CRITICAL NOTES.
Hosea 11:10. They] A remnant should walk after the Lord. Roar] in judgments on the foe (Isaiah 31:4; Jeremiah 25:26-30). Tremble] Hasten, like birds in rapid flight from western parts called the sea (Isaiah 11:11; Isaiah 24:14; Zechariah 8:7).
Hosea 11:11. As a dove] Ch. Hosea 7:11; Isaiah 60:8. Houses] from whence they will not be driven again (Ezekiel 28:26). The idea is this:—when God shall call, like the roaring of a lion, in loud and far-reaching tones, Israel will hear, return, walk with God, and remain faithful to him.
HOMILETICS
THE PENITENT’S RETURN TO GOD.—Hosea 11:10-11
God will pity his people once more. They shall hasten to him in fear and trembling, be recalled from exile and bondage, and restored to their inheritance and their God.
I. It is a return from great distance. Man wilfully departed from God, lives now without desire to return, and is alienated from God in life and affection. Distance from God is the moral condition, the natural law, and the penal consequence of sin. “Why standest thou afar off, O Lord?”
II. It is a return in deep penitence. “They shall tremble as a bird.” The contrite heart trembles in fear. The sinner almost despairs in remembrance of his desert, and the holiness of God; or if moved by fear, he is conscious of guilt, greatly mourns his sin, and returns to confess to God and cry, “God be merciful to me a sinner.”
III. It is a return in swift obedience. “As a dove out of the land of Assyria,” remarkable for its swift flight, its rapid and constant speed when flying to its cot. The sinner makes haste from his danger to his rest. There is no time, no reason for delay. God draws, and he runs. Like the prodigal, he resolves and executes. “I will arise and go.” No sooner said than done. Like the manslayer of old, he has “fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us.”
IV. It is a return through severe discipline. The inward experiences and the outward conditions of the penitent have been most bitter and distressing. But many have been brought through severe trials and strange providences to God. Pain and sufferings have punished them for their sins. God has not only roared, but torn them to the astonishment of others. The call has been loud and the impressions deep. In fear and trembling, they have returned to “the lion of the tribe of Judah.”
V. It is a return to intimate friendship with God. “They shall walk after the Lord.” Walking with God includes friendship with God; for how can two walk together except there be agreement between them? It includes obedience, love, and constant activity in God’s service. Some turn away and flee from God. They are not near in thought nor deed. But the humbled penitents wish to please God and walk with him. They desire the abiding presence, and seek to dwell in “the everlasting habitations” of God. They follow after him with intense thirst and determined pursuit. The will, the word, and the character of God are their constant rule and delight. Many nations shall say, We will walk in his paths (Micah 4:2).
ISRAEL’S RETURN TO GOD PREDICTED
God would not destroy all Israel, a remnant should be preserved and walk after him. Hence many take the words as a prediction of the future restoration and return of God’s people.
I. They shall be gathered from distant places. “From the west,” “out of Egypt,” and “out of the land of Assyria.” No distance destroys God’s love, no bondage limits his power, and no enemy can keep his people when he calls them to himself. Many shall come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of God (Matthew 8:11).
II. They shall be joined together in great numbers. “As a dove out of the land of Egypt.” Doves not only fly swiftly, but flock together. The sympathy of numbers is great in every undertaking, but especially in the service of God, where that sympathy is purified and rightly directed. “Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as doves to their windows” (Isaiah 60:8)? are words which describe the future converts to God.
III. They shall be restored to great privileges.
1. Fellowship with God. “They shall walk after the Lord.” They would be many days without leaders and sacrifices, but afterward should return and seek the Lord God and David their king (ch. Hosea 3:4-5). They would live in loyal obedience to Jehovah, their lawful sovereign, and walk with him in sweet friendship and joy.
2. Security in their own habitations. “I will place them in their houses.” They would dwell securely, not in defenced cities, but in their homes, under their own vines and fig-trees (Micah 4:4). Man, like a bird, needs a shelter. Security and peace are only found in God. He can place them in Christ, in the Christian Church, and in his eternal kingdom. “In my Father’s house are many mansions … I go to prepare a place for you.”
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 11
Hosea 11:10-11. Repentance.
At length corrected by the filial rod
Of his offended, but his gracious God,
And lashed from sins to sighs; and by degrees
From sighs to vows, from vows to bended knees;
From bended knees to a true pensive breast;
From thence to torments not to be expressed;
Returns, and (from his sinful self exiled)
Finds a glad Father, he a welcome child. [Quarles.]