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Hosea Chapter
Three
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO HOSEA 3
In
this chapter is an order to the prophet to love an adulterous woman beloved of
her friend
and by this parable to express the love of God to Israel
and their
ingratitude to him
Hosea 3:1
the
prophet's execution of that order
making a purchase of her
and a covenant
with her
which set forth the captive
servile
mean
and abject state of that
people
Hosea 3:2
which is
explained of their being deprived for a long time of civil and ecclesiastic
government
Hosea 3:4
and the
chapter is concluded with a prophecy and promise of their conversion to Christ
in the latter day
Hosea 3:5.
Hosea 3:1 Then the Lord said to me
“Go again
love a woman who is loved by a lover[a] and is
committing adultery
just like the love of the Lord for the
children of Israel
who look to other gods and love the raisin cakes of
the pagans.”
YLT 1And Jehovah saith unto me:
`Again
go
love a woman
loved of a friend
and an adulteress
like the loved
of Jehovah
the sons of Israel
and they are turning unto other gods
and are
lovers of grape-cakes.'
Then said the Lord unto me
.... Or
as the Targum
"the
Lord said unto me again';
for
the word yet or again is to be joined to this
and not the following clause;
and shows that this is a new vision
prophecy
or parable
though respecting
the same persons and things:
go
love a woman beloved of her friend
yet an adulteress; not the
prophet's wife
not Gomer
but some other feigned person; beloved either of her
own husband
as the Targum and Jarchi
notwithstanding her unchastity and unfaithfulness
to him; or of another man
as Aben Ezra
who had a very great respect for her
courted her
and perhaps had betrothed her
but had not yet consummated the
marriage; and
though a harlot
loved her dearly
and could not get off his
affections from her
but hankered after her; or of the prophet
as Kimchi
who
paraphrases it
"thou
shall love her
and be to her a friend;'
to
protect and defend her
as harlots used to have one in particular they called
their friend
by whose name they were called
and was a cover to them. The
sense is
that the prophet was to go to the people of Israel
and deliver this
parable to them
setting forth their state and condition
and their behaviour
towards God
and his great love to them
notwithstanding all their baseness and
ingratitude; it was as if a woman that was either married or betrothed
or that
either had a husband or a suitor that so dearly loved her
that though she was
guilty of uncleanness
and continued in it
yet would not leave her; and which
is thus expressed by the Targum
"go
deliver a prophecy against the house of Israel
who are like a woman dear to
her husband; and though she commits fornication against him
yet he so loves
her that he will not put her away:'
according to the love of the Lord toward the children of Israel; or such is
the love of the Lord to them; for though they were guilty of idolatry
intemperance
and other immoralities
yet still he loved them
and formed
designs of grace and goodness for them. And thus
though God does not love
sinners as such; yet he loves them
though they are sinners
and when and while
they are such; as appears by his choice of them
and covenant with them
by
Christ's dying for them while sinners
and by his quickening them when dead in
trespasses and sins:
who look to other gods; or "though they
look to other gods"F3והם פנים "quamvis respiciant"
Piscator. ; look to
them and worship them
pray unto them
put their trust in them
and expect good
things from them:
and love flagons of wine
or "tubs of
grapes"F4אשישי ענבים
"dolia uvarum"
Pagninus
Montanus
Zanchius; "soa"
some
in Drusius. ; or of wine made of them; or lumps of raisins
cakes or junkets
made of them and other things
as the Septuagint; and may respect either the
drunkenness and intemperance of the ten tribes; see Isaiah 28:1
they
loved
as Kimchi says
the delights of the world
and not the law and
commandments of God; or the feasts that were made in the temples of their idols
they loved good eating and drinking
and that made them like idolatry the
better for the sake of those things; see Exodus 32:6
for
the Heathens used to eat and drink to excess at their sacrifices: hence
DiogenesF5Laertius in Vit. Diogenis
p. 382. the philosopher was
very angry with those who sacrificed to the gods for their health
yet in their
sacrifices feasted to the prejudice of their health.
Hosea 3:2 2 So
I bought her for myself for fifteen shekels of silver
and one and
one-half homers of barley.
