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Hosea 14:2
Verse
Context
A Call to Repentance
1Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled by your iniquity. 2Bring your confessions and return to the LORD. Say to Him: “Take away all our iniquity and receive us graciously, that we may present the fruit of our lips. 3Assyria will not save us, nor will we ride on horses. We will never again say, ‘Our gods!’ to the work of our own hands. For in You the fatherless find compassion.”
Sermons
Carter Conlon
David WilkersonDavid Wilkerson
J.C. RyleSummary
Commentary
- Adam Clarke
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
- Tyndale
Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
Take with you words - And you may be assured that you pray aright, when you use the words which God himself has put in your mouths. On this very ground there is a potency in the Lord's Prayer, when offered up believingly, beyond what can be found in any human composition. And it may be presumed that it was this consideration that induced our reformers to introduce it so frequently in the public liturgy. See the order of God's directions here: - 1. Hearing these merciful invitations, believe them to be true. 2. Cast aside your idols; and return to God as your Maker, King, and Savior. 3. Take with you the words by which you have been encouraged, and plead them before God. 4. Remember your iniquity, deeply deplore it, and beg of God to take it all away. 5. Let faith be in exercise to receive what God waits to impart. "Receive us graciously;" וקח טוב vekach tob, receive, or let us receive good; when thou has emptied us of evil, fill us with goodness. 6. Be then determined, through grace, to live to his glory, "so shall we render thee the calves" (פרים parim, for which the versions in general read פרי peri, fruits, omitting the ם mem) "of our lips;" the sacrifices of praise, thanksgiving, gratitude, and the hearty obedience which our lips have often promised. 7. Having thus determined, specify your resolutions to depend on God alone for all that can make you wise, useful, holy, and happy. The resolutions are: - 1. Asshur shall not save us - We will neither trust in, nor fear, this rich and powerful king. We will not look either to riches or power for true rest and peace of mind. 2. We will not ride upon horses - We shall no more fix our hopes on the proud Egyptian cavalry, to deliver us out of the hands of enemies to whom thy Divine justice has delivered us. We will expect no rest nor happiness in the elegances of life, and gratification of our senses. 3. Neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, Ye are our gods - We will not trust in any thing without us; nor even in any good thing we are able to do through thy grace; knowing we have nothing but what we have received. We will trust in thy infinite mercy for our final salvation. 4. And we will do all this from the conviction, that in thee the fatherless findeth mercy; for we are all alike helpless, desolate, perishing orphans, till translated into thy family.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Take with you words--instead of sacrifices, namely, the words of penitence here put in your mouths by God. "Words," in Hebrew, mean "realities," there being the same term for "words" and "things"; so God implies, He will not accept empty professions (Psa 78:36; Isa 29:13). He does not ask costly sacrifices, but words of heartfelt penitence. receive us graciously--literally "(for) good." calves of our lips--that is, instead of sacrifices of calves, which we cannot offer to Thee in exile, we present the praises of our lips. Thus the exile, wherein the temple service ceased, prepared the way for the gospel time when the types of the animal sacrifices of the Old Testament being realized in Christ's perfect sacrifice once for all, "the sacrifice of praise to God continually that is the fruit of our lips" (Heb 13:14) takes their place in the New Testament.
