8<\/strong>. is swallowed up<\/em> ] i. e. is as good as swallowed up. Foreigners have already begun to absorb the precious morsel (cf. Hos 7:8-9<\/span>); complete destruction is only a question of time.<\/p>\n now shall they be<\/em> ] Rather, now are they become among the nations<\/strong>, &c. Comp. Jer 22:28<\/span>; Jer 48:38<\/span>. ‘The coarse pottery of this country’, says Dr Thomson, ‘is so cheap that even poor people throw it aside in contempt, or dash it to pieces on the slightest occasion’ ( The Land and the Book<\/em>, p. 36). ‘Nations’ (as Hos 8:10<\/em><\/span>).<\/p>\n 8 14<\/strong>. The judgment is already begun; Israel has drawn it upon himself, by dallying with Assyria, by religious abuses, and by a vain confidence in fortified cities.<\/p>\n Israel is swallowed up – <\/B>Not only shall all which they have, be swallowed up by the enemy, but themselves also; and this, not at any distant time, but now. Now, at a time all but present, they shall be among the Gentiles, as a vessel wherein is no pleasure, or, quite strictly, Now they have become, among the Gentiles. He speaks of what should certainly be, as though it already were. A vessel wherein is no pleasure, is what Paul calls a vessel to dishonor 2Ti 2:20<\/span>, as opposed to vessels to honor or honorable uses. It is then some vessel put to vile uses, such as people turn away from with disgust. Such has been the history of the ten tribes ever since: swallowed up, not destroyed; among the nations, yet not of them; despised and mingled among them, yet not united with them; having an existence, yet among that large whole, the nations, in whom their national existence has been at once preserved and lost; everywhere had in dishonor; the Pagan and the Muslim have alike despised, outraged, insulted them; avenging upon them, unconsciously, the dishonor which they did to God. The Jews were treated by the Romans of old as offensive to the smell, and are so by the Muslims of North Africa still. Never, says a writer of the fifth century , has Israel been put to any honorable office, so as, after losing the marks of freedom and power, at least to have the rank of honorable servitude; but, like a vessel made for dishonorable offices, so they have been filled with revolting contumelies. The most despised of those in servitude was the title given by the Roman historian to the Jews, while yet in their own land.<\/P> Wealth, otherwise so coveted, for the most part has not exempted them from dishonor, but exposed them to outrage. individuals have risen to eminence in philosophy, medicine, finance; but the race has not gained through the credit of its members; rather, these have, for the most part, risen to reputation for intellect, amid the wreck of their own faith. When Hosea wrote this, two centuries had passed, since the fame of Solomons wisdom (which still is venerated in the East) spread far and wide; Israel was hated and envied by its neighbors, not despised; no token of contempt yet attached to them; yet Hosea foretold that it should shortly be; and, for two thousand years, it has, in the main, been the characteristic of their nation.<\/P> <\/p>\n Verse 8<\/span>. Now shall they be among the Gentiles<\/B><\/I>] They shall be carried into captivity, and there be as a vessel wherein there is no pleasure; one soiled, unclean, infectious, to be despised, abhorred, not used. The allusion is to a rotten, corrupted skin-bottle; a bottle made of goat, deer, or calf hide, still commonly used in Asia and Africa. Some of them are splendidly ornamented. This is the case with one now before me made of a goat’s skin well dressed, variously painted, and ornamented with leather fringes, tassels, c. In such a bottle there might be pleasure but the Israelites are compared to such a bottle, rough, ill-dressed, not ornamented, old, musty, and putrid. This shows the force of the comparison.<\/P> <\/p>\n In the former verse the prophet foretells the lost labour of such pains and seed as Ephraim bestowed; now he addeth somewhat more dreadful, the harvest is ruin and destruction to the seedsman, he is swallowed up; and this is the effect of the whirlwind, Hos 8:7<\/span>; ordinarily whirlwinds scatter the fruit, but here is one swallows up both labour and labourer. <\/P> Swallowed up, <\/B>very soon and irreparably, as a man that is swallowed alive by a mighty, overgrown shark. <\/P> Now; <\/B>ere long, within three or four years at most, as I noted on Hos 7:11<\/span>. <\/P> Shall they be among the Gentiles; <\/B>carried out of their own country by Shalmaneser, and dispersed at the pleasure of the conqueror into Chalah, Habor, &c. <\/P> As a vessel wherein is no pleasure; <\/B>as worthless and useless, cast out of doors; or if of any use, yet in basest and most contemptible: so shall these captives be among the nations whom they must serve; or Israel, impoverished by chargeable confederates, is now looked upon with contempt by them all, and cast off. <\/P> <\/p>\n 8. vessel wherein is no pleasure<\/B>(Psa 41:12<\/span>; Jer 22:28<\/span>;Jer 48:38<\/span>).<\/P><\/p>\n Israel is swallowed up<\/strong>,…. Not only their substance, but their persons also, the whole nation of them, their whole estate, civil and ecclesiastic: it notes the utter destruction of them by the Assyrians, so that nothing of them and theirs remained; just as anyone is swallowed up and devoured by a breast of prey; the present is put for the future, because of the certainty of it:<\/p>\n now shall they be among the Gentiles as a vessel wherein [is] no pleasure<\/strong>; when Shalmaneser took Samaria, and with it swallowed up the whole kingdom of Israel, he carried captive the inhabitants of it, and placed them among the nations, in “Halah, Habor, by the river Gozan”, and in the cities of the Medes, 2Ki 17:6<\/span>; where they lived poor, mean, and abject, and were treated with the utmost neglect and contempt; no more regarded than a broken useless vessel, or than a vessel of dishonour, that is made and used for the ease of nature, for which no more regard is had than for that service: thus idolaters, who dishonour God by their idolatries, shall, sooner or later, be brought to disgrace and dishonour themselves.