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Hosea Chapter
Thirteen
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO HOSEA 13
This
chapter begins with observing the different state and condition of Ephraim
before and after his idolatry
Hosea 13:1; his
increase in it
Hosea 13:2; and
therefore his prosperity was very short lived
which is signified by various
metaphors
Hosea 13:3; and his
sins are aggravated by the former goodness of God unto him his great
ingratitude unto God
and forgetfulness him
Hosea 13:4; hence
he is threatened with his wrath and vengeance in a very severe manner
Hosea 13:7; for
which he had none to blame but himself; yea
such was the grace and goodness of
God to him
that though he had destroyed himself
yet there were help and
salvation for him in him
Hosea 13:9; though
not in his king he had desired
and was given
and was took away in wrath
Hosea 13:10; but
his sin being bound up and hid
and he foolish and unwise
sharp corrections
would be given him
Hosea 13:12; and
yet a gracious promise is made of redemption from death and the grave by the
Messiah
Hosea 13:14; but
notwithstanding this
and all his present prosperity
he would be blasted in
his wealth and riches; and Samaria the metropolis of his country would he
desolate; and the inhabitants of it be used in the most cruel manner
because
of their rebellion against God
Hosea 13:15.
Hosea 13:1 When Ephraim
spoke
trembling
He exalted himself in Israel; But when he offended
through Baal worship
he died.
YLT 1When Ephraim speaketh
tremblingly
He hath been lifted up in Israel
When he becometh guilty in Baal
he dieth.
When Ephraim spake trembling
he exalted himself in Israel
.... Or
with
trembling
as Jarchi: so Jeroboam
who was of the tribe of Ephraim
spake
before Solomon
a great king
as he observes. R. Moses the priest interprets it
of Jeroboam; but it may be understood of the tribe in general
and especially
of the heads of it
at anytime before it fell into idolatry; when they spake
with submission and humility
they were attended to by the other tribes in all
consultations and debates
and great deference was paid unto them; and they
were find in great esteem
and highly honoured
agreeably to that common saving
of our Lord
"he that humbleth himself shall be exalted"
Luke 14:11; or
"when he spake there was trembling"F17כדבר־רתת "quum loqueretur--tremor erat"
Pagninus
Vatablus; "terror erat"
Zanchius
Drusius. ; either the
neighbouring nations
when he threatened them with war: or among the other
tribes of Israel
when he spake in counsel
and with authority
they rose up
and heard him with great reverence and respect; see Job 29:8. So the
Targum
"when
anyone of the house of Ephraim spake
trembling laid hold on the people; they
became princes in Israel.'
Some
refer this to the times of Joshua
who was of that tribe
and whom the
Israelites feared as they had feared Moses
Joshua 4:14; others
to the times of Gideon and Jephthah
with whom the tribe of Ephraim
expostulated
Judges 8:1; but
others interpret it of Jeroboam's idolatry
of his setting up the worship of
the calves
which he did upon his exalting himself
and setting himself up as
king of the ten tribes; and
in some agreement with this
Schmidt understands
by "trembling"
a terrible and horrible thing
idolatry
which he commanded
and appointed; and which he "bore" or "carried"
as the
wordF18נשא הוא
"portavit ipse
sub. iniquitatem suam"
Schmidt. is
interpreted by him
and may be; that is
his sin
and the punishment of it
which Jeroboam and his posterity did bear; and so it agrees with what follows:
but
or "and"
when he offended in Baal
he died; or when he sinned
and
became guilty of more idolatry still
by worshipping Baal
as well as the
calves
which was done in the times of Ahab
1 Kings 16:31; when
Ephraim or the kingdom or Israel fell into distresses and calamities
sunk in
their grandeur and authority
declined in their wealth and riches
and were
insulted by their enemies
particularly by Benhadad king of Syria
who sent to
Ahab
and challenged his silver and gold
his wives and children
as his own
1 Kings 20:3; and
so they gradually decreased in credit and reputation
in power and authority
in wealth and substance
and at last were delivered to the sword of the enemy
and to captivity
which was their civil death.
Hosea 13:2 2 Now
they sin more and more
And have made for themselves molded images
Idols of
their silver
according to their skill; All of it is the work of
craftsmen. They say of them
“Let the men who sacrifice[a] kiss the
calves!”
YLT 2And now do they add to sin
And make to them a molten image of their silver
By their own understanding --
idols
A work of artizans -- all of it
Of them they say
who [are] sacrificers
among men
`The calves let them kiss.'