John Gill Bible Commentary
Take with you words, and turn to the Lord,.... Not mere words without the heart, but such as come from it, and express the true sense of it; words of confession, as the Targum; by which sin is acknowledged, and repentance declared, and forgiveness asked. Kimchi's note is a very good one; "he (that is, God) does not require of you, upon return, neither gold nor silver, nor burnt offerings, but good works; therewith confessing your sins with your whole hearts, and not with your lips only;'' and which best agrees with evangelical repentance and Gospel times, in which ceremonial sacrifices are no more; and not any words neither; not tautologies and multiplicity of words, or words of man's prescribing, but of the Lord's directing to and dictating; the taught words of the Holy Ghost, which he suggests and helps men to, who otherwise know not how to pray, or what to pray for; and these expressed under a sense of sin, and sorrow for it, and in the strength of faith, and are as follow: say unto him, take away all iniquity; which is to be understood, not of the taking away of the being of sin; which, though very desirable, is not to be expected in this life: nor of the expiation of sin by the sacrifice of Christ, which is done already; he has taken the sins of his people from them to himself, and has bore them, and carried them away, and removed them out of the sight of divine justice, which is satisfied for them: nor of the taking away of the power and dominion of sin; which is done by the Spirit of God, and the efficacy of his grace on the hearts of converted persons: nor of an extinguishing all sense of sin in men; for none have a quicker sense of it than pardoned sinners, or are more humble on the account of it, or more loath it; but of the taking of it away from the conscience of a sensible truly penitent sinner or backslider, by a fresh application of pardoning grace and mercy: sin is a burden, a heavy one, when the guilt of it is charged and lies upon the conscience; pardon of sin applied is a lifting up, as the word here used signifies, a taking off of this burden from it, a causing it to pass away; which is done by the fresh sprinkling of the blood of Jesus, which purges the conscience from sin, and clears it from the guilt of it, and speaks peace and comfort; and which is the blessing here prayed for, and every backslider, sensible of his case, sees he stands in need of, and even to have "all" taken away; for, if but one sin remains, and the guilt of it continues, he can have no peace, nor stand up under it; but, when God forgives sin, he forgives "all" sin; and receive us graciously; receive into grace and favour, that is, openly and manifestly; the free love and favour of God is always the same, but the manifestations of it are different; sometimes more or less, and sometimes scarce any, if any at all, and is the ease here; and therefore a petition is made for the remembrance of it, for a renewed discovery and application of it: or accept us in a gracious manner; acceptance with God is not on account of the merits of men, but his own grace and mercy; not through any works of righteousness done by them, which are impure and imperfect; but through Christ the Beloved, in whom God is well pleased with the persons, and services, and sacrifices of his people, and receives all for his sake, and which is here asked for; as well as that he would take them into his protection, and open affection. It is, in the original text, only, "receive good" (a); meaning either their good hearts, made so by the grace of God; their broken hearts and contrite spirits, which are sacrifices not despised by him, but acceptable to him through Christ: or their good words they were bid to take, and did take, nod use; their good prayers offered up through Christ, in his name, and in the exercise of faith, which are the Lord's delight: or their good works, done from a principle of love, in faith, to the glory of God, and with which sacrifices he is well pleased: or rather, as the same word signifies, to give as well as receive; see Psa 68:18. It may be rendered, "give good" (b); take good, and give it to us, even all good things, temporal and spiritual, especially all spiritual blessings in Christ; all which good things come from God, and are his gifts; particularly the good Spirit of God, and his grace, which the Lord gives to them that ask; and all supplies of grace from Christ; and more especially, as some interpreters of note explain it, the righteousness of Christ imputed and applied; which goes along with pardoning grace, or the taking away of sin, Zac 3:4; and is the good, the better, the best robe; a gift, the gift of grace; a blessing received from the Lord, and to be asked for of him: so will we render the calves of our lips; not calves, bullocks, and oxen, for sacrifice, as under the law; but the sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving for pardoning grace, for a justifying righteousness, and for all good things: these are the fruit of the lips, as the apostle interprets it, Heb 13:15; and which are sacrifices more acceptable to God than calves of a year old, or an ox or bullock that has horns and hoofs, Psa 69:30. This shows that the text and context refer to Gospel times, to the times of the Messiah; in which the Jews themselves say all sacrifices will cease but the sacrifice of praise. The Targum is, "turn to the worship of the Lord, and say, let it he with thee to forgive sins, and may we be received as good, and the words of our lips be accepted with thee as bullocks for good pleasure upon the altar.'' (a) "accipe bonum", Pagninus, Montanus: Munster, Cocceius, Schmidt, Burkius. (b) "Acceptum confer bonum", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Drusius.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
14:2-3 Hosea composed a model prayer of confession to help his people return to the Lord. God’s prophets not only identified with God in his outrage over Israel’s rebellion; they also identified with the people in their broken condition (see also Dan 9:4-19). • Forgive all our sins: The Israelites should throw themselves upon God’s mercy and grace, freely acknowledging their many sins. • so that we may offer you our praises: Israel’s inclination was to offer animal sacrifices for sin, but the Lord had made it clear that sacrifices were not the solution (see Hos 6:6). Israel should offer God genuine repentance.
