Though he may flourish as the reed plant: The text now returns to speaking about Ephraim, the northern kingdom of Israel, as one person by using the pronoun he. Good News Translation uses “Israel,” since that is the name it uses in the preceding verses. But “Ephraim” is the most recent name mentioned for the northern kingdom. If no other name has been used, then translators should understand this verse as continuing to refer to Ephraim. If a name is made explicit, “Ephraim” is obviously the better option, although these words of warning from the prophet are intended for all of the people of Israel.

The Hebrew word translated flourish also means “bear fruit.” The Hebrew root of this verb is similar to that of the name Ephraim, and may therefore be a wordplay. When talking about people, it means having success in life, in whatever a person may be doing. Some translators may be able to use an expression such as “bear fruit” for a person’s success, and this will lead nicely into the next lines, which talk about a dry wind that changes all of that from good to failure.

Instead of as the reed plant, the Hebrew text has “a son of brothers.” Hebrew Old Testament Text Project prefers a slightly emended text that reads “among brothers” (a {B} decision). English Standard Version follows this reading by rendering this line as “Though he may flourish among his brothers.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “Ephraim is like a flowering garden among his fellow tribes.”

The east wind, the wind of the LORD, shall come …: The words of warning in the rest of this verse make use of poetic images that may be difficult to handle in translation. The second line is literally “the east wind will come, the wind/breath of Yahweh.” The land directly to the east of Israel was a hot and barren desert, and if the wind came from that direction, it would dry up any crops that the people were raising on their land. The “breath of Yahweh” was normally thought of as life-giving breath (see, for example, Gen 2.7). Here God’s breath will destroy rather than give life, in line with the punishment described in the previous verse. Good News Translation expresses this verse more briefly and in nonfigurative language, so the poetic expressions are no longer there. Many commentators interpret this east wind as the Assyrian army. Only Bijbel in Gewone Taal makes this explicit in the last line, saying “And all their possessions will be taken away by the Assyrians.”

Rising from the wilderness: In this context the Hebrew verb for rising may be rendered “blowing” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). Translators should use an expression for the movement of wind. For wilderness see the comments on 2.3.

And his fountain shall dry up, his spring shall be parched: These are parallel lines. The Hebrew words for fountain and spring can to some extent be used interchangeably. However, the word for fountain can refer to a source of water that can be dug out of the ground, such as a well. The word for spring refers to a source of water that flows naturally out of the ground. Shall dry up and shall be parched are simply two ways of saying the same thing. The normal sources of water will be dry and will no longer provide water.

It shall strip his treasury of every precious thing: These last two lines predict yet another form of evil. Some translators may find it better to join them into one line. The wind from the desert (it) is still the actor here, but it does what invading armies do to the property of the people whom they attack. The Hebrew verb for strip also means “plunder” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). The wind will be like an enemy army taking any valuable or useful goods from the place they attack and from its people.

The Hebrew word for treasury refers to either the place where valuable and precious things are stored, or to the things themselves. In this context it speaks of the place where every precious thing has been stored, such as a storehouse.

The Hebrew expression for precious thing includes things valuable in terms of money, but its primary meaning is those things that are desirable, or have special value to someone.

A translation model for this verse is:

• Ephraim may be flourishing among the tribes,
but when the LORD sends his wind from the east,
the wind blowing from the desert,
it will dry up Ephraim’s springs,
his wells will run dry.
It will plunder his treasury,
robbing everything of value.

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 .