And now they sin more and more
.... Since the times of
Jeroboam
and also of Ahab
adding other deities to the calves
and to Baal
as
follows; increasing the number of their idols
and their idolatrous sacrifices
rites
and ceremonies: this they did in the times the prophet
who prophesied
after the times of as it is common with evil men and seducers to wax worse and
worse
and to proceed to more ungodliness
and from evil to evil; such is the
way of idolaters
they stop not
but run into greater absurdities and grosser
idolatries:
and have made them molten images of their silver: which is to
be understood
not of the calves
or of Baal
made of gold
which they
purchased with their silver; but of other images they had in their houses
or
carried about with them
made of their silver
of their plate
which they
melted and cast images of it
of whatsoever shape or form they pleased:
and idols according to their
own understanding; which were entirely of man's device
and had nothing divine in
them
either as to matter or form
but wholly the invention of the human brain;
or
"according to their own likeness"
as the Targum
and so other
Jewish interpreters; after the form of a man
and yet were so weak and stupid
as to account them gods:
all of it the work of the craftsmen; of silversmiths and
founders
and such like artificers; the same
or of the same sort
with the
craftsmen that made shrines for Diana
Acts 19:24; and
therefore such a work
wrought by such hands
could never be a deity
or have
anything divine in it; they must be as stupid and senseless as the work itself
to imagine there should: and yet
they say of them; the false prophets
or the idolatrous
priests
say of such idols:
let the men that sacrifice kiss the calves: let those
that bring their sacrifices
or those that offer them
pay religious worship
and adoration to the calves; which they signified by kissing the idols they sacrificed
to
either their mouths
or their hands; or
if out of their reach
they kissed
their own hands in token of honour to them; which rites were commonly used
among the Heathens. CiceroF19In Verrem
l. 4. Orat. 9. c. 13. says
at Agrigentum
where was a temple or Hercules
where the people not only used
to show a veneration to his image by prayers and thanksgivings
but they used
to kiss it. So ApuleiusF20Metamorphos. sive de Asino Auero
l. 4. p.
60. speaks of a beautiful virgin
the report of whose beauty brought together a
vast number of citizens and strangers; who
amazed at the sight of her
put
their right hand to then mouths
the first finger resting upon the thumb erect
and gave her reverence with religious adoration
as if she had been the goddess
Venus herself; and Minutius FelixF21Octavius
p. 2. says of
Caecilius
that
observing the image of Serapis (probably much like one of
these calves)
putting his hand to his mouth
according to the superstitious
custom of the common people
with his lips smacked a kiss; and so PlinyF23Nat.
Hist. l. 28. c. 2. observes
in worshipping
the right hand is used for a kiss
turning about the whole body
which to do to the left was reckoned the more
religious; hence it is observedF24Apuleii Apolog. p. 226. of Aemilius
a derider of and scoffer at things divine
that he would never make
supplication to any god
nor frequent any temple; and if he passed by any place
of worship
he reckoned it a crime to put his hand to his lips by way of
adoration
or on account of that; and it seems to have obtained as early as the
times of Job among idolatrous people
that
upon the sight of the sun or moon
they immediately with their mouth kissed their hands; see Job 31:26; hence
LucianF25 περι ορχησεως.
speaking of the Indians
says
rising early in the morning
they worship the
sun
not as we
who think the prayers are finished when the hand is kissed; and
TertullianF26Apolog. c. 16.
addressing the Heathens in his time
thus bespeaks them
most of you
out of an affectation of worshipping the
celestial bodies at the rising of the sun
move and quaver your lips; hence
kissing is used for the worship of the Son of God
Psalm 2:12. Some
read the words
"let those that sacrifice a manF1זבחי אדם "immolatores
hominem
vel immolantes homines"
Vatablus; "sacrificantes
hominem"
Montanus
Calvin
Schmidt; so some in Abenda. The Septuagint and
Vulgate Latin render it as an imperative
"sacrifice men"; and the
Syriac version
"O ye that sacrifice men". kiss the calves"; as
if it respected the abominable practice of sacrificing men to Mo; or intimated
that men were sacrificed to the calves at Bethel.
Hosea 13:3 3 Therefore
they shall be like the morning cloud And like the early dew that passes away
Like
chaff blown off from a threshing floor And like smoke from a chimney.
YLT 3Therefore they are as a
cloud of the morning
And as dew
rising early
going away
As chaff tossed
about out of a floor
And as smoke out of a window.
Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud
.... Which
however promising it is
soon disappears when the sun is risen; signifying that
the idolatrous Israelites
king
priests
and people
should be no more; their
kingdom would cease
all their riches and wealth would depart from them
and
they and their children be carried captive into a strange land:
and as the early dew it passeth away; as soon as
the heat of the sun is felt
when the earth is left dry; so these people
though they seemed to be in great prosperity
and to be very fruitful in
children
and in substance
and promised themselves much more; yet in a little
time their land would become desolate
and they stripped of all that was dear
and valuable to them these metaphors are used in Hosea 6:4;
as the chaff that is driven with a whirlwind out of the
floor; signifying that these idolatrous people were like chaff
fight
and empty
useless and unprofitable
fit for nothing but burning; and that they
would be driven out of their own land through the Assyrian
that should come
like a whirlwind with great three and power
as easily and as quickly as chaff
is drove out of a threshing floor of corn with a strong blast of wind; see Psalm 1:5;
and as the smoke out of the chimney; which rises up in a
pillar
and is so on dissipated by the wind
or dissolved into air; and is no
sooner seen but it disappears; see Psalm 68:2. All
these similes show how easily
suddenly
and quickly
the destruction of this
idolatrous nation would be brought about.
