Hos. v. 13. When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, then went Ephraim to the Assyrian, and sent to king Jareb : yet could he not heal you, nor cure you of your wound.
MEN continually provoke God to chastise them, but rarely make a due improvement of his chastise- ments. Instead of turning to God, they dishonour him still more by applying to the creature under their distress rather than to him. The ten tribes, when punished for their willing compliance with Jeroboam's edicts a, sought repeatedly to the Assyrians for help, instead of humbling themselves before God : but they found, as "Judah" also did on similar occasions, that their confidence in the creature served only to involve them in shame and disappointment.
Taking the text simply as an historical fact, we deduce from it two observations, which deserve our consideration.
I. Men, in times of trouble, are prone to look to the creature for help, rather than to God —
This was one of the most common and heinous sins of the Jewish nation b: and it is universal also amongst ourselves,
1. In troubles of a temporal nature —
[In sickness of body, we lean, like Asac, on the physician. In distress of mind, we complain and murmur; but forget to pray'1. In straitened circumstances, we expect relief from
a ver. 1 1, 12. God consumed them as the moth consumes a garment, or as rottenness the bones, secretly, slowly, gradually, effectually.
b Sometimes they relied on Egypt, Isai. xxx. 1 — 3. and xxxi. 1. Sometimes on Assyria (as Manahem did on Pul, 2 Kings xv. 19. and Ahaz did on Tiglath-pileser, 2 Kings xvi. 7.) and sometimes on themselves, Isai. xxii. 8 — 11. "Jareb" here certainly means the king of Assyria : but whether it was his proper name, or a name given him by the prophet, is uncertain. It means Defender, and might be applied to him in a taunting manner. In this view it would be a very severe sarcasm. See 2 Chron. xxviii. 20.
c 2 Chron. xvi. 12. d Gen. iv. 13, 14.