The Pulpit Commentary — Hosea — Section 52

forl'fRlhPrs in the ";ldomesR, t.hPn will I to the pnRscssion of the whole, so tlu~t the !!pC'nkenmfortHblyunto them." God humbled door of hnpcful expoctatio11 nnd of joyful their forefitthers in Egypt, yet tbe.t did not RnticipRt.iou would be thrown wide open to puffiee; he hnmhled thorn aft.orwarde in the them. Tho verb mv he.a three mee.nings- wildC'rnCf'B, and then brought them into " humble one's solr." 0 a.newer," "sing." CRnnan. M,my times God sends suooessive Hence the LXX. e.nd older intorprcters njflfrtio11s upon hie own people. to break adopt ,-a,,-,avo,8/io-,,.a, : Calvin, " responde- their hearts, to humble them thoroughly, bit;" and Aben Ezra e.nd Kimchi, "she nnd at last "he speaks comfortably unto shall sing and ple.y." The le.et deserves them." But (3) the wilderness may be the preference. No wonder if, under such vicwe<l in Rn0th0r ligh 1. Besides the dis- circumstances, Israel respouded with songs t.r,,ss0s E'xperienced in the wilderness, there of praise and thanksgiving, o.s in tho.t enrly wore deliveraMeB enjoyed. The reference de.y of the ne.tion's youth, when, coming up here mav be to the latter, and all the more out of Egypt, they so.ng the song of Moses as this part of the che.pter deals with merci- by the Red Sea's margin, while Miriam ful providences. The particle .,av and other e.nd the me.idens of Israel in full ohorus words of the verse then retain their natural completed the he.rmony. Now, e.U these sense; nnd. instead of a denunciation of experiences of the past were to repee.t them- further affl ictione, God declares to Israel selves in the future history of Israel. Their that be will perform on their behalf such pe.st captivity or dispersion was obviously works of power, wisdom, and goodness, at implied in this promised delivere.uce e.nd once great e.nd glorious, merciful and won- God's gre.cious dealings with them in the derful, as he had wrought for their fore- future. There is o. different explane.tion fathers in the wilderness after their deliver- of one expression in this verse, which de- ance from Egypt. Thus the Chaldee: "I serves careful consideration-an exple.nation will work miracles and great works of wonder which turns on whe.t once tro.nspired in for them, such as I wrought in the desert ; '' the.t valley, e.nd the meaning of the no.me of as though he said, "Whatever the condi- it, troubling, derived from the.t tre.nsaction; tion may be into which you shall be brought, we refer, of course, to the affair of Achan. vet vou she.11 have me working iu as glo- The punishment of the transgressor in the.t rious a way for your good e.nd comfort as ce.se, e.nd the putting away of sin in con- ever I did for your forefathers when they nection with penitence and prayer, reopened, were in the wildernePs." The explanation of e.ftor defee.t, the door of hope, e.nd restored "wilderness" under number (1) a.hove, com- the enjoyment of Divine help. The dis- bining, as it does, delir,erance yet discipline, comfiture the.t so troubled the host of Isro.el ea.re yet chastisement, deserves the prefer- we.s immediately followed by the victory e.t ence ; it is neither to be exple.ined with Keil Ai, which inspired them with the hope of exclusively in the sense of promiiie, nor, on soon possessing the whole land. So with the other band, exclusively in the sense of Isre.el e.fter the captivity-a dreary night punishment with Rashi, who comments ae of weeping was followed by a bright and follows : •· I will lee.d her into the wilder- blessed morning. So, too, in time to come, ness, which for her is like a wilderness e.nd when, after e. long e.nd sorrowful expecte.- & dry pe.rched le.nd; and there she shall le.y tion, Israel shall return from the Je.ndB of it to bee.rt that it was better with her when their exile to their fatherland, or by fe.ith sbe did mv will the.n when she rebelled and repentance to the paternal God, the against me_;, light of better and more hopeful days she.II Ver. J 5.-.And I will give her her vine- dawn upon them. To the idea of troubling yards from thence, and the va.J.ley of Achor Kimclii attaches the notion of purification, for e. door of hope : and she shall sing there, quoting with approval Re.shi and Aben Ezra u in the days of her youth, and a.a iD the to the ea.me purpose. His comment is : de.y when she oa.me up out of the land of "Because e.t the beginning, when they Bgyir.. The consolations of God a.re not went into the land in the days of Joshua., confined to words; they comprise works e.s this misadventure befell them, namely, the well as words. Friendly doings as well as matter of Achau, he gave them confidence sayings are embraced iD the Divine good- the.t they should not fear when they as- ness, and manifest the Divine mercy. On sembled in the land, and that no mise.dven- emerging from the wilderness, fruitful vine- ture would occur to them, as they would yard.,, such as Sibme.h, Heshbon, and Elea- all be refined e.nd purified because, in the leh, f:ast of J orde.n, and fertile valleys, like wilderness of the peoples, they would be that of Achor near Jericho, to the west of purified. And that valley of Achor she.II Jordan, ae soon e.s they he. ve crossed the no more be called so, for its name is for river, shall be given them. These vine- depreciatiou; but a name of honour shall yardB and valleys would thus be the first be given to it, and it is e. door of hope. instalment, of God'e promise, and a prelude And inasmuch as he says 'door,' e.nd DOt ('IT, II. 1-23,] THE BOOK OI<' HO:-IEA. 49