Hosea 13:4 4 “Yet
I am the Lord
your God Ever since the land of Egypt
And you shall know no God but Me; For there
is no savior besides Me.
YLT 4And I [am] Jehovah thy God
from the land of Egypt
And a God besides Me thou dost not know
And a Saviour --
there is none save Me.
Yet I am the Lord thy God from the land of Egypt
.... Which
brought thee out from thence
as the Targum; and ever since
from that time to
this
had shown a regard unto them
as the Lord their God
both in the
wilderness
as later mentioned
and in the land of Canaan
where they had been
continued
and followed with instances of goodness to that day
and yet find
sinned in so gross a manner; which argued great ingratitude in them
and
forgetfulness of the Lord
and his mercies:
and thou shalt know no God but me; they ought to have
known
acknowledged
and worshipped no other god
as was enjoined them in the
law: or
"thou knowest not"F2לא תדע "non novisti
vel cognovisti"
Liveleus
Drusius
Rivet. ; they did not know any other
which they in their
own consciences were obliged to confess
if appealed to; however
they should
know no other; by sad experience they would find that there was no other that
could be of any service to them; their images and idols being unable to help
them:
for there is no saviour besides me; that could
save them out of their troubles
and deliver them out of their distresses; no
other that is
or can be
the author
either of temporal or of spiritual and
eternal salvation.
Hosea 13:5 5 I
knew you in the wilderness
In the land of great drought.
YLT 5I -- I have known thee in a
wilderness
In a land of droughts.
I did know thee in the wilderness
.... Where there were no
food nor drink
where were scorpions
serpents
and beasts of prey; there the
Lord knew them
owned them
and showed a fatherly affection for them
and care
of them; and fed them with manna and quails
and guided and directed them in
the way
and protected and preserved them from their enemies
and from all hurt
and danger. So the Targum explains it
"I
sufficiently supplied their necessities in the wilderness:'
in the land of great drought; or
"of
droughts"F3בארץ תלאובת
"an terra siccitatum"
Vatablus
Drusius
Schmidt. ; the word is only
used in this place; and is by Aben Ezra interpreted a dry and thirsty land; and
so he says it signifies in the Arabic language and the same is observed by the
father of Kimchi
and by R. JonahF4Apud R. Sol. Urbin. Ohel Moed.
fol. 35. 1. ; but is by some rendered "torrid"F5"In
terra torridonum locorum"
Montanus; "torridissima"
Junius
& Tremellius
Heb. "infammationum"
Piscator.
or
"inflamed"
as if it had the signification of a Hebrew word which
signifies a flame: and the Targum takes it to be akin to another
which
signifies to "desire"
rendering it
"in
a land in which thou desirest everything;'
that
is
wants everything. The first seems best
and is a fit a description of the
wilderness
which was a place of drought
wherein was no water
Deuteronomy 8:15.
Hosea 13:6 6 When
they had pasture
they were filled; They were filled and their heart was
exalted; Therefore they forgot Me.
YLT 6According to their feedings
they are satiated
They have been satiated
And their heart is lifted up
Therefore they have forgotten Me
According to their pasture
so were they filled
.... When they
came into the land of Canaan
which was a land flowing with milk and honey
they were like a flock of sheep brought from short commons to a good pasture;
and there they tilled themselves to the fail
and indulged to luxury and
excess
pampered themselves
and made provision for the flesh to fulfil its
lusts
and became carnal and sensual:
they were filled
and their hearts were exalted: they were
elated with their plenty
and grew proud and haughty
and attributed their
fulness not to the goodness of God
but to their own excellency and merit; and
put their trust and confidence in their affluence
and not in the Lord; and
thought themselves safe and secure
and out of all danger
and concluded it
would never be otherwise with them:
therefore have they forgotten me; the Author of their
beings
the Father of their mercies
and God of all their comforts; they forgot
to give him praise and glory for their abundance; to place their trust and have
their dependence on him
and to serve and worship him; this was the consequence
of their luxury and pride. The Targum is
"therefore
they left my worship;'
they
waxed fat
and kicked
and lightly esteemed and forsook the God and Rock of
their salvation
Deuteronomy 32:15.
Hosea 13:7 7 “So
I will be to them like a lion; Like a leopard by the road I will lurk;
YLT 7And I am to them as a lion
As a leopard by the way I look out.
