Hosea 11:7

Hosea 11:7 Meaning and Explanation

And my people are bent to backsliding from me: though they called them to the most High, none at all would exalt him.

King James Version (KJV)

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God's people are inclined to turn away from Him, and even when called to the Most High, not one will lift Him up.

What Does Hosea 11:7 Mean?

God still calls them 'my people,' even as He names the problem: they are 'bent' to backsliding, leaning away from Him by habit and inclination. Prophets called them upward to the Most High, yet the response was silence -- 'none at all would exalt him.'

This verse reads the human condition with painful clarity: a heart prone to drift, deaf to the call that would lift it higher. But the tenderness of 'my people' shows God has not disowned them. The same God who sees the bent of the heart is the God who, in the next verses, refuses to let go.

Hosea 11:7 in the Original Language

meshuvah (מְשׁוּבָה), 'backsliding' -- a turning away or faithless straying, drawn from the same root as the 'return' God longs for.

Frequently Asked Questions About Hosea 11:7

What does Hosea 11:7 mean?

God's people are inclined to turn away from Him, and even when called to the Most High, not one will lift Him up.

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