Hosea 7:3

Make the king glad. So general had the moral corruption and wickedness of Israel become, that evil penetrated all the classes of the people, from the lowest to the highest. This situation was aggravated by the degrading attitude of the king and his princes, who were pleased by this wickedness, and who approved this conduct. As with the king, so with the people (see Prov. 29:12; Rom. 1:32).

Some prefer another interpretation of this verse on the basis of the alternate translation: “In their wickedness they make the king merry.” That is, the wickedness of the people was their evil plan to murder the royal family. With this in mind the king is made merry with wine so that he may become an easy and unsuspecting victim. The frequency of the assassination of Israel’s kings during the last years of the nation’s history lends some measure of support to this interpretation (see on v. 7).