Punishment and Compassion
Notes
Transcript
Introduction:
Introduction:
Israel’s Guilt and Punishment Reiterated
Israel’s Guilt and Punishment Reiterated
Israel’s Hostility Punished
Israel’s Hostility Punished
1 Rejoice not, O Israel, for joy, as other people: For thou hast gone a whoring from thy God, Thou hast loved a reward upon every cornfloor.
2 The floor and the winepress shall not feed them, And the new wine shall fail in her.
3 They shall not dwell in the Lord’s land; But Ephraim shall return to Egypt, And they shall eat unclean things in Assyria.
4 They shall not offer wine offerings to the Lord, Neither shall they be pleasing unto him: Their sacrifices shall be unto them as the bread of mourners; All that eat thereof shall be polluted: For their bread for their soul shall not come into the house of the Lord.
5 What will ye do in the solemn day, And in the day of the feast of the Lord?
6 For lo, they are gone because of destruction: Egypt shall gather them up, Memphis shall bury them: The pleasant places for their silver, nettles shall possess them: Thorns shall be in their tabernacles.
7 The days of visitation are come, The days of recompence are come; Israel shall know it: The prophet is a fool, the spiritual man is mad, For the multitude of thine iniquity, and the great hatred.
8 The watchman of Ephraim was with my God: But the prophet is a snare of a fowler in all his ways, And hatred in the house of his God.
9 They have deeply corrupted themselves, as in the days of Gibeah: Therefore he will remember their iniquity, he will visit their sins.
9:7—By the time Israel began to experience the consequences of its sins, it was no longer listening to God’s messengers. Refusing to hear the truth from prophets who spoke out so clearly about its sins, the nation did not hear God’s warnings about what was soon to happen. We all listen and read selectively—focusing on what seems to support our present life-style, ignoring what demands a radical reordering of our priorities. In doing this, we are likely to miss the warnings we need most. Listen to people who think your approach is all wrong. Read articles that present viewpoints you would be unlikely to take. Ask yourself, “Is God speaking to me through these speakers and writers? Is there something I need to change? —Life Application Bible notes.
9:9—is a reference to and where a couple was harassed until the man gave out his wife for them to abuse all night and leave dead on the doorstep in the morning. God judged Gibeah’s sin by destroying the city. Here God is saying that the whole nation is now that wicked.
Israel’s Idolatry Punished
Israel’s Idolatry Punished
10 I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the firstripe in the fig tree at her first time: But they went to Baal-peor, and separated themselves unto that shame; And their abominations were according as they loved.
11 As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird, From the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception.
12 Though they bring up their children, Yet will I bereave them, that there shall not be a man left: Yea, woe also to them when I depart from them!
13 Ephraim, as I saw Tyrus, is planted in a pleasant place: But Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the murderer.
14 Give them, O Lord: what wilt thou give? Give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts.
15 All their wickedness is in Gilgal, for there I hated them: For the wickedness of their doings I will drive them out of mine house, I will love them no more: All their princes are revolters.
16 Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear no fruit: Yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved fruit of their womb.
17 My God will cast them away, because they did not hearken unto him: And they shall be wanderers among the nations.
9:10—This is where Balaam was hired to curse Israel. He then lured them into sexual sin and later idolatry so that they would curse themselves. What do you worship? What are becoming more like?
9:14-17 At Hosea’s question about barrenness, God responds with an affirmative response and declaration of hate.
Israel’s Double Sin Punished
Israel’s Double Sin Punished
1 Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: According to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; According to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images.
2 Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: He shall break down their altars, he shall spoil their images.
3 For now they shall say, We have no king, Because we feared not the Lord; What then should a king do to us?
4 They have spoken words, swearing falsely in making a covenant: Thus judgment springeth up as hemlock in the furrows of the field.
5 The inhabitants of Samaria shall fear because of the calves of Beth-aven: For the people thereof shall mourn over it, And the priests thereof that rejoiced on it, For the glory thereof, because it is departed from it.
6 It shall be also carried unto Assyria for a present to king Jareb: Ephraim shall receive shame, And Israel shall be ashamed of his own counsel.
7 As for Samaria, her king is cut off As the foam upon the water.
8 The high places also of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed: The thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars; And they shall say to the mountains, Cover us; And to the hills, Fall on us.
9 O Israel, thou hast sinned from the days of Gibeah: there they stood: The battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity did not overtake them.
10 It is in my desire that I should chastise them; And the people shall be gathered against them, When they shall bind themselves in their two furrows.
11 And Ephraim is as a heifer that is taught, and loveth to tread out the corn; But I passed over upon her fair neck: I will make Ephraim to ride; Judah shall plow, And Jacob shall break his clods.
12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground: For it is time to seek the Lord, Till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
13 Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; Ye have eaten the fruit of lies: Because thou didst trust in thy way, In the multitude of thy mighty men.
14 Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, And all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, As Shalman spoiled Beth-arbel in the day of battle: The mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.
15 So shall Beth-el do unto you because of your great wickedness; In a morning shall the king of Israel utterly be cut off.
2 Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: He shall break down their altars, he shall spoil their images.
Hos. 10:2
This is the real issue. Their hearts were divided.
6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering: for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
3 For now they shall say, We have no king, Because we feared not the Lord; What then should a king do to us?
:
Unrepentant attitude of rebellion.
Samaria is particularly punished for their insubordination and sin.
In the absence of the people their wicked worship places would be overgrown and destroyed.
12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground: For it is time to seek the Lord, Till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
13 Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; Ye have eaten the fruit of lies: Because thou didst trust in thy way, In the multitude of thy mighty men.
14 Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, And all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, As Shalman spoiled Beth-arbel in the day of battle: The mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.
15 So shall Beth-el do unto you because of your great wickedness; In a morning shall the king of Israel utterly be cut off.
