Hosea 12:4

Hosea 12:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Beth–el, and there he spake with us;
• New International Version (NIV)He struggled with the angel and overcame him; he wept and begged for his favor. He found him at Bethel and talked with him there—
• English Standard Version (ESV)He strove with the angel and prevailed; he wept and sought his favor. He met God at Bethel, and there God spoke with us—
• New King James Version (NKJV)Yes, he struggled with the Angel and prevailed; He wept, and sought favor from Him. He found Him in Bethel, And there He spoke to us—

Context of Hosea 12:4

2The Lord also has a dispute [a legal complaint and an indictment] with Judah, And He will punish Jacob in accordance with his ways; He will repay him in accordance with his deeds. 3In their mother’s womb he took his brother by the heel, And in his maturity he contended with God. He wrestled with the angel and prevailed; He wept [in repentance] and sought His favor. He met Him at Bethel And there God spoke with [him and through him with] us— 5Even the Lord, the God of hosts, The name of Him [who spoke with Jacob] is the Lord. 6Therefore, return [in repentance] to your God, Observe and highly regard kindness and justice, And wait [expectantly] for your God continually.

Hosea 12:4 word by word

וָיָּ֤שַׂר אֶל־מַלְאָךְ֙ וַיֻּכָ֔ל בָּכָ֖ה וַיִּתְחַנֶּן־ל֑וֹ בֵּֽית־אֵל֙ יִמְצָאֶ֔נּוּ וְשָׁ֖ם יְדַבֵּ֥ר עִמָּֽנוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Yea, he had powerשׂוּרώûr · to reignH7786
• over the angelמַלְאָךְmal'âk · messenger: angelH4397
• and prevailedיָכֹלyâkôl yâkôl · be ableH3201
• he weptבָּכָהbâkâh · to weepH1058
• and made supplicationחָנַןchânan · be graciousH2603
• unto him: he foundמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
• Beth–elבֵּֽיתְ־אֵלbêyth-'êl · BethelH1008
• and there he spakeדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696

Cross-references for Hosea 12:4

• Genesis 32:29Then Jacob asked Him, “Please tell me Your name.” But He said, “Why is it that you ask My name?” And He declared a blessing [of the covenant promises] on Jacob there.
• Genesis 48:15Then Jacob (Israel) blessed Joseph, and said, “The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked [in faithful obedience], The God who has been my Shepherd [leading and caring for me] all my life to this day,
• Exodus 3:2The Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing flame of fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was on fire, yet it was not consumed.
• Isaiah 63:9In all their distress He was distressed, And the angel of His presence saved them, In His love and in His compassion He redeemed them; And He lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.
• Malachi 3:1“Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will prepare and clear the way before Me. And the Lord [the Messiah], whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts.
• Acts 7:30“After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning thorn bush.
• Genesis 32:9Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord, who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your people, and I will make you prosper,’
• Hebrews 5:7In the days of His earthly life, Jesus offered up both [specific] petitions and [urgent] supplications [for that which He needed] with fervent crying and tears to the One who was [always] able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverent submission toward God [His sinlessness and His unfailing determination to do the Father’s will].
• Genesis 28:11And he came to a certain place and stayed overnight there because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down there [to sleep].
• Genesis 35:9Then God [in a visible manifestation] appeared to Jacob again when he came out of Paddan-aram, and declared a blessing on him.
• Psalms 66:6He turned the sea into dry land; They crossed through the river on foot; There we rejoiced in Him.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:17Then we who are alive and remain [on the earth] will simultaneously be caught up (raptured) together with them [the resurrected ones] in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord!
• Hebrews 6:13For when God made the promise to Abraham, He swore [an oath] by Himself, since He had no one greater by whom to swear,

Commentaries on Hosea 12:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4He had power over the Angel - Who represented the invisible Jehovah. He wept, and made supplication - He entreated with tears that God would bless him; and he prevailed. The circumstance of his weeping is not mentioned in Genesis. He found him in Beth-el - It was there that God made those glorious promises to Jacob relative to his posterity. See Genesis 28:13-15.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4He wept and made supplication unto Him - Jacob‘s weeping is not mentioned by Moses. Hosea then knew more than Moses related. He could not have gathered it out of Moses, for Moses relates the words of earnest supplication; yet the tone is that of one, by force of earnest energy, wresting, as it were, the blessing from God, not of one weeping. Yet Hosea adds this, in harmony with Moses. For “vehement desires and earnest petitions frequently issue in tears.”…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4he found Him at Bethel: See Genesis 28:11–22.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. the angel--the uncreated Angel of the Covenant, as God the Son appears in the Old Testament (Mal 3:1). made supplication--Ge 32:26: "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." he found him--The angel found Jacob, when he was fleeing from Esau into Syria: the Lord appearing to him "in Beth-el" (Ge 28:11-19; 35:1). What a sad contrast, that in this same Beth-el now Israel worships the golden calves! there he spake with us--"with us," as being in the…Read the comment

Topics related to Hosea 12:4

• Beth-El
• Israel
• Jesus, the Christ
• Prayer

In the dictionaries

• Jacob
• Penuel
• Calf, Golden
• Hosea
• Jacob (1)
• Jeroboam
• Jeshurun
• Sarah; Sarai
• Zechariah, Book of
• Israel

Commentaries on Hosea 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings