Commentary
Old Testament : Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy
Joshua
Judges
Ruth
1 Samuel
2 Samuel
1 Kings
2 Kings
1 Chronicles
2 Chronicles
Ezra
Nehemiah
Esther
Job
Psalms
Proverbs
Ecclesiastes
The Song of Songs
Isaiah
Jeremiah
Lamentations
Ezekiel
Daniel
Hosea
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
Micah
Nahum
Habakkuk
Zephaniah
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachi
![](images/minus.gif)
Text -- Hosea 8:2-14 (NET)
![](images/arrow_open.gif)
Strongs On/Off
Context
8:2 Israel cries out to me, “My God , we acknowledge you!”
8:3 But Israel has rejected what is morally good ; so an enemy will pursue him.
The Political and Cultic Sin of Israel
8:4 They enthroned kings without my consent! They appointed princes without my approval ! They made idols out of their silver and gold , but they will be destroyed !
8:5 O Samaria , he has rejected your calf idol! My anger burns against them! They will not survive much longer without being punished , even though they are Israelites!
8:6 That idol was made by a workman – it is not God ! The calf idol of Samaria will be broken to bits .
The Fertility Cultists Will Become Infertile
8:7 They sow the wind , and so they will reap the whirlwind ! The stalk does not have any standing grain ; it will not produce any flour . Even if it were to yield grain, foreigners would swallow it all up.
8:8 Israel will be swallowed up among the nations ; they will be like a worthless piece of pottery .
The Willful Donkey and the Wanton Harlot
8:9 They have gone up to Assyria , like a wild donkey that wanders off . Ephraim has hired prostitutes as lovers .
8:10 Even though they have hired lovers among the nations , I will soon gather them together for judgment. Then they will begin to waste away under the oppression of a mighty king .
Sacrifices Ineffective without Moral Obedience
8:11 Although Ephraim has built many altars for sin offerings, these have become altars for sinning !
8:12 I spelled out my law for him in great detail , but they regard it as something totally unknown to them!
8:13 They offer up sacrificial gifts to me, and eat the meat , but the Lord does not accept their sacrifices. Soon he will remember their wrongdoing , he will punish their sins , and they will return to Egypt .
8:14 Israel has forgotten his Maker and built royal palaces , and Judah has built many fortified cities . But I will send fire on their cities ; it will consume their royal citadels .
![](images/advanced.gif)
![](images/advanced.gif)
![](images/advanced.gif)
Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics
![](images/arrow_open.gif)
Names, People and Places:
Dictionary Themes and Topics:
Israel |
Idolatry |
PEKAHIAH |
CALF, GOLDEN |
Hypocrisy |
Whirlwind |
Calf |
Donkey |
Egypt |
Ephraim |
Decalogue |
Word of God |
Altar |
Backsliders |
Forgetting God |
HOSHEA |
Government |
Lovers |
Meteorology and Celestial Phenomena |
Offerings |
more
![](images/cmt_minus_head.gif)
expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes: Hos 8:4 Heb “in order to be cut off.” The text gives the impression that they made the idols for this purpose, but the language is ironic and sarc...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Hos 8:5 Heb “How long will they be able to be free from punishment?” This rhetorical question affirms that Israel will not survive much longer unt...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)