The Pulpit Commentary — Hosea — Section 313

the cnuee of t,he che.stieement by representing God as s&ying, "Aocordincr to my good will and pleasnre will I chastise them ; because they do not receive chastisement from rne by my prophets who rebuke them in my Name, I will chastise them by the hands of the peoples which shall be gathered against them." 3. When men refuse to bo God's freemen, and prefer continuing to be servants of sin, they are preparing themsel vcs to be the bondmen of their enemies. The allusion in the last clause of ver. 10 is obscure and yet the general sense is t-0lerably plain. Much der,ends on the one word variously' ren~ dered "eyes," "furrows," "habitations," or "sins.' The figure may be taken from two oxen abreast in a yoke, ploughing together side by side in two adjacent furrows• and it may indicate the combination of the Israelites to ward off the threatened dan~er but to no purpose, since Jehovah had decreed their che.stisement, and, in case it failed their dcst.rnction; or the two divisions of Israel and Judah, and their respective places of habi- tation; or the two places of idolatrous worship, Dan and Bethel; or their two cohabitations with God and idols; or their two transgressions, which appears the preferable sense. Whichever of these we adopt, the idea of binding, that is, of thraldom or captivity, remains the sa.me. 4. There are two kinds of service and two claimants for the soul of man : there is the service of sin, and the wages of thnt service is death ; there is the service of God, and the fruit of that service is unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. Satan claims us, but he is a usurper; besides, he is the worst of all masters- keeping his servants in bondage, working them to death, and at last paying them with damnation. God claims us. His clai111 is just; he is the rightful Proprietor; he made us, and not we ourselves. His claim is, in fact, threefold-creation, preservation, and redemp- tion. We cannot serve ,two masters; we cannot obey both; and we may not attempt the unholy compromise made by the peoples brought from the .regions of Assyria. and planted in the lands of the dispossessed Israelites, who worshipped the Lord and served their own gods. To be the slaves of Satan or the freemen of Jehovah, that is the question; the bondage of sin or the freedom of righteousness is the alternative. There must be decision in the matter. Let our determination be like Joshua's, that whatever others do, we will serve the Lord. III. CB.ANGE OF CIBCUHBTililCES ililD BI'TTEB EXl'EBIENOES. When Israel had, by idolatry and other sins, bound themselves for slavery, like oxen labouring in the yoke up and down the furrows of the field, the change came. Ephraim had been treated gently and trained indulgently; their yoke had been an easy one,,and their burden a light one; but they did not value their privileges, nor know the day of their merciful visitation. They had been in easy circumstances; the lines had fallen to them in pleasant places; they had long enjoyed privileges and advantages of no ordinary kind. But times are now changed, and that change, the bitter fruit of their own doings, was sad as it was sudden. A yoke is now pot on the neck,. a rider on the back, and drudgery beoomes the lot of the once fair and delicate heifer. S1,1 bjection and slavery to foreigners, with hardships great and many, and such as they had never experienced before, now awaited Ephraim; while Judah too would come in for share of the punish- ment, as they had had part in the sin; and thus at last Jacob, that is, both kingdoms, the northern a.nd the southern, having thrown off the yoke of Jehovah, fall ea.eh in tum under the galling yoke of Assyrian and Chaldean conqueror. Let men beware of exclianginu the pleasant service of the Saviour for the painful drudgery of Satan I IV. T~ CALL TO BEPENTililCE ililD lTS BLESSED PROSPECTS. The severity of the foregoillg threatenings is alleviated by the present call to reformation and repentance, with the accompanying promises. l.. A .seed-time of righteousness must precede a reaping-time of mercy. The figr.res are still borrowed frof!l husbandr~; ~nd thus every action is represented as seed sown, and every good work 1s seed sown Ill rrghteous- ness. The rule of righteousness is the Law of God, and the directions of that rule include our duty both to God and man. To sow in righteousness, therefore, is to dis- c~arge the duties of righteousness, oomprehending piety towards God,justice and charity towardJ; man, together with propriety of personal conduct. 2.. The seed sown shall come up one day. If we sow tares, they will come up; if we sow wheat, it will come up. 'l'l,c seed of rigliteousnees is called by the psalmist precious seed. It is not in the power of man to cause a single seed to germinate and spring up; but God in his justice will bring UJJ the bad seed for punishment, and in his mercy the good seed for reward. 3. There is a correspondenoo between thB seed-time and the harvest. If men sow to th11 OH, X, 1-15,) THE BOOK OF HOSEA. 813