Hosea 2:20

20 And I shall spouse thee to me in faith; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord. (And I shall betroth thee to me in faith; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord.)

Hosea 2:20 Meaning and Commentary

Hosea 2:20

I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness
Which lies in keeping the marriage contract inviolable; Christ will never suffer his faithfulness to fail, nor break his covenant; as he is faithful to his Father that appointed him, so he is, and will be, to his church and people, and to every believer, to whom he is espoused; and it is he that makes them faithful unto him, and gives them faith to believe in him, receive, embrace, own, and acknowledge him as their husband: and in this sense some understand it, rendering it, "in faith" {z}; so the Targum and others. This is the third time the word "betroth" is used, or this promise made; which, according to Jerome, refers to them espousing of the Jews in Abraham, at Mount Sinai, and in the times of Christ; and, according to Kimchi, to the three captivities of the Jews, in Egypt, in Babylon, and that in which they now are: and some Christian writers think the mystery of the Trinity is here pointed at; and the sense to be, that all the three divine Persons, Father, Son, and Spirit, would espouse them: but rather it is so often repeated to confirm it, and express the certainty of it, which might, on many accounts, seem a thing incredible. And thou shall know the Lord;
that the Messiah is Jehovah, and that he is their husband; they shall all know him, from the least to the greatest; they shall have a saving knowledge of him, which will issue in eternal life; they shall own him, and acknowledge him, serve and obey him, as their Lord, Head, and Husband, as well as love him, and believe in him. The Targum is,

``and ye shall know to fear before the Lord;''
see ( Jeremiah 31:34 ) . Let it be observed, here are no conditions throughout, it is only "I will", and "thou shalt".
FOOTNOTES:

F26 (hnwmab) "in fide", V. L. &c.

Hosea 2:20 In-Context

18 And I shall smite to them a bond of peace in that day, with the beast of the field, and with the bird of the air, and with the creeping beast of the earth. And I shall all-break bow, and sword, and battle from [the] earth; and I shall make them to sleep trustily. (And on that day, I shall strike a covenant for them with the wild beasts, and with the birds of the air, and with the creeping beasts of the earth. And I shall altogether break the bow, and the sword, and the battle from off the earth, and then they all shall be able to sleep with trust, or in peace.)
19 And I shall spouse thee to me [into] without end; and I shall spouse thee to me in rightfulness, and in doom, and in mercy, and in merciful doings. (And I shall betroth thee to me forever; and I shall betroth thee to me in righteousness, and in judgement, and in love, and in giving mercy.)
20 And I shall spouse thee to me in faith; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord. (And I shall betroth thee to me in faith; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord.)
21 And it shall be, in that day I shall hear, saith the Lord, and I shall hear (the) heavens, and those shall hear the earth; (And it shall be, on that day, that I shall give an answer, saith the Lord, and I shall answer with the heavens, and they shall answer with the earth;)
22 and the earth shall hear (the) wheat, and wine, and oil, and these shall hear Jezreel. (and the earth shall answer with the corn, and the wine, and the oil, and all of them shall answer with Jezreel, that is, with Israel.)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.