house of nothingness; i.e., "of idols", a place in the mountains of Benjamin, east of Bethel ( Joshua 7:2 ; 18:12 ; 1 Samuel 13:5 ). In Hosea 4:15 ; 5:8 ; 10:5 it stands for "Bethel" (q.v.), and it is so called because it was no longer the "house of God," but "the house of idols," referring to the calves there worshipped.

These dictionary topics are from
M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition,
published by Thomas Nelson, 1897. Public Domain, copy freely.