The Meaning of Hosea 10:2 Explained

Hosea 10:2

KJV: Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: he shall break down their altars, he shall spoil their images.

YLT: Their heart hath been divided, now they are guilty, He doth break down their altars, He doth destroy their standing-pillars.

Darby: Their heart is divided; now shall they be found guilty: he will break down their altars, he will destroy their statues.

ASV: Their heart is divided; now shall they be found guilty: he will smite their altars, he will destroy their pillars.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Their heart  is divided;  now shall they be found faulty:  he shall break down  their altars,  he shall spoil  their images. 

What does Hosea 10:2 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Such behavior indicated an unfaithful (Heb. halaq, flattering, hypocritical, lit. slippery) heart that rendered the Israelites guilty before God. He would do away with the altars and pillars that they had erected.

Context Summary

Hosea 10:1-15 - "break Up Your Fallow Ground"
Israel brought forth fruit, but not such as God could delight in. It was corrupt and evil. How great a disappointment to the Great Cultivator! The land was covered with obelisks and altars, the symbols of idolatry, and the Canaanites themselves had not been more shameless in sin. But notice the terrible judgments that must befall. There would be revolution, for when men say, We fear not the Lord, they will go on to say, We fear not the king. Beth-aven, the "house of vanity," would replace Beth-el, the "house of God." The golden calves would be carried off by the conqueror. The king would perish as foam upon the water. The yoke of conquest would be placed on Ephraim's fair neck. The fortresses of Israel would be carried by assault, with all the accompaniments of savage warfare. Is it not "an evil thing and bitter" to forsake the Lord!
Is it not time that we should look into our hearts and lives, break up the fallow ground, now covered with thorns and thistles, and begin to sow in righteousness? Let us ask God to drive the plowshares of deep soul-searching and conviction across the hard and sterile acres of our hearts, and sow them with His good seed. [source]

Chapter Summary: Hosea 10

1  Israel is reproved and threatened for their impiety and idolatry,
12  and exhorted to repentance

What do the individual words in Hosea 10:2 mean?

Is divided their heart now they are held guilty He will break down their altars He will ruin their sacred pillars
חָלַ֥ק לִבָּ֖ם עַתָּ֣ה יֶאְשָׁ֑מוּ ה֚וּא יַעֲרֹ֣ף מִזְבְּחוֹתָ֔ם יְשֹׁדֵ֖ד מַצֵּבוֹתָֽם

חָלַ֥ק  Is  divided 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: חָלַק 
Sense: to divide, share, plunder, allot, apportion, assign.
לִבָּ֖ם  their  heart 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine plural
Root: לֵב 
Sense: inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding.
עַתָּ֣ה  now 
Parse: Adverb
Root: עַתָּה  
Sense: now.
יֶאְשָׁ֑מוּ  they  are  held  guilty 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: אָשַׁם  
Sense: to offend, be guilty, trespass.
יַעֲרֹ֣ף  will  break  down 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָרַף  
Sense: (Qal) to break the neck (of an animal).
מִזְבְּחוֹתָ֔ם  their  altars 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: מִזְבֵּחַ  
Sense: altar.
יְשֹׁדֵ֖ד  He  will  ruin 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שָׁדַד  
Sense: to deal violently with, despoil, devastate, ruin, destroy, spoil.
מַצֵּבוֹתָֽם  their  sacred  pillars 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: מַצֵּבָה  
Sense: pillar, mastaba, stump.