<\/p>\n With this thought the still further threatening of judgment in the next strophe is introduced. Hos 8:8<\/span>. “Israel is swallowed up; now are they among the nations like a vessel, with which there is no satisfaction.” <\/em> The advance in the threat of punishment lies less in the extension of the thought, that not only the fruit of the field, but the whole nation, will be swallowed up by foes, than in the perfect , which indicates that the time of the ripening of the evil seeds has already begun (Jerome, Simson). , now already have they become among the nations like a despised vessel, which men cast away as useless (cf. Jer 22:28<\/span>; Jer 48:38<\/span>). This lot have they prepared for themselves.<\/p>\n The Sins of Israel; The Crimes of the People.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/I><\/span><\/P> <\/TD> B. C.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN> 745.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/FONT><\/P> <\/TD> <\/TR> <\/TABLE> 8 Israel is swallowed up: now shall they be among the Gentiles as a vessel wherein is<\/I> no pleasure. 9 For they are gone up to Assyria, a wild ass alone by himself: Ephraim hath hired lovers. 10 Yea, though they have hired among the nations, now will I gather them, and they shall sorrow a little for the burden of the king of princes. 11 Because Ephraim hath made many altars to sin, altars shall be unto him to sin. 12 I have written to him the great things of my law, but<\/I> they were counted as a strange thing. 13 They sacrifice flesh for<\/I> the sacrifices of mine offerings, and eat it; but<\/I> the LORD<\/B> accepteth them not; now will he remember their iniquity, and visit their sins: they shall return to Egypt. 14 For Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and buildeth temples; and Judah hath multiplied fenced cities: but I will send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour the palaces thereof.<\/P> It was the honour and happiness of Israel that they had but one God to trust to and he all-sufficient in every strait, and but one God to serve, and he well worthy of all their devotions. But it was their sin, and folly, and shame, that they knew not when they were well off, that they forsook their own mercies for lying vanities; for,<\/P> I. They multiplied their alliances (v.<\/I><\/span> 9<\/span>): They have hired lovers,<\/I> or (as the margin reads it) they have hired loves.<\/I> They were at great expense to purchase the friendship of the nations about them, that otherwise had no value nor affection at all for them, nor cared for having any thing to do with them but only upon the Shechemites’ principles–Shall not their cattle and their substance be ours?<\/I> Gen. xxxiv. 23<\/I><\/span>. Had Israel maintained the honour of their peculiarity, the surrounding nations would have continued to admire them as a wise and understanding people;<\/I> but, when they profaned their own crown, their neighbours despised them, and they had no interest in them further than they paid dearly for it. But those surely have behaved ill among their neighbours who have no loves, no lovers, but what they hire. See here, 1. The contempt that Israel lay under among the nations (v.<\/I><\/span> 8<\/span>): Israel is swallowed up,<\/I> devoured by strangers, their land eaten up (v.<\/I><\/span> 7<\/span>), and themselves too, and, being impoverished, they have quite lost their credit and reputation, like a merchant that has become a bankrupt, so that they are among the Gentiles as a vessel wherein is no pleasure,<\/I> a vessel of dishonour<\/I> (2 Tim. ii. 20<\/span>), a despised broken vessel,<\/I> Jer. xxii. 28<\/I><\/span>. None of their neighbours have any value for them, nor care to have any thing to do with them. Note, Those that have professed religion, if they degenerate and grow profane, are of all men the most contemptible. If the salt have lost its savour,<\/I> it is fit for nothing but to be trodden under foot of men.<\/I> Or it denotes their dispersion and captivity among the Gentiles;<\/I> they shall be among them poor and prisoners; and who has pleasure in such? 2. The court that Israel made to the nations notwithstanding (v.<\/I><\/span> 9<\/span>): They have gone to Assyria,<\/I> to engage the king of Assyria to help them; and herein they are as a wild ass alone by himself,<\/I> foolish, headstrong, and unruly; they will have their way, and nothing shall hold them in,<\/I> no, not the bridle of God’s laws, nothing shall turn them back,<\/I> no, not the sword of God’s wrath. They take a course by themselves, and the effect will be that, like a wild ass by himself,<\/I> they will be the easier and surer prey to the lion. See Job 11:12<\/span>; Jer 2:24<\/span>. Note, Man is in nothing more like the wild ass’s colt than in seeking for that succour and that satisfaction in the creature which are to be had in God only. 3. The crosses that they were likely to meet with in their alliances with the neighbouring nations (v.<\/I><\/span> 10<\/span>): Though they have hired among the nations,<\/I> and hoped thereby to prevent their own ruin, yet now will I gather them,<\/I> as the sheaves in the floor<\/I> (Mic. iv. 12<\/span>); so that what they provided for their own safety shall but make them the easier prey to their enemies. Note, There is no fence against the judgments of God, when they come with commission; nay, that which men hire for their own preservation often contributes to their own destruction. See Isa. vii. 20<\/span>. The king of Assyria, whose friendship they courted, called himself a king of princes,<\/I> Isa. x. 8<\/I><\/span>. Are not my princes altogether kings?