An Exposition of Hosea 8-10, Exposition · Chapter 10 · Verse 10
VER. 10.
It is in my deſire that I ſhould chaſtiſe them.
IT is in my deſire.] God ſpeaks here as one that hath forborn a long time, and now longs to ſatisfie himſelf.
Tremelius upon the place notes,pro foreign à A communi regula diſcedit, fortaſſe voluit inuſitatum inuere caſtigationis modum, inſolitâ verbi forma, Tremel. that the form of the word for chaſtiſing here, it is unuſual, becauſe (ſaith he) perhaps God would expreſs ſome more than ordinary way of puniſhing them. And Luther renders it,*foreign [In deſiderio meo, & caſtigabo eos] Valde cupidè eos caſtigabo, So Luther. See Buxtorf. Lexic. Heh. in foreign. Exceeding deſirouſly will I chaſtiſe them. It is in my will to chaſtiſe them. Oh! bleſſed God, do not we find in thy Word that the Works of thy Juſtice are ſaid to be thy ſtrange Works, and that thou art not willing to grieve the children of men, that mercy pleaſes thee? but where do we ever find that Juſtice was ſo pleaſing to thee?
It's true, though at firſt God ſeems to forbear the execution of Juſtice as a thing he hath no mind to, yet if ſin be continued in, in a ſtubborn way, now God deſires it as a thing that there's nothing more pleaſing to him. He is burdened with mens ſins, and deſires to bring puniſhments upon them; as a man under a great burden deſires to be eaſed;Iſa. 1. In Iſa. 1. Oh! I will eaſe me of mine Adverſaries. And in Ezek. 5. 13. Ezek. 5. 13. 15.you ſhall find there that God in threatning of wrath ſaith, that he would do thus, and thus, and he would be comforted:Prov. 1. and in Prov. 1. he laughs at the deſtruction of wicked men, it's a thing that rejoyces him at the very heart.Rev. 14. 10. explicated. And in the Revelations the wrath of God is call'd the wine of his wrath, becauſe he takes ſo much pleaſure in the execution of it.
1. Gods Juſtice is God himſelf as well as any other Attribute.Reaſ. 1.
2. God he doth delight to vindicate his honor, therefore the word that is for Chaſtiſement, it ſignifies ſomtimes, the vindication of a mans honor: the honor of God is dear to him: Your peace and comforts may be dear to you; I, but my honor is more dear to me.
3. In Chaſtiſements God fulfils his Word, the Word of God would be ſlighted & contemn'd elſe: Now this pleaſes me therfore to chaſtiſe them to fulfil my Word upon them.
Oh!Uſe. the fearful evil of ſin that brings the creature into ſuch a condition, as Gods heart is delighted in every evil that ſinful creatures ſuffer: this muſt needs be a ſad condition indeed, for the merciful God that delights ſo much in doing of mercy, yet now to look upon a ſinner under his wrath, and delights in it, and loves it, and is wel pleaſed to ſee the creature, even the work of his own hands to be under his wrath. Hereafter there will be pure Juſtice, God wil delight in the deſtruction of ſinners in Hell, in the execution of his Juſtice upon them, he wil there do nothing elſe but rejoyce in it, there ſhal be nothing but joy in Gods heart to ſee the execution of his Juſtice upon ſinners to all eternity, yea, and God will call all the Angels and Saints to come to rejoyce with him, Come ye Angels and Saints and rejoyce with me, here's a wretched ſinner that was ſtubborn & rebellious againſt me in the time of his life, and ſee how my Power hath overtaken him, ſee the dreadfulneſs of my wrath, come and rejoyce with me for ever in this wrath of mine. This will be the condition of ſinners eternally in Hell.
