Hosea — Chapter 13
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1When Ephraim spoke, there was trembling; he was exalted in Israel. But he incurred guilt through Baal, and he died.
2Now they sin more and more and make for themselves cast images, idols skillfully made from their silver, all of them the work of craftsmen. People say of them, “They offer human sacrifice and kiss the calves!”
3Therefore they will be like the morning mist, like the early dew that vanishes, like chaff blown from a threshing floor, like smoke through an open window.
4Yet I am the LORD your God ever since the land of Egypt; you know no God but Me, for there is no Savior besides Me.
5I knew you in the wilderness, in the land of drought.
6When they had pasture, they became satisfied; when they were satisfied, their hearts became proud, and as a result they forgot Me.
7So like a lion I will pounce on them; like a leopard I will lurk by the path.
8Like a bear robbed of her cubs I will attack them, and I will tear open their chests. There I will devour them like a lion, like a wild beast tearing them apart.
9You are destroyed, O Israel, because you are against Me—against your helper.
10Where is your king now to save you in all your cities, and the rulers to whom you said, “Give me a king and princes”?
11So in My anger I gave you a king, and in My wrath I took him away.
12The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is stored up.
13Labor pains come upon him, but he is an unwise son. When the time arrives, he fails to present himself at the opening of the womb.
14I will ransom them from the power of Sheol; I will redeem them from Death. Where, O Death, are your plagues? Where, O Sheol, is your sting? Compassion is hidden from My eyes.
15Although he flourishes among his brothers, an east wind will come—a wind from the LORD rising up from the desert. His fountain will fail, and his spring will run dry. The wind will plunder his treasury of every precious article.
16Samaria will bear her guilt because she has rebelled against her God. They will fall by the sword; their little ones will be dashed to pieces, and their pregnant women ripped open.
1When Ephraim spake trembling, he exalted himself in Israel; but when he offended in Baal, he died.
2And now they sin more and more, and have made them molten images of their silver, and idols according to their own understanding, all of it the work of the craftsmen: they say of them, Let the men that sacrifice kiss the calves.
3Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud, and as the early dew that passeth away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney.
4Yet I am the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for there is no saviour beside me.
5I did know thee in the wilderness, in the land of great drought.
6According to their pasture, so were they filled; they were filled, and their heart was exalted; therefore have they forgotten me.
7Therefore I will be unto them as a lion: as a leopard by the way will I observe them:
8I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved of her whelps, and will rend the caul of their heart, and there will I devour them like a lion: the wild beast shall tear them.
9O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.
10I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes?
11I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath.
12The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is hid.
13The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking forth of children.
14I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.
15Though he be fruitful among his brethren, an east wind shall come, the wind of the LORD shall come up from the wilderness, and his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up: he shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels.
16Samaria shall become desolate; for she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall by the sword: their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with child shall be ripped up.
1When Ephraim spake, there was trembling; he exalted himself in Israel; but when he offended in Baal, he died.
2And now they sin more and more, and have made them molten images of their silver, even idols according to their own understanding, all of them the work of the craftsmen: they say of them, Let the men that sacrifice kiss the calves.
3Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud, and as the dew that passeth early away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of the threshing-floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney.
4Yet I am Jehovah thy God from the land of Egypt; and thou shalt know no god but me, and besides me there is no saviour.
5I did know thee in the wilderness, in the land of great drought.
6According to their pasture, so were they filled; they were filled, and their heart was exalted: therefore have they forgotten me.
7Therefore am I unto them as a lion; as a leopard will I watch by the way;
8I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved of her whelps, and will rend the caul of their heart; and there will I devour them like a lioness; the wild beast shall tear them.
9It is thy destruction, O Israel, that [thou art] against me, against thy help.
10Where now is thy king, that he may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges, of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes?
11I have given thee a king in mine anger, and have taken him away in my wrath.
12The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is laid up in store.
13The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for it is time he should not tarry in the place of the breaking forth of children.
14I will ransom them from the power of Sheol; I will redeem them from death: O death, where are thy plagues? O Sheol, where is thy destruction? repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.
15Though he be fruitful among his brethren, an east wind shall come, the breath of Jehovah coming up from the wilderness; and his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up: he shall make spoil of the treasure of all goodly vessels.
16Samaria shall bear her guilt; for she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall by the sword; their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with child shall be ripped up.
1When Ephraim spoke, there was terror; he was exalted in Israel, but he became guilty by worshiping Baal and died.
2Even now they persist in sin! They make metal images for themselves, idols that they skillfully fashion from their own silver; all of them are nothing but the work of craftsmen. There is a saying about them: “Those who sacrifice to the calf idol are calf kissers!”
3Therefore they will disappear like the morning mist, like early morning dew that evaporates, like chaff that is blown away from a threshing floor, like smoke that disappears through an open window.
4But I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt. Therefore, you must not acknowledge any God but me. Except for me there is no Savior.
5I cared for you in the wilderness, in the dry desert where no water was.
6When they were fed, they became satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; as a result, they forgot me!
7So I will pounce on them like a lion; like a leopard I will lurk by the path.
8I will attack them like a bear robbed of her cubs— I will rip open their chests. I will devour them there like a lion— like a wild animal would tear them apart.
9I will destroy you, O Israel! Who is there to help you?
10Where then is your king, that he may save you in all your cities? Where are your rulers for whom you asked, saying, “Give me a king and princes”?
11I granted you a king in my anger, and I will take him away in my wrath!
12The punishment of Ephraim has been decreed; his punishment is being stored up for the future.
13The labor pains of a woman will overtake him, but the baby will lack wisdom; when the time arrives, he will not come out of the womb!
