11:9 I cannot carry out 1 my fierce anger!
I cannot totally destroy Ephraim!
Because I am God, and not man – the Holy One among you –
I will not come in wrath!
11:10 He will roar like a lion,
and they will follow the Lord;
when he roars,
his children will come trembling 2 from the west.
11:11 They will return in fear and trembling 3
like birds from Egypt,
like doves from Assyria,
and I will settle them in their homes,” declares the Lord.
1 tn The three imperfect verbs function as imperfects of capability, similar to the imperfects of capability in 11:8. See IBHS 564 §34.1a.
2 tn When the verb חָרַד (kharad, “to tremble”) is used with prepositions of direction, it denotes “to go or come trembling” (BDB 353 s.v. חָרַד 4; e.g., Gen 42:28; 1 Sam 13:7; 16:4; 21:2; Hos 11:10, 11). Thus, the phrase מִיָּם…וְיֶחֶרְדוּ (vÿyekherdu…miyyam) means “to come trembling from the west.” Cf. NAB “shall come frightened from the west.”
3 tn For the meaning of חָרַד (harad, “to tremble”) with prepositions of direction, see 11:10 above.