Conſider this, you that have a deſire to ſin, a mind to ſin, to delight in ſin,Uſe of admonition to thoſe in whoſe will it is to ſin. that are comforted in ſin? Is it in your will to ſin? It is Gods will to puniſh: Can you rejoyce in ſin? God can rejoyce in the execution of his wrath: Are you reſolute upon your ſin? God can be reſolute in the waies of his wrath. When God chaſtiſes his Servants for their infirmities, he doth it as a thing he hath no mind at all to,1 Pet. 1. 6. and therefore ſaith the Apoſtle, If need be, we fall into many temptations, and it is but ſeeming grievous: And himſelf is afflicted in all their afflictions. David would have Joab go againſt Abſolom, but ſaith he, Uſe the young man kindly, for my ſake. So when God doth chaſtiſe his Servants, he ſends an affliction, Go (ſaith he) and ſcourge ſuch an one, yea, but uſe him kindly for my ſake, for all that.
The bowels of David did yern towards Abſolom, even when he ſent Joab to fight againſt him. So the bowels of God do yern towards his People when he ſends afflictions upon them. But when he comes to deal with wicked and ungodly men, I wil do it to purpoſe (ſaith God) I wil delight in it, I will be comforted in it, it is my deſire, &c.
The People ſhall be gathered againſt them.
That is,Expoſ. 1. I will chaſtiſe them after this way, By gathering of people againſt them. The Aſſyrians when they gathered againſt them, they did it meerly out of their own ends. Yea, but ſaith God, I have an hand in it, I will gather them againſt them. And certainly God had a mind to chaſtiſe them, when he would gather enemies againſt them, the Aſſyrians it's like would never have dar'd to preſume to come againſt Iſrael if God had not had an hand in it: And certainly we could never have imagined that it were poſſible that ſo many ſhould be gathered together in this Publick Cauſe in this Land to maintain wickedneſs, and to fight to make themſelves ſlaves, but only that God had a mind to chaſtiſe England.
But I find by others that it's read thus:Expoſ. 2. of the former part of the Verſe.
I will chaſtiſe them according to my mind, and ſo the word will bear it.
The Septuagint they reade it,*foreign, 70. Iuxta deſiderium meum corripiam eos. vulg. According to my deſire.
So Oecolampadius upon the place,Oecolampad. in loc. ſaith, God preſcribed a certain time to have this people come in and repent, but ſaith God, you ſhal not preſcribe me how long I ſhal ſtay, but I will do it when I pleaſe, both for the time of the chaſtiſment, and for the degree of the chaſtiſement.
God when he hath a mind to bring about a thing, Obſ.he will gather the people when his mind is come. I remember it is ſaid in the life of Pompey, a proud ſpeech he was wont to have, when they askt him what they ſhould do when the enemies came againſt them? Oh (ſaith he) let me but ſtamp upon the ground of Italy and I ſhall have men enough; that was a proud ſpeech of him, but it's a true one in God, let him but ſtamp with his feet and he can gather people enough together.
And then further, God will chuſe with what rod he will ſcurge us, according to his mind, for the degree, and the kind too. Many afflictions when they are upon us we mourn and repine, and theſe diſcontented expreſſions comes from us, Oh! I could bear any thing but that.
But is it fit for thee to chuſe thine own rod? God might have ſaid alſo, I had rather you had committed ſome other ſin. It may be, becauſe that's the affliction that is moſt croſs to thy ſpirit, therfore God wil have it, God ſees that that's more for his honor, and perhaps for thy good, becauſe it is the croſſeſt affliction that God could find out, therefore thou haſt that affliction that God might ſtrike thee in the maſter-vain.We may not chuſe our ſin and our rod too. Therefore let us learn to ſubmit to the will of God. Is it fit that thou ſhouldeſt chuſe thy ſin and thy rod too? No, ſtay there; If thou wilt chuſe thy ſin, God will have liberty to chuſe thy rod.
When they ſhall bind themſelves in their two furrows.
