Toward the north. — The prophet utters his message as towards the far land of Assyria and the cities of the Medes to which the ten tribes of Israel had been carried away captive (2 Kings 17:6; 2 Kings 17:23). He had a word of glad tidings for the far-off exiles.
Return, thou backsliding Israel. — It is hard to reproduce the pathetic assonance of the original, “Shubah, mashubah,” — turn back, thou that hast turned away; return, thou renegade.
I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you. — Literally, my face; the face so awful in its wrath.
I will not keep anger for ever. — With perhaps a latent reference to the hope held out in Hosea 3:5, and to the words which Judah had uttered in her hypocrisy (Jeremiah 3:5), but which were truer of Israel.