Worthy.Bible » STRONG » Hosea » Chapter 9 » Verse 1-17

Hosea 9:1-17 King James Version with Strong's Concordance (STRONG)

1 Rejoice H8055 not, O Israel, H3478 for joy, H1524 as other people: H5971 for thou hast gone a whoring H2181 from thy God, H430 thou hast loved H157 a reward H868 upon every cornfloor. H1637 H1715

2 The floor H1637 and the winepress H3342 shall not feed H7462 them, and the new wine H8492 shall fail H3584 in her.

3 They shall not dwell H3427 in the LORD'S H3068 land; H776 but Ephraim H669 shall return H7725 to Egypt, H4714 and they shall eat H398 unclean H2931 things in Assyria. H804

4 They shall not offer H5258 wine H3196 offerings to the LORD, H3068 neither shall they be pleasing H6149 unto him: their sacrifices H2077 shall be unto them as the bread H3899 of mourners; H205 all that eat H398 thereof shall be polluted: H2930 for their bread H3899 for their soul H5315 shall not come H935 into the house H1004 of the LORD. H3068

5 What will ye do H6213 in the solemn H4150 day, H3117 and in the day H3117 of the feast H2282 of the LORD? H3068

6 For, lo, they are gone H1980 because of destruction: H7701 Egypt H4714 shall gather them up, H6908 Memphis H4644 shall bury H6912 them: the pleasant H4261 places for their silver, H3701 nettles H7057 shall possess H3423 them: thorns H2336 shall be in their tabernacles. H168

7 The days H3117 of visitation H6486 are come, H935 the days H3117 of recompence H7966 are come; H935 Israel H3478 shall know H3045 it: the prophet H5030 is a fool, H191 the spiritual H7307 man H376 is mad, H7696 for the multitude H7230 of thine iniquity, H5771 and the great H7227 hatred. H4895

8 The watchman H6822 of Ephraim H669 was with my God: H430 but the prophet H5030 is a snare H6341 of a fowler H3352 in all his ways, H1870 and hatred H4895 in the house H1004 of his God. H430

9 They have deeply H6009 corrupted H7843 themselves, as in the days H3117 of Gibeah: H1390 therefore he will remember H2142 their iniquity, H5771 he will visit H6485 their sins. H2403

10 I found H4672 Israel H3478 like grapes H6025 in the wilderness; H4057 I saw H7200 your fathers H1 as the firstripe H1063 in the fig tree H8384 at her first time: H7225 but they went H935 to Baalpeor, H1187 and separated H5144 themselves unto that shame; H1322 and their abominations H8251 were according as they loved. H157

11 As for Ephraim, H669 their glory H3519 shall fly away H5774 like a bird, H5775 from the birth, H3205 and from the womb, H990 and from the conception. H2032

12 Though they bring up H1431 their children, H1121 yet will I bereave H7921 them, that there shall not be a man H120 left: yea, woe H188 also to them when I depart H5493 from them!

13 Ephraim, H669 as I saw H7200 Tyrus, H6865 is planted H8362 in a pleasant place: H5116 but Ephraim H669 shall bring forth H3318 his children H1121 to the murderer. H2026

14 Give H5414 them, O LORD: H3068 what wilt thou give? H5414 give H5414 them a miscarrying H7921 womb H7358 and dry H6784 breasts. H7699

15 All their wickedness H7451 is in Gilgal: H1537 for there I hated H8130 them: for the wickedness H7455 of their doings H4611 I will drive them out H1644 of mine house, H1004 I will love H160 them no more: H3254 all their princes H8269 are revolters. H5637

16 Ephraim H669 is smitten, H5221 their root H8328 is dried up, H3001 they shall bear H6213 no fruit: H6529 yea, though they bring forth, H3205 yet will I slay H4191 even the beloved H4261 fruit of their womb. H990

17 My God H430 will cast them away, H3988 because they did not hearken H8085 unto him: and they shall be wanderers H5074 among the nations. H1471

Commentary on Hosea 9 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible


CHAPTER 9

Ho 9:1-17. Warning against Israel's Joy at Partial Relief from Their Troubles: Their Crops Shall Fail, and the People Leave the Lord's Land for Egypt and Assyria, Where They Cannot, If So Inclined, Serve God According to the Ancient Ritual: Folly of Their False Prophets.

1. Rejoice not … for joy—literally, "to exultation." Thy exultation at the league with Pul, by which peace seems secured, is out of place: since thy idolatry will bring ruin on thee.

as other people—the Assyrians for instance, who, unlike thee, are in the height of prosperity.

loved a reward upon every corn floor—Thou hast desired, in reward for thy homage to idols, abundance of corn on every threshing-floor (Ho 2:12).

2. (Ho 2:9, 12).

fail—disappoint her expectation.

3. return to Egypt—(See on Ho 8:13). As in Ho 11:5 it is said, "He shall not return into … Egypt." Fairbairn thinks it is not the exact country that is meant, but the bondage state with which, from past experience, Egypt was identified in their minds. Assyria was to be a second Egypt to them. De 28:68, though threatening a return to Egypt, speaks (De 28:36) of their being brought to a nation which neither they nor their fathers had known, showing that it is not the literal Egypt, but a second Egypt-like bondage that is threatened.

eat unclean things in Assyria—reduced by necessity to eat meats pronounced unclean by the Mosaic law (Eze 4:13). See 2Ki 17:6.

