Therefore they will be like the morning cloud, And like the dew that passes away early, Like the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of the threshing floor, And like the smoke out of the chimney.
God saved the Israelites from slavery, looked after them in the wilderness and gave them a land, but in their prosperity they forgot him (4-6). God will now destroy them. There will be no escape (7-8). Israel’s original desire for a king was a rejection of God. The people will now find that the king will not give them the security they hoped for. The monarchy, as well as the nation, is doomed (9-11; cf. 1 Samuel 10:19; 1 Samuel 12:13-15).