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Hosea Chapter
Twelve
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO HOSEA 12
This
chapter contains complaints and charges both against Israel and Judah, and
threatens them with punishment in case they repent not, which they are exhorted
to: and first Ephraim is charged with idolatry, vain confidence in, and
alliances with, foreign nations, Hosea 12:1; and
then the Lord declares he has a controversy with Judah, and will punish the
inhabitants of it for their sins, Hosea 12:2; which
are aggravated by their being the descendants of so great a man as Jacob, who
got the advantage of his elder brother, had much power with God, and received
favours from him, and they also, Hosea 12:3; and
therefore are exhorted to turn to God, wait on him, and do that which is right
and good, Hosea 12:6. Ephraim
is again in his turn charged with fraudulent dealing in trade, and with
oppression, and the love of it; and yet pretended he got riches by his own
labour, without wronging any, Hosea 12:7;
nevertheless, the Lord promises them public ordinances of worship, and joy in
them, and the ministry of his prophets, Hosea 12:9; though
for the present they were guilty of gross idolatry, Hosea 12:11; which
is aggravated by the raising of Jacob their progenitor from a low estate, and
the wonderful preservation of him, and the bringing of them out of Egypt, Hosea 12:12; and
the chapter is closed with observing Ephraim's bitter provocation of God, for
which his reproach should return unto him, and his blood be left upon him, Hosea 12:14.
Hosea 12:1 “Ephraim feeds
on the wind, And pursues the east wind; He daily increases lies and desolation.
Also they make a covenant with the Assyrians, And oil is carried to Egypt.
YLT 1Ephraim is enjoying wind,
And is pursuing an east wind, All the day lying and spoiling he multiplieth,
And a covenant with Asshur they make, And oil to Egypt is carried.
Ephraim feedeth on wind,.... Which will be no
more profitable and beneficial to him than wind is to a man that opens his
mouth, and fills himself with it: the phrase is expressive of labour in vain,
and of a man's getting nothing by all the pains he takes; the same with sowing
the wind, and reaping the whirlwind, Hosea 8:7; and so
the Targum has it here,
"the
house of Israel are like to one that sows the wind, and reaps the whirlwind all
the day;'
and
this refers either to the worship of idols, and the calves in particular, and
the vain hope of good things promised to themselves from thence; or to their
vain confidence in the alliances and confederacies they entered into with
neighbouring nations; from which they expected much, but found little:
and followed after the east wind; a wind strong and
vehement, burning and blasting, very noxious and harmful; so that, instead of
receiving any profit and advantage either by their idolatry or their covenants
with other nations, they were only in these things pursuing what would be
greatly to their detriment: or they would be no more able to attain by such
methods what they sought for, than they would be able to overtake the east
wind, which is a very swift and fleeting one; so that this clause exposes their
folly, in expecting good things from their idols, or help from their
neighbours;
he daily increaseth lies and desolation; while they
multiplied idols, which are lies fallacious and deceitful, and idolatrous rites
and acts of worship, they do but increase their desolation and ruin, which such
things are the cause of, and will certainly bring them unto; or, not content
with the daily increase of their idolatries among themselves, they continually
persecute, spoil, and plunder those who do not give into their false worship:
so the Targum,
"lies
and spoil they multiply;'
idolaters
are generally persecutors:
and they do make a covenant with the Assyrians: and gave
tribute and presents to their kings, as Menahem did to Pul, and Hoshea to
Shalmaneser, not to hurt them, and to help and assist them against their
enemies, and to strengthen their kingdom; see 2 Kings 15:19;
and oil is carried into Egypt: one while they sent
presents to the Assyrians, to obtain their favour and friendship: and at
another time to the Egyptians; nay, they sent to So king of Egypt, at the same
time they were tributary to Assyria, and, conspiring against him, brought on
their ruin; and oil was a principal part of the present sent; for this was carried
not by way of traffic, but as a present: so the Targum,
"and
they carried gifts to Egypt;'
see
Isaiah 57:9. The
land of Israel, being a land of oil olive, was famous for the best oil, of
which there was a scarcity in Egypt, and therefore a welcome present there, as
balsam also was; see Genesis 37:25.
Hosea 12:2 2 “The
Lord also brings
a charge against Judah, And will punish Jacob according to his ways; According
to his deeds He will recompense him.
YLT 2And a controversy hath
Jehovah with Judah, To lay a charge on Jacob according to his ways, According
to his doings He returneth to him.