Therefore I will be unto them as a lion
Because of
their idolatry
ingratitude
luxury
and especially their forgetfulness of God
which is last mentioned
and with which the words are connected. By this and
the following metaphors are set forth the severity of God's judgments upon them
for their sins
and their utter destruction by them. Some observe the wordF6שחל "vetus leo"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator. here used signifies an old lion
which
though slower in the pursuit
of its prey
is more cruel when it has got it; see Hosea 5:14;
as a leopard by the way will I observe them; which is a
quick sighted
vigilant
crafty
and insidious creature
which lurks in trees
and watches for men and beasts that pass by the way
and seizes on them. The
lion makes his onset more openly
this more secretly; and both express the
various ways God would take in his providence to chastise these people for
their sins
and that he would watch over them to do them hurt
as he had to do
them good
and take the proper opportunity of doing it
and execute his purpose
with great wrath and fury
to their utter ruin; see Jeremiah 5:6. The
Septuagint
Vulgate Latin
Syriac
and Arabic versions
render it
"as a
leopard by the way of Assyria"F7על דרך אשור δατα
την οδον ασσυριων Sept. "in via Assyriormm"
V. L.
"super via Assyriae"
Schmidt; "in via Assyria"
Liveleus
Cocceius.
or "the Assyrians"; and so some interpreters take the
sense to be
that God would watch them in their way to Assyria for help
and
blast their designs
disappoint them of their expected assistance
and surprise
them with his judgments; see Hosea 5:13; and
there was a mountain in Syria
called the mountain of the leopards
where they
used to haunt
and from whence they came out to take their prey
to which there
is a reference in Song of Solomon 4:8;
which was two miles from Tripoli (a city of Syria) northward
three from the
city Arces southward
and one from Mount LebanonF8Adrichomii
Thestrum Terrae Sanct. p. 186. ; and such is the vigilance and agility of
leopards
that they will sometimes
as PlinyF9Nat. Hist. l. 10. c.
73. says
mount thick trees
and hide themselves in the branches
and leap at
once
and unawares
upon those that pass by
whether men or beasts
as before
observed; wherefore
with great propriety
is this simile used. The Targum is
"my word shall be"
&c.
Hosea 13:8 8 I
will meet them like a bear deprived of her cubs; I will tear open their
rib cage
And there I will devour them like a lion. The wild beast shall tear
them.
YLT 8I do meet them as a bereaved
bear
And I rend the enclosure of their heart. And I consume them there as a
lioness
A beast of the field doth rend them.
I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved of her whelps
.... Which is
a fierce cruel creature at any time
but especially when this is its case
being very fond of its whelps; and having taken a great deal of pains to lick
them into form
as Kimchi and Ben Melech observe
it is the more enraged at the
loss of them
and therefore falls upon man or beast it meets with the utmost fury:
the phrase is expressive of the fiercest rage; see Proverbs 17:12;
and will rend the caul of their hearts: the
pericardium
which is a membrane or skin that encloses the heart
and which
when pierced is immediate death: perhaps some respect is had to the closing of
their hearts to God
the hardness of them against him and his ways
and their
inattention to his word; and now he will open them
not in a way of grace and
mercy
but of wrath and fury; as a bear
when it seizes a man
sticks his claws
in his breast
tears it open
and makes his way at once to the heart
fetches
it out
and sucks his blood:
and there will I devour them like a lion; either in
their cities and houses
when taken by the enemy; or in the way
in which they
would be observed; or in their captivity: or there may be put for then
and so
denotes the time when he would be all this to them before mentioned
and then
he would utterly destroy them:
the wild beast shall tear them: which literally is one
of God's sore judgments
but here figuratively designs the Assyrian
and who is
meant as the instrument of God's vengeance in all the other expressions; and is
sometimes compared to a lion
and that as concerned with Israel; see Jeremiah 50:17;
which is much better than by these four sorts of creatures to understand the
four monarchies which Israel suffered by. The Targum is
"my
word shall meet them as a bear bereaved
and I will break the wickedness of
their hearts
&c.'
Hosea
13:9 9 “O
Israel
you are destroyed
[b] But your
help[c] is
from Me.
YLT 9 Thou hast destroyed
thyself
O Israel
But in Me [is] thy help
O Israel
thou hast destroyed thyself
.... Though
the Lord was a lion
a leopard
and a bear to them
yet their destruction was
not owing to him
but to themselves; he was not chargeable with it
but they
only; the fault and blame was theirs; their own sins brought it on them
and
provoked him to such righteous wrath and vengeance before expressed: this is
said to clear the Lord from any imputation of this kind
and to lay it where it
should be It may be rendered
"it hath destroyed thee"F11שחתך "perdidit te"
Vatablus
Calvin
Junius
& Tremellius
Piscator
Zanchius
De Dieu
Rivet; "corrupit te"
Cocceius. ; either the calf
as Kimchi
and the worshipping of that
their
idolatry; or their king
as others
taking it from the following verse by way
of anticipation; or rather it may refer to all their sins before observed
their idolatry
luxury
and ingratitude. GussetiusF12Comment
Ebr.
