The Lord Accuses
Israel
Hear
the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a
controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there
is
no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. Hos. 4:1
Hear
the word...
The 6th prophecy in Hosea (Hos. 4:1-19, fulfilled). Next, Hos. 5:1.
Twenty
Predictions—Fulfilled:
1.
The land will mourn (Hos. 4:3).
2.
Every man will languish with the beasts and fowls.
3.
Fish will be taken away.
4.
You will fall in the day (Hos. 4:5).
5.
The prophet will fall with you in the night.
6.
I will destroy your mother.
7.
I will reject you (Hos. 4:6).
8.
You will not be a priest to Me.
9.
I will also forget your children.
10.
I will change their glory to shame (Hos. 4:7).
11.
I will punish them for their ways (Hos. 4:9).
12.
I will reward their doings.
13.
They will eat and not have enough.
14.
They will commit whoredom and not increase (Hos. 4:10).
15.
Your daughters will commit whoredom (Hos. 4:13).
16.
Your spouses will commit adultery.
17.
I will not punish them (Hos. 4:14).
18.
The people that do not understand will fall.
19.
The Lord will feed them as a lamb in a large place (Hos. 4:16).
20.
They will be ashamed because of their sacrifices (Hos. 4:19).
controversy
with the...
A judicial inquiry and cause. Compare Hos. 3:1-5:13-14; Hos. 12:2;
Isa. 1:18; 34:8; Jer. 25:31; Mic. 6:2. Turning from the analogy of
his own marriage, the prophet made the judicial charge in God’s
indictment against Israel. We have stressed so much in these lessons,
that wisdom is a gift from God, but knowledge takes an effort upon
our part. Knowledge is accumulated learning. Notice, first they must
hear the Word of God. The Word is spoken through the prophet Hosea,
but he is like an "ambassador", who brings someone else's
message to the people. In this case, it is God's message.
because
there is...
Four great reasons for God’s controversy:
1.
There is no truth in the land (Hos. 4:1).
2.
There is no mercy in Israel.
3.
There is no knowledge of God.
4.
Sins of Israel (Hos. 4:2).
The purpose
of this Bible study is so that we can accumulate more learning and
understanding of God's Word. The land spoken of (in verse 1 above),
is a perfect description of our land today. They are at odds with
God. They are disobedient to His Word. Truth and mercy are both God's
gift to mankind. The knowledge of the will of God for their lives was
far from them, because they did not diligently seek the truth and
knowledge.
By
swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing
adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood. Hos. 4:2
Note
the many infractions of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:3-17).
By
swearing, and... Again, we see so much of this in our society today,
that there is not enough jail cells to hold the criminals. It is
interesting to me, that this begins with swearing. In the loose
society we live in, this has become so commonplace, it is not even
considered a crime anymore. There was a time, when swearing got a
person tied to a whipping post for 10 or 15 lashes of a whip.When people are out of the will of God, they commit all of these things and many more. Drugs and alcohol add to the immense number of crimes committed. Even drugs and alcohol is a sign of a society out of fellowship with God.
Instead
they blatantly disobeyed the Decalogue, which epitomized God’s
ideal for Israelite society. Violations of five of the Ten
Commandments are specifically mentioned: cursing, lying (cf. Hos.
7:1; 12:1), murder, stealing, and adultery (commandments 3, 9, 6, 8,
and 7, in that order). “Cursing” does not refer to improper
speech as such, but to calling down a curse on another (cf. Job.
31:30). Because such imprecations (for Israelites) entailed invoking
God’s name, they would be violating the third commandment when such
an imprecation was unjustified (Exo. 20:7; Deut. 5:11; for an example
of a justifiable curse invoking the Lord’s name, see Num. 5:19-23).
Therefore
shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall
languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven;
yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away. Hos. 4:3
Sin
plays havoc with lower creation and nature (Joel 1:17-20; Rom.
8:19-22).
Therefore
shall the... The civil authorities may allow these things to happen
and go unpunished, but God will not.
Therein shall languish... Implies sickness, and is another way of saying mourn. There is a sickness, and it is called sin. When these things happen in any land, God removes His blessings from them.
Zephaniah 1:3 "I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD."
Because
of these sins the land will mourn, every man will languish, and the
beasts will be destroyed. Because of Israel’s sin, severe drought
would sweep over the land and people would die (waste away). The
three verbs in this verse should be translated in the future tense
(cf. Hos. 2:9, 2:12). Drought was one of the curses threatened by the
Law for breaking the covenant (cf. Lev. 26:19; Deut. 28:23-24).
Yet
let no man strive, nor reprove another: for thy people are
as they that strive with the priest. Hos. 4:4
let
no man... Rationalizing and denying their wrongs, the people
protested their innocence, like those who would not humbly accept the
decision of the priests (Deut. 17:8-13).
nor reprove another... It
appears that no one was above sin, so no one was not in a position to
judge, or reprove another. Even the people were trying to tell the
priest what was wrong.
that
strive with... The priests addressed in these verses shared the guilt
of the people and therefore would not be exempt from punishment.
The
guilt of the population as a whole is further established. The first
two lines in this verse prohibit either lawsuits among the people
(NIV) or formal opposition to God’s charges. In either case the
reason for God’s prohibition was that all the people were guilty of
rebellion. They were like those who brazenly defy God’s established
human legal authorities (cf. Deut. 17:12).
Therefore
shalt thou fall in the day, and the prophet also shall fall with thee
in the night, and I will destroy thy mother. Hos. 4:5
Therefore
shalt thou... Here the accusation (Hos. 4:4) is extended to the
religious leaders (NIV) or the demise of the religious leaders is
announced (KJV, NASB).
fall
in the... Stumble refers to their moral shortcomings (cf. Hos. 14:1
2, NASB; Isa. 3:8; Jer. 18:15; Mal. 2:8) or their coming downfall
(cf. Hos. 5:5; Isa. 8:15; 28:13; 31:3; Jer. 6:21; 8:12; 20:11).
and
the prophet... These priests and prophets were attached to the
official sanctuaries and royal court. Their allegiance was to their
human king, not God (cf. 1Ki. 22:6-8; Amos 7:10-17), and they were
characterized by self-gratification (cf. Isa. 28:7; Jer. 23:11) and
greed (Jer. 6:13; Mic. 3:11).
destroy
thy
mother... The Israelite nation of which the people are the children
(compare 2:2).
It appears from this, the
prophet suffered with his people. The first part of the above
sentence seems to be speaking of individuals who will not be spared.
It will not matter whether it is day or night, the outcome is the
same. The nation Israel is spoken of as "mother" as above.
My
people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast
rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no
priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will
also forget thy children. Hos. 4:6
My
people are... The cause of man’s problem is “lack of knowledge.”
It does not stem from a shortage of information, but rather from
rejection of information.
thou shall
be... Having rejected the Lord’s instruction, Israel could no
longer serve as His priest to the nations (Exodus 19:6; James 3:1).This is almost like saying; they did not study the Word of God and hide it away in their hearts. When God says "my people", he is speaking of each individual in the nation of Israel. To reject the knowledge of the Word of God is to reject God. We can see from the following Scriptures that God speaks of all of His followers as priests.
1 Peter 2:5 "Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:9-10 "But ye [are] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light:" "Which in time past [were] not a people, but [are] now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy."
Those who do not remember God will be forgotten of God, as well.
The priests were eager to “eat up the sin” of the people. They did this by urging the people to offer hypocritical, ineffective sacrifices for sins (6:6; 8:11-13). The more the people sinned, the more the priest ate and sold the sacrificial meat to make money.
“Like people, like priest”. The people enjoyed sin in excess while the priests, who should have been faithful, encouraged it (Mal. 2:1-9; 2 Tim. 4:3-4).
The
Lord held these leaders responsible for the people’s lack of
knowledge (cf. Hos. 4:1). The priests in particular had ignored their
duty to communicate the Law of… God to the nation (cf. Deut.
31:9-13; 33:8-10; Mal. 2:7). So they would be severely but justly
punished. Because of their part in the people’s moral ruin mothers
would be destroyed. This judgment, though unusual, appears elsewhere
(cf. Jer. 22:26). In this way the source of the priestly line would
be eliminated. As punishment for their rejection of knowledge, the
priests themselves would be removed from their office by the Lord.
Also because the priests ignored the Law, the Lord said He would
ignore their children, apparently meaning they would not inherit
their fathers’ office (cf. 1Sa. 2:27-35). In this way the future of
the priestly line would be cut off.
The
repetition of the verb in each cycle of the announcement of judgment
(destroy… destroyed.… rejected… reject… ignored… ignore)
emphasizes that each punishment fits each crime perfectly.
As
they were increased, so they sinned against me: therefore
will I change their glory into shame. Hos. 4:7
As
they were... The increase in numbers and prosperity probably refers
to the priesthood, who, as they grew in numbers, became more
alienated from the true God. These eat up, or fatten on, the very
sins they ought to rebuke.
change their glory... God had blessed them, and they had increased, but they could not handle prosperity. The minute they were out of trouble, they sought false gods. He turned the blessings into cursings.
Deuteronomy 30:19 "I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, [that] I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:"
Just as it was their choice, it is our choice to receive blessings, or cursings. God will not bless those who are unfaithful to Him.
One
would expect that an increase in the number of priests would have
positive effects on the nation’s moral climate. However, in Israel
it only brought greater sin.
According
to the NIV, Hos. 4:7 continues the accusation. This reading, which
has some external support (cf. NIV marg.) suggests that the priests
ex-changed their Glory, the Lord, for something disgraceful (idols;
cf. Psm. 106:20; Jer. 2:11). The Masoretic text, which reads, “I
will change their glory into shame” (KJV, NASB, RSV), seems
preferable. The Lord will take away the honor (kāḇôḏ,
trans. here “glory,” frequently carries this meaning) which they
received because of their position.
They
eat up the sin of my people, and they set their heart on their
iniquity. Hos. 4:8
They
eat up... They are the problem; that is, the priesthood. They have
not helped the people face their sin and deal with it. Rather, they
have gloried and taken pleasure in the sin of the people.
the
sin of... Sin
Hebrew: chatta’ah,
translated "sin offering" 116 times. The sin offering of My
people. Such was supposed to be a burnt offering, but the people ate
the sin offerings instead (Lev. 6:26, 6:30).
He would receive more offerings to eat, instead of correcting their iniquity.
And
there shall be, like people, like priest: and I will punish them for
their ways, and reward them their doings. Hos. 4:9
like
people, like... The priest of God is corrupted and made like the
sinning people, not vice versa.
and I
will... God punishes the priests, the same as He does the people when
they sin. He also blesses the priests, as the people when they keep
His commandments.
Because
the priests were no different from the other people, they also would
experience the effects of the covenant curses.
For
they shall eat, and not have enough: they shall commit whoredom, and
shall not increase: because they have left off to take heed to the
LORD. Hos. 4:10
Despite
their greedy schemes to accumulate food, their appetites would not be
satisfied for drought would make food scarce (cf. Hos. 4:3; Lev.
26:26; Mic. 6:14). Their efforts to promote fertility through cult
prostitution would not succeed (cf. Hos. 2:13; Deut.28:18).
The
priests’ sin is summarized here. They had deserted the Lord by
breaking His covenant (cf. Deut.28:20; 29:25; 31:16). The NIV puts
the last three words of Hos. 4:10 with Hos. 4:11, to give themselves
(lit., “to keep or watch”) to prostitution (RSV, “to cherish
harlotry”).
Whoredom
and wine and new wine take away the heart. Hos. 4:11
take
away the... Here is a moral truth applicable to all people and times.
(Verses 12-13), are illustrations of the enslavement in Israel.
Drunkenness
and whoredom go together. Those who drink too much lose control of
their own will.
The
Hebrew reads literally, “for the Lord they have forsaken to obey”
(KJV, NASB). In this case the clause must be understood as highly
elliptical, the sense being, “they have forsaken the Lord, refusing
to observe His commandments.”
My
people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth unto
them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them
to err, and they have gone a whoring from under their God. Hos. 4:12
spirit
of whoredoms... A prevailing mindset and inclination to worldly
spiritual immorality, i.e., idolatry (compare 5:4).
The
"whoredom" spoken of here, is of a spiritual nature. This
is speaking of the worship of false gods. They have left the One True
God for the false gods.
The
scope of the accusation widened to include the people in general.
Sensual pleasures had robbed them of their senses, leaving them
without understanding. They engaged in pagan worship practices,
including divination (seeking answers by a stick of wood), sacrificed
to false gods, and engaged in cult prostitution (cf. Hos. 5:4).
They
sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the
hills, under oaks and poplars and elms, because the shadow thereof is
good: therefore your daughters shall commit whoredom, and your
spouses shall commit adultery. Hos. 4:13
They
sacrifice upon... Bereft of righteous teaching and understanding,
they sacrificed to idols. Hilltops and groves of trees were favorite
places for idolatrous worship (Deut. 12:2; Jer. 2:20; Ezek. 6:13),
including religious prostitution.
This is a
description of the various types of false worship that went on in the
country.
and your spouses... God caused their wives to be unfaithful to them, as they had been to Him.
The
Canaanite shrines, which Moses had commanded Israel to destroy (cf.
Deut.12:2-3), were located on hills and/or under shady trees (oak,
poplar, and terebinth) throughout the Northern Kingdom (cf. 2Ki.
17:10-11). Here many young women (daughters) of Israel took part in
sexual rites with male cult prostitutes (cf. Deut. 23:17-18;
1Ki_14:24).
I
will not punish your daughters when they commit whoredom, nor your
spouses when they commit adultery: for themselves are separated with
whores, and they sacrifice with harlots: therefore the people that
doth not understand shall fall. Hos. 4:14
I
will not...
This means that God will leave such sinners to follow their own
corruption until the time when He will judge them in the next life.
"I will not punish your daughters" (that is, punish them in
particular more than you).
for
themselves are... For you all commit adultery; and the men "are
separated with whores." All of you may live as you want to in
this life, but there is a judgment day coming for everyone.
your
daughters when... Your
daughters who become temple women (those consecrated to the unclean
worship of heathen idols, by which the most foul corruptions in sex
were considered holy duty). Your women commit whoredom and your men
are "separated with whores".
and
they sacrifice... To idols with harlots; therefore, the whole nation
will fall.
Although
all who sin will be judged, God forbade punishing the adulteresses
alone and leaving the men who patronized them to go free. The
heaviest punishment would not be on the women who sin, but the
fathers and husbands who set such a bad example by their engagement
with prostitutes.
therefore
the people... Doth not understand”: (compare 4:6).Sin feeds upon itself. God was the husband of Israel in the spirit. They, who worshipped false gods, committed spiritual adultery against God. That sin was so terrible that physical adultery paled in comparison. It had been the law to stone to death someone caught in the act of physical adultery. But why punish that individually, when the majority of the nation was guilty of spiritual adultery?
Though
thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet
let not Judah offend; and come not ye unto Gilgal, neither go ye up
to Bethaven, nor swear, The LORD liveth. Hos. 4:15
let
not Judah...
Israel of the northern kingdom was past turning back to God, so He
advised Judah to take a lesson from this and not offend Him or go
past repentance and the place of surrender to Him. History records
that Judah did not learn her lesson though; 133 years after the fall
of Samaria she also was destroyed (2 Kings 17-25).
and
come not... Judah was commanded not to go up to Gilgal where Jeroboam
had erected an idolatrous temple, and where they had rejected Jehovah
as King many years before. The idea was that they must not go after
idols and reject Him. Gilgal, Between Jordan and Jericho in the area
of Samaria, this was once a holy place to God (Josh. 5:10-15; 1 Sam.
10:8; 15:21), afterwards desecrated by idol worship (9:15; 12:11;
Amos 4:4; 5:5).
neither
go ye... Judah was also told not to go up to Beth-aven. This word,
meaning house of naught, was substituted for Beth-el, house of God,
in the place where Jeroboam set up the worship of a golden calf (1Ki.
12:28-33; 13:1; Amos 3:14). Beth-aven, Judah was to stay away from
Israel’s centers of false worship, including Beth-aven (“house of
wickedness/deceit”). This was a deliberate substitution for the
name Bethel (“house of God”), once sacred to God (Gen. 28:17,
19), but made by Jeroboam a place to worship calves (1 Kings
12:28-33; 13:1; Jer. 48:13; Amos 3:14; 7:13).
For
Israel slideth back as a backsliding heifer: now the LORD will feed
them as a lamb in a large place. Hos. 4:16
slideth
back as...
Has been stubborn, restive, or rebellious like a heifer unbroken to
be led by a rope, and who pulls back, refusing to go along.
now
the Lord...
The Lord will permit them to go into dispersion among the heathen.
Because
Israel was like a stubborn calf, God no longer attempted to corral
her, abandoning her as a lamb in a vast wilderness.
This gives
a reason for the warning in the other verse. This shows that Israel
is falling further into idolatry. She is slipping further and further
in. When people or nations slip further into sin, they go further and
further from God.
Ephraim
is
joined to idols: let him alone. Hos. 4:17
joined
to idols...
Mated or united to his idols and will not get a divorce from them.
let him alone... When sinners reject Him and are bent on fulfilling their wicked purposes, God removes restraining grace and turns them over to the results of their own perverse choices. This king of wrath is that (in Rom. 1:18-32; compare Judges 10:13, 2 Chron. 15:2; 24:20; Psalm 81:11-12).
The name given to Israel because it was the largest tribe of the northern kingdom is completely given over to its idolatry and accompanying practices. He is beyond recall.
Ephraim was the predominant tribe in Israel. They should have been the leaders. They are seemingly the deepest in sin. Idol worship was a rebellion against God, as well as being spiritual adultery.
Their
drink is sour: they have committed whoredom continually: her rulers
with
shame do love, Give ye. Hos. 4:18
her
rulers with...
Her rulers love to give sacrifices to the idols, but have contempt
for the sacrifices of Jehovah.
This
is the only instance where the Hebrew word magen is translated by the
English word “rulers.” It occurs in the Old Testament more than
50 times and is usually translated by the English word shield. The
leaders God gave to the nation, with the express purpose of shielding
it from sin and leading it to God, have instead led in its spiritual
defection.
It appears
that the leaders, as well as the people, were continually sinning. It
had become a way of life for the whole nation.
The
wind hath bound her up in her wings, and they shall be ashamed
because of their sacrifices. Hos. 4:19
wind
hath bound...
The spirit of whoredoms has bound her up in her wings (skirts), which
has hindered her race; so they will be ashamed of the idol worship.
That is, the wind in its wings hath bound up Ephraim, Israel, or the
ten tribes. Compared to a heifer; meaning, that the wind of God's
wrath and vengeance, or the enemy, the Assyrian, should come like a
whirlwind, and carry them swiftly, suddenly, and irresistibly, out of
their own land, into a foreign country.
The most ridiculous thing of all was the fact that they were still going through the formality of worshipping God. The wind, spoken of here, has to do with the wind of God's wrath. This type of sin leads nowhere, but to shame and disgrace.
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