YLT 2And I buy her to me for
fifteen silverlings
and a homer and a letech of barley;
So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver
.... Or
"fifteen shekels"
which was about one pound seventeen shillings and
six pence of our money
reckoning a shekel at two shillings and six pence;
though some make it to be but two shillings and four pence; this was but half
the price of a servant
Exodus 21:32
and
alludes to the dowry which men used to give to women at their marriage; see 1 Samuel 18:25. The
word here used has the signification of digging; hence the Vulgate Latin
version renders it
"I dug her"; and the abettors and defenders of it
think it refers to the digging
or boring the ears of a servant that chose to
continue with his master
Exodus 21:6
but
the word is used in the sense of buying
Genesis 1:5
and so
Jarchi says it has the sense of merchandise or bargaining; and in the sea
coasts he observes
that they call מכירה
a purchase
כירה. Perhaps the word is better rendered by the
Septuagint and Arabic versions
"hired"; and "cara" in the
Arabic language signifies "to hire"; so it is used in Acts 28:30. So with
the Turks
as Monsieur ThevenotF6Travels
part 2. B. 1. ch. 3. p.
11. observes
a letter out of beasts to hire is called "moucre" or
"moukir"
which comes from the Arabic word "kira"
he says
which signifies to let or hire; and is here fitly used of a harlot. The Jews
have many whims and fancies about these fifteen pieces of silver. The Targum
and Pesikta in Jarchi
take them to respect the fifteenth day of Nisan
on
which the Israelites were redeemed out of Egypt; according to Aben Ezra
they
design the fifteen kings of Judah
from Rehoboam to the captivity
reckoning
the sons of Josiah as one
being brethren; according to others
in Kimchi
Abraham
Isaac
and Jacob
and the twelve tribes; and
according to Abarbinel
the fifteen prophets that prophesied of the redemption:
and for an homer of barley
and an half homer of barley; a
"homer" held ten "ephahs"
and a "lethec"
or
"half homer"
five "ephahs"
or so many bushels
these
making the number fifteen: again
according to Saadiah
they design Moses
Aaron
and Miriam
and the twelve tribes; and
according to Aben Ezra
the
number of the high priests in the kingdom of Judah and Jerusalem
a homer
making thirty seahs
and a half homer fifteen
in all forty five; but according
to others
in Kimchi
these design the forty five days between the coming of
the Israelites out of Egypt and their receiving the law: but
leaving these
fancies
as the number of shekels given for her was but a low price
and shows
what an estimate was made of her; and barley being the coarsest of grain
and
bread made of it
that of the worst sort
which the poorer people eat; may be
expressive of the captive
servile
mean
and abject state of the people of
Israel
from the time of their captivity to their conversion to Christ
as is
after more fully explained.
Hosea 3:3 3 And
I said to her
“You shall stay with me many days; you shall not play the
harlot
nor shall you have a man—so
too
will I be toward you.”
YLT 3and I say unto her
`Many
days thou dost remain for Me
thou dost not go a-whoring
nor become any one's;
and I also [am] for thee.'
And I said unto her
.... Having bought or
hired her; this was the covenant or agreement he made with her
thou shall abide for me many days; dwell alone in some
solitary and separate place
and have no conversation with any
especially with
men; live like a widow that has lost her husband
and so wait for a long time
till the prophet should think fit to take her to his house and bed:
thou shall not play the harlot
and thou shall not be for another
man; neither prostitute herself
as she had done to her lovers; nor
marry another
but keep herself chaste and single:
so will I also be for thee; wait for thee
and not
take another wife; or will be thy husband
after having made proper trial and
full proof of thy conduct and behaviour: the Targum paraphrases it thus;
"say
O prophet
to her
O congregation of Israel
your sins are the cause that you
are carried captive many days; ye shall give yourselves to my worship and not
err
nor serve idols
and even I will have mercy on you.'
The
whole is explained in the following words:
Hosea 3:4 4 For
the children of Israel shall abide many days without king or prince
without
sacrifice or sacred pillar
without ephod or teraphim.
YLT 4For many days remain do the
sons of Israel without a king
and there is no prince
and there is no
sacrifice
and there is no standing pillar
and there is no ephod and teraphim.
For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king
and without a prince
.... Without any form of civil government
either regal or
without any civil magistrate
either superior or subordinate
of their own;
being subject to the kings and princes of other nations
as the ten tribes were
from their captivity by Shalmaneser
to the coming of Christ
which was about
seven hundred years; and from that time the tribes of Judah and Benjamin have
had no kings and princes among them
for the space of nineteen hundred years
which may very well be called "many days". This answers to the
harlot's abiding for the prophet many days
in the parable:
and without a sacrifice; the daily sacrifice
which has ceased as long as before observed; and any other sacrifice of slain
beasts
as the passover lamb
&c.; the Jews not thinking it lawful to offer
sacrifice in a strange land
or any where but upon the altar in Jerusalem; and
to this day have no such sacrifices among them
though they have no notion of
the abrogation of them
as the Christians have; but so it is ordered in
Providence
that they should be without them
being kept out of their own land
that this and other prophecies might be fulfilled:
and without an image
or "statue":
such as were made for Baal
or as were the calves at Dan and Bethel; and though
the people of Israel were very subject to idolatry
and set up images and
statues for worship before their captivities
yet since have nothing of image
worship among them
but strictly observe the command.
