Hos 5:13 | NETfull | STEP | When Ephraim saw his sickness and Judah saw his wound, then Ephraim turned to Assyria, and begged its great king for help. But he will not be able to heal you! He cannot cure your wound!

Hosea 5:13

13 When Ephraim saw ^{▼▼ Hosea employs three preterites (vayyiqtol forms) in verse 13a-b to describe a past-time situation.} his sickness
and Judah saw his wound,
then Ephraim turned ^{▼▼ Heb “went to” (so NAB, NRSV, TEV); CEV “asked help from.”} to Assyria,
and begged ^{▼▼ Heb “sent to” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV).} its great king ^{▼▼ The MT reads מֶלֶךְ יָרֵב (melekh yarev, “a contentious king”). This is translated as a proper name (“king Jareb”) by KJV, ASV, NASB. However, the stative adjective יָרֵב (“contentious”) is somewhat awkward. The words should be redivided as an archaic genitive-construct מַלְכִּי רָב (malki rav, “great king”; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) which preserves the old genitive hireq yod ending. This is the equivalent of the Assyrian royal epithet sarru rabbu (“the great king”). See also the [V] note on the same phrase in 10:6.} for help.
But he will not be able to heal you!
He cannot cure your wound! ^{▼▼ Heb “your wound will not depart from you.”} ^{▼▼ Hosea personifies Ephraim’s “wound” as if it could depart from the sickly Ephraim (see the formal equivalent rendering in the preceding [T]). Ephraim’s sinful action in relying upon an Assyrian treaty for protection will not dispense with its problems.}