The Pulpit Commentary — Hosea — Section 149

HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vere. 1-10.-National sin and punishment. The general strain of this chapter is similar to that of the preceding. " The judgment" (ver. 1) which has already been pronounced there is still continued. • In eh. iv., however, Judah wa.s addressed as occupying a different position, morally and religiously, from Israel; whereas here the southern kingdom is represented as sharing in .Israel's guilt and condemnation. It would appear, therefore, that when the warning of eh. iv. 15 was uttered, Judah's defection was already beginning. I. THE NATURE OF SIN. It is a "dealing treacherously against Jehovah" (ver. 7), the rightful Spouse of the soul, who expects from his people that faithfulness which a wife owes to her husband. It is also "whoredom" (ver. 3); for infidelity to tho marriage covenant leads to the cherishing of many objects of sinful desire. It is also "pride" (ver. 5)-tha.t deeply rooted self-will which is the secret spring of idolatry. Sin in all these forms dishonours God and grossly defiles the soul. II. THE BOOT OF BIN. Sin is not merely an outward work. H is not connned to acts of the will. The root of it is "the spirit of whoredoms" (ver. 4). This spirit has its seat at the very centre of man's being. The Apostle Paul calls it "the law of sin" (Rom. vii. 23, 25). It is the controlling principle of the unregenerate life, and it often leads the believer captive even in spite of his renewed nature. " The spirit of whoredoms" dominates the soul like a demon, and the sinner serves it as its slave. Satan lays hold upon this spirit as his helper in his constant assaults upon the minds of men. And only the Holy Spirit can impart adequate stren~th to prevail against it. III. THI!: CONTAGIOUSNESS OF sm. The condition of Israel at the time to which the prophet here refers graphically illustrates this. Hosea saw that the national lit'e was leavened with iniquity. 'l'he pyramid of the commonwealth, from apex to base, was honeycombed with idolatry and impurity. The national sin was shared by: 1. Th8 priests. Instead of being the spiritual guardians of the people, they were as snares and nets to entrap them. Ministers of religion become such : (1) By neglecting teaching, as the priests of the ten tribes had done (eh. iv. 1). (2) By preaching unsound doc- trine. So, in' '!'he Pilgrim's Progress,' the Flatterer, "a black man clothed in white,'' lcrl Christian and Hopeful into his •net. (3) By living inconsistent lives. So the wickedness of Eli's sons made many unbelievers. 2. The courts. 'l'he princes, too, were men-trappers-" sportsmeu rnther than watchmen" (JeromP.). Jeroboam I. had been such. He" dre.ve Israel from following the Lord, and made them sin a great sin" (2 Kings xvii. 21). A.hab had been such, in introducing the worship of Baal and  148 'l'HE BOOK OF HOSEA. [oB, V, 1-15;