It will happen in that day that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.”
Parallel translations
- KJV And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.
- BSB And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”
- NKJV It shall come to pass in that day That I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”
- NASB On that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”
- NLT I will break its military power in the Jezreel Valley.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God foretells the shattering of Israel's military strength in the same valley of Jezreel. Their trusted power will be broken there.
Overview
Breaking 'the bow' signifies the collapse of Israel's army and defensive might. The valley of Jezreel, a strategic plain, would witness the undoing of the nation's strength rather than its glory. The verse reinforces that no human power can shield a people who have abandoned their God, a sober reminder that security apart from the Lord is an illusion.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Josh 17:16The children of Joseph said, “The hill country is not enough for us. All the Canaanites who dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both those who are in Beth Shean and its towns, and those who are in the valley of Jezreel.”
- Judg 6:33Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east assembled themselves together; and they passed over, and encamped in the valley of Jezreel.
- Jer 51:56For the destroyer has come on her, even on Babylon. Her mighty men are taken. Their bows are broken in pieces, for Yahweh is a God of recompenses. He will surely repay.
- Ps 37:15Their sword shall enter into their own heart. Their bows shall be broken.
- Jer 49:34–35Yahweh’s word that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying,
- Hos 2:18In that day I will make a covenant for them with the animals of the field, and with the birds of the sky, and with the creeping things of the ground. I will break the bow, the sword, and the battle out of the land, and will make them lie down safely.
- Ps 46:9He makes wars cease to the end of the earth. He breaks the bow, and shatters the spear. He burns the chariots in the fire.
- 2 Kgs 15:29In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria.
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Christ at the center
God's relentless love for an unfaithful bride dramatizes the gospel: 'Out of Egypt I called my son' is fulfilled in Jesus, who redeems an adulterous people at his own cost.
How Hosea 1:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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