Hosea 8:10
in Hosea 8Though they hire allies among the nations, I will now round them up, and they will begin to diminish under the oppression of the king of princes.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Yea, though they hire among the nations, now will I gather them; and they begin to be diminished by reason of the burden of the king of princes.
KJV
Yea, though they have hired among the nations, now will I gather them, and they shall sorrow a little for the burden of the king of princes.
⋯
This verse in Hosea 8
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
English Version gives good sense: They shall sorrow "a little" at the imposition of the tribute; God suspended yet the great judgment, namely, their deportation by Assyria. the burden of the king of princes--the tribute imposed on Israel (under Menahem) by the Assyrian king Pul, (2Ki 15:19-22), who had many "princes" under his sway (Isa 10:8).
This site's exposition
gone up to Assyria, a wild ass alone by himself
on Hosea 8:9-10
Ephraim's diplomacy is pictured as a wild ass wandering alone toward Assyria, an animal without herd or master, and hiring lovers turns the marriage language of the book's opening chapters onto foreign policy itself, alliance treated as adultery. The nations Ephraim paid for protection become, in verse ten, the very peoples among whom the Lord will gather Israel for judgment instead of rescue. The burden of the king of princes points most naturally to Assyria's own emperor, whose tribute demands were themselves part of the sorrow Israel had purchased with her hired alliances, the price of borrowed safety finally coming due.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"For they are gone up to Assyria, a wild ass alone by himself: Ephraim hath given gifts to his lovers, yea, though they have hired among the nations, now will I gather them together, and they shall rest a little from the burden of the king and the princes." LXX: "Because they went up to the Assyrians, Ephraim has flourished within himself: they have loved gifts, therefore they shall be given to the Gentiles: now will I gather them together, and they shall rest a little from the labour of the king and the princes."
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
8 ), the beginning of revenges, Deut. xxxii. Note, God often comes gradually with his judgments upon a provoking people, that he may show how slow he is to wrath, and may awaken them to repentance; but those that are made to sorrow a little, if they are not thereby brought to sorrow after a godly sort, will, another day, be made to sorrow a great deal, to sorrow everlastingly.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-citation-number+unbalanced-parens
Yea, though they have hired among the nations,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
For the burden of the king of princes - The exactions of the Assyrian king, and the princes of the provinces.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Yea, though they have hired - Or better, “because or when they hinge among the pagan, now will I gather them;” i. e., I will gather the nations together. The sin of Israel should bring its own punishment.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
Although they pay hire among the nations Although they did this, that they paid for lovers of the nations.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
For Ephraim has increased Therefore, I will humble them with the burden of the king and the princes.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| גַּ֛ם | gam | also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| יִתְנ֥וּ | yitnu | they will hire | H8566 → | |
| בַגּוֹיִ֖ם | vagoyim | among the nations | H1471 → | 561 times |
| עַתָּ֣ה | ʾatah | now | H6258 → | 433 times |
| אֲקַבְּצֵ֑ם | ʾakabetzem | I will gather them | H6908 → | 127 times |
| וַיָּחֵ֣לּוּ | vaiyachelu | and they have begun | H2490 → | |
| מְּעָ֔ט | meat | a few | H4592 → | |
| מִמַּשָּׂ֖א | mimasa' | from [the] burden of | H4853 → | |
| מֶ֥לֶךְ | melekh | a king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| שָׂרִֽים׃ | sarim | princes | H8269 → | 421 times |
גַּ֛םalso
gamH1571 →769 times
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
יִתְנ֥וּthey will hire
yitnuH8566 →
בַגּוֹיִ֖םamong the nations
vagoyimH1471 →561 times
עַתָּ֣הnow
ʾatahH6258 →433 times
אֲקַבְּצֵ֑םI will gather them
ʾakabetzemH6908 →127 times
וַיָּחֵ֣לּוּand they have begun
vaiyacheluH2490 →
מְּעָ֔טa few
meatH4592 →
מִמַּשָּׂ֖אfrom [the] burden of
mimasa'H4853 →
מֶ֥לֶךְa king
melekhH4428 →2525 times
שָׂרִֽים׃princes
sarimH8269 →421 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Ezekiel 26:7For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I will bring against Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, with cavalry and a great company…
it leads to
- Daniel 2:37
You, O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given sovereignty, power, strength, and glory.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Ezra 7:12
Artaxerxes, king of kings. To Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven: Greetings.
- Ezekiel 23:24
They will come against you with a host of peoples, with weapons, chariots, and wagons. They will array themselves against you on every side with buckler and shield and helmet. I will delegate judgment…
- Nahum 2:3–4
The shields of his mighty men are red; the valiant warriors are dressed in scarlet. The fittings of the chariots flash like fire on the day they are prepared, and the spears of cypress…
- Daniel 2:37
Through
Jeremiah 42:2Jeremiah the prophet and said, “May our petition come before you; pray to the LORD your God on behalf of this entire remnant. For few of us remain of the many, as you can…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 36:7
Perhaps they will bring their petition before the LORD, and each one will turn from his wicked way; for great are the anger and fury that the LORD has pronounced against this people.”
- Leviticus 26:22
I will send wild animals against you to rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and reduce your numbers, until your roads lie desolate.
- Lamentations 1:1
How lonely lies the city, once so full of people! She who was great among the nations has become a widow. The princess of the provinces has become a slave.
- Acts 8:24
Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me, so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”
- Jeremiah 36:7
About Hosea
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets; Edward Bouverie Pusey, The Minor Prophets: A Commentary; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Hosea 8:9-10; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.