Why would God tell a godly man to marry an adulteress? (1:2)
God called other prophets to integrate their lives into the messages they proclaimed (see, e.g., Isa 20:2–4; Jer 13:1–11; Eze 4:1–17), yet no prophet endured what Hosea endured. Hosea risked losing everything—family, friends, reputation and self-respect. But God was saying through Hosea’s marriage, “Wake up, Israel!” Hosea’s love for his unfaithful wife demonstrated God’s love for his unfaithful people. Like Job, Hosea was called to walk a very difficult path in life. But also like Job, it was through his pain and suffering that Hosea’s intimacy with God grew.
Did Hosea’s wife already have children when he married her? (1:2)
There is a strong possibility that Gomer was a prostitute who had borne children out of wedlock with unknown fathers. These children might have also been the offspring of an adulterous relationship after Hosea married Gomer.
What is the significance of the name Jezreel? (1:4)
Jehu, king of Israel from 841–814 BC, had engineered the slaughter of the descendants of Ahab at Jezreel in fulfillment of the prophecies of Elijah (1Ki 21:21; 2Ki 10:1–11). So Jezreel had become a picture of judgment as well as a warning to heed God’s prophets.
Why choose such odd names for children? (1:4, 6, 9)
The Israelites often named children to reflect the circumstances surrounding their conception and birth. But the names God selected were unusual even by the standards of Hosea’s Jewish culture. God chose these names to send a message about the consequences of sin.
Wouldn’t a name that means not loved harm a child’s self-esteem? (1:6)
Perhaps, but probably not any more than the pain of having a mother like Gomer, who later abandoned her husband and children to live with another man (3:1). Since Hosea was committed to demonstrating God’s unconditional love, he probably showed more love to Lo-Ruhamah than Gomer did. This continues to demonstrate the terrible consequences of unfaithfulness to God. It contrasts with God’s promise to call the Israelites children of the living God (1:10).
How could Jezreel be a picture of something good? (1:11)
The events at Jezreel pictured judgment; see What is the significance of the name Jezreel? (1:4). However, the word Jezreel literally means “God scatters”—a picture of scattering seed for planting. Planting was a positive image because it anticipated a harvest.
Why refuse to love children of adultery? (2:4–5)
This continues the metaphor showing the terrible consequences of unfaithfulness to God. It is contrasted with God’s promise to call the Israelites children of the living God (1:10).
What is the significance of the grain, the new wine and oil? (2:8–9)
This is a powerful reference to the blessings of the covenant. These words are also found in Deuteronomy 7:13 in a context demonstrating God’s love and blessing in response to Israel’s obedience. God was the one who provided these basic necessities for Israel, so he would take them away as punishment for Israel’s unfaithfulness (idolatry).
Why stop God-appointed celebrations? (2:11)
This was actually a picture of the destruction that would come to Israel—a destruction so complete that the people would be forbidden to practice their religious customs. Their religion had become empty ritual. God hates insincere religious rituals, especially when accompanied by idolatry (see Am 5:21–23, 26).
Why does God act like a jealous lover? (2:13–14)
Though God is sovereign and in need of nothing, he has chosen to reveal himself as a God deeply in love with his creation. Hosea shows that God is not merely a business-like overseer of the world who methodically dispenses appropriate judgment; he is a God with feelings. He can be grieved, angered, frustrated or delighted by our behavior. God illustrates this side of his nature by describing a spouse who has been betrayed and who swings from emotion to emotion. Throughout the Bible, the threat of punishment is consistently followed by tender promises of intimacy.
Why would Israel call God her husband instead of her master? (2:16)
Throughout the book of Hosea, God relates to Israel as a husband to a wife. It is a striking, bold image of God. The intimate, forbearing, forgiving love that God has for Israel is deeper than the relationship of a master and his servant. And as Israel is restored, she too will describe her relationship to God in these intimate terms.
Why was Hosea ordered to take back an unfaithful spouse? (3:1)
Hosea forgave Gomer’s sin against him, symbolizing God’s forgiveness of sinful Israel and demonstrating that severed relationships can be restored. We are to reflect that same steadfast love and forgiveness in our relationships.
What were sacred raisin cakes? (3:1)
These were food items used in the worship of Baal. The Israelites had turned to idolatry and were enjoying the sensuality of pagan rituals.