The Lord hath also a controversy with Judah,.... The two
tribes of Judah and Benjamin, as well as the ten tribes; for though they had
ruled with God, and had been faithful with the saints in the first times of the
apostasy of Israel; yet afterwards they sadly degenerated, and fell into
idolatry likewise, particularly in the time of Ahaz, in which Hosea prophesied;
and therefore the Lord had somewhat against them; nor would he spare them, but
reprove them by the prophets, and rebuke them in his providences; bring them to
his bar, and lay before them their evils, and threaten them with punishment in
case of impenitence, as follows:
and will punish Jacob according to his ways; all the
posterity of Jacob, whether Ephraim or Judah; those of the ten tribes, or of
the two, who all descended from Jacob: or, "will visit according to his
ways"F19לפקד־כדרכיו "ad
visitandum juxta vias ejus", Pagninus, Montanus; "visitabit secundum
vias ejus", Piscator. ; if right, and agreeably to the mind and word of
God, in a way of grace and mercy; but if wrong, crooked, and perverse, then in
a way of punishment; for visiting is used both ways:
according to his doings will he recompense him; as they were
good or bad; if good, will reward them with a reward of grace; if bad, with
vengeance. The Targum paraphrases it,
"according
to his right works.'
Hosea 12:3 3 He
took his brother by the heel in the womb, And in his strength he struggled with
God.[a]
YLT 3In the womb he took his
brother by the heel, And by his strength he was a prince with God,
He took his brother by the heel in the womb,.... That is,
Jacob took his brother Esau by the heel, as he came forth from his mother's
womb; the history of it is in Genesis 25:25. It
is here observed, upon mentioning the name of Jacob in Hosea 12:2, meaning
the posterity, of the patriarch; but here he himself is intended, and
occasionally taken notice of, to show how very different his posterity were
from him, and how sadly degenerated; as well as to upbraid them with
ingratitude, whose ancestors, and they also, had received such and so many
favours from the Lord; Jacob the patriarch was a hero from the womb, but they
transgressors from it; this action of his observed was a presage and pledge of
his having the superiority of his brother, and of his getting the birthright
and blessing from him. So the Targum,
"prophet,
say unto them, was it not said of Jacob, before he was born, that he would be
greater than his brother?'
see
Romans 9:11. In
this action there was something divine, miraculous, and preternatural; it was
not the effort of nature merely, but contrary to it, or at least above it; and
not done by chance, but ordered by the providence of God, as a prediction and
testification of his future greatness, and even of his posterity's, in times
yet to come, as Kimchi observes, who refers to Obadiah 1:18;
and by his strength he had power with God; the Targum
is, with the angel, as in Hosea 12:4; he is
called a man in the history of this event in Genesis 32:24; not
that he was a mere man, since he is here expressly called God, and afterwards the
Lord God of hosts; and there it is evident, from the context, he was a divine
Person, and no other than the Son of God; who, though not as yet incarnate,
appeared in a human form, as a presage of his future incarnation; though this
was not a mere apparition, spectre, or phantasm, as JosephusF20Antiqu.
l. 1. c. 20. sect. 2. calls it; for it was not in a dream, or in a visionary
way, that this wrestling and striving was between this divine Person in this
form and Jacob, but in reality; it was a real substance which the Son of God
formed, animated, actuated, and assumed, for that time and purpose, and then
laid it aside; which touched Jacob, and he touched that, laid hold on it, and
held it fast, and strove with it, and had power over it, and over God in it;
even over him that is God over all, the true God and eternal life, the Lord
Jesus Christ; not a created God, or God by office, but by nature; as the
perfections that are in him, and the works and worship ascribed to him,
declare: now Jacob had power over him "by his strength"; not by his
natural strength; either of his body, which could not have been equal to the
strength of this human body assumed for the time, as it was used and managed by
a divine Person, unless he had been extraordinarily assisted and strengthened;
or of his mind and soul, not by any spiritual strength he had of himself; but
by what he had from this divine Person, with whom he wrestled; who put strength
into him, and supported and increased the power and strength of faith in
prayer; so that he prevailed over him, and got the blessing, for which reason
his name was called Israel, Genesis 32:28.
Hosea 12:4 4 Yes,
he struggled with the Angel and prevailed; He wept, and sought favor from Him. He
found Him in Bethel, And there He spoke to us—
YLT 4Yea, he is a prince unto
the Messenger, And he overcometh [by] weeping, And he maketh supplication to
Him, At Bethel He doth find him, And there He doth speak with us,
Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed,.... This is
repeated in different words, not only for the confirmation of it, it being a
very extraordinary thing, and difficult of belief; but to direct to the history
here referred to, where the person Jacob prevailed over is called a man, and
here the angel; and so JosephusF21Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 1. c. 20.
