Hosea 10:7

7 Samaria made his king to pass (away) as froth on the face of (the) water. (Samaria and his king were swept away, like froth upon the water.)

Hosea 10:7 Meaning and Commentary

Hosea 10:7

[As for] Samaria
The metropolis of the ten tribes of Israel, and here put for the whole kingdom: her king is cut off;
which some understand of Pekah, who was killed by Hoshea; others of several of their kings cut off one after another, very suddenly and quickly, as the metaphor after used shows; or rather Hoshea the last king is meant, who was cut off by the king of Assyria; the present tense is used for the future, to denote the certainty of it. Aben Ezra thinks the verb "cut off" is to be repeated, Samaria is "cut off, her king [is] cut off"; both king and kingdom destroyed. So the Targum,

``Samaria is cut off with her king:''

as the foam upon the water;
as any light thing flowing upon it; as the bark of a tree, as Kimchi and Abarbinel; or as the scum upon a boiling pot of water, as Jarchi, and the Targum; or as foam, which is an assemblage of bubbles upon the water; such are kings and kingdoms, swell, look big and high for a while; but are mere bubbles, empty things; and are often suddenly, quickly, and easily destroyed; so Samaria and her king were by the Assyrian army; the Lord of hosts, the King of kings, being against them.

Hosea 10:7 In-Context

5 The dwellers of Samaria worshipped the kine of Bethaven. For the people thereof mourned on that calf, and the keepers of the house thereof; they made full out joy on it in the glory thereof, for it passed from that people. (The inhabitants of Samaria worshipped the calf of Bethaven. And so the people there, and the keepers of its temple, mourned when that calf was taken away; yea, they had rejoiced over it in its glory, before that it was taken away from that people.)

6 For also it was borne to Assur, a gift to the king venger. Confusion shall take Ephraim, and Israel shall be shamed in his will. (For it shall be carried over to Assyria, as a gift to the great king. And so shame shall overtake Ephraim, yea, Israel shall be ashamed of their own willfulness/Israel shall be shamed by their own willfulness.)

7 Samaria made his king to pass (away) as froth on the face of (the) water. (Samaria and his king were swept away, like froth upon the water.)

8 And the high things of idol, the sin of Israel, shall be lost. A clote and a briar shall ascend on the altars of them (And the high places, that is, the hill shrines, of Aven, or of Bethaven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed. Thorns and briars, or nettles, shall grow upon their altars). And they shall say to mountains, Cover ye us, and to little hills, Fall ye down on us.

9 From the days of Gibeah Israel sinned; there they stood. Battle shall not (over)take them in Gibeah, on the sons of wickedness. (From the days of Gibeah Israel hath sinned; and they have stood there in rebellion. So now in Gibeah the battle shall overtake them.)