<\/I> He laid burdens<\/I> upon Israel, levied taxes upon them, 2Ki 15:19<\/span>; 2Ki 15:20<\/span>. And for these they shall sorrow a little;<\/I> this shall be but a little burden to them in comparison of what they may further expect; or they will be but little sensible of this grievance, will not lay it to heart, and therefore may expect heavier judgments. They have begun to be diminished<\/I> (so some read it), by the burden of the king of princes;<\/I> but this is only the beginning of sorrows<\/I> (Matt. xxiv. 8<\/span>), the beginning of revenges,<\/I> Deut. xxxii. 42<\/I><\/span>. Note, God often comes gradually with his judgments upon a provoking people, that he may show how slow he is to wrath, and may awaken them to repentance; but those that are made to sorrow a little,<\/I> if they are not thereby brought to sorrow after a godly sort, will, another day, be made to sorrow a great deal, to sorrow everlastingly.<\/P> II. They multiplied their altars and temples. Observe,<\/P> 1. How they denied the power of godliness,<\/I> and wholly cast that off (v.<\/I><\/span> 12<\/span>): I have written to him the great things of my law;<\/I> this intimates the privilege they enjoyed, as having God’s statutes and judgments made known to them, and being entrusted with the lively oracles. Note, (1.) The things of God’s law are magnalia Dei–the great things of God.<\/I> They are things that proclaim the greatness of the Law-maker, and things of great use and great importance to us; they are our life, and our eternal welfare depends upon our observance of them and obedience to them; they will make us great if we make a right use of them; and they are things which God will magnify and make honourable. (2.) It is a great privilege to have the things of God’s law written; thus they are reduced to a greater certainty, spread the further, and last the longer, with much less danger of being embezzled and corrupted than if they were transmitted by word of mouth only. (3.) The things of God’s law are of his own writing; for Moses and the prophets were his amanuenses, and holy men wrote as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. (4.) It is the advantage of those that are members of the visible church that these great things are written to them,<\/I> are intended for their direction, and so they must receive them; what things were written in former ages were written for our learning,<\/I> and are profitable for us. And, if those were happy who had the great things of God’s law<\/I> written to them, how much happier are we who have the gospel written to us! But see how this privilege was slighted; these great things of the law were counted as a strange thing,<\/I> as unintelligible and unreasonable (which might therefore<\/I> be slighted, because not to be fathomed, not to be accounted for), or as foreign, and things of no concernment to them, things that they had nothing to do with nor were to be governed by; they used those things as strangers, which they were shy of, and knew not how to bid welcome. We desire not the knowledge of thy ways.<\/I> Note, [1.] God having written to us the great things of his law, we ought to make them familiar to us, as our nearest relations (Pro 7:3<\/span>; Pro 7:4<\/span>); for therefore<\/I> we have them written, that they may talk with us,<\/I> Prov. vi. 22<\/I><\/span>. [2.] We make nothing of the things of God’s law if we make strange of them, as if they did not affect us and therefore we need not be affected with them.<\/P> 2. How they kept up the form of godliness notwithstanding, and to what little purpose they did so.<\/P> (1.) They multiplied their altars (v.<\/I><\/span> 11<\/span>): Ephraim made many altars to sin.<\/I> God appointed that there should be but one altar for sacrifice (Deu 12:3<\/span>; Deu 12:5<\/span>); but the ten tribes, having forsaken that, would still be thought very devout, and zealous for the honour of God, and, as if they would make amends for the affront they put on God’s altar, they made many altars,<\/I> dedicated to the God of Israel, whom hereby they intended, or at least pretended, to give glory to; but that would not justify their violation of God’s express command, nor would the example of the patriarchs, who before the law of Moses had many altars. No, they made many altars to sin<\/I> (that is, they did that which turned into sin to them), and therefore these altars shall be unto<\/I> them to sin,<\/I> that is, God will charge it upon them as a heinous sin, and put that upon the score of their crimes which they designed to be for the expiation of their crimes. Or they shall be to them an occasion of further sin. Their multiplying of altars dedicated to the God of Israel would introduce altars dedicated to other gods. Note, It is a great sin to corrupt the worship of God, and it will be charged as sin upon those that do it, how plausible soever their pretensions may be. And the way of this, as other sins, is down-hill; those that once deviate from the fixed rule of God’s commands will wander endlessly.<\/P> (2.) They multiplied their sacrifices, v.<\/I><\/span> 13<\/span>. Their altars were smoking altars: They sacrificed flesh for the sacrifices of God’s offerings,<\/I> and they celebrated their feasts upon their sacrifices; they were at a great expense upon their devotions, and (as those commonly are who set up their own inventions in the room of divine institutions) were very zealous in their way; as if they hoped by their impositions on themselves to atone for the contempt of the great atonement, and by their observing a ceremonial law of their own to excuse themselves from the obligation of all God’s moral precepts. But how did they speed? [1.] God makes no reckoning of their services: The Lord accepts them not.<\/I> How should he, when they did not offer their sacrifice upon that altar which alone sanctified the gift,<\/I> and when they only sacrificed flesh, but not the spiritual sacrifice of a penitent believing heart? Note, Those services only are acceptable to God which are performed according to the rule of his word, and through Jesus Christ,<\/I> 1 Pet. ii. 5<\/I><\/span>. [2.] He takes that occasion to reckon with them for their sins; now will he, instead of pardoning their iniquity and blotting out their sins, as they expected, remember their iniquity<\/I> and visit their sins.