CRITICAL NOTES.]
Hosea 14:5.] This love will be manifest in great blessings. Dew] Not the early, but constant, refreshing, and enlivening dew (ch. Hosea 6:3-4; Proverbs 19:12; Job 29:19; Isaiah 26:19); thro which Israel will grow splendidly, deeply root itself, and spread abundantly. Lily] A beautiful and most productive plant.
Hosea 14:6. Smell] like Leb. rendered fragrant by its cedars and spices (Song of Solomon 4:11). “The rooting indicates stability, the spreading of the branches, propagation and the multitude of inhabitants; the splendour of the olive, beauty and glory, and that constant and lasting; the fragrance, hilarity and loveliness” [Rosenmüller].
Hosea 14:7.]. Hence Israel compared to a tree. Return] Those forced to leave shall return and dwell in safety. Others take His shadow, the shadow of the Almighty (Psalms 17:8; Psalms 91:1). Revive as the corn] Enjoy a second life and great increase. Others, will revive, i.e. cause the corn to grow, culture it for support. Scent] The fame of Israel (Song of Solomon 1:3), like wine of Leb., celebrated for aroma and flavour.
REVIVING GRACE.—Hosea 14:5-7
The promise of good is continued. The supply is unfailing, and many images are given to exhibit the manifold grace of God and the results of that grace. We have refreshing influence, luxuriant growth, and social usefulness, in a sevenfold metaphor.
I. Refreshing influence. “I will be as the dew unto Israel.” This is a great contrast to the desolation of sin (ch. Hosea 13:15). Spots most barren revive and flourish by God’s blessing. The “liquid diamonds of the morn” descend on the mown grass to quicken and refresh it (Psalms 72:6). Drops of dew are “fruitful nourishers of herbs and flowers.” Gardens and vineyards parched with heat shall flourish again. This heavenly baptism of dew shall invigorate dying plants, renew vegetation, and beautify the garden of the Lord. “Times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord” shall come, and the Church shall grow in beauty, strength, and fruitfulness. This influence will be—
1. A constant,
2. An efficient,
3. An abundant blessing. “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.”
II. Luxuriant growth. The prophet dwells with delight and at some length on the idea of fruitfulness. This Divine influence is given to promote the growth of the Church. We are chosen to “bring forth fruit, and that our fruit should remain.” God is “glorified” when we “bear much fruit.” What God promises to give we should earnestly desire to have.
1. Beauty in growth. “He shall grow as the lily.” The lily is the fairest of flowers. Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these plants. God seeks to make his people morally beautiful and pure in their lives. The beauty of holiness is comely to God and useful to man. But this beauty is permanent. The beauty of the lily soon decays; but that of “the olive tree” lasts for ever. What a lustre from the life of one “beautified with salvation”! His outward conduct is attractive in every part, and his inward dispositions of love and humility are well-pleasing to God himself. Man transformed into God’s image is more attractive and more durable than natural beauty. “God in the redemption of the soul,” says Emerson, “has solved the problem of restoring to the most original internal beauty.”
Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.
2. Rooted in growth. “Cast forth his roots as Lebanon.” There must be downward as well as upward growth. God’s people must not be all foliage and profession. All spiritual growth is growth at the root. The root of the matter must be within, to “spread its branches,” and manifest its vigour in every good word and work. This alone can give stability to principle and character. The seed without root withered away (Matthew 13:6). We must be rooted and grounded in love (Ephesians 3:17). If only like a lily, we may be wafted by the wind, and in danger of being carried away. But if firm at the root, we shall be immovable as cedars of Lebanon, which storms of centuries could not uproot. “They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever.”
3. Expansive in growth. “His branches shall spread.” True religion will manifest itself in open profession. It leads its possessors to come forth from obscurity, and openly confess Christ before men. “His branches,” his acts and example, are seen in the family, the prayer-meeting, and the house of God. But like the trees of Lebanon, his branches widely spread, to offer shade and shelter from the burning heat and terrible storm. His religion is luxuriant and his heart expansive. He outgrows the narrowness of a creed and the boundaries of a sect. His sympathies and efforts are world-wide: his outstretched arms afford grace and protection to all. “It becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.”
4. Fragrant in growth. “And his smell as Lebanon.” This is twice mentioned, and is worthy of notice. “The scent of Lebanon’s wine has a remarkable aroma.” Christian influence, like the name of Christ, “is as ointment poured forth.” His conversation is refreshing and delightful; his prayers are sweet odours (Revelation 5:8); and his deeds of charity are an odour of good smell (Philippians 4:18). In proportion as a Christian lives near to God, does the smell of life reveal itself to man. “Thanks be to God which maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.” The Church shall yet revive, and be like “the smell of a field which the Lord hath blessed.” “How much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices!” (Song of Solomon 4:10).
