For you also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed: The previous verses have mentioned geographic locations, so the mention of the name Judah in this line fits the context. A similar combination of the names Israel, Ephraim, and Judah occurs in 5.5. It seems that this line belongs with the previous verse as one paragraph, unless the receptor language will require a new paragraph, perhaps because it is addressed to the other kingdom.
For you also indicates that Judah will not escape punishment, as if only Israel will suffer. However, some scholars interpret this line in combination with the following lines as a restoration of blessings, rather than an ironic way of announcing judgment.
O Judah is the archaic English form of the vocative (see comments on 4.1 and 6.4). Good News Translation says “people of Judah.” As stated before, translators should use the appropriate vocative in the receptor language if there is one.
A harvest is appointed is metaphorical language. In this context it probably does not refer to a harvest of bountiful things, but is an ironic figure for punishment for sins (compare Jer 51.33; Joel 3.13). A harvest is appointed is literally “he set a harvest.” The pronoun “he” probably refers to Yahweh. In view of the fact that the preceding verses use first person singular in reference to Yahweh, it is recommended to do the same here. Good News Translation uses nonfigurative language here: “I have set a time to punish you also for what you are doing.” Biblia Dios Habla Hoy is similar with “I have already marked the day of your punishment.” If the harvest figure is retained, it should be clearly marked as a threat; for example, New English Bible says “a harvest of reckoning,” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “a cruel harvest awaits.”
There are two different Hebrew text traditions concerning verse 11a and 11b. One tradition links 11b with 11a, assuming that 11b describes the circumstances under which Yahweh has set the harvest for Judah. This is based on the Leningrad Codex and the Aleppo Codex. Translations following this tradition are New Living Translation, King James Version, and English Standard Version. The other tradition is based on Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, which connects 11b with 7.1. The grammatical construction of 11b and 7.1a is similar and the two lines form a parallelism. There are also linguistic arguments that favor this combination. We recommend this approach, which is followed by Revised Standard Version, New Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, New International Version, NET Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, Bible en français courant, and De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling. Good News Translation even includes 11b in 7.1.
A translation model for verse 11a is:
• I have prepared a terrible harvest for you too, Judah!
Quoted with permission from Dorn, Louis & van Steenbergen, Gerrit. A Handbook on Hosea. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .