14 For Israel has no memory of his Maker, and has put up the houses of kings; and Judah has made great the number of his walled towns. But I will send a fire on his towns and put an end to his great houses.
But if you do not give ear to me, to keep the Sabbath day holy, and to let no weight be lifted and taken through the doors of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day: then I will put a fire in its doorways, burning up the great houses of Jerusalem, and it will never be put out.
You have no thought for the Rock, your father, you have no memory of the God who gave you birth.
When I gave them food they were full, and their hearts were full of pride, and they did not keep me in mind.
Is it possible for a virgin to put out of her memory her ornaments, or a bride her robes? but my people have put me out of their memories for unnumbered days.
And I will make a fire in the wall of Rabbah, burning up its great houses, with loud cries in the days of war, with a storm in the day of the great wind:
And I will send a fire on Teman, burning up the great houses of Bozrah.
And I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, burning up the great houses of Ben-hadad.
And I will give her punishment for the days of the Baals, to whom she has been burning perfumes, when she made herself fair with her nose-rings and her jewels, and went after her lovers, giving no thought to me, says the Lord.
A voice is sounding on the open hilltops, the weeping and the prayers of the children of Israel; because their way is twisted, they have not kept the Lord their God in mind.
And he made places for worship at the high places, and made priests, who were not Levites, from among all the people.
For this reason he let loose on him the heat of his wrath, and his strength was like a flame; and it put fire round about him, but he did not see it; he was burned, but did not take it to heart.
The Lord will go out as a man of war, he will be moved to wrath like a fighting-man: his voice will be strong, he will give a loud cry; he will go against his attackers like a man of war.
He took away the cover of Judah; and in that day you were looking with care at the store of arms in the house of the woods. And you saw all the broken places in the wall of the town of David: and you got together the waters of the lower pool. And you had the houses of Jerusalem numbered, pulling down the houses to make the wall stronger. And you made a place between the two walls for storing the waters of the old pool: but you gave no thought to him who had done this, and were not looking to him by whom it had been purposed long before.
For you have not given honour to the God of your salvation, and have not kept in mind the Rock of your strength; for this cause you made a garden of Adonis, and put in it the vine-cuttings of a strange god;
In addition, he made towns in the hill-country of Judah, and strong buildings and towers in the woodlands.
And he put up towers in the waste land and made places for storing water, for he had much cattle, in the low hills and in the table land; and he had farmers and vine-keepers in the mountains and in the fertile land, for he was a lover of farming.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Hosea 8
Commentary on Hosea 8 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 8
This chapter, as that before, divides itself into the sins and punishments of Israel; every verse almost declares both, and all to bring them to repentance. When they saw the malignant nature of their sin, in the descriptions of that, they could not but be convinced now much it was their duty to repent of what was so bad in itself; and when they saw the mischievous consequences of their sin, in the predictions of them, they could not but see how much it was their interest to repent for the preventing of them.
Hsa 8:1-7
The reproofs and threatenings here are introduced with an order to the prophet to set the trumpet to his mouth (v. 1), thus to call a solemn assembly, that all might take notice of what he had to deliver and take warning by it. He must sound an alarm, must, in God's name, proclaim war with this rebellious nation. An enemy is coming with speed and fury to seize their land, and he must awaken them to expect it. Thus the prophet must do the part of a watchman, that was by sound of trumpet to call the besieged to stand to their arms, when he saw the besiegers making their attack, Eze. 33:3. The prophet must lift up his voice like a trumpet (Isa. 58:1), and the people must hearken to the sound of the trumpet, Jer. 6:17. Now,
Hsa 8:8-14
It was the honour and happiness of Israel that they had but one God to trust to and he all-sufficient in every strait, and but one God to serve, and he well worthy of all their devotions. But it was their sin, and folly, and shame, that they knew not when they were well off, that they forsook their own mercies for lying vanities; for,