Bible Strands
Hosea 1:5
And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Lord speaks this declaration to the prophet Hosea immediately after commanding him to name his first son Jezreel. This pronouncement occurs during the initial phase of a three-part symbolic naming sequence that outlines impending judgment on Israel.
The words — The Hebrew וְ/שָֽבַרְתִּי (ve./sha.var.Ti) translates literally as "and I will break," directly governing אֶת־קֶ֣שֶׁת (et-Ke.shet), meaning "the bow of." These lexical items frame the verse as a concrete statement of divine action rather than metaphorical imagery.
The thread — The broken bow motif recurs in Psalm 37:15 to describe the self-defeat of the wicked. The Valley of Jezreel appears in Joshua 17:16 and Judges 6:33 as a designated location for armed confrontation and territorial limitation.
Why it lands — The text states that Israel’s military capacity will be dismantled at a specific historical moment. It requires the reader to acknowledge that national sovereignty is contingent upon divine permission rather than inherent strength.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.
Cross-references
- Joshua 17:16 “The hill country is not enough for us,” they replied, “and all the Canaanites who live in the valley have iron chariots, both in Beth-shean with its towns and in the Valley of Jezreel.”
- Judges 6:33 Then all the Midianites, Amalekites, and other people of the east gathered together, crossed over the Jordan, and camped in the Valley of Jezreel.
- Psalms 37:15 But their swords will pierce their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.
- Jeremiah 51:56 For a destroyer is coming against her—against Babylon. Her warriors will be captured, and their bows will be broken, for the LORD is a God of retribution; He will repay in full.
- 2 Kings 15:29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, including all the land of Naphtali, and he took the people as captives to Assyria.
- Psalms 46:9 He makes wars to cease throughout the earth; He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; He burns the shields in the fire.
- Jeremiah 49:34 This is the word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah.
- Hosea 2:18 On that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and the creatures that crawl on the ground. And I will abolish bow and sword and battle in the land, and will make them lie down in safety.