Sow righteousness and recieved mercy, but continue and what you have plowed, and get judgement.
Israel’s Ingratitude Punished
Israel’s Ingratitude Punished
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 11
This oracle of compassion and restoration highlights Yahweh’s love for His people even as they continue to stray and rebel. Though their rebellion requires Him to judge them (vv. 5–7), His compassion will ultimately overcome His wrath. He will renew His relationship with Israel, restoring its people to their land and their homes
1 When Israel was a child, then I loved him, And called my son out of Egypt.
2 As they called them, so they went from them: They sacrificed unto Baalim, and burnt incense to graven images.
3 I taught Ephraim also to go, taking them by their arms; But they knew not that I healed them.
4 I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love: And I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, And I laid meat unto them.
5 He shall not return into the land of Egypt, But the Assyrian shall be his king, Because they refused to return.
6 And the sword shall abide on his cities, And shall consume his branches, and devour them, Because of their own counsels.
7 And my people are bent to backsliding from me: Though they called them to the most High, None at all would exalt him.
They went from His face:
:1-4
1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, That the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And all nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; And he will teach us of his ways, And we will walk in his paths: For out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 And he shall judge among the nations, And shall rebuke many people: And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruninghooks: Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war any more.
2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: For the Lord hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, And they have rebelled against me.
3 The ox knoweth his owner, And the ass his master’s crib: But Israel doth not know, My people doth not consider.
4 Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, A seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: They have forsaken the Lord, They have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, They are gone away backward.
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 11
11:3 I myself taught Ephraim to walk Compare 7:15. Yahweh was responsible for raising Israel from infancy as a nation, but they failed to acknowledge it.
A spirit of thankfulness is worship to whom you are thankful.
A spirit of thankfulness is worship to whom you are thankful.
11:4—God’s discipline requires times of leading and times of feeding. Sometimes the rope is taut, sometimes it is slack. It is always loving, and its object is always well-being of the beloved. When you are called to discipline others. . . do not be rigid. Vary your approach according to the goals you are seeking to accomplish. In each case ask yourself: does this person need guidance, or does he need to be nurtured?—Life Application Bible
5 He shall not return into the land of Egypt, But the Assyrian shall be his king, Because they refused to return.
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 11
Assyria will be his king After Israel (the northern kingdom) falls in 722 BC, the region becomes a province of Assyria. The Assyrians take the Israelites into exile.
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 11
This oracle of compassion and restoration highlights Yahweh’s love for His people even as they continue to stray and rebel. Though their rebellion requires Him to judge them (vv. 5–7), His compassion will ultimately overcome His wrath. He will renew His relationship with Israel, restoring its people to their land and their homes
The Lord’s Compassion Renewed
The Lord’s Compassion Renewed
The Lord’s love for Israel
The Lord’s love for Israel
8 How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? How shall I deliver thee, Israel? How shall I make thee as Admah? How shall I set thee as Zeboim? Mine heart is turned within me, My repentings are kindled together.
9 I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger, I will not return to destroy Ephraim: For I am God, and not man; The Holy One in the midst of thee: And I will not enter into the city.
10 They shall walk after the Lord: he shall roar like a lion: When he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west.
11 They shall tremble as a bird out of Egypt, And as a dove out of the land of Assyria: And I will place them in their houses, saith the Lord.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary 3. The Lord’s Compassion Renewed (11:8–11)
As in earlier sections of this prophecy, Hosea’s message of judgment concludes with an abrupt shift to a message of salvation (cf. 1:10–2:1; 2:14–3:5; 5:15–6:3).
The Bible Knowledge Commentary 3. The Lord’s Compassion Renewed (11:8–11)
The Lord would not totally abandon Israel. The effects of His wrath would be tempered by His compassion, and He would ultimately call His people back from exile.
8 How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? How shall I deliver thee, Israel? How shall I make thee as Admah? How shall I set thee as Zeboim? Mine heart is turned within me, My repentings are kindled together.
9 I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger, I will not return to destroy Ephraim: For I am God, and not man; The Holy One in the midst of thee: And I will not enter into the city.
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 11
11:8 How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How Jeremiah 31:20 and Isa 49:15 contain similar expressions of Yahweh’s love for Israel. Yahweh’s compassion overwhelms His wrath. Even though His people have rejected Him, He cannot fully reject them.
“My heart is turned”:
Changed (lit., “overturned”) is the same word (hāp̱ak) used to describe the overthrow of these cities (cf. Gen. 19:25; Deut. 29:23). Wolff comments on the wordplay, “Israel will not be completely overturned’ as the cities mentioned here; rather, there will be an overturning, ’ that is, a change, in Yahweh’s heart” (Hosea, p. 201).
Fierceness: is a burning anger
God proclaims the difference between Himself and normal men. He does not need to follow through with the judgement, He does not need to show us who the boss is, He is the boss.
Israel’s Return to the Lord
Israel’s Return to the Lord
10 They shall walk after the Lord: he shall roar like a lion: When he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west.
11 They shall tremble as a bird out of Egypt, And as a dove out of the land of Assyria: And I will place them in their houses, saith the Lord.
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 11
11:10 he roars like a lion A common image for Yahweh that emphasizes His strength (compare Amos 1:2; Joel 3:16; Jer 25:30).
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 11
will come trembling from the sea Illustrates Yahweh bringing a group of survivors of Israel (the remnant) back to the land (compare Isa 11:11–16; 35:10; 60:4; Jer 16:15).
The Bible Knowledge Commentary 11:10–11
In the day of national restoration Israel will follow the LORD, who will lead the people back to their homes. His lion-like roar, often associated with judgment and destruction (cf. 5:14; 13:7; Amos 1:2; 3:8), will become a summons to return from exile.