sect. 2.) calls him a divine Person; not a created angel, not Michael, as the
Rabbins say, unless the Messiah is meant by him; nor Jacob's guardian angel, as
Kimchi, every man being thought by some to have one; and much less Esau's evil
angel, that was against Jacob, as Jarchi and Abarbinel; for of him he would
never have sought nor expected a blessing; but an uncreated Angel, the Son of
God, the same that went before the Israelites in the wilderness, and that
redeemed Jacob from all evil, Genesis 48:16;
called an Angel, being so not by nature, for he is superior to angels in both
his natures, divine and human; but by office, being sent to reveal the will of
God, and to do the work of God in the redemption and salvation of men; the same
that is called the Angel of the great council in the Greek version of Isaiah 9:6; and the
Angel of God's presence, Isaiah 63:9; and
the Angel or messenger of the covenant, Malachi 3:1; the
phrases used denote, as before, the power and prevalence Jacob had with this
divine Person in prayer; whereby he obtained the blessing of him, even
deliverance from his brother Esau, as well as others respecting him and his
posterity;
he wept, and made supplication unto him; not the
angel, entreating Jacob to let him go, as Jarchi and Kimchi, and so some
Christian interpreters; who think that an angel in human form may be said to
weep, as well as to eat and drink; and the rather, since this angel was not the
conqueror, but the conquered; and since Christ, in the days of his flesh, both
prayed and wept, and shed tears; but the case here is different; and though he
was prevailed over, it was through his own condescension and goodness: but
rather Jacob is meant, as Abarbinel and others; who wept not on account of the
angel's touching his thigh, and the pain that might put him to; for he was of a
more heroic spirit than to weep for that, who had endured so much hardship in
Laban's service, in heat and cold; and besides, notwithstanding this, he kept
wrestling with him, and afterwards walked, though haltingly: but he wept either
because he could not get out the name of the person he wrestled with; or rather
the tears he shed were for the blessing he sought of him; for it is joined with
his making supplication, and is expressive of the humble, yet ardent, affectionate,
fervent, and importunate request he made to obtain it; and here we have another
proof of the deity of Christ, in that supplication was made to him, and he is
here represented as the object of that part of religious worship, prayer, as he
often is in the New Testament. This circumstance is not expressed in Genesis 32:1,
though it may be gathered from what is there said; however, the prophet had it
by divine inspiration; and the truth of it is not to be doubted of, being not
at all inconsistent with, but quite agreeable to, that history;
he found him at Bethel; either the angel found
Jacob in Bethel, as he did more than once, both before and after this time, Genesis 28:12; it
is good to be in Bethel, in the house of God; happy are those that dwell there,
and are found there living and dying, doing the will and work of God there: or
rather Jacob found God or the angel in Bethel; God is to be found in his own
house, there he comes and blesses with his gracious presence; here Christ the
Angel of his presence is; here he meets with his people, and manifests himself unto
them. There is in the words a tacit reflection on Israel, or the ten tribes,
that bore the name of Jacob; the patriarch found God in Bethel, Christ the
Angel of the Lord; but now, instead of him, there was a calf set up in this
place, Israel worshipped; and therefore it was called Bethaven, the house of an
idol, or iniquity, instead of Bethel, the house of God;
and there he spake with us; not with Esau and his
angel, concerning Isaac's blessing of Jacob, as Jarchi; nor with Jacob and his
angel, as the father of Kimchi; nor with the prophet, and with Amos, to reprove
Israel there for the worship of the calves, as Kimchi himself; but with all the
Israelites, of whom the prophet was one; who were then in the loins of Jacob,
when he conversed with God, and God with him, at Bethel: or, as Saadiah
interprets it, "for us" for our sakes, on our account; or
"concerning us"; concerning the multiplication of Jacob's posterity,
and the giving the land of Canaan to them, as the Lord did at both times he
appeared to Jacob in Bethel; see Genesis 28:14; and
it is in the house of God, where Christ is as a son, that he speaks with and to
his people, even in his word and ordinances there.
Hosea 12:5 5 That
is, the Lord
God of hosts. The Lord
is His memorable name.
YLT 5Even Jehovah, God of the
Hosts, Jehovah [is] His memorial.
Even the Lord God of hosts,.... The God Jacob had
power over, the Angel he prevailed with, to whom he made supplication with
weeping, and who spake with him and his in Bethel, is he whose name is Jehovah;
who is the true and living God, the Lord of hosts and armies both in heaven and
in earth; of all the angels in heaven, and the legions of them; and of the
church militant, and all the saints, who are the good soldiers of Christ, his
spiritual militia; and he is the Captain of the Lord's host, and of their
salvation, and to whom all the numerous hosts of creatures, be they what they
will, are subject: this is observed, to set off the greatness of the person
Jacob wrestled with, and his wondrous grace, in condescending to be overpowered
by him:
the Lord is his memorial: or his name, Jehovah,
which belongs to this angel, the Son of God, as to his divine Father; and which
is expressive of his divine existence, of his eternity and immutability; this
is his memorial, or the remembrancer of him; which puts his people in all ages
in remembrance of him, what he is, what an infinite, almighty, and all
sufficient Being he is; and he is always to be believed in, and trusted to, and
to be served, adored, and worshipped. The Targum adds, to every generation and
generation.
