Reverse exodus
In Hosea 13:15, the prophet says of Ephraim, “Though he flourishes among the reeds, an east wind will come, the wind of the LORD coming up from the wilderness; and his fountain will become dry and his spring will be dried up; it will plunder his treasury of every precious article.”
This is a picture of a reverse exodus. In Exodus 14:21, an “east wind” dries up the waters of the yam suph , the “Sea of Reeds” (cf. 15:22) and opened a path of dry land through the sea. Hosea uses “east wind” and “reeds” and “dry,” but the image is not of deliverance but of withering destruction. Instead of a Rock flowing like a fountain, Ephraim will be dried up. Instead of plundering, Ephraim will be plundered.
Peter Leithart
Peter J. Leithart is President of Theopolis Institute. He is the author of numerous books on theology, literature, and culture, including Theopolitan, Defending Constantine, and Baptized Body.
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