Hosea 5:2

2 En die afwijken, verdiepen zich om te slachten; maar Ik zal hun allen een tuchtmeester zijn.

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 Hoort dit, gij priesters! en merkt op, gij huis Israels! en neemt ter oren, gij huis des konings! want ulieden gaat dit oordeel aan, omdat gij een strik zijt geworden te Mizpa, en een uitgespannen net op Thabor.

2 En die afwijken, verdiepen zich om te slachten; maar Ik zal hun allen een tuchtmeester zijn.

3 Ik ken Efraim, en Israel is voor Mij niet verborgen; dat gij, o Efraim! nu hoereert, en Israel verontreinigd is.

4 Zij stellen hun handelingen niet aan, om zich tot hun God te bekeren; want de geest der hoererijen is in het midden van hen, en den HEERE kennen zij niet.

5 Dies zal Israel hovaardij in zijn aangezicht getuigen; en Israel en Efraim zullen vallen door hun ongerechtigheid; ook zal Juda met hen vallen.