Hosea 9:9

9 They are hopelessly evil in what they do, just as they were at Gibeah. God will remember their sin and punish them for it. ¹

Hosea 9:9 Meaning and Commentary

Hosea 9:9

They have deeply corrupted [themselves], as in the days of
Gibeah
Not the false prophets and watchmen only; but rather Ephraim, or the ten tribes, through their means became extremely corrupt in principle and practice; they had most sadly degenerated, and were deeply sunk and immersed in all manner of wickedness, and rooted in it, and continued obstinate and incorrigible, so that there was no hope of reformation among them; they had got to as great a pitch of wickedness, and were guilty of the like uncleanness, lewdness, barbarity, and cruelty, as were acted by the men of Gibeah, with respect to the Levite and his concubine, ( Judges 19:1-30 ) ; for Gibeah of Benjamin is here meant, where the people asked a king, and rebelled against the words of the prophet, as some in Jarchi interpret it: [therefore] he will remember their iniquity, he will visit their sins:
that is, God, my God, as the prophet calls him in ( Hosea 9:8 ) , will not forgive and forget their sins; pardon being often expressed by a non-remembrance of sins; but will make inquiry after them, and visit them in a way of wrath and vengeance, and punish for them as they deserve: they being obstinate and impenitent, and persisting in their sins, like the men of Gibeah and Benjamin.

Hosea 9:9 In-Context

7 The time for punishment has come, the time when people will get what they deserve. When that happens, Israel will know it! "This prophet," you say, "is a fool. This inspired man is insane." You people hate me so much because your sin is so great.

8 God has sent me as a prophet to warn his people Israel. Yet wherever I go, you try to trap me like a bird. Even in God's Temple the people are the prophet's enemies.

9 They are hopelessly evil in what they do, just as they were at Gibeah. God will remember their sin and punish them for it.

10 The Lord says, "When I first found Israel, it was like finding grapes growing in the desert. When I first saw your ancestors, it was like seeing the first ripe figs of the season. But when they came to Mount Peor, they began to worship Baal and soon became as disgusting as the gods they loved.

11 Israel's greatness will fly away like a bird, and there will be no more children born to them, no more women pregnant, no more children conceived.

Cross References

• 1. 9.9Judges 19.1-30.

Footnotes

• [a]. gibeah: [At this city some Israelites of the tribe of Benjamin raped a Levite's concubine; this caused a civil war that almost wiped out the Benjaminites (see Jg 19-21).]