Why did Hosea have to buy back his wife? (3:2)
Gomer had apparently sold herself into prostitution, possibly with one of the pagan sects that engaged prostitutes as part of its worship practices. Hosea bought her back, paying six ounces of silver (see NIV text note), about half the cost of a slave (Ex 21:32), plus nearly ten bushels of barley.
What does this prediction refer to? (3:4)
This predicts the eventual destruction of Israel, which occurred in 722 BC. The Assyrians, under Shalmaneser, invaded the land and laid siege to Samaria, finally capturing the city and carrying its residents off to exile in Assyria (2Ki 17:3–6).
What was wrong with bringing a charge against a priest? (4:4)
Hosea was accusing the people of blaming the priests without accepting responsibility for their own sins. Their lack of respect for the priesthood was also an expression of their rebellion against God’s authority. God, however, leveled charges against the priests because they were also guilty of ignoring his law (4:6).
How are people destroyed from a lack of knowledge? (4:6)
This is referring not to a lack of knowledge in general but to the Israelites’ failure to know—that is, take to heart and follow—the law of [their] God. Without the guidance of God’s law, people lose their way, stumble (v. 5) and go astray. Israel would end up a sinful nation estranged from God.
How did priests feed on the sins of the people? (4:8)
Tragically, the false priests and prophets of Hosea’s day catered to people’s idolatrous desires, giving in to their wishes rather than deferring to God’s wishes. By doing so, the priests fed on the sins of the people rather than on the way and the word of the Lord. They forsook their duty to mediate between the people and the living God.
What was the difference between old wine and new wine? (4:11)
Some believe that new wine was wine not yet fermented. Others think it simply referred to wine not fully aged but still intoxicating, since it would take away their understanding. Hosea’s point may have been that those addicted to wine were impatient and drank the wine before its time. Or he may have meant that they did not bother to discriminate between fine and poor wine.
What was a spirit of prostitution? (4:12)
This is a figurative way to describe Israel’s unfaithfulness to God. The Hebrew language uses words like spirit to describe a person’s inner characteristics or disposition. Israel’s tendency was to commit spiritual “prostitution,” that is, she was unfaithful to God and chased after other gods, just as a prostitute solicits customers. Such a description was doubly appropriate since the worship of foreign gods frequently involved literal prostitution (vv. 13–14). See How did men sacrifice with shrine prostitutes? (4:14; above).
The ancient Israelites were not the only people to become involved in a spirit of prostitution. Today, people are also tempted to be unfaithful toward God by abandoning their commitment to him. Whenever people adopt the ways of the culture around them, engaging in its pleasures and forms of instant gratification, we see a spirit of prostitution. Those who are disobedient to God are guilty of spiritual adultery.
How did men sacrifice with shrine prostitutes? (4:14)
Many pagan religions were heavily subsidized by proceeds from prostitution. Shrine prostitutes were purchased as a religious rite in various temples and ceremonies of the cultures surrounding Israel. A sacrifice was normally offered for the right to have sexual intercourse with a prostitute. These sexual acts were committed under the thin veneer of imitating the gods through “dramas.” Shrine prostitutes were also used in fertility rites to symbolically express gratitude for the changing of the seasons or to request bountiful crops.
What did Hosea mean by Judah not becoming guilty? (4:15)
He was using the example of the northern kingdom (Israel) to warn the southern kingdom (Judah). Hosea probably wrote down the warnings he had given Israel shortly after it fell to Assyria (see Introduction: To whom was it written?). His hope was that Judah, in seeing Israel’s judgment, would avoid the guilt and consequences of turning away from God. Judah, however, encountered its own problems with idolatry and only survived Israel by 136 years.
What happened at Mizpah and Tabor? (5:1)
The Israelites bowed down to false gods and were knee-deep in slaughter (v. 2). Those centers of idolatry were condemned as places that ensnared the people—like a wild animal ensnares its prey—and led them into great apostasy.
Why single out Ephraim for punishment when all Israel had sinned? (5:3)
Ephraim’s sin was particularly terrible because they conspired with Syria to overthrow Judah in a war that led to the devastation of both Israel and Judah. By consorting in this alliance with a foreign, pagan power, Ephraim betrayed its birthright and forsook its special relationship with the Lord.
Does God ever hide from us? (5:6)
Our sinful deeds (v. 4) and our arrogance (v. 5) become like a wall separating us from God. Until we repent of such sinful behaviors and attitudes, fellowship with God is impossible. But when we seek God with repentant hearts, we will find him (Dt 4:29).
