The Meaning of Hosea 7:9 Explained

Hosea 7:9

KJV: Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not: yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth not.

YLT: Devoured have strangers his power, And he hath not known, Also old age hath sprinkled itself on him, And he hath not known.

Darby: Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not; yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him, and he knoweth it not.

ASV: Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not: yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him, and he knoweth it not.

Discover Hosea 7:9

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Hosea 7:9?

MEANING: What does Hosea 7:9 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Hosea 7:9 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Hosea 7:9?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Strangers  have devoured  his strength,  and he knoweth  [it] not: yea, gray hairs  are here and there  upon him, yet he knoweth  not. 

What does Hosea 7:9 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Foreign alliances had sapped Ephraim"s strength rather than adding to it, but the Israelites were ignorant of this. They thought they were as strong as ever. Tribute payments to allies constantly drained the nation"s wealth and weakened its economy (cf. 2 Kings 15:19-20; 2 Kings 17:3). Israel was unaware of its real condition, as when a person"s hair becomes gray but he does not notice it. Others can sense the approach of death, but he does not. Israel was dying in the late730s and early720s, but its own people did not know it.

Context Summary

Hosea 7:1-16 - Iniquity Uncovered
The last clause of the previous chapter belongs to this. God desired to turn aside the captivity of His people and to heal Israel, but His pleading was unavailing because of their inveterate sin. This evil-doing witnessed against them, Hosea 7:2. Their passions did not need incitement, just as an oven retains its heat without the baker's continued attention. The royal birthday was celebrated with drunken orgies, and the national religion had become a confused mixture of Gentile superstition and the old Hebrew faith. In this Israel resembled a cake not turned-crisp on one side, sour and uneatable on the other, Hosea 7:8.
What a searching suggestion comes in Hosea 7:9! Can it be that strangers have been stealing away our strength, without our realizing that deterioration is creeping steadily through our religious life? Silently the frosty air steals the warmth from boiling water; silently the fungus pitches its tent in the autumn woods; silently old age fastens on the stalwart frame. Thus also our spiritual strength declines, unless we watch and pray; and when it ebbs away, we become foolish as the dove which flies straight into the snare, and useless as the deceitful bow which turns aside in the archer's hand, Hosea 7:11; Hosea 7:16. [source]

Chapter Summary: Hosea 7

1  A reproof of manifold sins
11  God's wrath against them for their hypocrisy

What do the individual words in Hosea 7:9 mean?

Have devoured Aliens his strength but he not does know [it] Yes gray hairs are here and there on him and yet he not does know [it]
אָכְל֤וּ זָרִים֙ כֹּח֔וֹ וְה֖וּא לֹ֣א יָדָ֑ע גַּם־ שֵׂיבָה֙ זָ֣רְקָה בּ֔וֹ וְה֖וּא לֹ֥א יָדָֽע

אָכְל֤וּ  Have  devoured 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: אָכַל  
Sense: to eat, devour, burn up, feed.
זָרִים֙  Aliens 
Parse: Adjective, masculine plural
Root: זוּר 
Sense: to be strange, be a stranger.
כֹּח֔וֹ  his  strength 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: כֹּחַ 
Sense: strength, power, might.
וְה֖וּא  but  he 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Pronoun, third person masculine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.
יָדָ֑ע  does  know  [it] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.
גַּם־  Yes 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: גַּם  
Sense: also, even, indeed, moreover, yea.
שֵׂיבָה֙  gray  hairs 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: שֵׂיבָה  
Sense: age, gray hair, hoary head, old age.
זָ֣רְקָה  are  here  and  there 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: זָרַק 
Sense: to scatter, sprinkle, toss, throw, scatter abundantly, strew.
בּ֔וֹ  on  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
וְה֖וּא  and  yet  he 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Pronoun, third person masculine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.
יָדָֽע  does  know  [it] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.

What are the major concepts related to Hosea 7:9?

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Similar Scriptures for Hosea 7:9

Hosea 8:7 [5]
2 Kings 15:19 [2]
2 Kings 13:22 [2]
Proverbs 23:35 [2]
Isaiah 57:1 [2]
Isaiah 1:7 [2]
Isaiah 42:22-25 [2]
2 Kings 13:3-7 [2]