Hosea 14:2
A Call to Repentance
1Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled by your iniquity. 2Bring your confessions and return to the LORD. Say to Him: “Take away all our iniquity and receive us graciously, that we may present the fruit of our lips. 3Assyria will not save us, nor will we ride on horses. We will never again say, ‘Our gods!’ to the work of our own hands. For in You the fatherless find compassion.”
- Scripture
- Sermons
- Commentary
A Message for America and Its Cultural Religion
By Carter Conlon7.6K53:36Prophetic WordISA 1:18HOS 4:6HOS 6:6HOS 8:7HOS 10:12HOS 11:1HOS 14:2In this sermon, the preacher discusses the importance of understanding the times we live in and the need for spiritual discernment. He mentions a gathering of churches in New York and emphasizes the significance of the current moment. The preacher then turns to the book of Hosea in the Old Testament and highlights the idolatry and ignorance prevalent in American religion. He urges believers to return to the Lord and seek understanding in order to navigate the perilous times ahead.
Pray Daily: Connecting With God While Changing the World
By Mike Bickle2359:19PrayerIntimacy With GodISA 30:18HOS 14:2LUK 18:7PHP 4:6JAS 4:2Mike Bickle emphasizes the vital role of daily prayer in connecting with God and transforming the world. He explains that prayer is not just a routine but a profound privilege that energizes our spirit and aligns us with God's heart. Bickle encourages believers to commit to regular prayer times, develop prayer lists, and maintain a right view of God to deepen their relationship with Him. He highlights that intercession is essential for releasing God's power and that prayer should be a dialogue with God, integrating scripture into our conversations with Him. Ultimately, Bickle calls for a deeper understanding of God's heart to sustain a vibrant prayer life.
Blessings Beyond Our Comprehension
By David Wilkerson0The Power of PrayerGod's GraceHOS 14:2HOS 14:4David Wilkerson emphasizes that while the church often proclaims 'God answers prayer,' the deeper truth is that 'God overanswers prayer.' He illustrates this through the example of Israel, who, despite their backsliding, returned to God with a simple plea for mercy. In response, God not only forgave them but also promised abundant blessings and revival, demonstrating His overwhelming grace. Wilkerson encourages believers to recognize how God has similarly overanswered their prayers, providing them with a deeper relationship with Jesus and a vibrant spiritual life.
Thanksgiving Time!
By David Wilkerson0ThanksgivingPraise and WorshipPSA 95:2PSA 100:4PSA 107:22PSA 116:17HOS 14:2HEB 13:15David Wilkerson shares a powerful message on the importance of thanksgiving, especially during times of personal trials and burdens. He recounts a moment of despair when the Holy Spirit prompted him to offer a 'sacrifice of thanksgiving' to God, shifting his perspective from complaint to gratitude. Wilkerson emphasizes that, unlike the Old Testament sacrifices, we are now called to bring our praises and thanks to God through our words and worship. He highlights various scriptures that encourage believers to express gratitude, reminding us that our high priest, Jesus, has already made the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. Ultimately, the sermon calls for a continual offering of thanks from our lips as a response to God's goodness.
Prayer
By J.C. Ryle0Spiritual GrowthThe Importance of PrayerISA 55:6HOS 14:2MAT 7:7LUK 18:1JHN 6:37ACT 9:11ROM 8:26PHP 4:61TI 2:8JAS 5:13J.C. Ryle emphasizes the paramount importance of prayer in the life of a Christian, asserting that it is essential for salvation and a hallmark of true faith. He argues that prayer is often neglected despite its necessity, and that a consistent prayer life is crucial for spiritual growth and holiness. Ryle warns that neglecting prayer can lead to backsliding and spiritual stagnation, while diligent prayer fosters a deeper relationship with God and brings peace amidst life's troubles. He encourages believers to approach prayer with earnestness, specificity, and thankfulness, highlighting that true prayer is a heartfelt communication with God. Ultimately, Ryle calls for a revival of prayer in the lives of Christians, urging them to recognize its power and necessity.
