Hosea 8:13
“They sacrifice flesh for the sacrifices of mine offerings, and eat it; but the LORD accepteth them not; now will he remember their iniquity, and visit their sins: they shall return to Egypt.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Their sacrifices are mere meals God will not accept; He will call their sin to account, and they will return to bondage.
What Does Hosea 8:13 Mean?
The people kept up the outward forms of sacrifice, offering flesh and feasting on it, but the heart was missing. God declares plainly that He does not accept them; instead He will remember their iniquity and visit their sins. The warning that they 'shall return to Egypt' recalls the house of bondage from which they were once redeemed, a reversal of the great deliverance.
Ritual without repentance is empty before God, who looks past the altar to the soul. To go through the motions while clinging to sin is to mock the very mercy being sought. The God who saw their hearts then sees ours now, and He desires obedience more than offering. The gospel's relief is that Christ supplies the obedient, willing heart we cannot manufacture, and His one sacrifice is fully accepted in our place.
In the Original Language
zakar (זָכַר), 'remember' -- to call to mind so as to act, here God recalling sin in order to address it.