Hosea 9 16

Hosea 9:16 kjv

Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear no fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved fruit of their womb.

Hosea 9:16 nkjv

Ephraim is stricken, Their root is dried up; They shall bear no fruit. Yes, were they to bear children, I would kill the darlings of their womb."

Hosea 9:16 niv

Ephraim is blighted, their root is withered, they yield no fruit. Even if they bear children, I will slay their cherished offspring."

Hosea 9:16 esv

Ephraim is stricken; their root is dried up; they shall bear no fruit. Even though they give birth, I will put their beloved children to death.

Hosea 9:16 nlt

The people of Israel are struck down.
Their roots are dried up,
and they will bear no more fruit.
And if they give birth,
I will slaughter their beloved children."

Hosea 9 verses

Hosea 9 16 meaning

Hosea 9:16 declares a severe divine judgment upon Ephraim (Israel) for their unfaithfulness and idolatry. It signifies a complete reversal of their purpose and blessing as God's chosen people, particularly through the devastation of their posterity and future. Ephraim, once meant to be fruitful, is now portrayed as a barren vine whose very root has withered, symbolizing the utter destruction of their source of life, growth, and hope. God, through a direct and active intervention, promises to render their womb unfruitful and even to slay any cherished offspring they might conceive, underscoring the irreversible and heartbreaking extent of their national and generational demise.

Hosea 9 16 Context

Hosea 9 is a prophecy of severe judgment against Israel, particularly the northern kingdom known as Ephraim, for their pervasive idolatry, spiritual harlotry, and reliance on foreign alliances rather than God. The chapter immediately preceding verse 16 vividly details their coming sorrow and loss: they are denied their celebratory feasts (v. 1-3), facing forced return to Egypt and Assyria (v. 3, 6), and their altars of sin multiplying (v. 7). There is an acute sense of a complete and impending collapse of their national identity and religious life, underscored by the explicit declaration of God's rejection (v. 15). The historical context is critical; Israel, under constant threat from Assyria, pursued a path of syncretism, blending Yahweh worship with Canaanite Baal cults, especially in fertility rituals, hoping for agricultural and human fruitfulness. Hosea 9:16 acts as a climax to these declarations of judgment, showing God directly countering their misplaced faith in fertility gods by bringing absolute barrenness and the ultimate tragedy of lost progeny as a direct consequence of their covenant betrayal, dismantling the very core of their future existence.