III. Social usefulness. The corn and the vine are emblems of Christian usefulness. They are often unpromising in appearance, but revived by the genial influence of the sun and the rain, and bless others with their fruitfulness. In others restored to God there will be a revival of religion. They shall be for protection and progress.
1. The Church blessed shall protect others. “They that dwell under his shadow shall return.” Religion is not selfishness. It is intended for others. Ministers, parents, and Sunday-school teachers have men dwelling under their shadow requiring sympathy and instruction. Where can we flee for help, in exposure and penitence, but to the people of God? If you want to do good to others, and be eminently useful in bringing them to Christ, live to him yourself, and be rich and fragrant in the odour of his grace. Live under his shadow, and others “shall return” to dwell with you. Lord Peterborough said of the home of Fenelon, “If I stay here any longer I shall become a Christian in spite of myself.”
2. The Church blessed shall contribute to the progress of others. “They shall revive the corn.” In whatever sense we take these words, the thought is this—quickened themselves, they shall quicken and advance others. They revive and cultivate everything good and useful. God’s people help on, and never hinder, the progress of the world. They are greater blessings to it than corn and wine. Delivered from sin and misery, they grow to maturity, as “corn” ripens for harvest; bear fruit as “the vine,” and are delightful to all around them, through example, converse, and prayer. Thus the cause of God revives in one place after another; believers ripen for heaven, and grow more useful on earth; God is glorified, and sinners are saved.
HOMILETIC HINTS AND OUTLINES
Dew.
1. The dew falls very quietly and gently.
2. The dew falls very copiously.
3. The dew is very refreshing.
4. The dew is very fertilizing.
5. The dew is very near [Dr. Raleigh].
Beautiful as the dew; sheddingaglory over every common thing. Invisible as dew; not in thunder and power. Penetrating as the dew; insinuating itself into every plant on which it falls, and maintaining its vegetative powers.
1. As dew is the purest water in nature, so the presence of God is the greatest blessing.
2. As dew is necessary to the growth and beauty of herbs and plants, so the blessing of God is necessary for the beauty of the heart and life.
3. As dew falls most copiously in the night, so God’s presence is most felt in darkness and trouble.
Hosea 14:5. As the lily.
1. In silence as a lily.
2. In beauty as a lily.
3. In purity as a lily.
4. In fruitfulness as a lily.
Happy are the pure, whose heart
Freely blooms in every part;
Godly acts are living gems,
Fit for crowns and diadems.
Learn—
1. That God can make his Church beautiful and pleasant.
2. That beauty and apparent excellency are worth little without root and stability.
3. That no pretence of root and stability should hinder visible fruits of grace.
4. That visible fruits of grace must not consist in profession or ostentation, but in living, green, and permanent deeds.
5. That a Church thus fruitful will be acceptable to God, and useful to others. 6 That it is our duty to seek these things, for God has promised to bestow them.
Christian fruitfulness is a manifold and various thing. It is not all of one kind. One life is not meant exactly to be like another life. Each is cast in its own type, and when the life is cast, the type or mould is broken. Of course it is broken, because it was composed in part of circumstances which never were before, nor ever can be again. Let each “planted” soul rejoice to feel rooted in him! and then let each grow freely according to his will—not fearing, but gladly daring to branch, and blossom, and fructify, according to the law of individual life. The lily! the olive tree! the corn! the vine! the cedar! all these are growing in God’s garden; and there is room and dew for them all [Raleigh].
Types of Christian character found in the vegetable kingdom. The lily in its beauty; the olive in its greenness; the cedar in its firmness; the vine with its clusters; and the corn with its bounty; all set forth the variety and completeness of Christian character.
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 14
Hosea 14:5-7. “How full of beauty and poetry is this passage! There is no book so poetic in its character as the Book of inspiration. Apart from the sublimity of the matters treated and the glory of the doctrines, the style itself is enough to make the book precious to every reader. It is a wondrous book; it is the book of God: yea, as Herbert says, ‘the god of books.’ It is a book full of stars: every page blazes with light; from almost every sentence there beams forth some beautiful metaphor, some glorious figure” [Spurgeon].
Smell. Whitfield speaks of one young man who said, “I will not leave my old father’s house, for there is not a chair or a table there but smells of his piety.”