<\/I> Such an abomination to the Lord<\/I> are the sacrifices of the wicked<\/I> that they provoke him to call them to an account for all their other abominations. When they think by their sacrifices to bribe the Judge of heaven and earth into a connivance at their wickedness he will resent that as the highest affront they can put upon him, and it shall be the measure-filling sin. Note, A petition for leave to sin amounts to an imprecation of the curse for sin, and so it shall be answered, according to the multitude of the idols.<\/I> “I will punish their sins, for they shall return to Egypt;<\/I>” they shall be carried captive into Assyria, which shall be to them a house of bondage, as Egypt was to their fathers. Or it refers to Deut. xxviii. 68<\/span>, where returning to Egypt is made to close and complete the miseries of that sinful nation.<\/P> (3.) They multiplied their temples, and these also in honour of the true God, as they pretended, but really in contempt of the choice he had made of Jerusalem to put his name there. Israel has forgotten his Maker,<\/I> v.<\/span> 14<\/span><\/U><\/I><\/span>. They pretended to know him, and yet forgot him, for they liked not to retain God in their knowledge,<\/I> when the remembrance of him would give check to their lusts. It was an aggravation of their sin in forgetting God that he was their Maker<\/I> (Deu 32:15<\/span>; Deu 32:18<\/span>; Job 35:10<\/span>), as nothing obliges us more to remember him than that he is our Creator,<\/I> Eccl. xii. 1<\/I><\/span>. “He has forgotten his Maker, and builds temples;<\/I> he seems by the temples he builds to me mindful of his Maker, and to be desirous still to keep him in mind, and yet really he has forgotten him, because he has cast off the fear of him.” Some by temples here understand palaces,<\/I> for so the word sometimes signifies. “He has forgotten his Maker,<\/I> and yet is so secure and haughty that he sets his judgments at defiance, as Nebuchadnezzar did when he said, Is not this great Babylon that I have built?<\/I>” Judah is likewise charged with multiplying fenced cities,<\/I> and trusting in them for safety, when the judgments of God were abroad. To fortify their cities in subjection and subordination to God was well enough; but to fortify them in opposition to God, and without any regard to him or his providence (Isa. xxii. 11<\/span>), shows their hearts to be desperately hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.<\/I> But none ever hardened his heart against God and prospered,<\/I> nor shall they. God will send a fire upon his cities,<\/I> upon the cities both of Judah and Israel, not only the head-cities of Jerusalem and Samaria, but all the other cities of those two kingdoms, and it shall devour not only the cottages, but the palaces thereof;<\/I> though ever so strong, the fire shall master them; though ever so stately and sumptuous, the fire shall not spare them. This was fulfilled when all the cities of Israel were laid in ashes by the king of Assyria, and all the cities of Judah by the king of Babylon. The fires they both kindled were of his sending; and when he judges he will overcome.<\/P><\/p>\n He uses the same word as before when he spake of the meal, and says, that not only the provision of Israel shall be devoured, but also the people themselves; and he upbraids the Israelites with their miseries, that they might at length acknowledge God to be adverse to them. For the Prophet’s object was this — to make them feel their evils, that they might at length humble themselves and learn suppliantly to pray for pardon. For it is a great wisdom, when we so far profit under God’s scourges, that our sins come before our eyes. <\/p>\n He therefore says, Israel is devoured and is like a cast off vessel, even among the Gentiles, when yet that people excelled the rest of the world, as the Lord had chosen them for himself. As they were a peculiar people, they were superior to other nations; and then they were set apart for this end, that they might have nothing in common with the Gentiles. But he says now that this people is dispersed, and everywhere despised and cast off. This could not have been, except God had taken away his protection. We hence see that the Prophet had this one thing in view — to make the Israelites feel that God was angry with them. It now follows <\/p>\n TEXT: Hos. 8:8-14<\/span><\/p>\n 8<\/p>\n Israel is swallowed up: now are they among the nations as a vessel wherein none delighteth.<\/p>\n 9<\/p>\n For they are gone up to Assyria, like a wild ass alone by himself: Ephraim hath hired lovers.<\/p>\n 10<\/p>\n Yea, though they hire among the nations, now will I gather them; and they begin to be diminished by reason of the burden of the king of princes.<\/p>\n 11<\/p>\n Because Ephraim hath multiplied altars for sinning, altars have been unto him for sinning.<\/p>\n 12<\/p>\n I wrote for him the ten thousand things of my law; but they are counted as a strange thing.<\/p>\n 13<\/p>\n As for the sacrifices of mine offerings, they sacrifice flesh and eat it; but Jehovah accepteth them not; now will he remember their iniquity, and visit their sins; they shall return to Egypt.<\/p>\n 14<\/p>\n For Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and builded palaces; and Judah hath multiplied fortified cities: but I will send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour the castles thereof.<\/p>\n QUERIES<\/strong><\/p>\n a.<\/p>\n How is Israel like a wild ass alone by himself?<\/p>\n b.<\/p>\n Who is the king of princes of Hos. 8:10<\/span>?<\/p>\n c.<\/p>\n When did Israel return to Egypt?