Hosea 9 16 Word analysis

• Ephraim (אֶפְרַיִם - 'Ephrayim)
  • Meaning: "Doubly fruitful" or "Fruitfulness." It is the name of Jacob's grandson and became the prominent tribe and often a metonym for the entire Northern Kingdom of Israel.
  • Significance: This verse uses the name ironically. The nation meant to be fruitful and multiply (Gen 48:19) will now experience the exact opposite – barrenness and the destruction of offspring. This reversal is a strong indictment of their failure to live up to their calling.
• is smitten (הוּכָּה - hukkah)
  • Meaning: Passive, from the root nakah (נָכָה), "to strike," "to smite," "to wound." Here, it means to be struck down or severely afflicted.
  • Significance: This is not an accident but a divinely ordained action. God Himself is the one delivering the decisive blow, indicating the judgment is complete and inescapable. It signifies the commencement of their downfall.
• their root (שֹׁרְשָׁם - shoresham)
  • Meaning: "Their root." The foundation or source of life for a plant.
  • Significance: This metaphor illustrates the completeness of the destruction. Without a healthy root, a tree or plant cannot grow, bear fruit, or even survive. It symbolizes the death of their national life, continuity, and prosperity at its deepest level.
• is dried up (יָבֵשׁ - yavēsh)
  • Meaning: "Is dried up," "withered."
  • Significance: The drying up of the root signifies an irreversible and fatal condition. It suggests not merely a temporary setback but the death of their ability to thrive and perpetuate. This contrasts sharply with the promises of being rooted and firm in the land for obedience.
• they shall bear no fruit (פְּרִי לֹא יַעֲשׂוּן - periy lo' ya'asûwn)
  • Meaning: "Fruit no they will do/make," i.e., "they will not produce fruit."
  • Significance: A direct and immediate consequence of the dried-up root. 'Fruit' here extends beyond physical produce to represent children, prosperity, and blessings—all denied as a result of divine judgment. This also challenges the efficacy of the Baal cults they adopted, which promised fertility but delivered barrenness.
• even though they bring forth (כִּי גַם אִם יְלֵדוּן - kî gam 'im yelēdûn)
  • Meaning: "For even if they bear children," or "even if they give birth."
  • Significance: This intensifies the severity. It suggests that despite the barrenness, should any child manage to be conceived and born, it would not escape God's judgment. It speaks of the inescapability of the curse, reaching into the seemingly miraculous.
• yet will I slay (וְהִכְתִּי - w'hikkətî)
  • Meaning: Active voice, Hiphil 1cs, "and I will strike/slay." The same root as 'smitten' (nakah).
  • Significance: Here, God explicitly declares Himself the active agent in this horrific judgment. The repeated use of nakah reinforces the certainty and the source of the blow. This is God's direct intervention, taking the lives of even newly born infants.
• the beloved fruit of their womb (מַחֲמַד בִּטְנָם - maḥămāḏ biṭnām)
  • Meaning: "Desire/delight of their belly/womb." "Beloved fruit" implies precious or highly desired offspring.
  • Significance: This phrase highlights the profound pain and tragedy of the judgment. Children were a primary blessing and source of hope in ancient Israel. To target the most cherished and vulnerable reveals the full extent of God's righteous wrath against persistent covenant disloyalty and deep spiritual apostasy. It removes any hope of future generation or continuity.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "Ephraim is smitten": This phrase establishes the divine action and the target of the judgment. 'Smitten' conveys a severe, direct, and painful blow from God Himself, initiating the nation's downfall. It signals an end to God's patience.
• "their root is dried up; they shall bear no fruit": This imagery draws on natural processes to communicate the utter devastation. A dried-up root means an end to life and growth. No fruit means no produce, no blessings, no future generations. It negates Ephraim's very name, showcasing the divine irony against their idolatrous pursuit of fertility. It reflects a complete severing from the source of life and blessing, reminiscent of covenant curses for disobedience.
• "even though they bring forth, yet will I slay the beloved fruit of their womb": This climax intensifies the horror. It moves beyond passive barrenness to active divine infanticide. This demonstrates God's ultimate rejection and ensures there is no hope for recovery through a new generation. It signifies that God is reclaiming even the most sacred gift of life, denying them not only the possibility but also the retention of progeny, bringing to pass the harshest form of covenant judgment.

Hosea 9 16 Bonus section

• The judgment in Hosea 9:16 directly counteracts the false promises of the Baal cult, which was prevalent in Northern Israel. The Canaanite god Baal was associated with storm, rain, and therefore fertility. The Israelites, especially Ephraim, believed that by participating in Baal worship, they would ensure abundant harvests and human offspring. God's judgment of a "dried up root" and the slaying of "beloved fruit" explicitly demonstrates the impotence of Baal and affirms Yahweh as the sole sovereign over life, death, and fertility, directly refuting the idolatrous syncretism of the people.
• This severe judgment, including infanticide, finds echoes in the curses outlined in Deuteronomy 28 for covenant disobedience, particularly 28:18 ("cursed shall be the fruit of your womb") and 28:32 ("Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people..."). It's a testament to the fact that God holds His covenant people to a higher standard and the consequences for breach are severe, aiming to awaken them from their spiritual stupor.
• The phrase "beloved fruit of their womb" (מַחֲמַד בִּטְנָם - maḥămāḏ biṭnām) is also used in other lamenting contexts to describe something precious that is taken away. This specific judgment not only denies Israel future generations but ensures that even current offspring cannot provide continuity, thereby signifying the irreversible end of their national existence in the land as God’s covenanted people (in the Northern Kingdom's case). This highlights the emotional devastation that accompanies God's judgment against apostasy.

Hosea 9 16 Commentary

Hosea 9:16 unveils the culminating horror of divine judgment against Ephraim for their persistent apostasy. The verse ironically targets their namesake "fruitfulness" with the threat of absolute barrenness and child mortality. God’s declaration "Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up" speaks of a comprehensive and foundational destruction of their national vitality and future, dismantling their very essence. The drying up of the "root" means the nation loses its capacity for life and continuation, rendering "no fruit" possible, neither in crops nor in children. The profound statement, "even though they bring forth, yet will I slay the beloved fruit of their womb," elevates the judgment from natural consequence to a direct, active, and agonizing divine intervention. God not only withholds new life but actively takes it away, targeting the most cherished aspect of Israelite society—their children—thereby annihilating their generational hope and demonstrating the tragic futility of seeking fertility blessings from Baal while forsaking the true Giver of life. This shows the severity of covenant wrath for violating their covenant with the living God, resulting in the most painful and final rejection.