Hosea 1:6

6 Soon Gomer became pregnant again and gave birth to a daughter. And the LORD said to Hosea, “Name your daughter Lo-ruhamah—‘Not loved’—for I will no longer show love to the people of Israel or forgive them.

Hosea 1:6 Meaning and Commentary

Hosea 1:6

And she conceived again, and bare a daughter
One of the weaker sex; denoting the weaker state of the kingdom of Israel after Jeroboam, as Kimchi thinks; Zachariah his son reigning but six months, and Shallum the son of Jabesh, his successor, reigned but one month, ( 2 Kings 15:8 2 Kings 15:13 ) :

and God said unto him, call her name Loruhamah;
which signifies, "she hath not obtained mercy": and what follows explains it to the same sense. The Targum is,

``and they added and did evil works; and he said unto him call their name, who obtained not mercy by their works:''

for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel;
as he had heretofore, sparing them time after time, though they continued to sin against him; but now he would spare them no longer, but deliver them up into the hands of their enemies, as he did a part of them, first into the hands of Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and then to Shalmaneser, ( 2 Kings 15:29 ) ( 2 Kings 17:3 2 Kings 17:6 ) , otherwise, in the latter day, mercy will be shown them again, especially in a spiritual way, when they shall be converted, and believe in Christ, and all Israel shall be saved, as well as possess their own land again; see ( Hosea 1:10 Hosea 1:11 ) ( Romans 11:26 ) : but I will utterly take them away;
out of their land, from being a kingdom and nation, which was done by Shalmaneser, another king of Assyria, ( 2 Kings 17:6 ) , or, "bringing I will bring into them", or "against them" ^F23; that is, an enemy, the same king of Assyria: or, "but forgetting I will forget them" ^F24, as some render it, and remember them no more, till the fulness of time comes: or, "through pardoning I have pardoned", or "spared them" ^F25; that is, in times past. The Targum is,

``but if they return, pardoning I will pardon them;''

which will be done in the latter day.

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FOOTNOTES:

F23 (Mhl ava avn) "adducendo adducam contra cos", Munster; "importando importabo eis", Drusius; so Kimchi and Ben Melech.
F24 "Obliviscendo obliviscar eorum", V. L. Pagninus.
F25 "Quamvis omnino condonaverim eis", Piscator; "quamvis haetenus condonando condonaverim eis", so some in Drusius.

Hosea 1:6 In-Context

4 And the LORD said, “Name the child Jezreel, for I am about to punish King Jehu’s dynasty to avenge the murders he committed at Jezreel. In fact, I will bring an end to Israel’s independence.

5 I will break its military power in the Jezreel Valley.”

6 Soon Gomer became pregnant again and gave birth to a daughter. And the LORD said to Hosea, “Name your daughter Lo-ruhamah—‘Not loved’—for I will no longer show love to the people of Israel or forgive them.

7 But I will show love to the people of Judah. I will free them from their enemies—not with weapons and armies or horses and charioteers, but by my power as the LORD their God.”

8 After Gomer had weaned Lo-ruhamah, she again became pregnant and gave birth to a second son.