Hosea 12:3
In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel,
What it says
Jacob grasped his brother's heel in the womb and struggled with God in his strength.
What it is doing
This verse introduces Jacob's story as the interpretive backdrop for Israel's present condition.
In context
1Ephraim feeds on the wind 2The LORD has a charge to bring against Judah. 3In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel, 4Yes, he struggled with the angel and prevailed; 5the LORD God of Hosts, 6But you must return to your God; 7A merchant loves to defraud 8And Ephraim boasts: “How rich I have become! 9But I am the LORD your God 10I spoke through the prophets 11Is there iniquity in Gilead? 12Jacob fled to the land of Aram 13But by a prophet the LORD brought Israel out of Egypt, 14Ephraim has provoked bitter anger,