p. 367. thinks the word בי has the signification of
"burning"
as in Isaiah 3:24; and
renders it
"burning in me hath destroyed thee
even in him who is
thy help"; that is
by their sins they had made God their enemy
who is a
consuming fire
and whose burning wrath destroyed them
in whom otherwise they
would have had help. Now though this may primarily regard the destruction of
the civil state and kingdom of Israel for their sins
yet it may be applied to
the spiritual and eternal state of men. Man is a lost
ruined
and undone
creature; he is depraved and corrupted in his whole nature
soul and body; the
image of God in him is marred and spoiled; there is no holiness in him
nor any
righteousness upon him; no will nor power to that which is good; though he has
not lost the natural liberty of his will
he has lost the moral liberty of it
and is a slave to his lusts
and a vassal to Satan; he has no true knowledge of
that which is good
no inclination to it
nor strength to perform it he is dead
in sin
and dead in law; he is under the curse of it
and in the open way to
everlasting ruin and destruction; and is in himself both helpless and lifeless;
and he is a self-destroyed creature; his destruction is not owing to Satan
only
though he was an instrument of the ruin of mankind; nor to the first
parents of human nature only
in whom all men naturally and federally were
in
whom they sinned
and with whom they fell; but to their own actual sins and
transgressions. However
their destruction is not to be charged upon God
or
ascribed to any decree of his
which is no cause of man's damnation
but sin
only; nor to any sentence of condemnation passed by him
or the execution of
it
which both belong to him as a righteous Judge; but to themselves and their
sins
as is owned both by good men
who under true and saving convictions
acknowledge their damnation would be just
if God should execute it on them;
and by bad men
even the damned in hell; this will be the never dying worm
the
remorse of a guilty conscience
that they have brought all this ruin on
themselves;
but in me is thine help; not in themselves
not
in any creature
but in the Lord alone; the Word of the Lord
as the Targum;
the essential Word
the Son of God
our Lord Jesus Christ
on whom his divine
Father has laid the help of his people; and who has helped them
and saved them
from their sins
the cause of their destruction
and from wrath
which they
deserved by reason of them; and has brought them out of a wretched state
a pit
wherein is no water
into a comfortable
glorious
and happy one
and delivered
them out of the hands of all their enemies; and helps them to what they want
to holiness
righteousness
and strength; to all supplies of grace here
and
glory hereafter. Some render the particle as causal
"for in me"
&c.F13כי בי
"quia in me"
Montanus
Calvin
Schmidt. and so make it to be a
reason either proving that God could not be the cause of their destruction
because in him was their help
and in him only; or that their destruction was
owing to themselves; "for in" or "against me
against thine
help"; thou hast transgressed and rebelled; so Jarchi.
Hosea 13:10 10 I
will be your King;[d] Where is
any other
That he may save you in all your cities? And your judges to whom
you said
‘Give me a king and princes’?
YLT 10Where [is] thy king now --
And he doth save thee in all thy cities? And thy judges of whom thou didst say
`Give to me a king and heads?'
I will be thy King
where is any other that may save thee
in all thy cities?.... Governor
Protector
and Defender; and so confirming what is
before said
that their help was in him: or
as the Targum
Abarbinel
and
othersF14אהי מלכך
"ubi Rex tuus"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator
Zanchius
Liveleus
Drusius
Cocceius
Schmidt
Targum. So Noldius
Concord. Ebr. Part.
p. 101. No. 496.
"where is thy king now
that he may serve thee in all
thy cities?" whom they had asked
rejecting the Lord
and in whom they had
put their trust and confidence for help; and now either having no king
he
being taken away from them by death
or by the enemy; or if they had
he being
unable to help them in their distress; they are ironically asked where he was
that he might exert himself and save them
if he could
in all the cities of
the land
where the enemy were come
a
a had besieged and took them:
and thy judges
of whom thou saidst give me a king and princes? that is;
where are thy king and his nobles
his courtiers and his counsellors
and all
judges
magistrates
and governors subordinate to him? let them arise for thy
help
if they can
by their policy or power
by their counsel
or by their
arms; for judges and princes design such as were of the king's court and
council
or acted in government under his direction and influence; for though
these are not expressly mentioned
when they asked for a king
yet are implied;
since there is no king without a court and nobles to attend him
to advise
with
and to act under him. This refers to the story in 1 Samuel 8:6
&c. and seems to be the leading step to Israel's ruin and destruction as a
state.
Hosea 13:11 11 I
gave you a king in My anger
And took him away in My wrath.
YLT 11I give to thee a king in
Mine anger
And I take away in My wrath.