<\/p>\n PARAPHRASE<\/strong><\/p>\n Israel is about to be completely engulfed and conquered by its enemies. When her enemies have exploited her they will despise her as one despises a worn-out and useless pot. This is about to come to Israel because she behaved like a stubborn mule in heat. In spite of all Gods warnings to the contrary, she went to Assyria like a prostitute, trying to buy love from Assyria. But all these attempts at conciliation with her enemies are in vain for I, saith Jehovah, will deliver her into captivity where she shall begin to lose her national identity by reason of the exile brought about by the great Assyrian king who boasts, Are not all my princes kings! And because Ephraim has built many altars so she has multiplied her sins. And even though I revealed to Israel myriads of commandments, a full, complete and holy law, she acted as though they did not concern her at all. As for all the sacrifices they make, they only make them because they are interested in the part of the sacrifices they eat for themselves. Thus their sacrifices, although they are many, are meaningless to Jehovah. God is cognizant of the iniquity of Israel and He will visit them with judgment for their sins. They shall return to bondage and enslavement by their enemies. Israel has misplaced his Maker and sought satisfaction rather in building spacious buildings. Even Judah has done the same and seeks security in her well-fortified cities. But I, saith Jehovah, will bring My judgment upon these nations and all these material things in which they have trusted shall be utterly destroyed.<\/p>\n SUMMARY<\/strong><\/p>\n Israel has forgotten its Maker. God is going to deliver them into the hand of their enemies for obliteration as a nation.<\/p>\n COMMENT<\/strong><\/p>\n Hos. 8:8-9<\/span> ISRAEL IS SWALLOWED UP . . . GONE TO ASSYRIA . . . HATH HIRED LOVERS . . . As G. Campbell Morgan says, this is a chapter of judgment. Hosea gives the reasons for the judgment which he is declaring to be imminent in five blasts upon the trumpet. First, transgression and trespass; second, false kings and princes set up to rule without consulting God; third, idolatry, the calf of Samaria set up as a center of worship; fourth, the folly of seeking safety in alliance with Assyria; fifth, false altars, and sin as the result of them. We have dealt with the first three reasons for judgment in Hos. 8:1-7<\/span>. In this section we deal with the last two reasons. One notices that the reasons are stated in a climactic manner or in a crescendothe last one being the reason of which all the others are symptomsIsrael hath forgotten her Maker.<\/p>\n In Hos. 8:8-9<\/span> we deal with the fourth reason for judgmentfoolish alliances with Assyria. As a result of such mixing of Gods people with ambitious heathen politicians, Israel was, for all practical purposes, swallowed up as a nation, losing its identity, never again to enjoy political identity. It would be well to digress here into the history of the last few years of Israels national identity during which Hosea declared so pointedly and forcefully the impending destruction. We gratefully acknowledge using at length the work of Dr. Charles Pfeiffer, The Divided Kingdom, chapter 7, pages 6674, pub. Baker Book House.<\/p>\n After the death of Jeroboam II, the Northern Kingdom entered a period of decline from which she could not save her self, Instability in Israel combined with the growing strength in Assyria spelled chaos and disaster for the people of the Northern Kingdom, Zechariah, the son of Jeroboam II, reigned but six months before he was assassinated by Shallum. After a reign of but one month, Shallum was murdered by Menahem (ca. 742 B.C.). Menahem reigned for ten years in Samaria, and is remembered for his atrocities (cf. 2Ki. 15:16<\/span>).<\/p>\n During the reign of Menahem, a new threat came from the east in the person of Tiglath-pileser III (745727 B.C. who adopted a new policy in dealing with conquered peoples. Earlier conquerors would strike, carry off slaves and booty, and return home, leaving the conquered territory to care for itself as long as the tribute was paid faithfully. Tiglath-pileser began the policy of incorporating conquered territory into his empire. Syria, Babylonia, and Anatolia were divided into provinces directly responsible to Nineveh. When Tiglath-pileser came to the throne he faced challenges to his power from Babylonia to the south, and Urartu (Armenia) to the north. He put down revolts in these areas, enforced Assyrian control, and even extended his rule as far as the region of Mt. Demavend, south of the Caspian Sea. Beginning in 743 B.C. Tiglath-pileser conducted campaigns in Syria where he was opposed by a coalition of states headed by Azriau of Yaudi, a name which may be translatted Azariah of Judah. Scholars have debated whether this Azriau of Yaudi could be the Biblical Azariah, or Uzziah who ruled Judah from 783 to 742 B.C. If so, we would assume that Azariah\/Uzziah was the outstanding leader of the Syria-Palestine area following the death of Jeroboam II of Israel (ca. 746 B.C.). Azariah\/Uzziah spent his last years as a leper, with his son Jotham functioning as king. If Azriau of Yaudi was Azariah\/Uzziah, then he remained the power behind the throne during the period of his leprosy, and he became the center of opposition to the Assyrians in their campaign of 743742 B.C. Presumably Azariah\/Uzziah died soon after the campaign. No further mention is made of him in the Assyrian annals.<\/p>\n Cyrus Gordon argues that Azriau was not the Judean king, but a native north Syrian who ruled a city state in the area named Yaudi, or Samal. Eduard Meyer suggested that Azriau was an Israelite adventurer who had journeyed northward and established himself among the Aramean states of that region.<\/p>\n By Tiglath-pilesers time the Assyrians had developed siege warfare into an effective weapon. Battering rams and other devices for breaching strong city walls struck terror into the people of western Asia. By 738 B.C. Tiglath-pileser was collecting tribute from Asia Minor, Syria, the Phoenician cities, an Arab queen named Zabibe, Rezin of Damascus, and Menahem of Israel. Menahem gave Tiglath-pileser (Biblical Pul) a thousand talents of silver that he might help him to confirm his royal power (2Ki. 15:19<\/span>). While Menahem had little choice, the Biblical text implies that he felt that prompt payment of tribute might cause Assyrian king to look favorably on his kingdom over Israel.