Hosea 12:6 6 So
you, by the help of your God, return; Observe mercy and justice, And
wait on your God continually.
YLT 6And thou, through thy God,
dost turn, Kindness and judgment keep thou, And wait on thy God continually.
Therefore turn thou to thy God,.... Judah, with whom the
Lord had a controversy, is here addressed and exhorted to return to the Lord,
from whom they had backslidden; and this is urged, from the consideration of
their being the descendants of so great a man as Jacob; whose example they
should follow, and make supplication to the Lord as he did; and from this
instance of their progenitor might encourage themselves, that God, who was his
God, and their God, would be gracious and merciful to them, and that they
should prevail with him likewise, and obtain the blessing, and especially since
he is the everlasting and unchangeable Jehovah. Turning to the Lord, as it
supposes a going astray from him, so it signifies a turning from idols, and all
vain confidences; and is done by renewed acts of faith and trust in the Lord,
and repentance towards him; and cannot be performed aright without grace and
strength from him, of which Ephraim was sensible, Jeremiah 31:18; as
well as the encouragement to it is from a view of God as a covenant God, and as
gracious and merciful, So Aben Ezra interprets it of divine help, of turning by
thy God, that is, by the help and assistance of thy God; and, indeed,
conversion to God, whether at first, or after, is through his powerful and
efficacious grace. Kimchi explains it, "thou shalt rest in thy God"F23באלוהיך תשוב "in Deo tuo
conquiesce", Drusius. ; when want follows is performed, comparing it with Isaiah 30:15. The
Targum is,
"and
thou shall be strong in the worship of thy God;'
keep mercy and judgment; or, "observe"F24שמר "observa", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.
them to do them; to show mercy to persons in misery, to the poor and indigent,
which is what the Lord desires and delights in, more than in ceremonial
sacrifices; and is a principal part of the moral law, as "judgment"
is another; the exercise of justice, both public and private; passing a
righteous sentence in courts of judicature, and doing that which is right
between man and man; owing no man anything, but giving to all their due; doing
no injury to any man's person, property, or character; which are fruits meet
for true repentance; and when they spring from faith and love, and are done
with a view to the glory of God, and good of men, are acceptable to the Lord;
these are the weightier matters of the law, Matthew 23:23;
and wait on thy God continually; both in private prayer,
and for an answer to it, and in public worship and ordinances, in hope of
meeting with him, and enjoying his presence; for this takes in the whole of
religious worship, private and public, and all religious exercises, as
invocation of God, trust in him, and expectation of seed things from him; and
may have a respect to the Messiah, and salvation by him, and a waiting for him
and that; as Jacob did, and his posterity should, and many of them were in this
posture, before and at his coming; see Genesis 49:18;
Agreeable to this the Targum is,
"and
wait for the redemption or salvation of thy God continually.'
Hosea 12:7 7 “A
cunning Canaanite! Deceitful scales are in his hand; He loves to oppress.
YLT 7Canaan! in his hand [are]
balances of deceit! To oppress he hath loved.
He is a merchant,.... Here is a
change of person from "thou" to "he", from Judah to
Ephraim, who is said to be a "merchant"; and if that was all, there
is nothing worthy of dispraise in it; but he was a cheating merchant, a
fraudulent dealer, as appears by what follows: or he is Canaan, or a CanaaniteF25כנען χανααν,
Sept. "Chanaan", V. L. Tigurine version; "Chanauaeum"
refers, Munster. ; more like a descendant of Canaan, by his manners, than a
descendant of Jacob. But the Canaanites dealing much in merchandise, their name
became a common name for a merchant, as a Chaldean for an astrologer; and as
the children of Israel possessed their land, so they followed the same business
and employment of life; which, had they performed honestly, would not have been
to their discredit; but they were too much like the Canaanites, of whom
PhilostratusF26Apud Grotium in loc. says, they were covetous and
fraudulent; and this was Ephraim's character. The Targum is,
"be
you not as merchants;'
the balances of deceit are in his hand; he used false
weights and measures; made the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsified
the balances by deceit; had wicked balances, and deceitful weights, and the
scant measure, which is abominable, Amos 8:5; they
pretended to weigh everything exactly they bought or sold; but cheated either
by sleight or hand, holding the balances as they should not; or had one pair of
scales and weights to buy with, and another to sell by, contrary to the law of
God, Leviticus 19:35;
he loveth to oppress; instead of keeping and
doing mercy and justice, they oppressed the poor, ground their faces, defrauded
them of their due, and by secret and private methods cheated them in their
dealings with them, and brought them to poverty and distress; and this they
took delight and pleasure in, which showed a want of a principle of honesty in
them, and that they were habituated to such a course of life, and were hardened
in it, and had no remorse of conscience for it, but rather gloried in it.