I gave thee a king in mine anger
.... Not the king of
Assyria
sent to waste and destroy them
and carry them captive
as some
for
of him the next clause cannot be said; nor Jeroboam
the first king of the ten
tribes
as others
who was not given in anger to Israel
but to Solomon; rather
Saul
as Kimchi and Aben Ezra
the first king of all Israel; and who was given
at the request of the people
though in anger and resentment
they rejecting
God their King; or it may design the kingly office and power in general
in a
succession of kings from him the first of them:
and took him away in my wrath; not Jeroboam
who does not appear to be taken away by death in wrath; rather Saul
who died
in battle with the Philistines
and fell on the mountains of Gilboa: but it may
be rendered better
"I will take him away"F15ואקח "et auferam"
Zanchius
Piscator
Cocceius
V. L. "recipiam"
Drusius; "accipiam"
Schmidt. ; and
refers not to Zedekiah the last king of Judith
as some in Kimchi; but to
Hoshea
the last king of the ten tribes; for it is of there more especially the
words
both in the text and context
are spoken; and so it respects the entire
removal of kingly power from them
which ceased in Hoshea; see Hosea 3:4.
Hosea 13:12 12 “The
iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; His sin is stored up.
YLT 12Bound up [is] the iniquity
of Ephraim
Hidden [is] his sin
The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is hid. Which Kimchi
restrains to the sin of the calves
and worshipping them; and others to the
request of a king
the context speaks of: but it seems best to understand it in
a more general sense of these
with all other sins
which were bound up
and
not loosed
or were not remitted and forgiven
they being impenitent
and
persisting in their sins; and which were bound up as in a bag or purse
in
order to be opened and brought forth in proper time in open court
and be took
cognizance of in a judiciary way; with which agrees an expression in Job 14:17; or which
were laid up among the treasures of divine omniscience
in the mind of God
and
not forgotten by him
as they might be thought to be
and would in due time be
brought to light
and vengeance took on them. So the Targum
"the
sins of the house of Ephraim are treasured up; they are reserved to punish all
their offences;'
see
Deuteronomy 32:34.
Hosea 13:13 13 The
sorrows of a woman in childbirth shall come upon him. He is an unwise
son
For he should not stay long where children are born.
YLT 13Pangs of a travailing woman
come to him
He [is] a son not wise
For he remaineth not the time for the
breaking forth of sons.
The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him
.... Upon
Ephraim
or the ten tribes; that is
afflictions
distresses
and calamities
which are often in Scripture compared to the pains and sorrows of a woman in
childbirth; and may denote the suddenness and inevitableness of them; see Isaiah 13:8. So the
Targum
"distress
and trouble shall come upon them
as pains on a woman with child;'
which
may respect the invasion of their land
the siege of Samaria
and their
captivity;
he is an unwise son; taking no warning by his
ancestors
by their sins
and what befell them on account of them
but
persisting in his sins
and in impenitence and hardness of heart: so the Targum
"he
is not wise to know my fear:'
for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking
forth of children: that is
in the womb
as Kimchi and Ben Melech interpret it;
though the Targum and Jarchi understand it of the stool or seat of women in travail.
The sense is
either that he is foolish and unwise
that he does not endeavour
to extricate himself from these troubles; or rather to prevent them by
repentance
by leaving his idols
and returning to the Lord; or that
should he
do so
be would soon be delivered from all his sorrows
and not stay a moment
longer in them. Though the words may be better rendered
"for he stays
not"
or "would not stay
the time for the breaking forth of
children"F16כי עת
לא יעמד במשבר
בנים "nam tempus non subsistet in partitudine
filiorum"
Cocceius; "quia tempus non stat in utero puerorum"
Schmidt; "quia tempore non stetissent in raptura alvi filiorum"
Montanus. ; now this time is the time of the Gospel dispensation
the time of
the Messiah's birth
the fulness of time appointed for his coming
and the time
of the church's ringing forth many children in a spiritual sense; see Isaiah 54:1; for
which Ephraim or the ten tribes should have waited
but did not
which was
their folly and their ruin; they did not "stand"
or continue
in the
belief and expectation of the Messiah
and in the true worship of God
but left
that
and served idols; and so continued not to the times of the Messiah
when
the blessings mentioned in the following verse would be obtained and enjoyed;
so Schmidt.
Hosea 13:14 14 “I
will ransom them from the power of the grave;[e] I will
redeem them from death. O Death
I will be your plagues![f] O Grave
[g] I will be
your destruction![h] Pity is
hidden from My eyes.”
YLT 14From the hand of Sheol I do
ransom them
From death I redeem them
Where [is] thy plague
O death? Where
thy destruction
O Sheol? Repentance is hid from Mine eyes.
I will ransom them from the power of the grave
.... That is
"when" or "at which time" before spoken of
and here
understood
as the above interpreter rightly connects the words
"I
will" do this and what follows:
I will redeem them from death; these are the words
not
of Jehovah the Father
as in Hosea 1:7; but of
the Son
who redeemed Israel out of Egypt
which was a typical redemption
Hosea 13:4; in whom
is the help of his people laid and found
Hosea 13:9; the
Word of the Lord
as the Targum; who is the true God
the mighty God
and so
equal to this work of redemption and who is also the near kinsman of the
redeemed as one of the words here used implies
and so to him belonged the
right of redemption: the persons redeemed are not Israel after the flesh
but
spiritual Israel
whether Jews or Gentiles; a special and peculiar people
chosen of God
and precious
out of every kindred
tongue
people
and nation;
and who
in their nature state
are under sin
in bondage to it
and liable to
the curse of the law
the wrath of God
hell and damnation; which are meant by
the "grave" and "death"
and so needed a Redeemer to ransom
them: for the word for "grace" should be rendered "hell"F17שאול "inferni"
Schmidt.