<\/p>\n Menahems willingness to court Assyrian favor to strengthen his hold upon the throne was bitterly resented in Israel. When his son Pekahiah took the throne (738\/737 B.C.), opposition flared into the open. One of his officers, Pekah ben Remaliah, assassinated Pekahiah and seized the throne. Pekah had the help of a company of Gileadites (2Ki. 15:25<\/span>) who shared his anti-Assyrian sympathies. He may also have had the tacit support of Rezin, king of Damascus, and certain of the Philistine leaders who resented the pro-Assyrian policies of Menahem and Pekahiah. In the event of trouble with Assyria, they doubtless hoped for Egyptian help.<\/p>\n As soon as Pekah was on the throne of Israel he revealed his anti-Assyrian bias. Judah, now ruled by Jotham, the son of Azariah\/Uzziah, chose to follow an independent policy and refused to join Pekah and Rezin in their opposition to Assyria. A showdown came under Jothams son, Ahaz, when Rezin and Pekah attacked Jerusalem, determined to remove Ahaz from his throne and install a ruler of their choice, Ben Tabeel (Isa. 7:1-9<\/span>). At the height of the crisis, Isaiah tried to encourage Ahaz with the assurance that God would not allow the Davidic line to be obliterated, and that the kingdoms ruled by Rezin and Pekah would quickly fall to Assyria (Isa. 7:10-17<\/span>). Indeed, Assyria was the rod of Gods anger (Isa. 10:5<\/span>) to punish Israel because of her idolatry.<\/p>\n While Pekah and Rezin were beseiging Jerusalem, other parts of Judah were exposed to the enemy. Uzziah had fortified the port of Elath (Ezion-geber) on the Gulf of Aqabah, but now the Edomites drove out the Israelites and occupied the port city. The traditional (Massoretic) text of 2Ki. 16:6<\/span> states that the Arameans (A.V. Syria) took Elath, but many scholars, including the translators of the R.S.V., think that Aram was misread for Edom by copyists of ancient manuscripts. The two words are almost identical in Hebrew. It is clear, from 2Ch. 28:17<\/span>, that Edomites invaded Judah during the reign of Ahaz. Philistines also took advantage of Judean weakness by invading Judah from the west (2Ch. 28:18<\/span>). Thus Ahaz was confronted with invasions of Arameans and Israelites from the north, Philistines from the west, and Edomites from the south.<\/p>\n Although Isaiah had counseled faith in God, Ahaz chose a more mundane way of resolving his problems. He sent tribute to the Assyrian king, and asked Tiglath-pileser to come to his aid (2Ki. 16:7-8<\/span>). While this appeared to be the solution to an immediate problem, it had disastrous results. Tiglath-pilser probably would have come without Ahaz appeal, but the appeal gave the invasion a type of legitimacy it did not deserve.<\/p>\n Both the Bible and Tiglath-pilesers inscriptions report the events that followed. The Assyrian Annals state:<\/p>\n [As for Menahem I] overwhelmed him [like a snowstorm] and he . . . fled like a bird, alone, [and bowed to my feet (?)]. I returned him to his place [and imposed tribute upon him, to wit:] gold, silver, linen garments with multicolor trimmings, great . . . I received from him. Israel (lit. Omri-land) . . . all its inhabitants [and] their possessions I led to Assyria. They overthrew their king, Pekah and I placed Hoshea as king over them, I received from them ten talents of gold, and thousand talents of silver as their tribute and brought them to Assyria,<\/p>\n Tiglath-pileser first moved down the seacoast (734 B.C.). He passed through Israelite territory and punished the Philistine cities, particularly Gaza, for their part in resisting Assyrian encroachments. Tiglath-pileser then moved southward and established a base at Wadi el- Arish (The River of Egypt) the natural boundary between Egypt and Palestine. This was his means of isolating Egypt and keeping Egyptian arms out of the conflict in Palestine.<\/p>\n The next year (733 B.C.) the Assyrians were again in Israel. Galilee and Transjordan were overrun and large segments of their populations were deported (2Ki. 15:29<\/span>). Megiddo was destroyed and rebuilt as a provincial capital. G. Ernest Wright has described the palace-fort which served as the headquarters of the Assyrian commandant:<\/p>\n It was some 220 feet long and at least 157 feet wide, though part of its eastern side may long since have tumbled down the side of the hill. The stone walls of the fort were very thick, varying from 6 to 8 feet wide. The plan suggests a large interior courtyard, surrounded on at least three sides by rooms.<\/p>\n The Assyrians divided the occupied territory of Israel into three provinces. Transjordan comprised the province of Gilead. The province of Megiddo included Galilee, and Dor served as headquarters for Assyrian control of the coastal plain.<\/p>\n Doubtless at the instigation of the pro-Assyrian members of the court of Israel, or even of Tiglath-pileser himself, an Israelite named Hoshea ben Elah (2Ki. 15:30<\/span>) murdered Pekah. Hosea became a vassal of Tiglath-pileser.<\/p>\n In 732 B.C. Tiglath-pileser took Damascus and summoned Ahaz and other vassal princes to pay homage to him, It was on this occasion that an altar in Damascus so impressed Ahaz that he had a large model of it made and sent to Uriah, the High Priest in Jerusalem, with instructions to have a replica of it made and placed in the Temple court (2Ki. 16:10-16<\/span>).<\/p>\n Tiglath-pileser ravaged the city of Damascus. He executed Rezin and deported much of its population. The territory of the Aramaic kingdom of Damascus was divided into four Assyrian provinces.<\/p>\n Shortly after Shalmaneser V succeeded his father Tiglath-pileser as king of Assyria, Hoshea of Israel withheld tribute and sought an alliance with Egypt. Hoshea made an alliance with So (2Ki. 17:14<\/span>), Egyptians Sibe, known from Assyrian texts as a turtan or commander-in-chief serving one of the rival rulers of Egypt, This was a fatal mistake for Hoshea, for Egypt was in no position to offer effective aid against Assyria. In 724 B.C. Hoshea appeared before Shalmaneser, still hoping to come to terms. The Assyrians were convinced that they could not trust Hoshea, so they took him prisoner and occupied the land of Israel except for the city of Samaria which withstood siege for two more years.