4. offer wine offerings—literally, "pour as a libation (Ex 30:9; Le 23:13).

neither shall they be pleasing unto him—as being offered on a profane soil.

sacrifices … as the bread of mourners—which was unclean (De 26:14; Jer 16:7; Eze 24:17).

their bread for their soul—their offering for the expiation of their soul [Calvin], (Le 17:11). Rather, "their bread for their sustenance ('soul' being often used for the animal life, Ge 14:21, Margin) shall not come into the Lord's house"; it shall only subserve their own uses, not My worship.

5. (Ho 2:11).

6. because of destruction—to escape from the devastation of their country.

Egypt shall gather them up—that is, into its sepulchres (Jer 8:2; Eze 29:5). Instead of returning to Palestine, they should die in Egypt.

Memphis—famed as a necropolis.

the pleasant places for their silver—that is, their desired treasuries for their money. Or, "whatever precious thing they have of silver" [Maurer].

nettles—the sign of desolation (Isa 34:13).

7. visitation—vengeance: punishment (Isa 10:3).

Israel shall know it—to her cost experimentally (Isa 9:9).

the prophet is a fool—The false prophet who foretold prosperity to the nation shall be convicted of folly by the event.

the spiritual man—the man pretending to inspiration (La 2:14; Eze 13:3; Mic 3:11; Zep 3:4).

for the multitude of thine iniquity, &c.—Connect these words with, "the days of visitation … are come"; "the prophet … is mad," being parenthetical.

the great hatred—or, "the great provocation" [Henderson]; or, "(thy) great apostasy" [Maurer]. English Version means Israel's "hatred" of God's prophets and the law.

8. The watchman … was with my God—The spiritual watchmen, the true prophets, formerly consulted my God (Jer 31:6; Hab 2:1); but their so-called prophet is a snare, entrapping Israel into idolatry.

hatred—rather, "(a cause of) apostasy" (see Ho 9:7) [Maurer].

house of his God—that is, the state of Ephraim, as in Ho 8:1 [Maurer]. Or, "the house of his (false) god," the calves [Calvin]. Jehovah, "my God," seems contrasted with "his God." Calvin's view is therefore preferable.

9. as in the days of Gibeah—as in the day of the perpetration of the atrocity of Gibeah, narrated in Jud 19:16-22, &c.

10. As the traveller in a wilderness is delighted at finding grapes to quench his thirst, or the early fig (esteemed a great delicacy in the East, Isa 28:4; Jer 24:2; Mic 7:1); so it was My delight to choose your fathers as My peculiar people in Egypt (Ho 2:15).

at her first time—when the first-fruits of the tree become ripe.

went to Baal-peor—(Nu 25:3): the Moabite idol, in whose worship young women prostituted themselves; the very sin Israel latterly was guilty of.

separated themselves—consecrated themselves.

unto that shame—to that shameful or foul idol (Jer 11:13).

their abominations were according as they loved—rather, as Vulgate, "they became abominable like the object of their love" (De 7:26; Ps 115:8). English Version gives good sense, "their abominable idols they followed after, according as their lusts prompted them" (Am 4:5, Margin).

11. their glory shall fly away—fit retribution to those who "separated themselves unto that shame" (Ho 9:10). Children were accounted the glory of parents; sterility, a reproach. "Ephraim" means "fruitfulness" (Ge 41:52); this its name shall cease to be its characteristic.

from the birth … womb … conception—Ephraim's children shall perish in a threefold gradation; (1) From the time of birth. (2) From the time of pregnancy. (3) From the time of their first conception.

12. Even though they should rear their children, yet will I bereave them (the Ephraimites) of them (Job 27:14).

woe … to them when I depart—Yet the ungodly in their madness desire God to depart from them (Job 21:14; 22:17; Mt 8:34). At last they know to their cost how awful it is when God has departed (De 31:17; 1Sa 28:15, 16; compare Ho 9:11; 1Sa 4:21).

13. Ephraim, as I saw Tyrus … in a pleasant place—that is, in looking towards Tyrus (on whose borders Ephraim lay) I saw Ephraim beautiful in situation like her (Eze 26:1-28:26).

is planted—as a fruitful tree; image suggested by the meaning of "Ephraim" (Ho 9:11).

bring forth his children to the murderer—(Ho 9:16; Ho 13:16). With all his fruitfulness, his children shall only be brought up to be slain.

14. what wilt thou give?—As if overwhelmed by feeling, he deliberates with God what is most desirable.

give … a miscarrying womb—Of two evils he chooses the least. So great will be the calamity, that barrenness will be a blessing, though usually counted a great misfortune (Job 3:3; Jer 20:14; Lu 23:29).

15. All their wickedness—that is, their chief guilt.

Gilgal—(see on Ho 4:15). This was the scene of their first contumacy in rejecting God and choosing a king (1Sa 11:14, 15; compare 1Sa 8:7), and of their subsequent idolatry.

there I hated them—not with the human passion, but holy hatred of their sin, which required punishment to be inflicted on themselves (compare Mal 1:3).

out of mine house—as in Ho 8:1: out of the land holy unto Me. Or, as "love" is mentioned immediately after, the reference may be to the Hebrew mode of divorce, the husband (God) putting the wife (Israel) out of the house.

princes … revolters—"Sarim … Sorerim" (Hebrew), a play on similar sounds.

16. The figures "root," "fruit," are suggested by the word "Ephraim," that is, fruitful (see on Ho 9:11, 12). "Smitten," namely, with a blight (Ps 102:4).

17. My God—"My," in contrast to "them," that is, the people, whose God Jehovah no longer is. Also Hosea appeals to God as supporting his authority against the whole people.

wanderers among … nations—(2Ki 15:29; 1Ch 5:26).