- Adam Clarke
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
- Tyndale
Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
Take with you words - And you may be assured that you pray aright, when you use the words which God himself has put in your mouths. On this very ground there is a potency in the Lord's Prayer, when offered up believingly, beyond what can be found in any human composition. And it may be presumed that it was this consideration that induced our reformers to introduce it so frequently in the public liturgy. See the order of God's directions here: - 1. Hearing these merciful invitations, believe them to be true. 2. Cast aside your idols; and return to God as your Maker, King, and Savior. 3. Take with you the words by which you have been encouraged, and plead them before God. 4. Remember your iniquity, deeply deplore it, and beg of God to take it all away. 5. Let faith be in exercise to receive what God waits to impart. "Receive us graciously;" וקח טוב vekach tob, receive, or let us receive good; when thou has emptied us of evil, fill us with goodness. 6. Be then determined, through grace, to live to his glory, "so shall we render thee the calves" (פרים parim, for which the versions in general read פרי peri, fruits, omitting the ם mem) "of our lips;" the sacrifices of praise, thanksgiving, gratitude, and the hearty obedience which our lips have often promised. 7. Having thus determined, specify your resolutions to depend on God alone for all that can make you wise, useful, holy, and happy. The resolutions are: - 1. Asshur shall not save us - We will neither trust in, nor fear, this rich and powerful king. We will not look either to riches or power for true rest and peace of mind. 2. We will not ride upon horses - We shall no more fix our hopes on the proud Egyptian cavalry, to deliver us out of the hands of enemies to whom thy Divine justice has delivered us. We will expect no rest nor happiness in the elegances of life, and gratification of our senses. 3. Neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, Ye are our gods - We will not trust in any thing without us; nor even in any good thing we are able to do through thy grace; knowing we have nothing but what we have received. We will trust in thy infinite mercy for our final salvation. 4. And we will do all this from the conviction, that in thee the fatherless findeth mercy; for we are all alike helpless, desolate, perishing orphans, till translated into thy family.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Take with you words--instead of sacrifices, namely, the words of penitence here put in your mouths by God. "Words," in Hebrew, mean "realities," there being the same term for "words" and "things"; so God implies, He will not accept empty professions (Psa 78:36; Isa 29:13). He does not ask costly sacrifices, but words of heartfelt penitence. receive us graciously--literally "(for) good." calves of our lips--that is, instead of sacrifices of calves, which we cannot offer to Thee in exile, we present the praises of our lips. Thus the exile, wherein the temple service ceased, prepared the way for the gospel time when the types of the animal sacrifices of the Old Testament being realized in Christ's perfect sacrifice once for all, "the sacrifice of praise to God continually that is the fruit of our lips" (Heb 13:14) takes their place in the New Testament.
