9:3

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

3a
They will not remain in the land of the LORD;

3b
Ephraim will return to Egypt

3c
and eat unclean food in Assyria.

This verse explains why the people will not have grain to eat or wine to drink in Israel. It is because their enemy will take them from Israel to live in exile in Assyria. The first line states the general fact. The second and third lines give more specific details.

9:3a

They will not remain in the land of the LORD: This line states that the people will not continue to live in Israel.

Here are some other ways to translate this line:

You may no longer stay here in the Lord ’s land. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
and you will have to leave

the land of the Lord (Contemporary English Version)

the land of the LORD: This phrase occurs only here in the Old Testament. It indicates that the land of Israel belongs to the LORD, not to the people. It is his choice to give his land to people as a blessing or to take it away from them as a judgment.

9:3b

Ephraim will return to Egypt: This line is an indirect reference to Israel’s past. Long ago the people were slaves in the land of Egypt. Here the phrase return to Egypt does not mean that the people will literally return to that land. Rather, it means that the people of Israel will become slaves in a foreign land as they were in Egypt.

The New Century Version makes this meaning explicit:

Israel will return to being captives as they were in Egypt (New Century Version)

Ephraim: Again, the name Ephraim is a figure of speech that refers to the nation of Israel. Some versions translate it as “Israel” (New Century Version). Others use a pronoun such as “you” (New Living Translation (2004)) or “they” (God’s Word).

9:3c

and eat unclean food in Assyria: In this line, Hosea makes explicit that Assyria is the foreign country where the people will become slaves. In Assyria, the Israelites will depend on their captors for their food. This will include some food that the LORD told the people not to eat. See Leviticus 11.

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