I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love: and I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid meat unto them.
Ver. 4. I drew them with cords of a man] Not of a beast; though they have deserved to be hampered as unruly heifers, and to be yoked and ruled over with rigour, to be tamed and taken down a link lower, yet I, out of my philanthropy, yea, out of singular grace, have dealt civilly, nay, courteously with them, in an amicable and amiable way, and not as I might have done out of my sovereignty, and according to my justice. I drew them by the cords of a man, that is, 1. Gently and favourably; suiting myself to their dispositions (which are often as different as their faces), hiring them to obedience, afflicting them in measure, with the rods of men, 2 Samuel 7:14, fitted to the weakness of men. If God should plead against us with his great power, as Job speaks, Job 23:6, it would soon grind us to powder; but he hath no such design; he correcteth his children, vel ad demonstrationem debitae miseriae vel ad emendationem labilis vitro, vel ad exercitationem necessariae patientiae, saith Augustine, Tract. in Joan. 124; ad exercitium non ad exitium, saith another ancient, to refine and not to ruin them. 2. Rationally, by cogent arguments and motives, befitting the nature of a man; able to convince them and set them down with right reason, would they but consider, Deuteronomy 32:29, would they but be wise and weigh things aright. This God wisheth they would do, calleth them to reason the case with him, Isaiah 1:18, pleads with them in a friendly way, Jeremiah 2:31, and then appeals to their own consciences, whether they have dealt well with him, yea or no, Isaiah 5:3, making them read the sentence against themselves, as did Judas the traitor, Matthew 27:4, and those Pharisees, Matthew 21:40. He bespeaks them, after most clear conviction, as Isaiah 46:8. Remember this, and show yourselves men; bring it again to mind, O ye transgressors. Most people are led on in a continued hurry of lusts and passions, and never bethink themselves, as 1 Kings 8:47, never say so much as, What have I done? Si haec duo tecum verba reputasses quid ago? saith Cicero to Nevius: Hadst thou but bethought thyself of those few words, What have I done? thou wouldst never have been so covetous a cormorant. Oh, could men have but so much power over their passions and lusts as to get alone and weigh God's ways, much good might be done upon them; but for want of this, Fertur equis auriga, &c., they rush into all excess of riot, as a horse into the battle; yea, they are so far unmanned as to think that they have reason to be mad, and that tbere is no small sense in sinning. "I do well to be angry, even unto death," John 4:9 .
With bands of love] Heb, thick cords, cart ropes (as it is rendered, Isa 5:18), ropes of many wreaths, twisted and intertwined with love, that sweetest attractive. So Jeremiah 31:3, "With lovingkindness have I drawn thee"; and Isaiah 63:9, "In his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old." He gave them a law, the sum of which was nothing but love; and multiplied mercies upon them without measure, as is amply set forth by those holy Levites, Nehemiah 9:4,5. Now, mercy commands duty; and every new deliverance is a new tie to obedience. Love should have love, publicans and sinners yield that, Matthew 5:46. Yea, love should show itself strong as death, Song of Solomon 8:6. Jonathan would have died for his David; David for his Absalom; Priscilla and Aquila for Paul, Romans 16:4. Christ out of his love did die for his people. Have I but one life to lose for Christ? said that holy martyr (Cos amoris amor). Let men take heed how they sin against love, for this is the greatest aggravation of sin; this is bestial, this is like unruly horses in a team, to break the gears, to snap in sunder the traces that should hold them. Such yokeless sons of Belial shall one day be held by the cords of their own sin, and whipped with those cords of conviction, that they would not be drawn by. Shall the harlot's hands be bands, her words cords to draw men to destruction, and shall God stretch out his hand all day long to them to no purpose? Shall he lose his sweet words upon them? &c. Peter's heart burst, and he brake out in weeping, when he saw love sparkling in Christ's looks, Mark 14:72, and considered how he had burst asunder the bands of love, sinned against such manifestations of mercy, wiped off all his comfortables for the present, drew from Christ those piercing quick questions, Lovest thou me? yea, but dost love me indeed? O let the cords of God's kindness draw us nearer to him, hold us closer; to sin against mercy is to sin against humanity; and as no surfeit is more dangerous than that of bread, so no judgment is more terrible than that which grows out of love felt and slighted.
And I was to them as they that take off the yoke on the jaws, &c.] i.e. on their neck; albeit it seemeth by that law, made for not muzzling the ox that treadeth out the corn, that those creatures when they wrought were muzzled or haltered up; and that halter fastened to the yoke that was upon their necks. The sense is this, I unyoked them often to give them meat, as the good husbandman doth that is merciful to his beast; he lifts up the yoke that lies hard upon its neck, leads it to the manger, lays food before it. So dealt God by this people all along from the wilderness, and forward; not suffering them to abide, iugiter, sub iugis Gentium, long under their enemy's yoke; but delivering them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them, Ezekiel 34:27. Christ also hath delivered his out of the hands of those that hated them, and lay hard upon them; as the devil is a hard taskmaster, that neither takes off the yoke nor lays meat; gives no rest or refreshment to his drudges and dromedaries; but acts them and agitates them day and night, &c. Now, those that are his, Christ brings them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may do works meet for repentance, that weigh just as much as repentance doth, Acts 26:18; Acts 26:20, and so find rest to their souls; provided that they take and keep Christ's yoke upon them (not thinking to live as they list more, saying, as those libertines in Jeremiah 7:10, "we are delivered to do all these abominations") and learn of him to be meek and lowly in heart, Matthew 11:29, so shall they soon find Christ's yoke easy, and his burden light, Matthew 11:30. And of this easy yoke of Christ Luther understands this text in Hosea; and thereupon discourseth of the law's rigour, and gospel's relaxation, according to that of Austin, Lex iubet, gratia iuvat; the law commandeth, but the gospel helpeth; God by his Spirit assisting, and farther accepting pence for pounds, the will for the work, the desire for the deed done, and laying meat before us, meat that the world knows not of, hidden manna, the convivium iuge ever flowing banquet of a good conscience.