Paul Kretzmann Commentary - Hosea 10:1 - 10:8

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Paul Kretzmann Commentary - Hosea 10:1 - 10:8


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The Seats of Worship Destroyed

v. 1. Israel is an empty vine, a thriving, climbing vine; he bringeth forth fruit unto himself, growing up with every indication of strength and fruitfulness, but utterly selfish and godless in aim; according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars, that is, the more Israel grew in prosperity, the more the members of the nation rejected the Lord and became addicted to idolatry; according to the goodness of his land, in proportion to the riches obtained, they have made goodly images, statues of idols.

v. 2. Their heart is divided,
rather, "smooth, false, insincere"; now shall they be found faulty, they will have to make expiation, they will have to suffer for their duplicity; He shall break down their altars, destroying them by demolishing their horns, He shall spoil their images, the true God thereby proving Himself to be the Master of the idols.

v. 3. For now,
when the punishment of the Lord would strike them, they shall say, We have no king because we feared not the Lord, for the man whom they selected for the position against the Lord's will was unable to help them, in their emergency; what, then, should a king do to us? that is, of what benefit could he be, what possibility was there of his helping them in their difficulty?

v. 4. They have spoken words,
empty, vain statements, swearing falsely in making a covenant; for they were not fair and honest in their treaties with other nations, keeping them only as long as they hoped to have some benefit or advantage from them; thus judgment, what they wanted to consider right and good, springeth up as hemlock, a poisonous plant, in the furrows of the field. Cf Amo_6:12. Since they themselves were not clear on what was right, their hazy notions reacted in a most unfavorable manner on themselves, like a poisonous weed overgrowing a field.

v. 5. The inhabitants of Samaria,
the capital of the northern kingdom, shall fear because of the calves of Bethaven, trembling for the fate of their idol at Bethel; for the people thereof shall mourn over it, at its loss or destruction, and the priests thereof that rejoiced on it, its idol-priests shall tremble for it, for the glory thereof, because it is departed from it, being taken away into captivity.

v. 6. It shall be also carried unto Assyria for a present to King Jareb,
to the warlike monarch; Ephraim shall receive shame, be completely overcome with shame, and Israel shall be ashamed of his own counsel, of all its planning with regard to its idolatrous cult.

v. 7. As for Samaria, her king is cut off as the foam upon the water,
for its kingdom had just as little solidity and stability, it was as speedily dissolved as the foam which rides on the breakers.

v. 8. The high places also of Aven,
of Bethel, the sin of Israel, where idolatry was practiced to such a shocking extent, shall be destroyed; the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars, so that they would be overgrown with weeds; and they, the inhabitants of the country, shall say to the mountains, Cover us! and to the hills, Fall on us! That is the cry of the unbelievers, of the enemies of God, when they see the judgment approaching them, when it is too late for salvation. Cf Isa_2:19; Luk_23:30.