TEXT [Commentary]

black diamond   D.   Israel’s Renewal on the Basis of the Covenant (2:14-23)

14 “But then I will win her back once again.

I will lead her into the desert

and speak tenderly to her there.

15 I will return her vineyards to her

and transform the Valley of Trouble[*] into a gateway of hope.

She will give herself to me there,

as she did long ago when she was young,

when I freed her from her captivity in Egypt.

16 When that day comes,” says the LORD,

“you will call me ‘my husband’

instead of ‘my master.’[*]

17 O Israel, I will wipe the many names of Baal from your lips,

and you will never mention them again.

18 On that day I will make a covenant

with all the wild animals and the birds of the sky

and the animals that scurry along the ground

so they will not harm you.

I will remove all weapons of war from the land,

all swords and bows,

so you can live unafraid

in peace and safety.

19 I will make you my wife forever,

showing you righteousness and justice,

unfailing love and compassion.

20 I will be faithful to you and make you mine,

and you will finally know me as the LORD.

21 “In that day, I will answer,”

says the LORD.

“I will answer the sky as it pleads for clouds.

And the sky will answer the earth with rain.

22 Then the earth will answer the thirsty cries

of the grain, the grapevines, and the olive trees.

And they in turn will answer,

‘Jezreel’—‘God plants!’

23 At that time I will plant a crop of Israelites

and raise them for myself.

I will show love

to those I called ‘Not loved.’[*]

And to those I called ‘Not my people,’[*]

I will say, ‘Now you are my people.’

And they will reply, ‘You are our God!’”

NOTES

2:14 [16] I will win her back once again. In the midst of Israel’s hopeless condition (as a result of the divine punishment), her merciful God alone will come to her aid.

the desert. This noun denotes a wilderness area—hence, desert or steppe land. The harshness of such areas “forces the individual to rely upon God, and the Bible often attributes survival in the wilderness to his grace” (Garrett 1997:89). While the term could be used in many ways, in the prophetic literature it was used to remind a disobedient Israel of the time in its history when God’s people had come to trust their redeemer. There, because of their faithfulness, they enjoyed an intimate relation with the Lord. Accordingly, in some contexts the desert or wilderness came to symbolize renewed hope (Jer 31:2). The pristine purity of Israel’s relationship with God could be realized again. For a thorough study of the desert motif, see Talmon 1966:31-64.

2:15 [17] the Valley of Trouble. Lit., “Valley of Achor.” The Valley of Achor reminded Hosea’s hearers of Israel’s failure due to Achan’s sin in keeping forbidden spoils of war (Josh 7). The tragedy of Achor will be erased in renewed opportunity to do the will of God. “Both Jezreel and Achor carry a double meaning—death under Yahweh’s judgment, new life under his mercy” (Andersen and Freedman 1980:275).

2:16 [18] my husband . . . my master. Because Baalism had brought an idolatrous connotation to the noun ba‘al [TH1167, ZH1251], which can mean master or husband, Israel would use the noun ’ish [TH376, ZH408] (man, husband) in the future. See commentary on 2:2-13.

Although many biblical names were compounded with ba‘al in the early days, so loathsome was the worship of this deity that his very name became identified with shame. Hosea 9:10 speaks of Israel’s shame in being lured into the sacred prostitution involved with Baal during their stay in Shittim (Num 25:1-4; cf. Num 31:16; Rev 2:14). Therefore, Jewish scribes would often substitute the element “shame” for Baal in names compounded with the noun associated with that deity. Thus Esh-baal (1 Chr 8:33; 9:39), Saul’s son, is rendered Ishbosheth in Samuel (e.g., 2 Sam 2:8-11), while Jonathan’s son Merib-baal (1 Chr 8:34; 9:40) becomes Mephibosheth (2 Sam 4:4), and Jerub-baal (Judg 6:32; 8:35) becomes Jerub-besheth (2 Sam 11:21, NLT mg). Still later Satan became identified as Beelzebub (Matt 10:25; 12:24).

2:19 [21] righteousness and justice. This pair of divine attributes often occurs together. They were to be the pillar of Solomon’s reign (1 Kgs 10:9; 2 Chr 9:8), for they reflected the essence of God’s own rule (Deut 32:4; Pss 33:5; 89:14; 97:2; 103:6; cf. Isa 28:17). The former lays stress on God’s consistency in acting in accordance with the standards of his own holy and just nature. The latter emphasizes his absolute integrity and evenhanded fairness in dealing with people and nations. He can do no less for his covenant nation, Israel.

unfailing love and compassion. These two divine qualities appear elsewhere together to describe both God’s past (Ps 103:4) and future (Isa 54:8) redemption of Israel. The former speaks of God’s great loving-kindness in taking people into a living relationship with himself, particularly his covenant nation, Israel (Deut 7:9, 12; 1 Kgs 8:23). The latter adds a touch of tenderness to God’s dealings (Deut 4:31; Ps 78:38).