<\/p>\n While the siege of Samaria was in progress, Shalmaneser died. His successor, Sargon II (722705 B.C.) has left records of the fall of Samaria. Many of the Israelites were deported to Upper Mesopotamia and Media and lost their identity there. It is this fact that has given rise to the idea that there are lost tribes which either have turned up in the past or will turn up at some future day. As a matter of fact many of the people of Israel lost their national identity through assimilation during the centuries following their deportation. Others made their way southward to Judah, and remnants of them appear among the later Jews.<\/p>\n Samaria was organized into an Assyrian province under an Assyrian governor, Sargons inscriptions tell us of revolts that broke out in Hamath, Gaza, and other provinces, including Damascus and Samaria, but the Assyrians were in firm control and insurrection was quickly put down. In succeeding years Samaria was repopulated in accord with Assyrian policy of transplanting peoples: And the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sephar-vaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the people of Israel; and they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its cities (2Ki. 17:24<\/span>).<\/p>\n From the standpoint of orthodox Jewish thought these people had an eclectic faith: So they feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away (2Ki. 17:33<\/span>). They brought their local cults with them to Samaria, but when settled there they sought to learn the law of the god of the land (2Ki. 17:27<\/span>). The Assyrians permitted a priest to teach the Yahwistic faith of Israel, although Israel disowned them (2Ki. 17:34-41<\/span>). Jesus however, dared to speak of The Good Samaritan, and to identify himself as the Messiah to a Samaritan woman. A few hundred Samaritans survive to this day.<\/p>\n For additional information on the political and religious circumstances of the northern kingdom, Israel, at this time, see our Special Study five, pages 59 to 73.<\/p>\n Israel, the apple of Gods eye (cf. Deu. 32:10<\/span>; Psa. 17:8<\/span>; Son. 2:3<\/span>; Zec. 2:8<\/span>), will become a despised, worn out, cast off pot (vessel). Her pitiful condition would hardly arouse any envy or greed on the part of the nations surrounding her after God finishes His judgment upon her.<\/p>\n One of the main reasons for the impending downfall is her flirtation with Assyria. Instead of trusting in Jehovah, Israel felt more secure in making political and military alliances with Assyria. Although it involved her in virtual satellite relationship at first and eventually in total captivity and exile, she ran to Assyria and actually paid tribute to the heathen nation in order to obtain its favor. She was like a stubborn, wild ass in heat. She was like a prostitute who sells her favors for love or security. She hired Assyria to love her! But hired lovers soon grow cold in their affections. And it was only a short time until Assyria, Israels hired lover, turned on her and became an unmerciful enemy.<\/p>\n Hos. 8:10<\/span> . . . AMONG THE NATIONS, NOW WILL I GATHER THEM . . . AND THEY BEGIN TO BE DIMINISHED . . . Appeasing ones enemies at the sacrifice of truth and righteousness has never worked and it never will because it violates eternal, moral principles of God which sustain and protect the destinies of men and nations. And though Israel should pay political blackmail she would still lose her national identity. Eventually, the ten tribes of the northern kingdom were scattered all over the face of the earth among the nations and remain so to this day! It all began when Assyria rose to world dominance, when the king of Assyria called himself king of princes (cf. Isa. 10:5<\/span> ff).<\/p>\n Hos. 8:11<\/span> . . . EPHRAIM . . . MULTIPLIED ALTARS FOR SINNING . . . God had decreed that there was to be only one altar and that was at Jerusalem. Only there would He accept sacrifices; only there were His priests to officiate. So then, as many altars as Israel reared (at Dan and Bethel and other centers also), so often did they repeat their sin. That God considered their altars and their renegade priesthood a sin. one need only refer to 1Ki. 12:30<\/span>; 1Ki. 13:33-34<\/span>. The only thing that could ever result from worshipping at these altars was sin against God!<\/p>\n Hos. 8:12-13<\/span> I WROTE FOR HIM THE TEN THOUSAND THINGS OF MY LAW . . . THEY SACRIFICE FLESH AND EAT IT . . . THEY SHALL RETURN TO EGYPT . . . Their sin could not be excused on the grounds of ignorance. God had revealed His truth to them over and over again, in divers portions and divers manners (Heb. 1:1<\/span>). By Moses, by the priests, by the kings, by the prophets, day after day, year after year they were instructed in the law (ten thousand times). Furthermore the law was extensive enough to cover every behavior of life, every thought, deed and motive. But it was counted as a strange thing. The law to Israel was foreign, strange, alien and of no concern. In just what way it was strange we do not know. Perhaps Israel felt the true Mosaic law was anachronistic, that is, out of dateold fashioned. Good enough for their forefathers who lived rather primitive lives, but outdated for contemporary Israel. This is as modern as the twentieth century! Perhaps Israel felt the Mosaic law politically inexpedient. After all, a change in worship and priesthood was Jeroboams plan to instill national pride in the northern kingdoms citizens. Perhaps Israel just didnt want to keep the law because it was too binding and would not suit their materialistic greed. This is indicated by Hos. 8:13<\/span> of our text. The Israelites brought their sacrifices regularly to the places of worship but they did it selfishly, in a mood of indulgence, multiplying the sacrifices in order to multiply indulgences. But God is not dead, neither is He asleep, nor does He forget. God records their deeds of iniquity and they must receive His payment for their sins. God prepares to visit upon them the moral consequences of their rebellion against justice and truth and righteousness. They shall return to bondage (represented symbolically by Egypt) and slavery in the hands of an ungodly, cruel, pagan nation. There is an interesting allegory of the foundling child in Ezekiel 16<\/span> concerning Gods rescue of Israel and Judah from Egypt in the days of Moses and His sustenance of them and their unfaithfulness to Himread it!