HOSEA CHAPTER 5 God's judgments against the priests, the people, and the princes of Israel, for their manifold sins, HOSEA 5:1, until they repent, HOSEA 5:15. HEAR YE THIS, O PRIESTS: proclamation is made, and the criminals are cited to appear, and attend their charge; amongst which the priests are... [ Continue Reading ]
THE REVOLTERS; all those that have cast off the law of God, both in matters of religion and civil government. ARE PROFOUND; dig deep to hide their counsels, or have taken deep root since their apostasy from God, and revolt from the house of David. TO MAKE SLAUGHTER: all their religion is but a butch... [ Continue Reading ]
These revolters neither are nor can be so deep as to conceal themselves, their designs, contrivances, and practices, from me; I thoroughly know Ephraim. The revolters are also called ISRAEL in this verse, who is not hid from me. It is an elegant repetition of the same thing in different words. THOU... [ Continue Reading ]
THEY, those revolters, polluted Israelites and idolatrous Ephraimites, will not frame their doings; they are so intent upon their idolatries and oppressions, they have been so long inured to these doings, that now they are become slaves to their own doings, insomuch that they neither have will or po... [ Continue Reading ]
THE PRIDE OF ISRAEL: it might have been rendered, the excellency or glory of Israel; and so, referred to God, it would be a prediction that God himself would witness against Israel. God is said to swear by the _excellency of Jacob_, AMOS 8:7, i.e. by himself. Thus interpreted, it would very well acc... [ Continue Reading ]
THEY; the people of Judah, say some, but I rather think it is spoken of the Ephraimites, and either implies by what they did support their confidence of escaping ruin, or else foretells that extremity of sufferings should force them at last to offer sacrifices to God; and the Jewish doctors tell us,... [ Continue Reading ]
THEY, the whole house of Israel, priests, people, and princes, and their kings with them, HAVE DEALT TREACHEROUSLY; have falsified their word and promise of fidelity and constancy, of love and affection, when they entered covenant with me; have turned idolaters, and worshipped and relied on false go... [ Continue Reading ]
BLOW YE THE CORNET; ye watchmen, or whoever have the care and custody of these fortified towns, sound the alarm, for the enemy cometh. IN GIBEAH; a town of Benjamin situate on a hill, built by Asa, 1 KINGS 15:22; made by him a frontier, and likely always garrisoned against the incursion of the ten t... [ Continue Reading ]
EPHRAIM; the whole kingdom of the ten tribes, all sorts and ranks of men among them. SHALL BE DESOLATE; a desolation, i. e. most desolate, utterly cut off. IN THE DAY OF REBUKE; when Shalmaneser shall come up with his forces, besiege, sack, and captivate all thy cities, and Samaria with the rest; wh... [ Continue Reading ]
THE PRINCES; the great men about the king and court, the rulers and governors, who by the law of God and man should have been the maintainers of equity and justice among the people. OF JUDAH; of the kingdom of Judah, or the two tribes. WERE; have been, and now are in the days of Ahaz, for to this ma... [ Continue Reading ]
EPHRAIM; the subjects of the kingdom of Israel, the ten tribes; the prophet resumeth his threat against them. IS OPPRESSED; supposing, as well we may, that this prophecy respecteth Ahaz's time, it will appear that the reigns of Zachariah, Shallum, Menahem, Pekahiah, and Pekah were past, which were u... [ Continue Reading ]
THEREFORE, or _And_, Heb. _I will be_; I am; it is concise in the Hebrew, and might be thus expressed, But, or And, as for me, I am, and will be, to the ten tribes. AS A MOTH: moths do leisurely eat up and mar our clothes; so God was then, and had been from Jeroboam's death to this day, weakening th... [ Continue Reading ]
WHEN, Heb. _And_, after that. Ephraim; the king, and council, and kingdom of the ten tribes; Menahem is surely meant: see 2 Kings xv. SAW HIS SICKNESS; weakness, like a consumption, threatening death. Though Menahem had killed Shallun, and got into the throne, yet he found himself unable to hold it... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR I, the Lord, whose power is infinite, whose wrath they have enkindled, who hath threatened to extirpate them, WILL BE UNTO EPHRAIM AS A LION; a panther, say some, a very swift beast, wherein he excels the lion, and a very fierce and ravenous creature, wherein he equals the lion; or a lioness, sa... [ Continue Reading ]
I WILL GO AND RETURN TO MY PLACE: after the manner of man God speaks, he will do that which shall be like a man's going away from such as refuse though they need his help, he retires; God will withdraw his saving help. TILL THEY ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR OFFENCE; till they confess and humble themselves for... [ Continue Reading ]