Hosea 2:14-23

The Lord's Mercy on Israel

14 "Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and ¹bring her into the wilderness, and ²speak tenderly to her.

15 And there I will give her her vineyards and make the Valley of Achor^[a] a door of hope. And there she shall answer ³as in the days of her youth, as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt.

16 "And ⁴in that day, declares the LORD, you will call me 'My Husband,' and no longer will you call me 'My Baal.'

17 For ⁵I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and they shall be remembered by name no more.

18 And ⁶I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. And ⁷I will abolish^[b] the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in ⁸safety.

19 And I will betroth you to me ⁹forever. ¹⁰I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy.

20 ¹¹I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And ¹²you shall know the LORD.

21 "And ¹³in that day ¹⁴I will answer, declares the LORD, I will answer the heavens, and they shall answer the earth,

22 and the earth shall answer the grain, the wine, and the oil, and they shall answer ¹⁵Jezreel,^[c]

23 and ¹⁶I will sow her for myself in the land. And ¹⁷I ¹⁸will have mercy on No Mercy,^[d] and ¹⁹I will say to Not My People,^[e]20'You are my people'; and he shall say, 'You are my God.'"

Hosea 2:14-23 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO HOSEA 2

This chapter is an explanation of the former, proceeding upon the same argument in more express words. The godly Israelites are here called upon to lay before the body of the people their idolatry, ingratitude, obstinacy, and ignorance of the God of their mercies; and to exhort them to repentance, lest they should be stripped of all their good things, and be brought into great distress and difficulties; all their joy and comfort cease, and be exposed to shame and contempt, Ho 2:1-13, yet, notwithstanding, many gracious promises are made unto them, of their having the alluring and comfortable word of the Gospel; of a door of hope; of salvation being opened to them; of faith in the Lord, and affection to him as their husband; of the removal of all idolatry from them; of safety from all enemies; of their open espousal to Christ; of his hearing of their prayers, and giving them plenty of all good things; and of their multiplication, conversion, and covenant relation to God, Ho 2:14-23.

Cross References

• 1. [Ezekiel 20:35]
• 2. Isaiah 40:2
• 3. [Hosea 9:10; Hosea 11:1; Jeremiah 2:2; Ezekiel 16:22, 60]
• 4. ver. 18, 21
• 5. Zephaniah 1:4; Zechariah 13:2; [Exodus 23:13]
• 6. Ezekiel 34:25; [Job 5:23]
• 7. Psalms 46:9; Isaiah 2:4; Isaiah 9:5; Ezekiel 39:9, 10
• 8. Leviticus 26:5; Jeremiah 23:6
• 9. [Ezekiel 43:7]
• 10. [ver. 7, 16; Jeremiah 3:14, 15; 2 Corinthians 11:2]
• 11. [See ver. 19 above]
• 12. Jeremiah 31:34; John 17:3
• 13. ver. 16
• 14. [Zechariah 8:12]
• 15. [Hosea 1:4, 11]
• 16. [Hosea 1:10]; See Ezekiel 36:9-11
• 17. Cited Romans 9:25, 26
• 18. Hosea 1:6
• 19. Hosea 1:9; 1 Peter 2:10
• 20. ver. 1; Zechariah 13:9; See Leviticus 26:12; Jeremiah 31:33

Footnotes

• [a]. Achor means trouble; compare Joshua 7:26
• [b]. Hebrew break
• [c]. Jezreel means God will sow
• [d]. Hebrew Lo-ruhama
• [e]. Hebrew Lo-ammi