Hosea 6:8 (YLT)

Passage

Gilead <FI>is<Fi> a city of workers of iniquity, Slippery from blood.

Nearby Context

Hosea 6:6 For kindness I desired, and not sacrifice, And a knowledge of God above burnt-offerings.

Hosea 6:7 And they, as Adam, transgressed a covenant, There they dealt treacherously against me.

Hosea 6:8 Gilead <FI>is<Fi> a city of workers of iniquity, Slippery from blood.

Hosea 6:9 And as bands do wait for a man, A company of priests do murder--the way to Shechem, For wickedness they have done.

Hosea 6:10 In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing, There <FI>is<Fi> the whoredom of Ephraim--defiled is Israel.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "gilead", "city", "workers", "iniquity", "slippery", 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 "And they as Adam transgressed a covenant..." into verse 9's "And as bands do wait for a...", 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.