Who were these illegitimate children? (5:7)
Judah and Israel had been called God’s beloved children, so to call them illegitimate was to severely condemn them. Hosea was continuing the metaphor of marital infidelity to describe the nation’s apostasy.
Where were these places? (5:8)
This verse describes an invasion of the territory of Benjamin from the south, as these cities lay in sequence on a straight line due north of Jerusalem. So the advancement would have been on the main mountain road from Jerusalem into Ephraim. Beth Aven is another name, probably derogatory (4:14; 10:5), for Bethel (see NIV text note).
What was meant by moving boundary stones? (5:10)
Judah’s legal system, like Israel’s, had become thoroughly corrupt. Hosea accused the leaders of cheating others and stealing their land by changing the boundary lines. Their actions would have been like someone today altering a deed or purchase agreement in order to get more property. But Hosea’s implications were even broader. These leaders were ignoring their civic responsibilities and forgetting their ultimate accountability to God.
When did Ephraim turn to Assyria? (5:13)
Ephraim was a dominant tribe in the northern kingdom of Israel, and its name was often used to describe the whole nation. When Pul, king of Assyria, invaded Israel, King Menahem sought to pay him off with a tribute (2Ki 15:19–20). In a sense Menahem bought protection from the very nation that was invading Israel. And although Assyria withdrew temporarily, Israel was left with a horrendous tax burden.
Was Israel’s repentance genuine or fake? (6:1–3)
If genuine, these beautiful words of repentance were extremely short-lived (v. 4). It may be that Hosea recalled Israel’s pattern throughout history: When in trouble, the people would cry out to God for help. When help came, the people would quickly revert to their old ways.
Why didn’t God want the people to offer sacrifices anymore? (6:6)
God preferred to see the practical results of a repentant lifestyle. He wanted them to turn from sin and do what was right and just (2:19–20; Mic 6:8). What God did not want was empty religious ritual. The people were simply going through the motions; they were following his instructions, but their hearts were not in their religious deeds.
How could priests become a murdering, marauding mob? (6:9)
The priests were destroying the people by leading them into idolatry and failing to provide genuine spiritual leadership. The results of the priests’ actions were just as devastating and destructive as a hostile army invading the land.
What was the road to Shechem? (6:9)
Shechem was on the road between the capital city of the northern kingdom, Samaria, and its religious center, Bethel. It was a city of major religious and political importance throughout the Old Testament. The image here is that worshipers on their way to Bethel with their offerings were a prime target for crime.
What exactly did the people do to provoke God’s anger? (7:1–4)
Israel was a society in turmoil. Six kings had reigned in 25 years. The nation had been seduced by foreign religions. It now wallowed in widespread immorality characterized by deceit, violence, robbery, adultery and drunkenness.
How were the princes of the land like an oven? (7:4, 6)
The princes of the land were leaders who burned within, full of a lust for the flesh and a lust for power. As the fire of an oven cannot always be seen from the outside, these princes secretly burned and plotted against the king while entertaining him with their lies (v. 3). They apparently hoped to organize a rebellion, kill the king and assume power.
What’s the meaning of a flat loaf not turned over? (7:8)
Ephraim was compared to a half-baked loaf, which symbolized an unfinished, worthless piece of half-done work. Yet behind the prophetic words was the promise that God would continue to work with Ephraim. He would love and form this people until they fulfilled his intention.
What was wrong with calling to other nations for help? (7:11)
While international treaties are not forbidden in the Bible, the people of Israel were never to depend on any source other than God for their survival and security. The primary reason they turned to Egypt and Assyria for help was because they did not want to turn to God in repentance.
What is the significance of grain and new wine? (7:14)
This is a powerful reference to the blessings of the covenant. These words are also found in Deuteronomy 7:13 in a context demonstrating God’s love and blessing in response to Israel’s obedience. God was the one who provided these basic necessities for Israel, which shows how foolish it was for Israel to turn away from God. It is important to note that Israel cried out to God for what she perceived God might provide, but the inclination of her heart was away from him. She wanted blessings from God but was not inclined to give to God the honor due him.
How were the people of Israel like a faulty bow? (7:16)
God could not depend on Israel, just as an archer cannot depend on a faulty bow. A bow that is warped or strung incorrectly will cause the arrow to miss its target—just as Israel had missed the mark.
What does an eagle … over the house signify? (8:1)
This is a picture of a vulture circling over a dying animal or a corpse. The image signified God’s coming judgment: Assyria would invade and destroy Israel, the house of the Lord.