Hosea 12:8 8 And
Ephraim said, ‘Surely I have become rich, I have found wealth for myself; In
all my labors They shall find in me no iniquity that is sin.’
YLT 8And Ephraim saith: `Surely
I have become rich, I have found wealth for myself, All my labours -- they find
not against me iniquity that [is] sin.'
And Ephraim said, yet I am become rich,....
Notwithstanding they took such unjust methods, as to use deceitful balances,
they prospered in the world, got abundance of riches; and therefore concluded
from thence that their manner of dealing was not criminal, at least not so bad
as the prophets represented to them; and so promised themselves impunity, and
that what they were threatened with would not come upon them; and, as long as
they got riches, they cared not in what manner; and inasmuch as they prospered
and succeeded in their course of trading, they were encouraged to go on, and
not fear any evil coming upon them for it. According to Aben Ezra and Kimchi,
the sense is, that they became rich of themselves, by their own industry and
labour, and did not acknowledge that their riches, and power to get them, were
of God. They gloried in them as their own attainments; and which they had
little reason to do, since they were treasures of wickedness, and mammon of
unrighteousness, which in a day of wrath would be of no service to them;
I have found me out substance; they found ways and
means of acquiring great riches, and large estates, by their own wisdom and
cunning, and all for themselves, for their own use, to be enjoyed by them for
years to come; and they were reckoned by them solid and substantial things,
when a mere shadow, emptiness, and vanity; and were not to be employed for
their own use and advantage only, but should have been for the good of others;
nor were they to be attributed to their own sagacity, prudence, and management,
but to the providence of God, admitting they had been got in ever so honourable
and just a manner;
in all my labours they shall
find none iniquity in me that were sin: here again Ephraim, or
the people of Israel, vainly ascribe all their wealth and riches to their own
labour, diligence, and industry, and take no notice of God and his providence,
or of his blessing upon them; and pretend to be very upright and honest in
their dealings, and that what they got were very honestly got, and would bear
the strictest scrutiny; and that if their course of trade was ever so narrowly
looked into, there would be nothing found that was very bad or criminal, that
they could be justly reproached the; only some little trifling things, that
would not bear the name of "sin", or deserve any correction or
punishment; so pure were they in their own eyes, so blinded and hardened in
sin, and fearless of the divine displeasure; like the adulterous woman, wiped
their mouths when they had eaten the sweet morsels of sin, and said they had
done no wickedness, Proverbs 30:20; or
which was involuntary, and not done knowingly, as Kimchi and Abendana: or
rather, as Ben Melech renders it, "no iniquity and sin"; and so
others: or, best of all, "no iniquity or sin", as NoldiusF1Concord.
Ebr. Part. p. 104. No. 522. ; no iniquity, or any kind of sin at all. Thus, as
Ephraim was charged before with idolatry and lies in religion, so here with
fraudulent dealings, and getting riches in an illicit way in civil things; and
of whose repentance and reformation there was no hope.
Hosea 12:9 9 “But
I am the Lord
your God, Ever since the land of Egypt; I will again make you dwell in tents, As
in the days of the appointed feast.
YLT 9And I -- Jehovah thy God
from the land of Egypt, Again do I turn thee back into tents, As in the days of
the appointed time.
