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Texts -- Hosea 12:1-11 (NET)

Context
12:1 Ephraim continually feeds on the wind ; he chases the east wind all day ; he multiplies lies and violence . They make treaties with Assyria , and send olive oil as tribute to Egypt . 12:2 The Lord also has a covenant lawsuit against Judah ; he will punish Jacob according to his ways and repay him according to his deeds .
Israel Must Return to the God of Jacob
12:3 In the womb he attacked his brother ; in his manly vigor he struggled with God . 12:4 He struggled with an angel and prevailed ; he wept and begged for his favor . He found God at Bethel , and there he spoke with him! 12:5 As for the Lord God Almighty , the Lord is the name by which he is remembered ! 12:6 But you must return to your God , by maintaining love and justice , and by waiting for your God to return to you.
The Lord Refutes Israel’s False Claim of Innocence
12:7 The businessmen love to cheat ; they use dishonest scales . 12:8 Ephraim boasts , “I am very rich ! I have become wealthy ! In all that I have done to gain my wealth, no one can accuse me of any offense that is actually sinful .” 12:9 “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt ; I will make you live in tents again as in the days of old . 12:10 I spoke to the prophets ; I myself revealed many visions ; I spoke in parables through the prophets .” 12:11 Is there idolatry in Gilead ? Certainly its inhabitants will come to nothing ! Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal ? Surely their altars will be like stones heaped up on a plowed field !

Pericope

NET
  • Hos 12:3-6 -- Israel Must Return to the God of Jacob
  • Hos 12:7-11 -- The Lord Refutes Israel's False Claim of Innocence

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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • David longed for the time when God would initiate salvation for Israel from Zion. When he wrote, Israel was at least partially under a hostile foreign power's control. The psalmist believed God would one day restore His peopl...
  • Isaiah continued to show that Yahweh was both willing and able to deliver His people, a theme begun in 42:10. He confronted the gods, again (cf. 41:21-29), but this time he challenged them to bring forth witnesses to their de...
  • 3:19 Jeremiah prayed that the Lord would remember his affliction and bitterness (cf. Job 13:15).3:20-21 He himself remembered something that gave him hope.3:22 The prophet remembered that the Lord's loyal love (Heb. hesed) ne...
  • 23:5-8 Oholah proved unfaithful to the Lord by lusting after her attractive neighbors, the Assyrians."The appeal, then as now, was to youth, strength, position, wealth and self-gratification; that is, the world in all its daz...
  • The major biblical doctrines that Hosea stressed were sin, judgment, salvation, and the loyal love of God.Regarding sin, the prophet stressed the idolatry of the Israelites, which he compared to spiritual adultery. Israel had...
  • I. Introduction 1:1II. The first series of messages of judgment and restoration: Hosea's family 1:2-2:1A. Signs of coming judgment 1:2-9B. A promise of restoration 1:10-2:1III. The second series of messages of judgment and re...
  • The Lord brought a legal charge against the Israelites for breaking the Mosaic Covenant. Again the literary form of this section is a legal confrontation (Heb. rib, cf. 2:2). The Lord stated His charges against Israel in 4:1-...
  • 4:15 The Lord warned the Israelites not to pollute their brethren in the Southern Kingdom with their unfaithfulness. He also warned them not to go to the pagan shrines and take an oath in His name since they did not really wo...
  • 9:15 What the Israelites did at Gilgal caused the Lord to hate them. This is covenant terminology meaning He opposed them; personal emotion is not in view. At Gilgal the Israelites practiced the pagan fertility cult (cf. 4:15...
  • 11:12 The Lord complained that Ephraim (Israel) had consistently lied and tried to deceive Him. He described Himself as surrounded and under attack by His own people. Wherever He looked all He saw was cheaters. Deception (Heb...
  • The Lord proceeded to teach His people the need to repent by reminding them of the experience of their forefather Jacob.12:3 The Lord described the ancestor of these kingdoms further. Jacob grasped his brother's heel while he...
  • 12:7-8 A merchant who used dishonest scales loved to oppress his customers. Similarly Israel's oppression of others was traceable to pride in her riches. Much of Israel's dealing with the nations involved trading that deceit ...
  • 12:12 The Lord reminded the Israelites again of their humble origins. Jacob was a refugee who migrated to the land of Aram. There he had to work to pay for a wife, and he did so by tending sheep, a very humble occupation (cf....
  • 4:4 Ironically the Lord told these sinful Israelites to go to Bethel but to transgress, not to worship. Such a call parodied the summons of Israel's priests to come to the sanctuary to worship (cf. Ps. 95:6; 96:8-9; 100:2-4)....
  • In this pericope Micah responded to God's goodness, just reviewed, as the Israelites should have responded. His was the reasonable response in view of Yahweh's loyal love for His people (cf. Rom. 12:1-2).6:6 The prophet, for ...
  • 7:14 Micah prayed that the Lord would again take an active role as the shepherd of His people Israel. Shepherding with His rod (Heb. shebet) implies kingly leadership. This is a request for the promised descendant of David to...
  • Peter began this epistle in the manner that was customary in this day.9He introduced himself and his original readers, and he wished God's blessing on them to prepare them for what he had to say. He prepared them for dealing ...

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