New International Version
Hosea 1:7
7Yet I will show love to Judah; and I will save them—not by bow, sword or battle, or by horses and horsemen, but I, the Lord their God, will save them.”
Hosea 1:7 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the Lord their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen.
- English Standard Version (ESV)But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Yet I will have mercy on the house of Judah, Will save them by the Lord their God, And will not save them by bow, Nor by sword or battle, By horses or horsemen.”
- New Living Translation (NLT)But I will show love to the people of Judah. I will free them from their enemies—not with weapons and armies or horses and charioteers, but by my power as the Lord their God.”
Context of Hosea 1:7
5In that day I will break Israel’s bow in the Valley of Jezreel.” 6Gomer conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call her Lo-Ruhamah (which means “not loved”), for I will no longer show love to Israel, that I should at all forgive them. Yet I will show love to Judah; and I will save them—not by bow, sword or battle, or by horses and horsemen, but I, the Lord their God, will save them.” 8After she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, Gomer had another son. 9Then the Lord said, “Call him Lo-Ammi (which means “not my people”), for you are not my people, and I am not your God.
Read all of Hosea 1Hosea 1:7 word by word
וְאֶת־בֵּ֤ית יְהוּדָה֙ אֲרַחֵ֔ם וְהֽוֹשַׁעְתִּ֖ים בַּיהוָ֣ה אֱלֹֽהֵיהֶ֑ם וְלֹ֣א אֽוֹשִׁיעֵ֗ם בְּקֶ֤שֶׁת וּבְחֶ֙רֶב֙ וּבְמִלְחָמָ֔ה בְּסוּסִ֖ים וּבְפָרָשִֽׁים׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- But I will have mercyרָחַםrâcham · to have compassionH7355
- upon the houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004
- of Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
- and will saveיָשַׁעyâsha‛ · to saveH3467
- them by the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- their Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- them by bowקֶ֫שֶׁתqesheth · bowH7198
- nor by swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
- nor by battleמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421
- by horsesסוּסsûs sûs · horseH5483
- nor by horsemenפָּרָשׁpârâsh · horsemanH6571
Cross-references for Hosea 1:7
- Hosea 11:12Ephraim has surrounded me with lies, Israel with deceit. And Judah is unruly against God, even against the faithful Holy One.
- 2 Kings 19:35That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!
- Isaiah 36:1In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.
- Isaiah 7:14Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
- Isaiah 12:2Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”
- Isaiah 49:6he says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”
- Jeremiah 23:5“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land.
- Zechariah 2:6“Come! Come! Flee from the land of the north,” declares the Lord, “for I have scattered you to the four winds of heaven,” declares the Lord.
- Zechariah 4:6So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.
- Zechariah 9:9Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
- Matthew 1:21She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
- Psalms 33:16No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength.
- Psalms 44:3It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you loved them.
Commentaries on Hosea 1:7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah - I will spare them as a kingdom after Israel has been carried away into captivity by the Assyrians. And will save them by the Lord their God - Remarkably fulfilled in the supernatural defeat of the army of the Assyrians, see 2 Kings 19:35; and so they were saved not by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, nor by horses, nor by horsemen. The former expression may mean, not in war by horses, i.e., yoked to war…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7I will have mercy on the house of Judah - For to them the promises were made in David, and of them, according to the flesh, Christ was to come. Israel, moreover, as being founded in rebellion and apostasy, had gone on from bad to worse. All their kings clave to the sin of Jeroboam; not one did right in the sight of God; not one repented or hearkened to God. Whereas Judah, having the true Worship of God, and the reading of the law, and the typical…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7For many years, the kingdom of Israel relied on its armies, horses, and charioteers for security. However, this confidence was misplaced. True safety and security come from God's power as the Lord.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. Judah is only incidentally mentioned to form a contrast to Israel. by the Lord their God--more emphatic than "by Myself"; by that Jehovah (Me) whom they worship as their God, whereas ye despise Him. not ... by bow--on which ye Israelites rely (Ho 1:5, "the bow of Israel"); Jeroboam II was famous as a warrior (2Ki 14:25). Yet it was not by their warlike power Jehovah would save Judah (1Sa 17:47; Psa 20:7). The deliverance of Jerusalem from Sennacherib…Read the comment
Topics related to Hosea 1:7
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Hosea 1
- 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
New International Version — © NIV® 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 Biblica
Commentaries