Hosea 6
Reading Time: 2 minutes Listen
Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.
2 After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
3 Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.
4 O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away.
5 Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth: and thy judgments are as the light that goeth forth.
6 For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7 But they like men have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me.
8 Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity, and is polluted with blood.
9 And as troops of robbers wait for a man, so the company of priests murder in the way by consent: for they commit lewdness.
10 I have seen an horrible thing in the house of Israel: there is the whoredom of Ephraim, Israel is defiled.
11 Also, O Judah, he hath set an harvest for thee, when I returned the captivity of my people.
Public Domain KJV text from Wordproject.org
Hosea 6:1-11
Israel and Judah Are Unrepentant
1“Come, let us return to the Lord;
for he has torn us, that he may heal us;
he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.
2After two days he will revive us;
on the third day he will raise us up,
that we may live before him.
3Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord;
his going out is sure as the dawn;
he will come to us as the showers,
as the spring rains that water the earth.”
4What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?
What shall I do with you, O Judah?
Your love is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that goes early away.
5Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets;
I have slain them by the words of my mouth,
and my judgment goes forth as the light.
6For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,
the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
7But like Adam they transgressed the covenant;
there they dealt faithlessly with me.
8Gilead is a city of evildoers,
tracked with blood.
9As robbers lie in wait for a man,
so the priests band together;
they murder on the way to Shechem;
they commit villainy.
10In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing;
Ephraim’s whoredom is there; Israel is defiled.
11For you also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed.
When I restore the fortunes of my people,
ESV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Hosea 6:1-11
Israel Unrepentant
1“Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces
but he will heal us;
he has injured us
but he will bind up our wounds.
2After two days he will revive us;
on the third day he will restore us,
that we may live in his presence.
3Let us acknowledge the Lord;
let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises,
he will appear;
he will come to us like the winter rains,
like the spring rains that water the earth.”
4“What can I do with you, Ephraim?
What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
like the early dew that disappears.
5Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
I killed you with the words of my mouth—
then my judgments go forth like the sun.
6For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
7As at Adam, they have broken the covenant;
they were unfaithful to me there.
8Gilead is a city of evildoers,
stained with footprints of blood.
9As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,
so do bands of priests;
they murder on the road to Shechem,
carrying out their wicked schemes.
10I have seen a horrible thing in Israel:
There Ephraim is given to prostitution,
Israel is defiled.
11“Also for you, Judah,
a harvest is appointed.
“Whenever I would restore the fortunes of my people,
NIV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Commentary
“If anyone was offended, I am sorry.” How many times have we heard those forms of non-apology apologies? The offensive thing about that kind of apology is that it never expresses remorse; it only brushes over the hurt feelings of the other individual and assumes the restoration of the relationship with its attendant benefits.
In this chapter, the Israelites are expressing this form of inauthentic repentance. Capitalizing on the divine attributes of mercy, grace, and forgiveness, they hurry towards God. They are not remorseful about their sins, rather they are focused on the benefits of such a return, namely, cessation of calamities and resumption of blessings.
God, however, sees right through their feigned repentance and counsels them that “I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings.” Hosea 6:6 NLT
In what ways have you offered forms of non-apology apologies to God? Are you focused on what you can get from God (rewards) or what you can avoid (punishments) instead of an abiding deep relationship with Him? Are you willing to ask for genuine repentance from God (Romans 2:4)?
Moses Njuguna
Pastor, Allegheny East Conference, USA (as of this writing)