as it often is; and
"death" intends not corporeal one only
but eternal death
or the
second death; and both signify the wrath of God due to sin
and which God's
elect are deserving of
and Christ has bore
and delivered them from; and the
curse of the law
which he has redeemed them from
being made a curse for them;
and eternal death
the equivalent to which he has suffered
and so has saved
them from it
and all this by redeeming them from their sins
the cause of it;
and which he has done by giving a redemption or ransom price
which is his
blood
his life
yea
himself
and which the first of the words here used
imports. It is indeed true
that
in consequence of all this
there will be a
redemption by him from a corporeal death
and from the grave; not as yet
for
the ransomed of the Lord die as others
and are laid in the grave
the house
appointed for all living; but in the resurrection morn there will be a
redemption
a deliverance of the bodies of the saints from the grave
from
mortality and corruption; yea
of them from the moral corruption of sin
and
all the defilements of it
as well as from all afflictions and diseases
and
from death itself
which shall have no more dominion over them; to which
purpose the words are applied by the apostle; See Gill on 1 Corinthians 15:55;
and so by some ancient JewsF18Gloss. Heb. in Lyra in loc. Vid.
Galatin. Arcan. Cathol. Ver. l. 6. c. 21. to the Messiah
and his times;
O death
I will be thy plagues; O grace
I will be thy destruction; that is
the
utter destruction of them for the plague or pestilence is a wasting
destruction
Psalm 91:6; it is
the same which in New Testament language is the abolishing of death
2 Timothy 1:10;
which is true of eternal death with respect to the redeemed
which Christ's
death is the death of
he having by his death reconciled them to God
and
opened the way to eternal life for them
which he has in his hands to give unto
them; and of corporeal death and the grave
which Christ has utterly destroyed
with respect to himself having loosed the builds of death
and set himself
free
and on whom that shall have no more dominion; and
with respect to his
pie
he has destroyed him that had the power of it
which is the devil; he has
put away and abolished sin
the cause of it; he has took away that which is its
sting; so that it may be truly said
as the apostle quotes these words
"O
death
where is thy sting?" he has removed the curse from it
and made it a
blessing; he has abolished it as a penal evil
so theft it is not inflicted as
a punishment on his people; and in the last day will entirely deliver them from
the power of that
and of the grave; and then that which has slain its millions
and millions
a number not to be numbered
will never slay one more: and that
grave
which devoured as many
will never be opened more
or one more put into
it; and then it may be said
"O grave
where is thy victory?" thou
shall conquer no more
but be at an end; see 1 Corinthians 15:55;
repentance shall be hid from mine eyes; that is
the
Lord will never repent of his decree of redemption from hell
death
and the
grave; nor of the work of it by Christ; nor of the entire destruction of these
things; which being once done
will never be repented of nor recalled
but
remain so for ever.
Hosea 13:15 15 Though
he is fruitful among his brethren
An east wind shall come; The wind of
the Lord
shall come up from the wilderness. Then his spring shall become dry
And his
fountain shall be dried up. He shall plunder the treasury of every desirable
prize.
YLT 15Though he among brethren
produceth fruit
Come in doth an east wind
a wind of Jehovah
From a
wilderness it is coming up
And it drieth up his fountain
And become dry doth
his spring
It -- it spoileth a treasure -- every desirable vessel.
Though he be fruitful among his brethren
.... This is
not spoken of Christ
as some think
who take the words to be a continuation of
the prophecy concerning the Redeemer
who should increase his brethren
and
bring many to him; and be as noxious to hell and death as the east wind is to
persons and things
and dry up the fountains and springs of hell and death; the
sins of men he should abolish
and be victorious over all his enemies
and
divide their spoils: but they are rather the words of Christ himself concerning
Ephraim
in connection with Hosea 13:13;
expressing his character and state
and explaining the sorrows and calamities
that should come upon him for his folly
in not staying the time of the
breaking forth children; and to be understood either of his spiritual
fruitfulness in the last days; when Israel shall return to the Lord by
repentance
and believe in the true Messiah
and bring forth the fruit of good
works
as an evidence of it
along with their brethren
those of the tribes of
Judah and Benjamin
and so all Israel should be saved; which yet should not
hinder the distresses and destruction that should come upon the ten tribes by
the Assyrians
afterwards declared: or rather of his political fruitfulness
in
allusion to his name; increasing in numbers
abounding in power and authority
in wealth and riches; either before the sin of the calves
as Kimchi
before he
fell into idolatry; or afterwards
particularly in the times of Jeroboam the
second
who enlarged the border of Israel; and in later times
when the kings
of Israel entered into alliance with the Assyrians
and enjoyed peace and
prosperity
and thought themselves secure of the continuance of it. Some render
it
"because he is fierce"F19יפריא
"ille fero modo aget"
Cocceius; "ferox eat
notat ferum
vel
ferocem esse sicut onagrum"
Schmidt
Burkius. So R. Jonah in Ben Melech.
