The Pulpit Commentary — Hosea — Section 90

nbiclo in wi,lowhoorl or lire mnny clays; nncl t~r,y h,vl h:en long enjoye,]. Without ,~ tho mcnning of 'for mo' is, thou ehalt be kmg of theu own_ nationality to sit upon called by my name and not by another th~ throne, or a pnnce of their own race a• mnn'a: thou shnlt any, I am the wife of heir apparent to the kingdnm, or prince~ as suoh o ~me, ancl thou eh11lt not play the the gre'.'t officers of state; withnut offering- hnl'lot with olhore, ancl 11lso thou ehnlt not by ea~fice to Jehov~h, or statue by way of Le the wife of nuy other man than myself." memonal to Ilaal; w1thout merms of ascer- Aben Ezra m11kes mention of anotherinter- taining the will of Heaven in relation to tho pretation of tho verse, to the effect, " If ye future by the Urim a.nd Thummim of th" ehall return to me, I aleo will return to high-priestly ephod, only the more tha~ you." With thie the Cha.Idea Taruum is in quest1~nable mean_s of soothsaying by the accord, which represents God as c~mrnand- tera.ph1m ;-the children of Israel were to he ing the prophet to any, "0 congregation of left.. And what attaches SJ?ecial importance Israel, your sins have been the cause of your to th1s remarkable passage 1s the undeniable exile for many days; ye ehall devote your- fact that these predictions were uttered not selves to my service, and not go astray nor only before the dissolution of the mona~chy worship idols, and I also will have compas- and the cessation of sacrifices, but at a time sion upon you." Maurer considers the when no human sagacity could foresee and expression ,11:.i,wo1 equivalent to ,11 oJ/ti"I, viz. no human power foretell the future absten- remhabe'l'e Cllffl mulierB: but to this lin- tion of the Hebrew race from idol-worship guistic usage is oppoeed. Umbreit renders so long practised, and from heatbenish divi- the, phrase, "and: I will only be for nation. resorted to from such an early period thee;" tbis, however, partakes more of the of their history. Rashi, in his comment nature of a promise than of a punishment has the following: "I said to her Man; and is not ,quite, therefore, in accord with days ehalt thou abide for me; thou shalt not the context. E,wald : " And yet I am kind go a-whoring after other gods; for if thou to thee. [i.e. love. thee];'' this is a rather shalt play the harlot, thy sons shall remain trivial, as ·also ill-supported idea. Calvin's many days without a king, and without " exposition is pretty much the same as we prince, and without a sacrifice in the sanc- have given, and is t)le following : "I also tuary in Judah, and without a statue of shall be for thee; that is, I pledge my faith B~l in Samaria of the kings of Israel, and to thee, or I subscribe myself as thy hus- without an ephod with Urimand Thu=im band : but another time must be looked which declared to them secrets, and without for; I yet defer my favour, and suspend it teraphim; they a.re ime.ues that are made untj,]., thou givest proof of true repentance. with the observation of ine hour composed I also shall be :for. thee; that is, thou shalt for the purpose, and which speak of them- not be a widow in vain; if thou complainest selves and declare secrets ; and so Jonathan that wrong isdon~ to thee, because I forbid has translated, 'Neither will there be an thee to. marry_ any on_e . else, I also bind ephod nor one to give a response.'" Simi- myself in turn to thee." larly Aben Ezra: "Withont ki.no- nor is Ver. 4.-l!'or the ohildren of Israel shall there any objection from the Ch~oneans, abide many days without a king, and with- for they were not of the children of Judah out a prinoe, and without a aaorifioe, and . . . without sacrifice to J ehova.h nor statue without an image, a.nd :without u ephod, to Baal, without ephod to Jehovah and and teraphim. For a long series of yea.re without tcraphim to the worshippers of they were thus doomed to be without civil idols, which La.ban ea.lied his gods.'' It is politr, . or. ecc~esiastical privilege, or pro- a matter of much consequence that some of phetic mt1mations. More particularly they the ablest of the Jewish e:1positors rea.lize w~re to remain without royal rule, or these predictions as applicable to their owu prm~elY; power,_or priestly fum1tion, or pro- co.se and the existing circumstances of their phet10 mstruction. As the prophet's wife nation. Thus Kimchi, in com.mentin 17 on wo.s neit,her to be, strictly speaking, her this verse, says, "'l'hese a.re the days of tho husbands rior yet belong to another man; exile in which we a.re this day, and we havo S? Israel, o.s 1'8presented by her, was des- neither king nor prince of Israel, for we aro tmed to be deprived of independent solf- in the power of the Gentiles, and in the power of their kings and princes . . . no g~v~rnmen~ and princely sovereignty ; of sacrifice to God and no statue for wor- D1v111e service, whether allowed as by sacri- shippers of idols ... and no ephod which fice-the contml part of Hebrew worship- sh11ll declare future things by Urim .-ntl or disallowed as by statue; of oracular re- sponses, whether lawful os by the ephod or Thummim, and no teraphim for idolaters unlawful ae by teraphim. There was thus which declare the future accordino- to the an entire breaking up of Church and stute notion of those who belie Ye in them; ~nd thus o.s they had long ei.isted; of all oivil and we aro this day in this exile, a.II the children ocolesiC1stical relC1tions and privileges ea of Israel;" he then cites the T.ugwn of  88 'l'HE BOOK OF HOSEA. [oH, m.1-5,