The Meaning of Hosea 13:9 Explained

Hosea 13:9

KJV: O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.

YLT: And I consume them there as a lioness, A beast of the field doth rend them.

Darby: It is thy destruction, O Israel, that thou art against me, against thy help.

ASV: It is thy destruction, O Israel, that thou art against me, against thy help.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

O Israel,  thou hast destroyed  thyself; but in me [is] thine help. 

What does Hosea 13:9 Mean?

Verse Meaning

By turning against the Lord who only desired to help them (cf. Hosea 13:4), the Israelites had done something that would result in their own destruction. How ironic it was that Israel"s helper would become her destroyer!

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 13:9 mean?

You are destroyed Israel but from Me your help [is]
שִֽׁחֶתְךָ֥ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל כִּֽי־ בִ֥י בְעֶזְרֶֽךָ

שִֽׁחֶתְךָ֥  You  are  destroyed 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, third person masculine singular, second person masculine singular
Root: שָׁחַת  
Sense: to destroy, corrupt, go to ruin, decay.
יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל  Israel 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.
בִ֥י  from  Me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
בְעֶזְרֶֽךָ  your  help  [is] 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: עֵזֶר  
Sense: help, succour.