The words “O death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your sting?” appear in Hosea 13:14. The verse frames these lines in a declaration about ransom and redemption from death and Sheol.
In Hosea 13:14–16 the speaker first confronts Death and Sheol as if they were enemies, speaking of ransoming and redeeming, then declares that no change of mind will divert what follows. The tone shifts quickly from challenge to catastrophe: a scorching east wind will strip the land’s waters and wealth. These verses sit near the end of Hosea’s long address against the northern kingdom (often called Ephraim/Israel), where images of intimacy, betrayal, warning, and unavoidable consequences have been building.
These verses hold together two realities that Hosea has been pressing for chapters: God confronts ultimate threats (Death/Sheol) and also brings concrete historical consequences on a nation that has rebelled.
A common mistake is to treat this as trivia. Names, places, numbers, and sequence details often carry memory, covenant identity, or narrative movement in the biblical story.
Start with Hosea 13:14, then read the surrounding section so the answer stays connected to the passage's flow.
14I will ransom them from the power of Sheol; I will redeem them from death: death, where are your plagues? Sheol, where is your destruction? repentance shall be hid from my eyes.