<\/p>\n Hos. 8:14<\/span> ISRAED HATH FORGOTTEN HIS MAKER, AND BUILDED PALACES . . . This is the one sickness for which all the others are mere symptoms. But had these people really forgotten God in the usual sense of the word? By no means! Men cannot forget God. They can deny Him, but in so doing they are still remembering Him! Men do not forget God intellectually; morally, yes, but intellectually, no! How then had Israel forgotten God? The Hebrew word used for forgotten means literally, mislaid and perhaps this will help us understand their moral predicament. Everyone knows what it is to mislay something. You have not forgotten it, but you have mislaid it. This is the idea. The Hebrew word is shakakh and is used in Deu. 4:9<\/span>; Deu. 6:10<\/span>; Deu. 8:11<\/span>; Deu. 9:1<\/span>; Deu. 9:4<\/span>; Deu. 9:7<\/span>. Taking all these passages together we learn that the word means personal neglect, self-satisfaction that comes from such neglect and the self-righteousness which issues from remembering only self. It also stems from that independence which causes us to say that because of our righteousness and uprightness of heart God has blessed us, and has given us these things; and so God is put out of sight, mislaid.<\/p>\n How do men come to mislay God? First, they give an intellectual assent to the fact of His existence without seeing to it that their conduct corresponds with their assent. God forgotten in this sense, mislaid, lost as an active power, touching life, conditioning it, driving it, building it up! Second, after God is mislaid, man begins to substitute, to fill the vacuum thus created in his life by building. Hosea says Israel builded palacesthe word translated literally would be spacious buildings. The passion of the nation came to be to build big things. How up-to-date the prophet is! Man fills the vacuum in his life today by just such action. The passion for bigness is a symptom of capacity for the eternal, for God; and when men have mislaid God, then they try and build big things without God. Today we are building big government, big military, big industry, bigger homes, bigger automobiles, bigger United Nations, bigger everything and it is all unconsciously symptomatic of a mental and spiritual vacuum created by forgetting God!<\/p>\n Judahs forgotten God was replaced by fortified cities. Here was a quest for security, an attempt to secure safety. The passion for safety is a symptom of the sense of peril! What do we all want? Security. Security against what? The lack of God, and the hopelessness that results from it. Our hopeless hippies carry signs today bearing the statements of hopeless philosophers of a generation ago, like, There is no cure for birth or death save to enjoy the intervalSantayana . . . Hoseas message is as relevant as our contemporary scene. We have mislaid God, and now we are building skyscrapers (spacious buildings) and enormous defense mechanisms (fortified cities). These things would not be so wrong in themselves if God were central in the picture. Humanity erases God from the picture and then gropes after the spacious and fights for the secure, and never makes anything so big but that the sky laughs at it; and never secures itself for one five minutes from a possible outbreak of devastation or anarchy.<\/p>\n We cannot get away from God. We have mislaid Him. He is at our elbow. We may be oblivious of Him, we may pretend to be doing without Him, but all the while we are living and moving and having our being in Him, In his hand our breath is. And according to our relationship to Him, He will bless or blast. If we mislay God, we can run up our sky-scrapers, we can multiply our battleships; but we cannot escape the slow but sure judgment of God.<\/p>\n QUIZ<\/strong><\/p>\n 1.<\/p>\n Recite as completely as you can the history of Israel from Jeroboam I to the captivity of Israel.<\/p>\n 2.<\/p>\n What does Hosea mean, Israel hath hired lovers?<\/p>\n 3.<\/p>\n What is the meaning of ten thousand things of my law?<\/p>\n 4.<\/p>\n In what way does the prophet use Egypt to mean the captivities?<\/p>\n 5.<\/p>\n What does the word forgotten mean in Hos. 8:14<\/span>?<\/p>\n 6.<\/p>\n How did Israel seek to fill the vacuum of a forgotten God? Judah?<\/p>\n (8) Vessel wherein is no pleasure<\/strong>i.e.<\/em>, worthless (comp. Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible <\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Tiglath-pileser also inaugurated the policy of transporting rebellious peoples to parts of his empire where they would be powerless to unite against him. Peoples were exiled from their homelands and other exiles were brought in to the evacuated territory. In this way continuity between old and new settlers would be broken, and there would be no possibility of the older population returning to their homeland. As a result of this policy Israel, which was taken into exile by the Assyrians, lost its identity, whereas Judah, which survived until Babylonian times, could and did return to Jerusalem and thereby maintain its identity. The shifting of populations hastened the spread of Aramaic as a lingua francca, replacing the local tongues of the various peoples of the empire.<\/p>\nFuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n