Hosea 5:2

2 And you have turned aside victims into the depth and I am the teacher of them all.

Hosea 5:2 Meaning and Commentary

Hosea 5:2

And the revolters are profound to make slaughter
The revolters are the king, priests, and people, who had revolted from the true worship and ways of God unto idolatry. These formed deep laid schemes, and took crafty methods, like hawkers; who lay themselves flat upon the ground to manage their snares and nets, and observe the creatures that fall into them, and take them, and whom they artfully decoy, to which the allusion is; and that either to slay those who would not comply with their false worship; or rather to multiply the sacrifices of slain beasts, and offer them with a great show of devotion and religion, and thereby beguile, entice, and ensnare simple and unwary souls; so the Targum,

``they sacrifice to idols abundantly;''
and which, in the sight of God, was mere slaughter and butchery: though I [have been] a rebuker of them all;
king, priests, and prophets; those idolaters, revolters, or worshippers of Baal, as Aben Ezra calls them: this is to be interpreted either of the prophet, who had freely, faithfully, and openly reproved all orders of men for their departure from God and his worship, and for their idolatrous practices; or of the Lord himself, which comes to the same sense, who had rebuked them by his prophets, and corrected them by his judgments, but to no purpose: and therefore they could not plead ignorance, or excuse themselves upon that account.

Hosea 5:2 In-Context

1 Hear ye this, O priests, and hearken, O ye house of Israel, and give ear, O house of the king: for there is a judgment against you, because you have been a snare to them whom you should have watched over and a net spread upon Thabor.
2 And you have turned aside victims into the depth and I am the teacher of them all.
3 I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hid from me for now Ephraim hath committed fornication, Israel is defiled.
4 They will not set their thoughts to return to their God: for the spirit of fornication is in the midst of them, and they have not known the Lord.
5 And the pride of Israel shall answer in his face: and Israel, and Ephraim shall fall in their iniquity, Juda also shall fall with them.
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