God’s Word Translation
Hosea 12:1
1The people of Ephraim try to catch the wind and try to chase the east wind all day. They are very violent and destructive. They make treaties with Assyria and take olive oil to Egypt.
Hosea 12:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Ephraim feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind: he daily increaseth lies and desolation; and they do make a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt.
- New International Version (NIV)Ephraim feeds on the wind; he pursues the east wind all day and multiplies lies and violence. He makes a treaty with Assyria and sends olive oil to Egypt.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Ephraim feeds on the wind and pursues the east wind all day long; they multiply falsehood and violence; they make a covenant with Assyria, and oil is carried to Egypt.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Ephraim feeds on the wind, And pursues the east wind; He daily increases lies and desolation. Also they make a covenant with the Assyrians, And oil is carried to Egypt.
Context of Hosea 12:1
The people of Ephraim try to catch the wind and try to chase the east wind all day. They are very violent and destructive. They make treaties with Assyria and take olive oil to Egypt. 2The Lord brings charges against Judah and punishes Jacob because of the way their people act. He will pay them back for what they have done. 3Their ancestor Jacob held on to his brother’s heel while the two of them were in their mother’s womb. When Jacob became a man, he struggled with God.
Read all of Hosea 12Hosea 12:1 word by word
אֶפְרַ֜יִם רֹעֶ֥ה ר֙וּחַ֙ וְרֹדֵ֣ף קָדִ֔ים כָּל־הַיּ֕וֹם כָּזָ֥ב וָשֹׁ֖ד יַרְבֶּ֑ה וּבְרִית֙ עִם־אַשּׁ֣וּר יִכְרֹ֔תוּ וְשֶׁ֖מֶן לְמִצְרַ֥יִם יוּבָֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Ephraimאֶפְרַ֫יִם'ephrayim · EphraimH669
- feedethרָעָהrâ‛âh · to pastureH7462
- on windרוּחַrûach · spirit: breathH7307
- and followethרָדַףrâdaph · to pursueH7291
- after the east windקָדִיםqâdîym qâdim · eastH6921
- he dailyיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- increasethרָבָהrâbâh · to multiplyH7235
- liesכָּזָבkâzâb · lieH3577
- and desolationשֹׁדshôd shôd · violenceH7701
- and they do makeכָּרַתkârath · to cut: make(covenant)H3772
- a covenantבְּרִיתberîyth · covenantH1285
- with the Assyriansאַשּׁוּר'ashshûr 'ashshûr · AssyriaH804
- and oilשֶׁ֫מֶןshemen · oilH8081
- is carriedיָבַלyâbal · to conductH2986
- into Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
Cross-references for Hosea 12:1
- Hosea 8:7“The people of Israel plant the wind, but they harvest a storm. A field of grain that doesn’t ripen will never produce any grain. Even if it did produce grain, foreigners would eat it all.
- Job 15:2“Should a wise person answer with endless details and fill his stomach with the east wind?
- Jeremiah 22:22The wind will blow away all your shepherds, and your lovers will go into captivity. Then you will be ashamed and disgraced by all your wickedness.
- Hosea 11:12“Ephraim surrounds me with lies. The nation of Israel surrounds me with deceit.” Judah rebels against God, against the Holy One who is faithful.
- Hosea 5:13“When Ephraim saw that he was sick and when Judah saw his own wounds, Ephraim went to Assyria to ask the great king for help. But the king couldn’t cure them or heal their wounds.
- 2 Kings 15:19King Pul of Assyria came to ⌞attack⌟ the country. So Menahem gave Pul 75,000 pounds of silver to gain his support and help strengthen his hold on the kingdom.
- 2 Kings 17:4The king of Assyria found Hoshea to be a traitor. (Hoshea had sent messengers to King Dais of Egypt and had stopped making annual payments to the king of Assyria.) So the king of Assyria arrested him and put him in prison.
- Isaiah 30:6This is the divine revelation about the animals in the Negev. “My people travel through lands where they experience distress and hardship. Lions and lionesses live there. Vipers and poisonous snakes live there. They carry their riches on the backs of young donkeys and their treasures on the humps of camels to a nation that can’t help them.
Commentaries on Hosea 12:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1Ephraim feedeth on wind - He forms and follows empty and unstable counsels. Followeth after the east wind - They are not only empty, but dangerous and destructive. The east wind was, and still is, in all countries, a parching, wasting, injurious wind. He daily increaseth lies - He promises himself safety from foreign alliances. He "made a covenant with the Assyrians," and sent a subsidy of "oil to Egypt." The latter abandoned him; the former oppressed him.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1Ephraim feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind - The East wind in Palestine, coming from Arabia and the far East, over large tracts of sandy waste, is parching, scorching, destructive to vegetation, oppressive to man, violent and destructive on the sea Psalm 48:7, and, by land also, having the force of the whirlwind (Job 27:21; see Jeremiah 18:17). “The East wind carrieth him away and he departeth, and as a whirlwind hurleth him out of his…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1Judah and Israel reminded of the Divine favours. (Hos. 12:1-6) The provocations of Israel. (Hos. 12:7-14) Verses 1-6 Ephraim feeds himself with vain hopes of help from man, when he is at enmity with God. The Jews vainly thought to secure the Egyptians by a present of the produce of their country. Judah is contended with also. God sees the sin of his own people, and will reckon with them for it. They are put in mind of what Jacob did, and what God did for…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1a covenant with Assyria: To save his land, Hoshea became a vassal of King Shalmaneser of Assyria (2 Kings 17:3). Hoshea soon rebelled against Shalmaneser by withholding tribute and sought support from King So of Egypt (2 Kings 17:4). east wind: See study note on Job 38:24–27.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-14This prophecy was delivered about the time of Israel's seeking the aid of the Egyptian king So, in violation of their covenant with Assyria (see Ho 12:1). He exhorts them to follow their father Jacob's persevering prayerfulness, which brought God's favor upon him. As God is unchangeable, He will show the same favor to Jacob's posterity as He did to Jacob, if, like him, they seek God. 1. feedeth on wind--(Pr 15:14; Is 44:20). Followeth after vain objects…Read the comment
Topics related to Hosea 12:1
In the dictionaries
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
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