Bible Commentary

I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took [him] away in my wrath. 11. I gave thee, &c.] Rather, I give thee kings [lit., a king] in mine anger, and take (them) away in my wrath. The reference is to the elevation of Jeroboam I., but also to the various dynasties which from … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:11”

I will be thy king: where [is any other] that may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes? I will be thy King – (literally, I would be thy King) Where is any other that, etc. A better translation would be: Where now … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:10”

O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me [is] thine help. 9. Hosea, ‘in the spirit’, sees the future as if it were past. Hence the use of the perfect. O Israel, &c.] This rendering agrees with that of the Jewish commentator, Rashi (similarly the Targum). It belongs to a numerous series of attempts … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:9”

I will meet them as a bear [that is] bereaved [of her whelps], and will rend the caul of their heart, and there will I devour them like a lion: the wild beast shall tear them. 8. as a dear ] A striking but uncommon comparison. Comp. Lam 3:10. the caul of their heart ] … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:8”

Therefore I will be unto them as a lion: as a leopard by the way will I observe [them]: 7. I will be ] Rather, I have become. The evident decay of Israel as a nation shows that the punishment has begun (see Hos 7:8-10). the leopard ] Familiar to the Hebrews and Assyrians under … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:7”

According to their pasture, so were they filled; they were filled, and their heart was exalted; therefore have they forgotten me. 6. According to their pasture, &c.] Rather, When they fed, they waxed full. The idea of the verse is that Israel’s apostasy sprang from his enjoying God’s gifts without thinking of the Giver, comp. … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:6”

I did know thee in the wilderness, in the land of great drought. 5. I did know, &c.] Better, It was I that knew, &c. ‘To know’=‘to take favourable notice of’, as Psa 1:6 and often. in the land of great drought ] Or, ‘of burning thirst’ (the word occurs nowhere else). Comp. the description … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:5”

Yet I [am] the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for [there is] no savior beside me. 4. Yet I am the Lord thy God ] Hosea persistently refuses to recognize that the god whom the Israelites worship is really Israel’s God, Jehovah. The use … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:4”

Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud, and as the early dew that passeth away, as the chaff [that] is driven with the whirlwind out of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney. 3. the early dew, &c.] Rather, the night-mist that early passeth away. See on Hos 6:4. as the … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:3”

And now they sin more and more, and have made them molten images of their silver, [and] idols according to their own understanding, all of it the work of the craftsmen: they say of them, Let the men that sacrifice kiss the calves. 2. And now, &c.] The present race is no better; they go … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Hosea 13:2”