How were the people supposed to choose their leaders? (8:4)
They were supposed to choose leaders who would obey the Law, destroy idols, care for the poor, provide justice and seek God. As it was, violent coups and assassinations often deposed the kings. Power-hungry men and their cohorts competed for the throne. Conditions worsened because those who ruled by the sword became more paranoid of others with power and less sensitive to issues that concerned God.
What does it mean to sow the wind and reap the whirlwind? (8:7)
This image portrays the sad fate of Israel in its apostasy, idolatry and infidelity. Rather than sowing productive seed, Israel sowed the wind, that is, mere air or nothing. The tragic harvest of such sowing would be a devastating storm of judgment against the nation’s sin.
How did Israel’s sin make her worthless among the nations? (8:8)
In lusting after false gods, Israel proved to be no different than the pagan nations. By forsaking her calling as God’s chosen light to other nations, Israel became merely another nation without direction, identity or mission. She lost her witness to others and exchanged her high vocation for worthless gratification.
How had the Israelites’ altars become altars for sinning? (8:11–13)
First, the phrase many altars exposes the Israelites’ reluctance to worship at the one altar God had ordained for worship (Dt 12). When the northern kingdom seceded from the southern kingdom, Jeroboam I established worship centers in the north so that his people would not have to return to the southern kingdom to worship at the central sanctuary. Second, the phrase they eat the meat highlights Israel’s failure to obey God’s instructions regarding sacrifice. The people were allowed to eat only certain portions of the sacrificial animals, but apparently they were also consuming the portions that belonged to the Lord.
How would Israel return to Egypt? (8:13)
This is a figure of speech signifying that because of her sin, Israel would revert to her condition prior to the exodus—oppressed and enslaved.
How and when did God send fire on their cities? (8:14)
Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, invaded and conquered Israel in 722 BC after laying siege for three years to the capital city of Samaria. This reference to fire was fulfilled in two ways: (1) literally, because much of the city was burned when conquered by the Assyrians; (2) figuratively, because the invasion consumed the nation politically and geographically, just as fire consumes fuel.
What is the bread of mourners? (9:4)
The bread in a home where someone had died was unclean and therefore forbidden to Israel. The phrase bread of mourners seems to point to a time when God would not accept their sacrifices. They would be able to do nothing to reverse the judgment they would experience.
What does it mean to be unclean? (9:4)
Someone who is chosen and set apart for service to God is made clean, purified and holy. Through her sin, Israel forsook her chosen position and became as ordinary as the pagan nations around her. In this way she became unclean.
Why did they think the prophet was a fool or a maniac? (9:7)
First, Hosea was considered a fool because of his faithful allegiance to his adulterous wife. See Why would God tell a godly man to marry an adulteress? (1:2). Second, Hosea was thought to be strange because he persisted in hard-line pronouncements about God’s coming judgment. The uncompromising messages of the prophets, coupled with their unconventional ways and anti-social behavior, often caused them to be labeled as crazy misfits. See Why did they call the prophet a maniac? (2Ki 9:11).
Was Hosea in physical danger? (9:8)
There’s nothing to indicate that Hosea was in physical danger. The hostility against him may have been a general sentiment, and the snares may have been things such as character assassination, threats, fatigue, loss of reputation and a sense of rejection. He undoubtedly was frequently challenged; his influence was constantly thwarted, and the people hated him for continually denouncing their lifestyle.
What’s special about early figs? (9:10)
This early fruit is considered especially delicious. Hosea used this poignant imagery to picture God’s delight in his chosen people in Israel’s earliest days as a nation. When God first found Israel in the desert (Dt 32:10), it was like finding and savoring a mouth-watering delicacy.
How would Ephraim’s glory … fly away? (9:11)
This is a poetic and powerful way of saying that the nation would not grow. God had turned away from them (v. 12), and there could be no blessing where he was not present.
Was Hosea speaking hatefully here? (9:14–17)
Hosea was clearly pleading for a removal of God’s blessing of fertility, which could also have served as a polemic against the Canaanite gods of fertility, whom the Israelites worshiped. However, Hosea’s cry was consistent with the way he expected the Lord to respond (v. 17). Such speech is not hateful because discipline is not hateful; indeed, the discipline of the Lord is for one’s good. God would do whatever it took to turn the hearts of his people back to covenant fidelity (Lev 26:14–45), and Hosea was simply evidencing that attitude.