And I that am the Lord thy God from the land of Egypt,.... Ephraim
being so very corrupt in things, both religious and civil, and so very
impenitent and impudent, is let alone to suffer the just punishment of his
sins; but Judah being called to repentance, and brought unto it, gracious
promises are here made unto him, to be fulfilled in the times of the Messiah,
either at the first or latter part of them; especially the last is to be
understood, when indeed all Israel shall return to the Lord, and be saved; and
then it will appear, that the Lord, who was their God, as was evident from his
bringing them out of Egyptian bondage, and continued to be so from that time to
the Babylonish captivity, and even to the times of the Messiah, will now be
their God most clearly and manifestly, having redeemed them from worse than
Egyptian bondage; from the bondage of sin, Satan, the law, the world, and
death; even the Lord Jesus Christ, the true Messiah, they will now seek and
embrace, who is God over all, and equal to such a work of redemption and
salvation; Immanuel, God with us, God in our nature, our Lord and our God, the
God of the Jews now converted, as will be acknowledged, as well as of the
Gentiles: and he
will yet make thee to dwell in tabernacles, as in the days of the
solemn feast; alluding to the feast of tabernacles, kept in commemoration of
the Israelites dwelling in tents in the wilderness, Leviticus 23:42;
typical of Christ's incarnation, expressed by his tabernacling among men in
human nature, John 1:14; and
which feast, though abolished by Christ with the rest, yet it is said will be
kept by converted Jews and Gentiles in the latter day; which can be understood
no otherwise than of their embracing and professing the incarnate Saviour,
partaking of the blessings of grace that come by him, and attending on those
ordinances of public worship instituted by him; see Zechariah 14:16;
and which booths, tents, or tabernacles, the Israelites dwelt in at that feast,
were also typical of the churches of Christ under the Gospel dispensation, and
which are here meant; and in which it is here promised the converted Jews shall
dwell, as they had been used to do in their booths at the solemn feast of
tabernacles. These Christian churches resembling them in the matter of them;
believers in Christ, the materials of such churches, being compared to goodly
trees, to willows of the brook, to palm trees, olive trees, and myrtle trees,
with others, the branches of which were used at the above feast, to make their
tabernacles with; see Leviticus 23:40;
and in the use of them, which was to dwell in during the time of the said
feast; as the churches of Christ are the tabernacles of the most High, the
dwelling places of Father, Son, and Spirit; and the habitation of the saints,
where they dwell and enjoy great plenty and prosperity, tranquillity and
security; and here it particularly denotes that joy, peace, and the converted
Jews shall partake of in the churches of Christ in the latter day; of which the
feast of tabernacles was but a shadow, and which was attended with much
rejoicing, plenty of provisions, and great safety.
Hosea 12:10 10 I
have also spoken by the prophets, And have multiplied visions; I have given
symbols through the witness of the prophets.”
YLT 10And I have spoken unto the
prophets, And I have multiplied vision, And by the hand of the prophets I use
similes.
I have also spoken to the prophets,.... Or, "I will
speak"F2ודברתי "et loquar",
Piscator, Liveleus, Drusius, Cocceius, Schmidt. ; for this respects not the
Lord's speaking by the prophets of the Old Testament who spoke as they were
moved by the Holy Ghost; though all they said were for the use of, and
profitable unto, Christian churches; but his speaking by the apostles,
prophets, and teachers, under the Gospel dispensation; by whom the doctrines of
grace have been more clearly dispensed, and which are no other than the voice
of Christ speaking in them; and which it is both a privilege to hear, and a
duty to attend unto; see Ephesians 4:11;
and I have multiplied visions: or, "will multiply
visions"F3חזון הרביתי
"visionem multiplicabo", Vatablus, Liveleus, Drusius, Schmidt. ; more
than under the former dispensation, as was foretold by Joel, Joel 2:28; see Acts 2:16; witness
the visions of the Apostles Peter, Paul, John, and others: or this may respect
the more clear sight and knowledge of Gospel truths in the times of the
Messiah, then under the Mosaic economy; see 2 Corinthians 3:13;
and used similitudes by the ministry of the prophets: or,
"will use similitudes"F4אדמה
"assimilabo", Montanus, Schmidt; "similitudinibus utar",
Castalio, Liveleus. ; for this is to be understood, not of the types and
figures used by the Lord under the legal dispensation, to represent spiritual
things, as the brasen serpent, passover lamb, manna, and the sacrifices of the
law; nor of the similitudes used by the prophet Hosea, taking a wife and
children of whoredoms, to set forth the case and condition of Israel, and of
the comparisons he makes of God, to a lion, leopard, bear, &c. or by any
other of the former prophets; but of parables and similitudes used in Gospel
times; not only such as Christ used himself, who seldom spoke without a parable;
see Matthew 13:11; but
which he used by the ministry of his apostles and prophets, and which are to be
met with in their discourses and writings; see 1 Corinthians 3:6;
and especially such seem to be meant that respect the conversion of the Jews,
and the glory of the church in the latter day, Romans 11:16.
Hosea 12:11 11 Though
Gilead has idols— Surely they are vanity— Though they sacrifice bulls in
Gilgal, Indeed their altars shall be heaps in the furrows of the field.
YLT 11Surely Gilead [is]
iniquity, Only, vanity they have been, In Gilead bullocks they have sacrificed,
Also their altars [are] as heaps, on the furrows of a field.
Is there iniquity in
Gilead?.... Idolatry there? strange that there should be, seeing it was
a city of the priests; a city of refuge; or there is none there, say the
priests, who pretended they did not worship idols, but the true Jehovah in
them: or, "is there not iniquity", or idolatry, "in
Gilead"F5אם גלעד
און "an non in Galaad iniquitas?"