And without an ephod; a linen garment wore by
the high priests under the law
to which the breastplate was fastened
which
had in it the Urim and Thummim; and which were wanting in the second temple
and have been ever since; so that these people have been so long without this
way and means of inquiry of God about future things
see Ezra 2:63
this may
be put for the whole priesthood
now ceased in a proper sense; and so the
Septuagint render it
"without a priesthood"; so that the Jews are
without any form of government
civil or ecclesiastical; they have neither
princely nor priestly power: "and without teraphim"; which some
understand to be the same with the Urim and Thummim; and so the Septuagint
render it
"without manifestations"; by which they are thought to
mean the Urim
which according to them so signifies: but the word is generally
thought to design some little images or idols
like the penates or household
gods of the Romans
which were consulted about future things; and so the Jews
commonly understand it
and some describe them thusF7Pirke Eliezer
c. 36. fol. 40. 1.
"what
are the "teraphim?" they slay the firstborn of a man
cut off his
head
and pickle it with salt and oil
and inscribe on a plate of gold the name
of an unclean spirit
and put that under his tongue; then they place it in a
wall
and light candles before it
and pray unto it
and it talks with them.'
But
now
according to this prophecy
the Jews in their captivity should have no way
and means of knowing future things
either in a lawful or unlawful manner; see Psalm 74:9. How the
whole of this prophecy is now fulfilled in them
hear what they themselves say
particularly Kimchi;
"these
are the days of the captivity in which we now are at this day; we have no king
nor prince out of Israel; for we are in the power of the nations
and of their
kings and princes; and have no sacrifice for God
nor image for idols; no
"ephod" for God
that declares future things; and no
"teraphim" for idolatry
which show things to come
according to the
mind of those that believe in them;'
and
so Jarchi
"without
a sacrifice in the sanctuary in Judah; without an image of Baal in Samaria
for
the kings of Israel; without an ephod of Urim and Thummim
that declares hidden
things; and "teraphim" made for a time to speak of
and show things
that are secret;'
and
to the same purpose Aben Ezra. The Targum is
"without
a king of the house of David
and without a ruler over Israel; without
sacrifice for acceptance in Jerusalem; and without a high place in Samaria; and
without an ephod
and him that shows;'
i.e.
what shall come to pass. The Syriac version renders the last clause
"without one that offers incense"; and the Arabic version
"without one that teaches".
Hosea 3:5 5 Afterward
the children of Israel shall return and seek the Lord their God and
David their king. They shall fear the Lord and His goodness in the
latter days.
YLT 5Afterwards turned back have
the sons of Israel
and sought Jehovah their God
and David their king
and
have hastened unto Jehovah
and unto His goodness
in the latter end of the
days.
Afterward shall the children of Israel return
.... The ten
tribes of Israel
and also the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin
which are
included in the name of Israel
as Aben Ezra interprets it; and these are
joined together in parallel places; see Jeremiah 30:3 for
though they did not go into captivity together
yet their return and conversion
will be at the same time; and they are all spoken of under the name of Israel
by the Apostle Paul
when he foretells their conversion and salvation
Romans 11:26. The
"return" of them
here prophesied of
does not barely mean their
return to their own land
which will be at this time; see Jeremiah 30:3
but
their return to the Lord by repentance; when they shall repent of
and turn
from
their sinful course of life
and particularly of their unbelief and
rejection of the true Messiah
and embrace him; and of their traditions and
false ways of worship
which they shall discard; and of their own righteousness
they shall now renounce; and shall turn to the Lord Jesus Christ
and believe
in him for righteousness
life
and salvation:
and seek the Lord their God
and David their King; these may be
considered either as two distinct persons
Jehovah the Father
and the Messiah
as in Ezekiel 34:23 and
so the Targum
"and
seek the worship of the Lord their God
and obey Messiah the Son of David their
King;'
who
will be both equally sought after
and unto
by them; and which is a proof of
the divinity of the Messiah
and of his equality with God his Father; as well
as points out the right way in which Jehovah is to be sought
namely
with
Christ
or in him
in whom he is a God gracious and merciful; and to seek and
know both the one and the other is eternal life
John 17:3 or else
all this is to be understood of the Messiah