What happened in Gilgal? (9:15)
Israel’s great sin of idolatry began at Gilgal, a notorious center of idolatry (4:15) with a corrupt sacrificial cult. Because of her idolatry, the Lord promised to treat Israel as an unfaithful spouse driven out of the home.
How would the people of Ephraim be wanderers among the nations? (9:17)
This was an allusion to the nation’s upcoming captivity at the hand of the Assyrians. Captivity was an advanced form of God’s discipline against his people (Lev 26:33–38; Dt 28:41).
When did Israel stop having kings? (10:3)
The phrase we have no king anticipated the Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom, which brought Israel’s monarchy to an end. The southern kingdom (Judah) survived for another 136 years because of the reforms of a few good kings.
What was this calf-idol? (10:5)
A huge calf-idol had been erected by Jeroboam I at Bethel, or Beth Aven (see NIV text note). It was an idol resembling the golden calf the Israelites had worshiped at Mount Sinai (Ex 32). See What were the sins of Jeroboam? (1Ki 16:31).
What happened in the days of Gibeah? (10:9)
A traveling Levite, spending the night in Gibeah, had yielded to a gang of sexual perverts who raped, beat and murdered his concubine (Jdg 19:20–30). Hosea declared that the entire nation had sunk to the same depths of depravity. He also implied that their punishment would be certain and just.
What was Israel’s double sin? (10:10)
Israel sinned doubly in that the people turned from God and turned to idol worship.
What did this farming metaphor mean? (10:11–13)
This was an invitation for Israel to return to fidelity with God and the covenant; it was also a denunciation of the people’s behavior. As God’s chosen people, Ephraim, a trained heifer, was given the privilege of threshing (Dt 25:4). But, as we so often see in the Old Testament, this blessing led to forgetting the Law and subsequent disobedience. In order to reap a blessing once more (v. 12), the nation would have to sow obedience to the Law—they would have to break up [their] unplowed ground.
Who was Shalman and where was Beth Arbel? (10:14)
Shalman may be an abbreviated form of Shalmaneser V, the king of Assyria who laid siege to Samaria in 725 BC and died just before its capture in 722 BC. The identity of Beth Arbel is unknown, though the atrocity against its citizens was clearly known to Hosea’s audience. Hosea’s point was that Bethel—the calf-idol center that represented all that was wicked in Israel (1Ki 12:26–33)—would experience the same fate as Beth Arbel (Hos 10:15).
Why switch the love analogy from husband-wife to father-son? (11:1)
Hosea did not limit himself to one method of communicating his message. Since Israel had not responded to his analogy of an unfaithful wife, he appealed to history to try to reach the people. Just as a father cares for and nurtures his son, God had taken care of the people of Israel, bringing them out of Egypt and establishing them in the land of promise.
LINK (11:1) Out of Egypt I called my son
Matthew saw this as a picture of God’s protection of Jesus, when God led Joseph to take Jesus to Egypt to escape from King Herod (Mt 2:13–15).
What are cords of human kindness? (11:4)
The exact meaning is unknown. Some think it pictures a farmer using ropes to lift the yoke off his oxen so they could eat. Others suggest these cords were used to teach young children to walk. Still others see here a picture of God as a father bending over to lift or perhaps feed a small child.
Does God change his mind? (11:8)
Many would say that since God knows all things, he does not change his mind. Yet the Bible frequently speaks of God’s mercy in terms of God relenting from threatened judgment (Ex 32:14; Ps 106:45; Am 7:3, 6). God’s intentions—both for blessings and punishments—are often tied to our response. God in his sovereignty can make promises that are conditional, that is, dependent upon the obedient response of his people. God’s judgments can also be conditional, that is, dependent on the continued refusal of his people to repent (see Jer 18:8–10).
God wants us to see him as a God who cares passionately for his people and longs to have a loving relationship with us. To emphasize the depths of God’s love for Israel, Hosea spoke of God changing his mind, still looking for some glimmer of response from his people. See the article Why did God change his mind? (Isa 38:1–5).
Who were Admah and Zeboyim? (11:8)
Admah and Zeboyim were two of the sinful cities that were destroyed along with Sodom and Gomorrah (Ge 19; Dt 29:23). They are recalled here as reminders of the judgment and desolation that follows disobedience to God’s commands.
