Surely now they will say, “We have no king, for we do not revere the LORD. What can a king do for us?”
Parallel translations
- WEB Surely now they will say, “We have no king; for we don’t fear Yahweh; and the king, what can he do for us?”
- KJV For now they shall say, We have no king, because we feared not the LORD; what then should a king do to us?
- NKJV For now they say, “We have no king, Because we did not fear the Lord. And as for a king, what would he do for us?”
- NASB ¶Certainly now they will say, “We have no king, For we do not revere the Lord. As for the king, what can he do for us?”
- NLT Then they will say, “We have no king because we didn’t fear the Lord. But even if we had a king, what could he do for us anyway?”
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
They will admit they have no king because they did not fear the LORD, and wonder what a king could even do for them.
Overview
In the day of judgment Israel will confess the failure of their monarchy, recognizing that their lack of the fear of God left them without true leadership. Their despairing question reveals that earthly kings cannot save a people who have abandoned God. This exposes the need for a King who rules in the fear of the LORD, fulfilled in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Hos 10:15Thus it will be done to you, O Bethel, because of your great wickedness. When the day dawns, the king of Israel will be utterly cut off.
- Hos 10:7Samaria will be carried off with her king like a twig on the surface of the water.
- Hos 13:11So in My anger I gave you a king, and in My wrath I took him away.
- Mic 4:9Why do you now cry aloud? Is there no king among you? Has your counselor perished so that anguish grips you like a woman in labor?
- John 19:15At this, they shouted, “Away with Him! Away with Him! Crucify Him!” “Shall I crucify your King?” Pilate asked. “We have no king but Caesar,” replied the chief priests.
- Hos 3:4For the Israelites must live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, and without ephod or idol.
- Gen 49:10The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes and the allegiance of the nations is his.
- Hos 11:5Will they not return to the land of Egypt and be ruled by Assyria because they refused to repent?
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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 10:3 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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