; or "like a wild ass's colt"; not only foolish and unwise
but
fierce and unruly among his brethren
and would not stay the time of the
breaking forth of children: therefore
an east wind shall come: which is very vehement
cold
blasting
and exceeding noxious and pernicious to fruit; meaning
Shalmaneser king of Assyria
who came from the east; his kingdom
the land of
Assyria
lying
as Kimchi observes
eastward to the land of Israel. So the
Targum
"now
will I bring against him a king strong as a burning wind;'
so
the king of Babylon and his army are compared to a strong and violent wind
Jeremiah 4:11;
the wind of the Lord shall come up from the wilderness; the same is
called the "wind of the Lord"
partly to denote the strength and
vehemency of it
as mountains of the Lord
and cedars of the Lord
signify great
and mighty ones; and partly to show that this enemy would come at the call of
the Lord
by his direction and appointment. So the Targum
"by
the word of the Lord
through the way of the wilderness shall he come up;'
this
circumstance
"from the wilderness"
is mentioned
not only because
winds from thence usually blow more strongly and violently
but because the way
from Assyria to the land of Israel lay through a wilderness;
and his spring shall become dry
and his fountain shall be dried
up; his land wasted and destroyed; his fields
vineyards
and
oliveyards
trodden down and ruined
which yielded a large increase; trade and
commerce stopped
and so all the springs and fountains of wealth and riches
dried up; as well as their wives and children destroyed
as often mentioned
which were the source and spring of their continuance as a people in ages to
come;
he shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels; not Christ
nor Ephraim
but the Assyrian; who
entering into their cities
would plunder
them of all their "vessels of desire"F20כל כלי חמדה
"omnium vasorum desiderii"
Montanus; "omnis vasis
desiderii"
Schmidt.
or desirable ones; their vessels of gold and
silver; all their rich household goods and furniture of value; all their wealth
and riches treasured up by them
their gold
silver
precious stones
rich
garments
&c. So the Targum
"he
shall destroy the house of his treasures
and shall lay waste the city of his
kingdom; he shall spoil the treasuries
all vessels of desire.'
Hosea 13:16 16 Samaria
is held guilty
[i] For she
has rebelled against her God. They shall fall by the sword
Their infants shall
be dashed in pieces
And their women with child ripped open.
YLT 16Become desolate doth
Samaria
Because she hath rebelled against her God
By sword they do fall
Their sucklings are dashed in pieces
And its pregnant ones are ripped up!
Samaria shall become desolate
.... With this verse the
fourteenth chapter begins in the Hebrew copies
and in the Targum
and in many
versions; but seems better to conclude the present chapter; since it is in
close connection with Hosea 13:15
and
explains the figurative expressions there used. Samaria was the head of
Ephraim
Isaiah 7:9; or the
metropolis of the ten tribes of Israel; whose desolation is here prophesied of
and was accomplished by Shalmaneser king of Assyria
signified by the east
wind; by whom it was not only besieged and taken
but very probably its houses
were demolished
its walls broken down
and razed to the very foundation; see 2 Kings 17:5; and
as this was the head city
it may be put for all the rest
and even for the
whole land
which was at the same time laid waste. The Targum is
"Samaria
shall be guilty;'
that
is
shall be found guilty of many sins; her transgression shall be revealed
as
Jarchi
become manifest by the just punishment inflicted on her;
for she hath rebelled against her God; and bitterly
provoked him to wrath and anger
as the wordF21מרתת
"ad amaritudinem concitavit"
V. L. "significat amaricare
vel
amaritudine replere"
Rivet. signifies; by relinquishing him and his
worship
and by serving idols
the calves at Dan and Bethel
Baal and other
idols; when the Lord was their God
not only by creation
as of all men
but by
the choice he made of them
and the covenant he made with them; by a national
adoption of them
attended with various blessings and privileges
and by their
profession of him; all which were an aggravation of their rebellion against
him;
they shall fall by the sword: the inhabitants of
Samaria
and of the land
particularly the men thereof; and especially their
armed men
their men of war
that fought for them
and defended them; these
should fall by the sword of the Assyrian;
their children shall be dashed to pieces; against
stones
walls
and pavements; who should have perpetuated their name to future
ages
and inherited their possessions:
and their women with child shall be ripped up; things which
are often done by cruel enemies
when cities are sacked and plundered; and
which Shalmaneser might be provoked unto by the perfidy of the king of Israel
and by the city of Samaria holding out a three years' siege. This
though we
have no account of as done at that time
yet no doubt was; even as the same
things are predicted of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans
and which were to be done
to them
in retaliation for them
though there is no narrative of them; see Psalm 137:8.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)