14Will I deliver them from the power of Sheol? No, I will not! Will I redeem them from death? No, I will not! O Death, bring on your plagues! O Sheol, bring on your destruction! My eyes will not show any compassion!
15Even though he flourishes like a reed plant, a scorching east wind will come, a wind from the Lord rising up from the desert. As a result, his spring will dry up; his well will become dry. That wind will spoil all his delightful foods in the containers in his storehouse.
16(14:1) Samaria will be held guilty because she rebelled against her God. They will fall by the sword; their infants will be dashed to the ground— their pregnant women will be ripped open.
1When Ephraim spoke, there was trembling. He exalted himself in Israel, but when he became guilty in Baal, he died.
2Now they sin more and more, and have made themselves molten images of their silver, even idols according to their own understanding, all of them the work of the craftsmen. They say of them, ‘They offer human sacrifice and kiss the calves.’
3Therefore they will be like the morning mist, and like the dew that passes away early, like the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of the threshing floor, and like the smoke out of the chimney.
4“Yet I am Yahweh your God from the land of Egypt; and you shall acknowledge no god but me, and besides me there is no savior.
5I knew you in the wilderness, in the land of great drought.
6According to their pasture, so were they filled; they were filled, and their heart was exalted. Therefore they have forgotten me.
7Therefore I am like a lion to them. Like a leopard, I will lurk by the path.
8I will meet them like a bear that is bereaved of her cubs, and will tear the covering of their heart. There I will devour them like a lioness. The wild animal will tear them.
9You are destroyed, Israel, because you are against me, against your help.
10Where is your king now, that he may save you in all your cities? And your judges, of whom you said, ‘Give me a king and princes?’
11I have given you a king in my anger, and have taken him away in my wrath.
12The guilt of Ephraim is stored up. His sin is stored up.
13The sorrows of a travailing woman will come on him. He is an unwise son; for when it is time, he doesn’t come to the opening of the womb.
14I will ransom them from the power of Sheol. I will redeem them from death! Death, where are your plagues? Sheol, where is your destruction? “Compassion will be hidden from my eyes.
15Though he is fruitful among his brothers, an east wind will come, the breath of Yahweh coming up from the wilderness; and his spring will become dry, and his fountain will be dried up. He will plunder the storehouse of treasure.
16Samaria will bear her guilt; for she has rebelled against her God. They will fall by the sword. Their infants will be dashed in pieces, and their pregnant women will be ripped open.”
Summary
God recalls that Ephraim once held a position of honor in Israel, but incurred guilt through Baal worship and effectively died (v. 1). Their sin has only grown worse, making metal idols and kissing calf images, so they will vanish like morning mist, dew, or chaff blown away (vv. 2-3). God reminds them he alone has been their God and savior since Egypt, the one who knew and fed them in the wilderness, yet their hearts grew proud and forgot him (vv. 4-6). As a result he will attack them like a lion, leopard, or bear robbed of her cubs, since the kings and rulers they demanded instead of him cannot save them (vv. 7-11). Ephraim's guilt is stored up, and though God pictures the pain of childbirth as a chance for new life, they prove an unwise child who will not be born at the right time (vv. 12-13). The chapter turns to a striking question — "O death, where are your plagues? O grave, where is your destruction?" — before warning that a scorching wind will dry up their fountains and Samaria will fall by the sword for her rebellion (vv. 14-16).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Egypt (v.4): Land to the southwest; place of Israel's bondage and exodus.
- Samaria (v.16): Central region between Judea and Galilee; mixed Jewish-Gentile population.
Places on this map
- EgyptEgyptA ribbon of irrigated land along the Nile, ending in the Delta where Israel settled in Goshen. Rain-fed Canaan depended on weather; Egypt depended on a river that flooded on schedule, which made it the place everyone went when the harvest failed. Wikipedia
- SamariaSebastia, West BankOmri bought a bare hill and built a capital on it, which gave the northern kingdom a fortress with no prior claim on it, the same calculation David made with Jerusalem. It commands the pass west toward the coastal plain. The name later spread to the whole region between Galilee and Judea. Wikipedia
- Galileenorthern IsraelThe northern hill country above the Jezreel Valley, wetter and greener than Judah and crossed by the trade road to Damascus. That traffic is why Judeans considered it mixed and provincial, and why Jesus grew up hearing more than one language. Wikipedia
- Judeasouthern Israel and the West BankThe southern hill country around Jerusalem, high, stony and dry, with the wilderness on one side and the Philistine plain on the other. Poor farming and hard access are what let it stay independent longest. Wikipedia
Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Verse-by-verse commentary on this chapter, written for the everyday reader and freely available online.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org A verse of rescue set in the middle of judgment, and how Paul picks it up in 1 Corinthians 15.
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of Hosea -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- No Savior Besides God (v.4) — God reminds Israel that He alone has been their God and Savior since Egypt, with no other rescuer to claim credit. Where might you be looking for ultimate rescue or security in something other than God?
- The Prosperity Trap (v.6) — The pattern described is being fed, becoming satisfied, growing proud, and then forgetting God entirely. As your own life becomes more comfortable, are you becoming more or less intentional about remembering God?
- Self-Destruction Met by God's Help (v.9) — Israel is told they've destroyed themselves, yet their help is still found in God. Are you honestly owning your part in your own struggles while still turning to God as the source of help rather than staying stuck in self-blame?
- Death Itself Undone (v.14) — God declares He will be death's plague and the grave's destruction, a promise later applied to Christ's resurrection victory. Whatever kind of death you're facing right now — physical, relational, or a dream that feels over — does this promise shape how you face it?
- Prosperity With an Expiration Date (v.15) — The coming east wind will dry up springs and empty storehouses, showing that prosperity apart from God cannot last. Is what you're relying on for security built to withstand a season when circumstances turn dry?