---
title: "Clarke"
description: "Verse Hosea 9:1. Rejoice not — Do not imitate the heathens, nor serve their idols. Do not prostitute thy soul and body in practicing their impurities. Hit"
image: "/images/missing.jpg"
url: "https://realbiblebelievers.com/commentaries/clarkes-commentary/hosea/9"
---

Verse [Hosea 9:1](../../../kjv/hosea/9/1). ***Rejoice not*** — Do not imitate the heathens, nor serve their idols. Do not *prostitute* thy soul and body in practicing their impurities. Hitherto thou hast acted as a *common harlot*, who goes even to the common *threshing places*; connects herself with the meanest, in order to get a *hire* even of the grain there threshed out.

Verse [Hosea 9:3](../../../kjv/hosea/9/3). ***But Ephraim shall return to Egypt*** — See on [Hosea 8:13](../../../kjv/hosea/8/13).

Verse [Hosea 9:4](../../../kjv/hosea/9/4). ***As the bread of mourners*** — By the law, a dead body, and every thing that related to it, the house where it lay, and the persons who touched it, were all polluted and unclean, and whatever they touched was considered as defiled. See [Deuteronomy 26:14](../../../kjv/deuteronomy/26/14); [Numbers 19:11](../../../kjv/numbers/19/11); [Numbers 19:13-14](../../../kjv/numbers/19/13-14).
***For their bread for their soul*** — The bread for the common support of *life* shall not be sanctified to them by having the *first-fruits* presented at the temple.

Verse [Hosea 9:5](../../../kjv/hosea/9/5). ***What will ye do in the solemn day*** — When ye shall be despoiled of every thing by the Assyrians; for the Israelites who remained in the land after its subjection to the Assyrians did worship the true God, and offer unto him the sacrifices appointed by the law, though in an imperfect and schismatic manner; and it was a great mortification to them to be deprived of their religious *festivals* in a land of strangers. See *Calmet*.

Verse [Hosea 9:6](../../../kjv/hosea/9/6). ***For, lo, they are gone*** — Many of them fled to Egypt to avoid the *destruction*; but they went there only to *die*.
***Memphis*** — Now *Cairo*, or *Kahira*, found them *graves*.
***The pleasant*****places*****for their silver*** — The fine estates or *villas* which they had purchased by their money, being now neglected and uninhabited, are covered with *nettles*; and even in their *tabernacles, thorns* and *brambles* of different kinds grow. These are the fullest marks of *utter desolation*.

Verse [Hosea 9:7](../../../kjv/hosea/9/7). ***The days of visitation*** — Of punishment *are come*.
***The prophet*****is*****a fool*** — Who has pretended to foretell, on Divine authority, peace and plenty; for behold all is desolation.
***The spiritual man*** — איש הרוח *ish haruach, the man of spirit*, who was *ever pretending* to be under a *Divine afflatus*.
**Is*****mad*** — He is now *enraged* to see every thing falling out contrary to his prediction.

Verse [Hosea 9:8](../../../kjv/hosea/9/8). ***The watchman of Ephraim*** — The true prophet, *was* *with*-faithful to, *God*.
***The prophet*** — The *false prophet* is the *snare of a fowler*; is continually deceiving the people, and leading them into *snares*, and infusing into their hearts deep hatred against God and his worship.

Verse [Hosea 9:9](../../../kjv/hosea/9/9). ***They have deeply corrupted*****themselves,*****as in the days**********of Gibeah*** — This relates to that shocking rape and murder of the Levite's wife, mentioned [Judges 19:16](../../../kjv/judges/19/16), &c.

Verse [Hosea 9:10](../../../kjv/hosea/9/10). ***I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness*** — While they were faithful, they were as *acceptable* to me as *ripe grapes* would be to a *thirsty traveller* in the desert.
***I saw your fathers*** — Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, Caleb, Samuel, c.
***As the first ripe*** — Those grapes, whose bud having come first, and being exposed most to the sun, have been the *first ripe* upon the tree which tree was now in the vigour of youth, and bore fruit for the *first time*. A metaphor of the *rising prosperity* of the Jewish state.
**But*****they went to Baal-Peor*** — The same as the Roman *Priapus*, and worshipped with the most impure rites.
***And*****their*****abominations were according as they loved.*** — Or, "they became as abominable as the *object* of their love." So Bp. *Newcome*. And this was superlatively abominable.

