Hosea 5:2

‘And those who err (shettim = rebels, swervers, wanderers) are gone deep in slaughter,

And I am a rebuker (correcter, chastener) of them all.'

Here we have explained the reason why they were seen as setters of snares. It was because in their behaviour they were behaving like rebels against YHWH by involving themselves in ‘deep slaughter', that is in offering large numbers of sacrifices to Baal (on every high hill and under every green tree - compare Hosea 4:13), and even in child sacrifice. They were erring through teaching the people falsehood. In consequence YHWH will rebuke them by chastising them severely without exception. And that was something that could only occur through invasion and exile.

An alternative translation suggested has been, ‘And they have gone deep to stretch out (spread out) excesses, but I am a chastisement to them all'. This is because the word translated ‘those who err' can also refer to ‘that thing in which they erred', i.e. their excesses, and because the consonants for the word translated ‘slaughter' may also be seen as containing the idea of spreading out. A further alternative translation is ‘They have made deep the whoredom (sacrifices to idols) of Shittim', (compare Numbers 25:1), with shettim (swervers from the right way) being repointed as Shittim, and the slaughter of sacrifices being seen as whoredom. But reference to Shittim is unlikely here, partly because when using names he usually uses twos and fours, and partly because a literal explanation of Hosea 5:1 is required here in accordance with his usual pattern. The translation makes too much of assumptions.