The Meaning of Hosea 13:13 Explained

Hosea 13:13

KJV: The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking forth of children.

YLT: Pangs of a travailing woman come to him, He is a son not wise, For he remaineth not the time for the breaking forth of sons.

Darby: The pangs of a woman in travail shall come upon him: he is a son not wise; for at the time of the breaking forth of children, he was not there.

ASV: The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for it is time he should not tarry in the place of the breaking forth of children.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

The sorrows  of a travailing woman  shall come  upon him: he [is] an unwise  son;  for he should not stay  long  in [the place of] the breaking forth  of children. 

What does Hosea 13:13 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Israel was like a baby that refused to come out of its mother"s womb in the sense that it refused to leave its comfortable sin. Despite the mother"s (God"s) strenuous efforts to bring the child into freedom, Israel refused to repent. This was evidence that Israel was a foolish child. She would die rather than leave her sins, apparently feeling that the proper time for repenting was not yet.

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 13:13 mean?

The sorrows of a woman in childbirth shall come upon him He son not an unwise for long not he should stay where are born children
חֶבְלֵ֥י יֽוֹלֵדָ֖ה יָבֹ֣אוּ ל֑וֹ הוּא־ בֵן֙ לֹ֣א חָכָ֔ם כִּֽי־ עֵ֥ת לֹֽא־ יַעֲמֹ֖ד בְּמִשְׁבַּ֥ר בָּנִֽים

חֶבְלֵ֥י  The  sorrows 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: חֶבֶל 
Sense: a cord, rope, territory, band, company.
יֽוֹלֵדָ֖ה  of  a  woman  in  childbirth 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, feminine singular
Root: יָלַד 
Sense: to bear, bring forth, beget, gender, travail.
יָבֹ֣אוּ  shall  come 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
ל֑וֹ  upon  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
בֵן֙  son 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
חָכָ֔ם  an  unwise 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: חָכָם  
Sense: wise, wise (man).
עֵ֥ת  long 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: עֵת  
Sense: time.
יַעֲמֹ֖ד  he  should  stay 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
בְּמִשְׁבַּ֥ר  where  are  born 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מַשְׁבֵּר  
Sense: place of breaking forth, place of breach, opening.
בָּנִֽים  children 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.