The Meaning of Hosea 2:18 Explained

Hosea 2:18

KJV: And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely.

YLT: And I have made to them a covenant in that day, with the beast of the field, And with the fowl of the heavens, And the creeping thing of the ground, And bow, and sword, and war I break from off the land, And have caused them to lie down confidently.

Darby: And I will make a covenant for them in that day with the beasts of the field, and with the fowl of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground; and I will break bow and sword and battle out of the land; and I will make them to lie down safely.

ASV: And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the birds of the heavens, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the land, and will make them to lie down safely.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And in that day  will I make  a covenant  for them with the beasts  of the field,  and with the fowls  of heaven,  and [with] the creeping things  of the ground:  and I will break  the bow  and the sword  and the battle  out of the earth,  and will make them to lie down  safely. 

What does Hosea 2:18 Mean?

Verse Meaning

In that day the Lord promised also to make all the animals in the Promised Land safe and secure (cf. Hosea 2:12; Leviticus 26:5-6; Leviticus 26:22). He would make it safe for the animals to live there by removing war from the land. This is a way of saying that the Israelites, and even the animals in Israel, would dwell in peace and security. Attacks from wild animals and destruction from war were prominent motifs employed in the curses threatened in ancient Near Eastern treaties. [1]

Context Summary

Hosea 2:14-23 - "a Door Of Hope"
The valley of Achor was a long wild pass up through the hills. The prophet says that a door of hope would open there, like the Mont Cenis tunnel which leads from the precipices and torrents on the northern slopes of the Alps to the sunny plains of Italy. That door opens hard by the heap of stones beneath which that troubler of Israel, Achan, was laid. We must put away our Achans before we can see doors of hope swing wide before us.
The prophet was bidden to make one further overture to his truant wife. She had been faithless, but the old love burnt in her husband's soul, and he was prepared to buy her back to himself at half the price of a female slave, Exodus 21:32. His only stipulation was that she should abide with him for many days. This was to be a time of testing, with the assurance that, if she were penitent and faithful, she would be perfectly restored.
What a wonderful verse is Hosea 2:3! We are purchased to God by the death of His Son. He only asks us to be for Himself and He promises to be for us. "The best of all," cried the dying Wesley, "is that God is for us!" Shall we not close with the offer and give ourselves to Him? [source]

Chapter Summary: Hosea 2

1  The idolatry of the people
6  God's judgments against them
14  His promises of reconciliation with them

What do the individual words in Hosea 2:18 mean?

And I will make for them a covenant in day that with the beasts of the field and with the birds of the air and [with] the creeping things of the ground And Bow and sword and battle I will shatter from the earth and to make them lie down safely
וְכָרַתִּ֨י לָהֶ֤ם בְּרִית֙ בַּיּ֣וֹם הַה֔וּא עִם־ חַיַּ֤ת הַשָּׂדֶה֙ וְעִם־ ע֣וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וְרֶ֖מֶשׂ הָֽאֲדָמָ֑ה וְקֶ֨שֶׁת וְחֶ֤רֶב וּמִלְחָמָה֙ אֶשְׁבּ֣וֹר מִן־ הָאָ֔רֶץ וְהִשְׁכַּבְתִּ֖ים לָבֶֽטַח

וְכָרַתִּ֨י  And  I  will  make 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, first person common singular
Root: כָּרַת  
Sense: to cut, cut off, cut down, cut off a body part, cut out, eliminate, kill, cut a covenant.
לָהֶ֤ם  for  them 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine plural
בְּרִית֙  a  covenant 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: בְּרִית  
Sense: covenant, alliance, pledge.
בַּיּ֣וֹם  in  day 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
הַה֔וּא  that 
Parse: Article, Pronoun, third person masculine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.
חַיַּ֤ת  the  beasts 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: חַי 
Sense: living, alive.
הַשָּׂדֶה֙  of  the  field 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: שָׂדֶה 
Sense: field, land.
וְעִם־  and  with 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: עִם  
Sense: with.
ע֣וֹף  the  birds 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: עֹוף  
Sense: flying creatures, fowl, insects, birds.
הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם  of  the  air 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: שָׁמַיִם  
Sense: heaven, heavens, sky.
וְרֶ֖מֶשׂ  and  [with]  the  creeping  things 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: רֶמֶשׂ  
Sense: creeping things, moving things, creeping organism.
הָֽאֲדָמָ֑ה  of  the  ground 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֲדָמָה 
Sense: ground, land.
וְקֶ֨שֶׁת  And  Bow 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: קֶשֶׁת  
Sense: bow.
וְחֶ֤רֶב  and  sword 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: חֶרֶב  
Sense: sword, knife.
וּמִלְחָמָה֙  and  battle 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: מִלְחָמָה  
Sense: battle, war.
אֶשְׁבּ֣וֹר  I  will  shatter 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, first person common singular
Root: שָׁבוּר 
Sense: to break, break in pieces.
הָאָ֔רֶץ  the  earth 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
וְהִשְׁכַּבְתִּ֖ים  and  to  make  them  lie  down 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Conjunctive perfect, first person common singular, third person masculine plural
Root: שָׁכַב  
Sense: to lie down.
לָבֶֽטַח  safely 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular
Root: בֶּטַח  
Sense: security, safety adv.