rendering the words
"and
seek the Lord their God
even David their King" as also Jeremiah 30:9
may
be rendered; and so these are all epithets
titles
and characters of him: he
is Jehovah
the everlasting I AM; the true God
and eternal life; Immanuel
God
with us; God in our nature
manifest in the flesh; the Son of David
and his
antitype
often called David in Scripture. Psalm 89:3
King of
kings
King of the saints
of his church
and will be owned as such by the Jews
at the time of their conversion
though they have rejected him; but now they
will receive him
and be subject to him; they will seek to him for salvation
for the pardon of their sins
for righteousness
for rest
for food
for
protection and safety
and to serve and obey him: and this seeking will not be
out of curiosity
or in a carnal way
or for selfish ends; nor hypocritically;
but with their whole hearts
and diligently
and in earnest. Not only the
Targum interprets this of Messiah the Son of David
but Aben Ezra on the place
says
this is the Messiah; and it is applied to him
and his times
by other
Jewish writers
both ancient and modern. In an ancient bookF8Zohar
in Exod. fol. 93. 3. of theirs
speaking of David
it is said
the holy blessed
God is well pleased with him in this world
and in the world to come; in this
world
as it is written
"and I will defend this city for mine own sake
and for my servant David's sake"
2 Kings 20:6
and
in the world to come
as it is written
they shall seek the Lord their God
and David their King
&c.;
David was King in this world
and David shall be King in the time to come. And
in both Talmuds the words are applied to the Messiah; in one of themF9T.
Hieros. Beracot
fol. 5. 1.
after quoting this text
it is added
the Rabbins
say this is the King Messiah; if of the living
David is his name; if of the
dead
David is his name. And in the otherF11T. Bab Megillah
fol.
18. 1.
it is said
when Jerusalem is built
David comes; that is
the Son of
David
the Messiah; which is proved by this passage
"afterwards the
children of Israel shall return
and seek the Lord their God
and David their
King"; that is
as the gloss interprets it
after they shall return to the
house of the sanctuary
or the temple: so Abarbinel
both in his commentary
upon this place
and elsewhereF12Mashmiah Jeshuah
fol. 55. 4.
as
he interprets the "one head" in Hosea 1:11
of
Messiah ben Ephraim
whom he
with the rest of his tribe
feign shall perish in
war; so he observes
that then Israel shall seek David their King
the rod out
of the root of Jesse
whom the Lord shall choose
and cause to reign over them.
And another of their later writersF13R. Isaac Chizzuk Emunah
par.
1. p. 44. interprets the passage of the Messiah
and produces it to prove
against the Christians that he should come in the end of days
or in the latter
days; as it is plain and certain that our Jesus
the true Messiah
came at the
end of the Jewish world
in the last days of their civil and church state; see Hebrews 1:1
and shall fear the Lord and his goodness in the latter day; not man
but
the Lord; not his wrath and vengeance
but his goodness; not with a servile
but with a godly filial fear; a fear influenced by the blessings of goodness
they shall now be partakers of
particularly pardoning grace and mercy
Psalm 130:3
they
shall fear the Lord
who is good
and goodness itself
and Christ
in whom the
goodness of God is displayed
and who is prevented with the blessings of
goodness for his people: it may be rendered
they "shall fear"
or
"come fearing to the Lord
and his goodness"F14ופחדו אל יהוה
ואל טובו "pavebunt ad
Dominum"
Montanus; "providi accedent ad Jehovam
et ad bonitatem
ejus"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator
Drusius; "et cum timore
venient ad Jehovam
et ad bonum ejus"
Schmidt; so Ben Melech interprets
it
"they shall fear
and be afraid of him
flow to him
and to his goodness";
and which
he says
Saadiah explains of his glory
agreeably to Exod. xxxiii.
19.
being sensible of their sin
danger
and misery; they shall flee to the
Lord as to their city of refuge
and to the blessings of his goodness they see
their need of; and this they shall do in haste
as Aben Ezra interprets it
comparing it with Hosea 11:11. The
Septuagint version is
"they shall be amazed at the Lord
and his good
things"; the Syriac version
"they shall know the Lord
and his
goodness": the Arabic version
they shall confess the Lord
and his
benefits; the Targum
"they
shall give themselves to the service of the Lord
and his goodness shall be
multiplied
which shall come to them in the end of days;'
or
as Aben Ezra
in the end of the prophecy of the prophets
in future time
in
the times of the Messiah; which
as Kimchi serves
are always meant by the last
days; and here it signifies the latter day of the last days
or of the Gospel
dispensation.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)