The Meaning of Hosea 13:10 Explained

Hosea 13:10

KJV: I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes?

YLT: Thou hast destroyed thyself, O Israel, But in Me is thy help, Where is thy king now -- And he doth save thee in all thy cities? And thy judges of whom thou didst say, 'Give to me a king and heads?'

Darby: Where then is thy king, that he may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes? --

ASV: Where now is thy king, that he may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges, of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I will  be thy king:  where  [is any other] that may save  thee in all thy cities?  and thy judges  of whom thou saidst,  Give  me a king  and princes? 

What does Hosea 13:10 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The people had formerly asked their leaders to give them a king like all the other nations. They hoped that their king and his princes would provide deliverance for them. God had given them kings, first Saul ( 1 Samuel 8:4-9; 1 Samuel 12:12) and more recently the kings of Israel that were not of David"s line but were kings of the people"s own choosing ( 1 Kings 12:16-20). Yet all these kings had proved ineffective in saving the Israelites. Only Yahweh was their savior ( Hosea 13:4).

Context Summary

Hosea 13:1-14 - To Oppose God Is Destruction
Again, a very tender chapter. The lips that speak with trembling betray the heart that God can exalt. But when we turn to Baal, the emblem of self-confidence, we pass as the morning cloud the dew, the chaff, and the smoke.
In Hosea 13:4 we again get the sweet strain of early memory. God had not changed and was waiting to save. They had refused His help and had destroyed themselves, and He who would have done His best for them had been constrained to act as though He were a lion, a leopard, or a bear. In the wilderness we are thankful enough for His help, but when we reach the land of the vine and olive, we follow the devices and desires of our own hearts.
What a magnificent outburst is that which declares the divine intention to ransom even from death and the grave! We all know the New Testament setting of these words. Our Savior by His death destroyed him that had the power of death. He is death's plague and the grave's destruction. The sting of death is sin, but Jesus has borne sin away. The strength of sin is a violated law, but He has fulfilled the law. He is more than conqueror, and the soul that is one with Him shall share His triumph. [source]

Chapter Summary: Hosea 13

1  Ephraim's glory vanishes
4  God's anger
9  God's mercy
15  The judgment of Samaria

What do the individual words in Hosea 13:10 mean?

I will be your king where [is any other] that he may save you in all your cities and your judges to whom you said Give me a King and princes
אֱהִ֤י מַלְכְּךָ֙ אֵפ֔וֹא וְיוֹשִֽׁיעֲךָ֖ בְּכָל־ ؟ עָרֶ֑יךָ וְשֹׁ֣פְטֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֣ר אָמַ֔רְתָּ תְּנָה־ לִּ֖י מֶ֥לֶךְ ؟ וְשָׂרִֽים

אֱהִ֤י  I  will  be 
Parse: Interjection
Root: אֱהִי  
Sense: where.
מַלְכְּךָ֙  your  king 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
אֵפ֔וֹא  where  [is  any  other] 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: אֵפֹוא  
Sense: then, now, so.
וְיוֹשִֽׁיעֲךָ֖  that  he  may  save  you 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine singular, second person masculine singular
Root: יָשַׁע 
Sense: to save, be saved, be delivered.
בְּכָל־  in  all 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
؟ עָרֶ֑יךָ  your  cities 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
וְשֹׁ֣פְטֶ֔יךָ  and  your  judges 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: שָׁפַט  
Sense: to judge, govern, vindicate, punish.
אֲשֶׁ֣ר  to  whom 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
אָמַ֔רְתָּ  you  said 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
תְּנָה־  Give 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular, third person feminine singular
Root: יָתַן 
Sense: to give, put, set.
לִּ֖י  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
מֶ֥לֶךְ  a  King 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
؟ וְשָׂרִֽים  and  princes 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural
Root: סָרַר 
Sense: prince, ruler, leader, chief, chieftain, official, captain.