• And God said unto him, Call her name Lo-ruhamah: This signifies that the naming is not an arbitrary choice but a direct prophetic instruction from God, carrying profound symbolic weight for Israel.
• Lo-ruhamah (לֹא רֻחָמָה - Lo' Ruḥamah):
  • Lo' (לֹא): A definitive Hebrew negative particle, meaning "no" or "not."
  • Ruḥamah (רֻחָמָה): This is the feminine passive participle derived from the root רָחַם (raḥam), which means "to have compassion," "to show mercy," or "to pity." The noun raḥamim (רַחֲמִים) means "tender mercy" or "compassion," often connected to the physical concept of a womb (רֶחֶם - reḥem), highlighting deep, protective, often maternal love and pity.
  • Significance: The name profoundly symbolizes God's decision to withdraw His special, covenantal, and tender compassion from the Northern Kingdom of Israel. It denotes that Israel has reached a point where divine favor and pity, which had sustained them despite their rebellion, would now cease.
• for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel;
  • no more have mercy (לֹא אוֹסִיף עוֹד אֲרַחֵם - lo osif od araḥem): This phrase precisely explains the meaning of "Lo-ruhamah." It indicates a cessation of God's future acts of compassion towards the Northern Kingdom. It's a statement of judicial decision, not a lack of divine capacity for mercy, but a necessary response to persistent rebellion.
  • the house of Israel;: This specifically designates the Northern Kingdom of ten tribes, often called Ephraim, as the direct recipient of this prophecy. This distinction is crucial as it sets them apart from the Southern Kingdom of Judah, which would experience its own distinct fate (cf. Hosea 1:7).
• but I will utterly take them away. (אָסֹף אֶסְרֵם - asoph es'rem).
  • The Hebrew phrase is challenging and subject to multiple interpretations, but in the King James Version, it points to a complete and final action.
  • אָסֹף (asoph): From the verb אָסַף ('asaf), meaning "to gather," "to remove," "to sweep away," "to destroy."
  • אֶסְרֵם (es'rem): The second part's root is debated; some scholars link it to "forgive," but the KJV renders it consistently with "remove." It functions as an intensive or emphatic infinitive.
  • Significance: In this translation, the phrase denotes a definitive and irreversible removal or destruction, typically understood as the complete overthrow of the Northern Kingdom by Assyria and the scattering of its inhabitants through exile. It underscores the severity of God's judgment, signifying a full withdrawal of His protective presence leading to their national demise in the land. This judgment implies not merely temporary discipline but a radical disruption of their national existence as His recognized people in that specific covenant relationship.

Hosea 1 6 Bonus section

• The progression of the children's names in Hosea 1 — Jezreel, Lo-ruhamah, Lo-ammi — provides a chilling chronological forecast of God's judgment: retribution on the ruling dynasty (Jezreel), followed by the withdrawal of divine compassion from the nation as a whole (Lo-ruhamah), leading ultimately to their temporary disownment as God's people (Lo-ammi). However, the subsequent chapters in Hosea, especially Hosea 2:23, famously reverse this judgment, promising future restoration and mercy, demonstrating God's ultimate fidelity to His covenant promises despite human failure.
• Hosea 1:7 immediately distinguishes the fate of Judah, promising them mercy and salvation "by the LORD their God," explicitly not by military means. This contrast emphasizes the specific and imminent nature of the judgment against the northern kingdom, yet foreshadows a different divine path for Judah, which would experience its own exile later but would not be "taken away" in the same definitive manner at this point.
• The prophecy of "Lo-ruhamah" was fulfilled in the Assyrian deportations of the Northern Kingdom beginning around 734 BC and definitively with the fall of Samaria in 722 BC, which effectively removed the ten tribes from their land and scattered them, ending their corporate identity as the independent kingdom of Israel.

Hosea 1 6 Commentary

Hosea 1:6 serves as a stark, visceral prophecy delivered through God's personal command to His prophet, highlighting the solemn nature of divine judgment. The birth and naming of Lo-ruhamah symbolize God's heartbroken, yet resolute, withdrawal of compassion from Israel. This was not an arbitrary act but a direct consequence of their unrelenting idolatry and spiritual infidelity, depicted by Gomer's promiscuity. The promise "I will no more have mercy" underscores the point of no return for Israel's current trajectory, signalling that their accumulated iniquity had exhausted divine longsuffering and called for corrective judgment. The ultimate act of "utterly taking them away" points to the impending Assyrian conquest and the scattering of the northern tribes, a physical manifestation of their spiritual abandonment of God. While this verse pronounces severe judgment, it simultaneously reinforces God's justice and the profound weight of His covenant with His people, reminding us that continuous unfaithfulness leads to a necessary consequence, albeit often with a long-term purpose of drawing a people back to Him.