Vatablus. ? verily there is, let them pretend to what they will: or, "is there
only iniquity in it"F6"En in Gileade tantum
iniquitas?" Piscator. ? that the men of it should be carried captive, as
they were by TiglathPileser, before the rest of the tribes; see 2 Kings 15:29; no,
there is iniquity and idolatry committed in other places, as well as there, who
must expect to share the same fate in time: or, "is Gilead Aven?"F7"Num
Gilead Aven?" Schmidt. that is, Bethaven, the same with Bethel; it is as
that, as guilty of idolatry as Bethel, where one of the calves was set up:
surely they are vanity: the inhabitants of
Gilead, as well as of Bethel, worshipping idols, which are most vain things,
vanity itself, and deceive those that serve them, and trust in them:
they sacrifice bullocks in Gilgal: to idols, as the Targum
adds; and so Jarchi and Kimchi; according to Aben Ezra, they sacrificed them to
Baal; this shows that Gilead was not the only place for idolatry, which was on
the other side Jordan, but Gilgal, which was on this side Jordan, was also
polluted with it. The Vulgate Latin version is,
"in
Gilgal they were sacrificing to bullocks;'
to
the calves there, the same as were at Dan and Bethel; so, in the Septuagint
version of 1 Kings 12:29; it
was formerly read: and so CyrilF8Apud Reland. Palestina Illustrata,
tom. 2. l. 3. p. 783. quotes it, "he (Jeroboam) set the one (calf)
in Gilgal, and the other in Dan"; hence the fable that EpiphaniusF9De
Vita & Interitu Prophet. c. 6. & Paschal. Chronic. p. 161. apud Reland.
ib. makes mention of, that, when Elisha was born, the golden ox or heifer at
Gilgal bellowed very loudly, and so loud as to be heard at Jerusalem. The
Targum makes mention of an idol temple here; and as it was near to Bethel, as
appears from 1 Samuel 10:3; and
from JosephusF11Antiqu. l. 6. c. 4. sect. 9. ; and so Jerom saysF12De
locis Hebr. fol. 91. M. , hard by Bethel; some suspect another Gilgal; hence it
might be put for it; however, it was a place of like idolatrous worship; it is
mentioned as such along with Bethaven or Bethel, in Hosea 4:15; see
also Hosea 9:15;
yea, their altars are as heaps in, the furrows of the
fields; not only in the city of Gilgal, and in the temple there, as the
Targum; but even without the city, in the fields they set up altars, which looked
like heaps of stones; or they had a multitude of altars that stood as thick as
they. So the Targum,
"they
have multiplied their altars, like heaps upon the borders of the fields;'
and
the Jewish commentators in general understand this as expressive of the number
of their altars, and of the increase of idolatrous worship; but some interpret
it of the destruction of their altars, which should become heaps of stones and
rubbish, like such as are in fields. These words respect Ephraim or the ten
tribes, in which these places were, whose idolatry is again taken notice of,
after gracious promises were made to Judah. Some begin here a new sermon or
discourse delivered to Israel.
Hosea 12:12 12 Jacob
fled to the country of Syria; Israel served for a spouse, And for a wife he
tended sheep.
YLT 12And Jacob doth flee to the
country of Aram, And Israel doth serve for a wife, Yea, for a wife he hath kept
watch.
And Jacob fled into the country of Syria,.... Or,
"field of Syria"F13שדה ארם "agrum Aram", Montanus; "in agrum
Syriae", Vatablus, Drusius, Rivet, Schmidt. ; the same with Padanaram; for
"Padan", in the Arabic language, as Bochart has shown, signifies a
field; and "Aram" is Syria, and is the word here used. This is to be
understood of Jacob's fleeing thither for fear of his brother Esau, the history
of which is had in Genesis 28:1;
though some interpret this of his fleeing from Laban out of the field of Syria
into Gilead, Genesis 31:21; and
so make it to be introduced as an aggravation of the sin of the inhabitants of
Gilead, that that place, which had been a refuge and sanctuary to their
ancestor in his distress, should be defiled with idolatry; but the words will
not bear such a construction, and the following seem to militate against it:
and Israel served for a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep; and so the
last clause is supplied by the Targum, Jarchi, and Kimchi: this was after his
flight into Syria, and before he fled from Laban, whom he served seven years
for Rachel; and then served him by keeping his sheep seven years more for the
same: though it may be understood of his two wives, thus; he served seven years
for a wife, for Rachel intentionally, but eventually it was for Leah; and then
he kept sheep seven years more for his other wife Rachel; the history of this
is in Genesis 29:1. This
is mentioned to show the meanness of Jacob the ancestor of the Israelites, from
whom they had their original and name; he was a fugitive in the land of Syria;
there he was a Syrian ready to perish, a very poor man, obliged to serve and
keep sheep for a wife, having no dowry to give; and this is observed here to
bring, down the pride of Israel, who boasted of their descent, which is weak
and foolish for any to do; and to show the goodness of God to Jacob, and to
them, in raising him and them from so low an estate and condition to such
eminency and greatness as they were; and to upbraid their ingratitude to the
God of their fathers, and of their mercies, whom they had revolted from, and
turned to idols.
