Hosea 13:10

אֱהִ֤י מַלְכְּךָ֙ אֵפֹ֔וא וְיֹושִֽׁיעֲךָ֖ בְּכָל־עָרֶ֑יךָ וְשֹׁ֣פְטֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֣ר אָמַ֔רְתָּ תְּנָה־לִּ֖י מֶ֥לֶךְ וְשָׂרִֽים׃

Where now is your king, that he may save you in all your cities, and your judges, of whom you said, “Give me a king and princes”?

Morphology

1. אֱהִי (ehi) – Root: היה (hayah); Form: Qal imperative 2nd person masculine singular; Translation: “Be” or “Where is”; Notes: Used rhetorically—YHWH taunts Yisraʾel, challenging the existence or power of its chosen king.
2. מַלְכְּךָ (malkekha) – Root: מלך (melekh); Form: Noun masculine singular construct + suffix 2ms; Translation: “your king”; Notes: Refers to the monarch whom Yisraʾel demanded instead of divine kingship; now powerless to save them.
3. אֵפוֹא (efo) – Root: —; Form: Interrogative adverb; Translation: “where now?”; Notes: Expresses irony—where is the human ruler in the hour of crisis?
4. וְיֹושִׁיעֲךָ (ve-yoshiʿakha) – Root: ישע (yashaʿ); Form: Hiphil imperfect 3rd person masculine singular + suffix 2ms with conjunction וְ; Translation: “and may he save you”; Notes: Ironic wish—invites Yisraʾel to seek deliverance from its powerless earthly king.
5. בְּכָל־עָרֶיךָ (be-khol-ʿarekha) – Root: עיר (ʿir); Form: Preposition בְּ + noun feminine plural construct + suffix 2ms; Translation: “in all your cities”; Notes: Refers to the widespread reach of destruction—no city can be saved by human rule.
6. וְשֹׁפְטֶיךָ (ve-shofetekha) – Root: שׁפט (shafat); Form: Conjunction וְ + noun masculine plural + suffix 2ms; Translation: “and your judges”; Notes: Refers to human administrators of justice—those who failed to lead the nation righteously.
7. אֲשֶׁר (asher) – Root: —; Form: Relative pronoun; Translation: “whom” or “that”; Notes: Introduces a relative clause explaining Yisraʾel’s earlier request for a monarchy.
8. אָמַרְתָּ (amarta) – Root: אמר (ʾamar); Form: Qal perfect 2nd person masculine singular; Translation: “you said”; Notes: Direct allusion to the nation’s demand for a king, echoing 1 Shemuʾel 8:5.
9. תְּנָה־לִּי (tenah-li) – Root: נתן (natan); Form: Qal imperative 2nd person masculine singular + preposition לְ + suffix 1cs; Translation: “give me”; Notes: Repeats the people’s plea to Shemuʾel for human rulers—underscores their rejection of YHWH’s sovereignty.
10. מֶלֶךְ (melekh) – Root: מלך (melekh); Form: Noun masculine singular; Translation: “a king”; Notes: The desired human monarch whom YHWH permitted as a concession, later shown powerless to deliver.
11. וְשָׂרִים (ve-sarim) – Root: שר (sar); Form: Conjunction וְ + noun masculine plural; Translation: “and princes”; Notes: Represents the aristocratic officials—secondary rulers reflecting political rather than divine authority.