Hosea 6:8 (DBY)

Passage

Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity; it is tracked with blood.

Nearby Context

Hosea 6:6 For I delight in loving-kindness, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt-offerings.

Hosea 6:7 But they like Adam have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me.

Hosea 6:8 Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity; it is tracked with blood.

Hosea 6:9 And as troops of robbers lie in wait for a man, so the company of priests murder in the way of Shechem; yea, they commit lewdness.

Hosea 6:10 In the house of Israel have I seen a horrible thing: the whoredom of Ephraim is there; Israel is defiled.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "gilead", "city", "iniquity", "tracked", and "blood". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "gilead" and "city", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "But they like Adam have transgressed the..." into verse 9's "And as troops of robbers lie in...", so "gilead" and "city" belong inside that flow. In Hosea context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "gilead" and "city" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.