Israel Shall Reap What She Sows (8:1-7a): As is frequently the case with Hosea, it is very difficult to know how to divide chapter 8 into its separate oracles. From a form-critical standpoint, verses 1–3 could form an independent unit because they include summons, accusation, and judgment. But they are intimately linked to what follows by their subject matter. Verse 4 spells out the two primary ways in which Israel has rejected what is good (v. 3). It is then connected with verse 5 by the repetition of the verb zānaḥ, meaning “to reject” (v. 5; NIV: throw out) or “to go astray” (v. 3; NIV: rejected), and verses 5–7 contain a further accusation and judgment.

Many commentators believe that verse 7 is made up of two independent wisdom sayings, which have been attached to the unit of verses 8–1…