When Ephraim saw his sickness, And Judah his wound, Then Ephraim went to Assyria, And sent to king Jareb: But he is not able to heal you, Neither will he cure you of your wound.
Then it follows, Yet could he not heal you, nor will he cure you of your wound Here God declares that whatever the Israelites might seek would be in vain. “Ye think,” he says, “that you can escape my hand by these remedies; but your folly will at length betray itself, for he will avail you nothing; that is, king Jareb will not heal you.” In this clause the Prophet shows, that unless we immediately return to God, when he warns us by his scourges, it will be in vain for us to look here and there for remedies: for in this world many allurements come in our way; but when we hope for any relief, the Lord will at length show that we have been deluded. There is, then, but one remedy, — to go directly to God; and this is what the Prophet means, and this is the application of the present doctrine. He had said before that Ephraim had felt his disease and Judah his wounds; that is, “I have led them thus far, that they have acknowledged themselves to be ill; but they have not gone on as they ought to have done, so as to return to me: on the contrary, they have turned aside to king Jareb and to other delusions.” Then it follows, “But these remedies have turned ant rather for harm to you; they certainly have not profited you.” A confirmation of this sentence follows — 