Has this happened yet? (11:10–11)
It’s difficult to know if this prophecy has been fulfilled in its fullest sense. The southern kingdom (Judah) did have a well-documented return to the promised land after 70 years of exile (see the books of Ezra and Nehemiah). However, we don’t have historical information about a return of the northern kingdom (Israel). Therefore, this may be a reference to a future reality for God’s people. The phrase from the west seems to indicate a return of world-wide proportions.
How did Ephraim feed on the wind? (12:1)
Hosea was using imagery to point to illusion, emptiness or something without a purpose. The reference to east wind has two meanings: (1) a desert wind of very little value, and (2) an allusion to Israel’s desire to petition Assyria, rather than God, for help. Instead of “feeding” on her covenant with the Lord, Israel turned away and “fed” on a covenant with Assyria (and Egypt)—a decision that was doomed to fail and would lead to punishment.
Why did Hosea use Jacob as an example? (12:2–5)
Jacob, later called Israel, was known for his deceit (see NIV text note); he was the father of the 12 tribes of Israel. Like their ancestor, the people of Hosea’s day were deceitful. But Hosea wanted them to follow Jacob’s example further: Jacob had searched for God and allowed God to transform him. He had cleansed himself and his household of idol worship and had received God’s blessings.
LINK (12:12) Israel served to get a wife
To read about Jacob’s seven years of service to Laban as payment for his wife Rachel, see Genesis 29:14–30.
How did Ephraim make God so angry? (12:14)
Ephraim indulged in the same idolatry as the other tribes.
Did Israel really offer human sacrifices? (13:2)
The Israelites had adopted forms of pagan worship and had even sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire (2Ki 17:17). Some think the practice was not literal sacrifice but a ritual intended to give children extra vitality and strength from the gods. The extraordinarily strong language used to denounce these pagan rites, however, leads most to believe it referred to actual human sacrifice. See Why would parents sacrifice their children? (Jer 19:5).
What were these calf-idols? (13:2)
Huge calf-idols had been erected by Jeroboam I at Bethel, or Beth Aven, and at Dan. They resembled the golden calf the Israelites had worshiped at Mount Sinai (Ex 32). See What were the sins of Jeroboam? (1Ki 16:31).
Why so much violence? (13:7–8)
Israel was in a covenant relationship with the Lord and had been warned about the consequences of unfaithfulness (Lev 26:14–45; Dt 28:15–68). The Israelites could have averted this destruction by repenting, but they chose not to. This strong language was another attempt by the Lord to get Israel’s attention; he was taking severe action because Israel had refused to respond to him up to this point.
Why did God give Israel a king if it made him angry? (13:11)
Sometimes God gives us what we want in order to teach us a lesson. For example, Israel demanded a human king for the wrong reasons. God gave them what they asked for, and through the failure of many wicked rulers, the people were repeatedly led into idolatry.
Why did God still say he would have no compassion? (13:14)
The promise of blessing in the first part of this verse appears within the larger context of judgment. Death and the grave speak of the nation’s ultimate demise. But in spite of that, Hosea offered a glimmer of God’s love as he spoke of God’s promise to ransom and redeem his people. The nation, after being judged and destroyed, would be restored. But for the moment, God would show no compassion.
How could such brutality be part of God’s plan? (13:16)
We must understand these atrocities as consequences of Israel’s rebellion. God’s desire was to forgive and restore. But the tragic consequences of unrepented sin can result in appalling calamities. See Why does God permit the innocent to suffer? (Isa 13:16) and Who dashed infants to pieces? (Na 3:10).
What is the fruit of our lips? (14:2)
Earlier Hosea had denounced the empty religious rituals of the people (6:6; 7:14). Here he elaborated further by describing a genuine sacrifice as lips that sincerely offer one’s whole being to God. The fruit of our lips is a phrase used to describe human praise and thanksgiving in worship (Heb 13:15).
Have God’s promises to Israel been fulfilled? (14:5–7)
While some point to certain aspects of these promises that have been fulfilled at various stages of Israel’s history, the ultimate fulfillment is yet to come, at the second coming of Christ.
How is God like a flourishing juniper? (14:8)
This is the only place in the Old Testament where the analogy of a tree is used to describe God. The point is that all of Ephraim’s fruitfulness came from God; he, not idols, is full of life and strength and year-round vitality. Israel’s life sprang from him and from him alone.
How can rebellion make people stumble? (14:9)
For those who walk in sin, the right way of the Lord looks so harsh and demanding that it becomes an excuse for further sin. People who rebel against God tend to make the right way appear too difficult to follow.