Thy calf, O Samaria, hath cast thee off; mine anger is kindled against them: how long will it be ere they attain to innocency?

HOSEA 8:5KJV
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Hosea 8:5 (KJV)

What does Hosea 8:5 mean?

Hosea 8:5 says that Samaria’s calf idol has rejected the people, and God’s anger burns against them because they have not become innocent. The verse questions how long it will take before the people turn away from guilt and return to innocence.

The prophet Hosea is speaking God’s words to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel, whose capital was Samaria. The “calf” refers to the idol they made and worshiped, likely echoing the golden calf story from earlier in Israel’s history. God is expressing frustration and anger because the people have chosen idolatry over faithfulness, and He wonders how long it will take for them to change.

The Hebrew behind Hosea 8:5

  • “Calf” (עֵגֶל, ‘egel): This word points to the specific idol made in the form of a young bull, which was a symbol of false worship in Israel. It highlights the seriousness of their turning away from God to something man-made.
  • “Cast” (זָנַח, zanach): This word means to reject or throw away. Here, it is used to show that the idol, which the people trusted, has actually abandoned them—flipping their expectations.
  • “Innocency” (נָקִי, naqi): This word means being free from guilt or clean. The verse questions when the people will finally become innocent again, underlining their ongoing guilt.

Why Hosea 8:5 matters

  • Hosea 8:5 clarifies that idolatry is not just a mistake but a deep betrayal that leads to God’s anger and a broken relationship.
  • The verse shows that the things people trust instead of God (like the calf idol) ultimately fail and even “reject” those who rely on them.
  • This verse connects to the wider message of Hosea, where God repeatedly calls out Israel’s unfaithfulness and pleads for their return to genuine innocence and loyalty.

Where else these words appear

“innocency” Hebrew H5356 · used in 5 verses

  • Genesis 20:5 Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.
  • Psalms 26:6 I will wash mine hands in innocency: so will I compass thine altar, O LORD:
  • Psalms 73:13 Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency.

“cast” Hebrew H2186 · used in 20 verses

  • 1 Chronicles 28:9 And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.
  • Psalms 60:1 To the chief Musician upon Shushaneduth, Michtam of David, to teach; when he strove with Aramnaharaim and with Aramzobah, when Joab returned, and smote of Edom in the valley of salt twelve thousand. O God, thou hast cast us off, thou hast scattered us, thou hast been displeased; O turn thyself to us again.
  • Psalms 108:11 Wilt not thou, O God, who hast cast us off? and wilt not thou, O God, go forth with our hosts?

“calf” Hebrew H5695 · used in 35 verses

  • Exodus 32:4 And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
  • 1 Samuel 28:24 And the woman had a fat calf in the house; and she hasted, and killed it, and took flour, and kneaded it, and did bake unleavened bread thereof:
  • Isaiah 11:6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.

“ere” Hebrew H3808 · used in 73 verses

  • Genesis 2:5 And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.
  • Numbers 14:35 I the LORD have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.
  • Job 39:16 She is hardened against her young ones, as though they were not hers: her labour is in vain without fear;