Theſe words have very great obſcurity in the firſt view of them,The Text very difficult. and I find a mighty deal of puzling among Interpreters about them. The difficulty is in the word that is here tranſlated Furrows, foreign In vincire eos in duobus aut ſuccis, aut pecatis, aut occulis, aut fontibus ſcribetur per foreign legitur à maſorethis per foreignthe ſame letters of the word, take away the points of the Hebrew, and they may be for theſe two ſins, or their two eyes, there's a little difference in the Vau and the Jod which are much like one another. And in all theſe three waies according to to the ſignification of the word,Sulci foreign iniquitates foreign oculi foreign fontes foreign Either Furrows, Sins, or Eyes, the ſenſe may go reaſonable well. As thus:
Firſt, For Sins. And they ſhal bind themſelves. You may turn it as well of Gods Threatning what he would do;Vid. Buxtori…. Lexicon Heb. in foreign Arias Montanus In corripere eos propter duas iniquitatis. for it is, bind them, or, in binding them, ſo it is tranſlated by others, in binding them for their two ſins: I will bind them for their two ſins, ſo I find Arias Montanus hath it, Bind them for their two ſins.
And I find the Septuagint tranſlate it ſo too,foreign, 70. Chaſtiſe them for their two ſins, for ſo it may be, Chaſtiſe as wel as Bind, for the words are very near together that ſignifies either binding, Vincire foreign Catigare foreign But in ſome Moods and Tenſes they are hardly differenced. Propter geminum peccatum ipſorum. Luther.or chaſtiſing.
I will chaſtiſe them for their two ſins: When he binds them he will chaſtiſe them. And ſo I find that Luther hath it, for he doubles theſe.
And then they think that it hath reference to the two*Qui erant ut foreign oculi eorū ſeu amaſij. Buxtor… in foreign Calves of Dan and Bethel: Or the two Sins, of Bodily and Spiritual Adultery: Or otherwiſe it hath the ſame ſenſe with that in Jer. 2▪ 13. My people have committed two ſins: They have forſaken me the fountain of Living Waters, Ier. 2. 13. Hier. in loc. See Diod. in loc.and hewed them out Ciſterns, broken Ciſterns that can hold no water.
Or if you wil have it in the ſecond place, according as it is in your books,Expoſ. 2. They ſhall bind themſelves in their two furrows, then the meaning of it is this, That I wil bring their Enemies upon them, and they ſhall yoke them like Oxen that are yok'd to plow, they ſhall bring them into ſervitude, and into bondage, they ſhall make them plow in their two furrows,Polanus in loc. (double work.) So Polanus, becauſe they ſhall put double work upon them and make them work in a ſervile way. And the rather do I think this is the meaning of it, becauſe the holy Ghoſt doth follow the metaphor of it, An Heifer, as it follows;
And Ephraim is as an Heifer that is taught and loveth to tread out the Corn.
And ſo take it in the third way,Expoſ. 3. foreign the word that ſignifies an eye, only altering the letter Vau for Jod, and then this is the ſenſe; they ſhall yoke them as the Oxen are yoked eye to eye. They yoke the Oxen even and ſet eye to eye; ſo the enemies ſhall come and yoke them ſo that they ſhall be like beaſts to do their work, and this ſhall be the condition of Ephraim that hath this fair neck. I find others that take this;
They ſhall bind themſelves in their two furrows.
That is,Expoſ. 4. (Calvin] They ſhall Covenant together. When the enemy comes upon them then they ſhal Covenant together and joyn together, as Oxen that are yok'd together, and Judah and Iſrael ſhall joyn together, and they ſhall be in their furrows,As Engl. and Scotl. in the late war. in their trenches, as in reference to us: that when the people are gathered together, England and Scotland ſhall bind themſelves together, and lie together in their ſeveral Trenches. So I find others take it.
But rather from the chief and genuine ſcope, I ſuppoſe the meaning is this, That they ſhall be brought into miſerable bondage, they ſhall be like Oxen: and ſo ſaith one Interpreter upon the place, When you ſee Oxen yok'd together then be put in mind of the yoke of the enemies; you live daintily and bravely now, but when God ſhall let out the enemies upon you, you ſhall ſerve as ſlaves, yea, as beaſts.