Oseas 8:5

Thy calf, O Samaria, hath cast thee off This rendering is very harsh in this context; Ewald prefers -He hath cast off thy calf", a contrast to -Israel hath cast off that which is good" in Oseas 8:3. But -casting off" implies a previous connexion (e. g. Salmo 43:2); it is better to revert to the intransitive sense which belongs to the cognate verb in Arabic, and render, Thy calf, O Samaria, is loathsome.

-Thy calf" is a contemptuous expression for the small golden bull which was symbolic of Jehovah; such a bull, it appears, existed at Samaria, and doubtless at other places besides Dan and Bethel (e. g. at Gilgal).

ere they can attain innocency Lit. -will they be incapable of innocency." Idolatry presented itself to Hosea, not only as a form of worship, but as an immoral way of living.