H5005 H5005
adultery, adulteries (fig. of idolatry as covenant betrayal)
A noun describing acts of adultery, used exclusively in Hosea's marriage metaphor where Israel's idolatry is portrayed as sexual unfaithfulness to YHWH. In Hosea 2:2 (Eng. 2:4), God commands Israel to 'put away her adulteries,' using the plural to suggest repeated or multiplied acts of covenant betrayal. The prophet transforms marital infidelity into a powerful image of theological apostasy, where worship of Baal constitutes spiritual adultery. This metaphorical usage became foundational for biblical treatments of idolatry as relational betrayal rather than merely incorrect theology.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Plural noun referring to acts of adultery, used figuratively for Israel's idolatrous worship practices. Hosea 2:2 employs the marriage metaphor throughout: Israel must 'remove her adulteries from her face,' where physical locations (face, breasts) represent visible signs of covenant unfaithfulness. The BDB notes this refers specifically to 'idolatrous worship of Baal,' showing how sexual terminology became the prophet's primary language for religious betrayal. Spanish 'y-sus-adulterios' and English 'and-her-adultery' both preserve the possessive construction, emphasizing that these are Israel's own accumulated acts of unfaithfulness. 1×
AR["وَفُجورَها"]·ben["এবং-তাঁর-ব্যভিচার"]·DE["[ונאפופיה]"]·EN["and-her-adultery"]·FR["et-oracle"]·heb["ו-ניאופיה"]·HI["और-व्यभिचार-उसके"]·ID["dan-perzinahannya"]·IT["[ונאפופיה]"]·jav["lan-laku-jinanipun"]·KO["그리고-간음들-그녀의-을"]·PT["e-adultérios-dela"]·RU["и-прелюбодеяния-её"]·ES["y-sus-adulterios"]·SW["na-uzinzi-wake"]·TR["ve-zinalarını"]·urd["اور-فحاشیاں-اُس-کی"]
Related Senses
H2896a 1. good (quality or moral) (305×)H7563 1. wicked person (259×)H7451c 1. moral evil or wickedness (234×)H5771 1. iniquity, sin, wrongdoing (222×)H6662 1. righteous person (substantive) (195×)G0266 1. sin, failure, transgression (173×)H2403b 1. sin, transgression (170×)H2617a 1. Covenant faithfulness, steadfast love (167×)H2398 1. Qal: to sin, commit sin (165×)H6666 1. righteousness, moral uprightness (145×)G5485 1. grace, divine favor (141×)H7451a 1. morally evil, wicked (129×)H2403b 2. sin-offering, sacrifice for sin (120×)G2570 1. good, right, excellent (98×)H6588 1. transgression, offense against God (88×)G0018 1. good (moral quality) (85×)H2896b 1. good, what is good (85×)H7451b 1. evil, wickedness (moral) (83×)H7451a 2. evil, harm, calamity (80×)G1342 1. righteous, upright (of persons) (70×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† [נַאֲפוּף] n.[m.] adultery;—only pl. sf. נַאֲפוּפֶיהָ Ho 2:4 (BaNB 216), of idolatrous worship of Baal.