Hosea 12:13 13 By
a prophet the Lord
brought Israel out of Egypt, And by a prophet he was preserved.
YLT 13And by a prophet hath
Jehovah brought up Israel out of Egypt, And by a prophet it hath been watched.
And by a prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt,.... Or,
"by the prophet"; the famous and most excellent prophet Moses, who,
by way of eminency, is so called; him the Lord sent, and employed, and made use
of him as an instrument to bring his people out of their bondage in Egypt; in
which he was a type of Christ the great Prophet of the church, raised up like
unto him, and the Redeemer of his people from sin, Satan, and the world, law,
hell, and death, and all enemies:
and by a prophet he was preserved; by the same prophet
Moses was Israel preserved at the Red sea, and in the wilderness; where they
were kept as a flock of sheep from their powerful enemies, and brought to the
borders of Canaan's land. Some understand this last clause of Joshua, by whom
the Israelites were safely conducted through Jordan into the land of Canaan,
and settled there; and particularly were brought by him to Gilgal, where the
covenant of circumcision was renewed, and the first passover in the land kept,
but now a place of idolatry, as before mentioned; and which sin was aggravated
by this circumstance: but the design of this observation seems to be to put the
Israelites in remembrance of their low estate in Egypt, and of the goodness of
God to them in delivering them from thence, which they had sadly requited by
their degeneracy and apostasy from him; and to him unto them how much they
ought to have valued the prophets of the Lord, though they had despised them,
since they had received such benefits and blessings by the means of a prophet.
Hosea 12:14 14 Ephraim
provoked Him to anger most bitterly; Therefore his Lord will leave the
guilt of his bloodshed upon him, And return his reproach upon him.
YLT 14Ephraim hath provoked most
bitterly, And his blood on himself he leaveth, And his reproach turn back to
him doth his Lord!
Ephraim provoked him to anger most bitterly,.... The
Vulgate Latin version supplies it, me; that is, God, as Kimchi; or his Lord, as
it may be supplied from the last clause of the verse; the sense is the same
either way: it was God that Ephraim or the ten tribes provoked to stir up his
wrath and vengeance against them; notwithstanding all the favours that they and
their ancestors had received from him, they provoked him in a most bitter
manner, to bitter anger, vehement wrath and fury: or, "with
bitternesses"F14תמרורים
"amaritudinibus", Pagninus, Vatablus, Piscator, Schmidt. ; with their
sins, which are in their own nature bitter, displeasing to God; and in their
effects bring bitterness and death on those that commit them; meaning
particularly their idolatry, and all belonging to it; their idols, high places,
altars, &c. The word here used is rendered "high heaps"F15And
is so understood by R. Sol. Urbin. Ohel Moed, fol. 64. 1. , Jeremiah 31:21; and
is here by Kimchi interpreted of altars, with which, and their sacrifices on
them, they provoked the Lord to anger:
therefore shall he leave his blood upon him; the blood of
innocent persons, prophets, and other good men shed by him; the sin of it shall
be charged upon him, and he shall bear the punishment of it. So the Targum,
"the
fault of innocent blood which he shed shall return upon him:'
or
"his own blood shall be poured out upon him"F16ודמיו עליו יטוש
και το αιμα αυτου επι αυτον
εκχυθησεται, Sept. so Syr. & Ar. "ideo sanguis ejus
super eum diffundetur, sive effundetur", Zanchius. ; in just
retaliation for the blood of others shed by him, and for all the blood sired by
him in idolatrous sacrifices, and other bloody sins; or his own blood being
shed by the enemy shall remain upon him unrevenged; God will not punish those
that shed it:
and his reproach shall his Lord return unto him: that is, as
he has reproached the prophets of the Lord for reproving him for his idolatry,
and reproached fire Lord himself, by revolting from him, and neglecting his
worship, and preferring the worship of idols to him; so, as a just recompence,
he shall be delivered up into the hands of the enemy, and become a reproach, a
taunt, and a proverb, in all places into which he shall be brought. God is
called "his Lord", though he had rebelled against him, and shook off
his yoke, and would not obey him; yet, whether he will or not, he is his Lord,
and will show himself to be so by his sovereignty and authority over him, and
by the judgments exercised on him. Some understand this of the Assyrian king,
become his lord, by taking and carrying him captive, the instrument in God's
hand of bringing him to reproach; but the former sense seems best.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)