Verse [Hosea 9:11](../../../kjv/hosea/9/11). ***Their glory shall fly away*** — It shall suddenly spring away from them, and return no more.
***From the birth*** — "So that there shall be no birth, no carrying in the womb, no conception."-*Newcome*. They shall cease to glory in their *numbers*; for no *children* shall be *born*, no woman shall be *pregnant*, for none shall *conceive*. Here judgment blasts the very *germs* of population.

Verse [Hosea 9:12](../../../kjv/hosea/9/12). ***Though they bring up their children*** — And were they even to have children, I would *bereave them* of them; for, when I *depart from them*, they shall have all manner of wretchedness and wo.

Verse [Hosea 9:13](../../../kjv/hosea/9/13). ***Ephraim, as I saw Tyrus*** — Tyre was strongly situated on a rock in the sea; Samaria was on a mountain, both strong and pleasant. But the strength and beauty of those cities shall not save them from destruction.
***Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the murderer.*** — The people shall be destroyed, or led into captivity by the Assyrians. Of the grandeur, wealth, power, &c., of Tyre, see the notes on Ezekiel, [Ezekiel 27:2-25](../../../kjv/ezekiel/27/2-25).

Verse [Hosea 9:14](../../../kjv/hosea/9/14). ***Give them, O Lord: what wilt thou give?*** — There is an uncommon beauty in these words. The prophet, seeing the evils that were likely to fall upon his countrymen, begins to make intercession for them; but when he had formed the first part of his petition, "Give them, O Lord!" the prophetic light discovered to him that the petition would not be answered and that God was about to give them something widely different. Then changing his petition, which the Divine Spirit had interrupted, by signifying that he must not proceed in his request, he asks the question, then, "What wilt thou give them?" and the answer is, "Give them a miscarrying womb, and dry breasts." And this he is commanded to announce. It is probable that the Israelites had prided themselves in the *fruitfulness* of their families, and the numerous *population* of their country. God now tells them that this shall be no more; their wives shall be barren, and their land cursed.

Verse [Hosea 9:15](../../../kjv/hosea/9/15). ***All their wickedness*****is*****in Gilgal*** — though we are not directly informed of the fact, yet we have reason to believe they had been guilty of some scandalous practices of idolatry in *Gilgal*. See [Hosea 4:15](../../../kjv/hosea/4/15).
***For there I hated them*** — And therefore he determined, "for the wickedness of their doings, to drive them out of his house," so that they should cease to be a part of the heavenly family, either as *sons* or *servants*; for he would "love them no more," and bear with them no longer.

Verse [Hosea 9:16](../../../kjv/hosea/9/16). ***Ephraim is smitten*** — The thing being determined, it is considered as already done.
***Their root is dried up*** — They shall never more be a kingdom. And they never had any political form from their captivity by the Assyrians to the present day.
***Yea, though they bring forth*** — [Hosea 9:11](../../../kjv/hosea/9/11); *"*[Hosea 9:12](../../../kjv/hosea/9/12)*"*.

Verse [Hosea 9:17](../../../kjv/hosea/9/17). ***My God will cast them away*** — Here the prophet seems to apologize for the severity of these denunciations; and to vindicate the Divine justice, from which they proceeded. It is -
***Because they did not hearken unto him*** — That "my God," the fountain of mercy and kindness, "will cast them away."
***And they shall be wanderers among the nations.*** — And where they have *wandered* to, who can tell? and in what nations to be found, no man knows. *Wanderers* they are; and perhaps even now unknown to themselves. Some have thought they have found them in one country; some, in another; and a very pious writer, in a book entitled, *The* *Star in the West*, thinks he has found their descendants in the *American Indians*; among whom he has discovered many *customs*, apparently the same with those of the *ancient Jews*, and commanded in the *Law*. He even thinks that the word *Je-ho-vah* is found in their solemn festal cry, *Ye-ho-wa-he*. If they be this long lost people, they are utterly unknown to themselves; their origin being lost in a very remote antiquity.

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