2:20 [22] faithful. This fifth characteristic of God emphasizes his trustworthiness and consistency in acting according to his being and word. Groups of five characteristics of God occur elsewhere in the OT (e.g., Deut 32:4; see commentary on Jonah 4:2 and Hab 2:4).

you will finally know me as the LORD. What Israel had forgotten (2:13) would be reversed when they fully acknowledged their Lord (cf. Joel 2:27). God’s faithfulness and Israel’s response provide the climax to God’s intention to establish a new covenant with his people. Like v. 18, this verse looks forward to Jeremiah’s proclamation of God’s new covenant (Jer 31:31-34).

2:21 [23] I will answer. The Lord’s promise stands as a reward for covenant faithfulness (cf. comments on Joel 2:23). God is the real provider, not Baal.

2:23 [25] I will plant. This verb (zara‘ [TH2232, ZH2445]) forms a wordplay with “Jezreel” in v. 22, for it makes up part of the name. God will not only reverse the devastation to nature because of Israel’s judgment (2:22), but he will “plant” a people for himself. The long-standing shame of Jezreel would, at last, be remedied (cf. 1:3-5; 2 Kgs 9:21-28, 30-37; 10:1-10).

COMMENTARY [Text]

God had not given up on his people. He intended to seek them out. After their due judgment, he would enter into a fresh relationship with them, and it would be as though those early days (when the nation first entered into the desert in loving dependence upon God) were reborn. Thus, the judgment Hosea announced upon Israel would accomplish its intended purpose. In that grand future day, God would establish a new covenant with his people, brought about not only in accordance with the constraints of his righteousness and justice but by his unfailing love and compassion, demonstrating that God is faithful to his person and nature, as well as to his word and promises to his people. And at last, God’s people would fully surrender to him. God and people would live in intimate communion, each acknowledging the other in loving harmony. Moreover, Israel would be restored to the Land of Promise and live there in absolute peace and safety. Even nature would be transformed, the refreshing rains causing the ground to yield its fruit again with abundant fertility.

Hosea’s words are in agreement with the Old Testament prophets who proclaimed that God would not abandon his people. Although God must judge them for their waywardness, he would establish a new relationship with them that would ensure their everlasting peace and well-being (see commentary on Joel 3; on Obad 1:15-16, 17-21; and on Zeph 3:9-13, 14-20).

God’s judgment of old-covenant Israel and renewed communion with a repentant and faithful people looks forward to Paul’s admonition to the Corinthians to be faithful to the Lord so that they may dwell together with him in fellowship (2 Cor 6:14–7:1). There he reports God’s promise: “I will be their God, and they will be my people” (2 Cor 6:16; cf. Lev 26:1-12; Jer 32:38-41; Ezek 37:20-28). As heirs of God’s new covenant, gentile believers who were formerly “far away from God” are now “brought near” through the blood of Christ; Jew and Gentile alike are “one people” (Eph 2:13-14). Christian believers also look forward to that day when it shall be proclaimed: “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people,” and Christ himself shall say, “Look, I am making everything new” (Rev 21:3, 5).

What comfort, then, for today’s believers. Even though the believer may drift into sin, God’s love never fails. He longs to meet with his own so as to bring them to himself. The God of redemption is also the God of restoration. Where there is repentance and confession of sin, God “is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness” (1 John 1:9).

Christians are also challenged by this passage. The divine qualities of righteousness and justice, steadfast love and compassion, and absolute faithfulness ought to be reproduced in every believer’s conduct. As those created anew in Christ (Eph 4:23), who is the full image of God (Col 1:15; Heb 1:3), believers are to be “renewed as [they] learn to know [their] Creator and become like him” (Col 3:10). The believer’s life should reflect those same qualities that God extends towards those to whom he promised a new covenantal relationship. In sum, believers ought to live so as to be persons whose lives are characterized by the active pursuit of the righteousness that God has given them (Rom 1:17), a concern for fairness in all their dealings, a heartfelt devotion to God their heavenly Father, a genuine compassion for the spiritual and temporal needs of all people, and a life of total faithfulness to God and the standards of his Word.