The Pulpit Commentary — Hosea — Section 104

Aro.bio, and gives a good sense ; thus Geee- forgetfnlLeee is thus an e.<l vance upon re- n ius renders: "I destroy thy mother, that is, jection. The sin of these priests WBB very lo.y wo.ste thy country." Rather, the nation, great, for, while the priests' lips were re- collectively, is the mother; while the mem- quirecl to keep knowlerlgo, th8y neither bers iodi vidually a.re the children. Nor preserved that knowledge themselves nor shall private persons eeco.pe in the public promoted it e.m.ong the people; hence the co.taatrophe-root and bro.nch are to perish. rnd1gnant and direct address. Thus Kim chi Kimchi'e comment on •n•c, is: "l will cut off ea.ye: "He addresses the priestly order that the whole congregation, ao thnt no congre- existed at that time: Thou hast rejected gation shall remain in Israel; for they shall the knowledge for thyself e.nd to tee.eh it t.o be scattered in the exile, the one here, the the people, consequently I will reject thee other there." from being a priest unt.o me. Since thou Ver. 6.-lll:, people are destroyed for laok dost not exercise the office of priest, which of knowledge. Here the verb is ,Plural and i• to teach the Law, I will reject thee so that its subject singular, because, bemg collec- thou shalt not be a priest in my house." I tive, it comprehends all the individual will also rejeot thee that thou shalt be no members of the nation. The word ,c,::, is priest to me . . . I will also forget thy rendered (1) by Jerome in the sense of children, even L The pnnishmentreaembles "silence:" "conticuit populue meue," which the offence ; the human delinquency is re- he explains to mean " sinking into eternal flected in the Divine retaliation. To make silence." Bo also the Che.Idea. (2) The this the more pointed, the "thou on thy LXX., understands it in the sense of "like- pa.rt (attah)" at the hee.d of the sentence ness : " "My people are like ( &µ.o,rl,lhj) as if has its counterpart, or rather is counter- they had no knowledge." Aben Ezra dis- balanced by the "even I" or " I too (gam proves this sense e.s follows : "This word, if am)" e.t its close. The eeveri ty of the it were from the root signifying ' likeness,' punishment is augmented by the threat wonld have after it eZ with seghol, as, ' To that, not only the then existing priests, but [eZ with ,eghol] whom art thou like in thy their sons after them, would be excluded greatness?' (Ezek. :nxi. 2); but without from the honour of the priesthood. Thi11 the word eZ it has the meaning of • cutting WBS touching painfully the tenderest pa.rt. off.' " So Kimchi : "Here also it has the It needs soe.rcely be observed the.t forget- sense of • cutting off.' " The article before fulneBB is only spoken of God in a figuraLive "knowledge" implies renewed mention and sense, end after the manner of men, that refers to the word in ver. 1 ; or it may em- being forgotten which is no longer the phasize the word as that knowledge by way object of attention or affection. "The of eminence, which smpasses all other know- meaning of 'li'II," says Kimchi, "is by way of ledge, and without which no other know- figure, like the man who forgets something ledge can really prove a blessing in the and does not take it to heart." The un- end. The knowledge of God is the most neual form '1~9~9~ he.s been variously ac- excellent of all scienoea. Panl counted counted for. The Massorites mark the aleph all things but loss in comparison with its before caph e.s redundant; it is omitted in possession; and our blessed Lord himself severe.I manuscripts of Kennicott and De says, "Thie is life eternal, that they might Rossi, as also some of the early printed know thee the only true God, and Jesus editions. Kimchi confesses his ignore.nee Christ, whom thou hBBt sent ; " while the of its use. Olshaneen tree.ta it as a copyist's Prophet Isaiah attributed the captivity to error; but Ewald "regards it as o.n A.re.m- its absence : "My people are gone into cap- llle.n pausal form." Some take the reference tivity because· they ho.ve no knowledge." to be to Israel us a kingdom of priests (Exod. lleoe.uee thou hast rejected knowledge ... llix. 6) rather than to the actue.l prksthood. seeing thou hBBt forgotten the Law of thy Vere. 7, 8.-Asthey were increased; rather, God. The cause of this ignorance is here multiplied. Whether o::i,::i be to.ken as in- cho.rged on the unfaithfulness of the priest- finitive with auflix and Tpr~fix, or as a noun, hood. They rejected knowledge and forgot it will amount to the so.me. The reference the Law of their God. The two concluding is rather to the multitude of the population clauses of this verse may be regarded as than to the greo.tness of their prosperity or "split members" of a single sentence. As the abundance of their wealth. In th.i re~ection implies the presence of the object latter sense it is understood by the Chaldee reJected, while forgetfulneBB implies its pe.raphrast, but in the former by the Syrit1.c absence from the mind or memory, some tmnsle.tor. So also Kimchi, where he st1.ys, ho.ve understood rejection of knowledge as "As for Aaron the priest their father, the the sin of the priest, and forgetfulness the.t Lo.w of truth was in his mouth; but now of the people. This sepnration is not neces- the.t his sons have multiplieJ and spread so.ry, for whut men continue for II time to abroad, they h,we sinnc,1 ag>1inst me ,illll despise they will by-11.nd-by forget. The forgotten wy lo.w: according as I did them  102 THE l300K 01<' HOSEA. [uu. 1v. 1-10.