Hosea 14:1 (DRB)

Passage

Let Samaria perish, because she hath stirred up her God to bitterness: let them perish by the sword, let their little ones be dashed, and let the women with child be ripped up.

Nearby Context

Hosea 14:1 Let Samaria perish, because she hath stirred up her God to bitterness: let them perish by the sword, let their little ones be dashed, and let the women with child be ripped up.

Hosea 14:2 Return, O Israel, to the Lord thy God: for thou hast fallen down by thy iniquity.

Hosea 14:3 Take with you words, and return to the Lord, and say to him: Take away all iniquity, and receive the good: and we will render the calves of our lips.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "samaria", "perish", "hath", "stirred", "bitterness", "sword", and "little". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "samaria" and "perish", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "Return O Israel to the Lord thy...", so "samaria" and "perish" should be read forward into that movement. In Hosea context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "samaria" and "perish" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.