And the sword shall abide on his cities, and shall consume his branches, and devour them, because of their own counsels.
And the sword shall abide on his cities - (cf. "The sword shall never depart from thy house," 2 Samuel 12:10) or, 'fall upon' (Calvin); [chaalaah, from chuwl (H2342)] 'whirl down upon' (Pusey): as in Jeremiah 23:19.
And shall consume his branches - i:e., his villages, which are the branches or dependencies of the cities (Calvin). Grotius translates х badaayw (H905)], 'his bars' (so Lamentations 2:9) - i:e., the warriors, who were the bulwarks of the state. Compare Hosea 4:18, "rulers," margin, 'shields' (Psalms 47:9).
Because of their own counsels - in worshipping idols and relying on Egypt (cf. Hosea 10:6).