Hosea 10:1-15
Their bread is described in Hosea 9:4 as "bread for their soul". "Israel . . . bringeth forth fruit unto himself," echoes our v. 1. Dear friends, what use do we make of that which the Lord has been able to entrust to us: strength, intelligence, memory, leisure, material goods . . .? Are they for His service or for the satisfaction of our own desires?
Vv. 5-8 comment in a caustic tone on the disappearance of the golden calf from Bethel (here called Beth-aven), the turmoil among the idolatrous priests and also the people, then the destruction of Samaria and the fate of its last king, whose name "Hoshea" corresponds to that of the prophet. But besides, we find here an allusion to Israel’s distress when passing through the terrible final tribulation. The Lord, on His way to the cross, would quote the end of v. 8 to the daughters of Jerusalem (Luke 23:30), "The days will come . . .". Ah! Was there not still time to sow in righteousness so as to reap a harvest according to godliness, to dig a new patch of ground, to begin a new life – the product of a new birth? V. 12 is solemnly addressed to all those who put off the question of their salvation to a later date: "It is time to seek the LORD." Tomorrow you may not have the opportunity (Isaiah 55:6-7).