Hos 13 | TNotes | STEP | 13:1 At the height of its power, the tribe of Ephraim evoked terror among other Israelites (see Isa 7:2 ). • and thus sealed their destruction (literally and he [Ephraim] died ): Because of their idolatry, they had cut themselves off from the Lord, the only true source of life.

13:1 ^a At the height of its power, the tribe of Ephraim evoked terror among other Israelites (see Isa 7:2 ^b).

• and thus sealed their destruction (literally and he [Ephraim] died): Because of their idolatry, they had cut themselves off from the Lord, the only true source of life.
13:2 ^c The Hebrew word translated idols is the same one used of the gold calf (Exod 32:4 ^d, 8 ^e; see also Hos 10:5-6 ^f; Amos 5:5-6 ^g).

• kiss the calf idols: The Canaanite religious rituals included kissing images of Baal (1 Kgs 19:18 ^h).
13:3 ⁱ God’s judgment on idolatrous Ephraim was that they would disappear (cp. 6:4 ^j).

• Mist ... dew ... chaff and smoke signify impermanence.
Summary for Hos 13:4-5: 13:4-5 ^k there is no other savior: The Lord had proved this to Israel during the Exodus and the wilderness wandering.
13:6 ^l you became proud and forgot me: They relied not on the Lord for security, but on their kings, armies, and economic prosperity (see 2:13 ^m).
Summary for Hos 13:7-8: 13:7-8 ⁿ God had executed judgment on Israel through the Assyrian army, his instrument of punishment. The description of God’s attack speaks of the Assyrians’ cruelty to those they conquered.
13:9 ^o me, your only helper: See Pss 70:5 ^p; 115:9 ^q; 121:2 ^r; 124:8 ^s. Israel’s sin had turned their helper into their destroyer.
13:10 ^t where is your king? When Hoshea’s alliance with Egypt failed (see 12:1 ^u), he tried to make peace with Assyria, but he was captured and imprisoned (2 Kgs 17:4 ^v). The Israelites had relied on their armies and kings to save them rather than on the Lord, and now there was no one to save them.
13:11 ^w Israel had crowned her kings without consulting the Lord, so now he would take them away in fury.
13:12 ^x God had carefully stored up the record of Israel’s sin and guilt. He could not escape his punishment.
13:13 ^y Israel was like a child in the womb who resists being born (literally an unwise son). Incredibly, Israel would rather stay in the womb than receive life from the Lord.
13:14 ^z The term here translated the grave (Hebrew Sheol) refers to the realm of the dead (see Job 3:11-19 ^aa; see also study note on Job 7:9). The Lord is sovereign even over Sheol, and he could redeem Israel if he chose to. But he will not take pity on the Israelites, and he calls upon death to punish them.
13:16 ^ab In 722 BC, Assyria captured Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom (2 Kgs 17:5-6 ^ac). Thousands died during the three-year siege, and thousands more were sent into exile. This was because they rebelled against their God.

• The horrible practice of killing pregnant women is also mentioned in Amos 1:13 ^ad and 2 Kgs 15:16 ^ae.