John Gill Bible Commentary
Take with you words, and turn to the Lord,.... Not mere words without the heart, but such as come from it, and express the true sense of it; words of confession, as the Targum; by which sin is acknowledged, and repentance declared, and forgiveness asked. Kimchi's note is a very good one; "he (that is, God) does not require of you, upon return, neither gold nor silver, nor burnt offerings, but good works; therewith confessing your sins with your whole hearts, and not with your lips only;'' and which best agrees with evangelical repentance and Gospel times, in which ceremonial sacrifices are no more; and not any words neither; not tautologies and multiplicity of words, or words of man's prescribing, but of the Lord's directing to and dictating; the taught words of the Holy Ghost, which he suggests and helps men to, who otherwise know not how to pray, or what to pray for; and these expressed under a sense of sin, and sorrow for it, and in the strength of faith, and are as follow: say unto him, take away all iniquity; which is to be understood, not of the taking away of the being of sin; which, though very desirable, is not to be expected in this life: nor of the expiation of sin by the sacrifice of Christ, which is done already; he has taken the sins of his people from them to himself, and has bore them, and carried them away, and removed them out of the sight of divine justice, which is satisfied for them: nor of the taking away of the power and dominion of sin; which is done by the Spirit of God, and the efficacy of his grace on the hearts of converted persons: nor of an extinguishing all sense of sin in men; for none have a quicker sense of it than pardoned sinners, or are more humble on the account of it, or more loath it; but of the taking of it away from the conscience of a sensible truly penitent sinner or backslider, by a fresh application of pardoning grace and mercy: sin is a burden, a heavy one, when the guilt of it is charged and lies upon the conscience; pardon of sin applied is a lifting up, as the word here used signifies, a taking off of this burden from it, a causing it to pass away; which is done by the fresh sprinkling of the blood of Jesus, which purges the conscience from sin, and clears it from the guilt of it, and speaks peace and comfort; and which is the blessing here prayed for, and every backslider, sensible of his case, sees he stands in need of, and even to have "all" taken away; for, if but one sin remains, and the guilt of it continues, he can have no peace, nor stand up under it; but, when God forgives sin, he forgives "all" sin; and receive us graciously; receive into grace and favour, that is, openly and manifestly; the free love and favour of God is always the same, but the manifestations of it are different; sometimes more or less, and sometimes scarce any, if any at all, and is the ease here; and therefore a petition is made for the remembrance of it, for a renewed discovery and application of it: or accept us in a gracious manner; acceptance with God is not on account of the merits of men, but his own grace and mercy; not through any works of righteousness done by them, which are impure and imperfect; but through Christ the Beloved, in whom God is well pleased with the persons, and services, and sacrifices of his people, and receives all for his sake, and which is here asked for; as well as that he would take them into his protection, and open affection. It is, in the original text, only, "receive good" (a); meaning either their good hearts, made so by the grace of God; their broken hearts and contrite spirits, which are sacrifices not despised by him, but acceptable to him through Christ: or their good words they were bid to take, and did take, nod use; their good prayers offered up through Christ, in his name, and in the exercise of faith, which are the Lord's delight: or their good works, done from a principle of love, in faith, to the glory of God, and with which sacrifices he is well pleased: or rather, as the same word signifies, to give as well as receive; see Psa 68:18. It may be rendered, "give good" (b); take good, and give it to us, even all good things, temporal and spiritual, especially all spiritual blessings in Christ; all which good things come from God, and are his gifts; particularly the good Spirit of God, and his grace, which the Lord gives to them that ask; and all supplies of grace from Christ; and more especially, as some interpreters of note explain it, the righteousness of Christ imputed and applied; which goes along with pardoning grace, or the taking away of sin, Zac 3:4; and is the good, the better, the best robe; a gift, the gift of grace; a blessing received from the Lord, and to be asked for of him: so will we render the calves of our lips; not calves, bullocks, and oxen, for sacrifice, as under the law; but the sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving for pardoning grace, for a justifying righteousness, and for all good things: these are the fruit of the lips, as the apostle interprets it, Heb 13:15; and which are sacrifices more acceptable to God than calves of a year old, or an ox or bullock that has horns and hoofs, Psa 69:30. This shows that the text and context refer to Gospel times, to the times of the Messiah; in which the Jews themselves say all sacrifices will cease but the sacrifice of praise. The Targum is, "turn to the worship of the Lord, and say, let it he with thee to forgive sins, and may we be received as good, and the words of our lips be accepted with thee as bullocks for good pleasure upon the altar.'' (a) "accipe bonum", Pagninus, Montanus: Munster, Cocceius, Schmidt, Burkius. (b) "Acceptum confer bonum", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Drusius.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
14:2-3 Hosea composed a model prayer of confession to help his people return to the Lord. God’s prophets not only identified with God in his outrage over Israel’s rebellion; they also identified with the people in their broken condition (see also Dan 9:4-19). • Forgive all our sins: The Israelites should throw themselves upon God’s mercy and grace, freely acknowledging their many sins. • so that we may offer you our praises: Israel’s inclination was to offer animal sacrifices for sin, but the Lord had made it clear that sacrifices were not the solution (see Hos 6:6). Israel should offer God genuine repentance.