30.
A special prophecy directed at the leadership of Israel, the priest and the king promised that judgment would come upon them. Likewise, the nation of Israel was not excluded. Religiously and politically they had been a snare to Mizpah, meaning the watch tower. Their vision of the true and living Lord was dead. They no longer were on guard against false gods. They had spread a net over Tabor, meaning broken or fragile. They had taken advantage of, and misled the weak by ensnaring them in their false worship. Hos. 5:1 These who have departed from the truth, (the revolters), defying the will of the Lord, are prolific in their sacrifices trying to appease their gods. The Lord in His faithfulness had chastised and reproved them many times. However, they persisted in their waywardness. Hos. 5:2
The extreme to which they had gone may be noted in the words of Jeremiah. They are called grievous, harden and persistent rebels, whose purpose was to slander and blaspheme the Lord. With their corrupt way they had hardened themselves against the Lord like brass and iron. Jer. 6:28.
There is nothing hidden from the eyes of the Lord. Hide their sin as they may, mankind cannot keep the Lord from knowing that which is executed in the secret place. He took into consideration their actions and determined that He would destroy them. Amos 9:8 He knew the defiance of Israel/Ephraim and their defilement of the sin of adulterous worship. Hos. 5:3 There was no need for the Lord to justify the actions that He was about to take for their great wickedness was blatantly conducted in view of all.
There was no mind among them to change their vile way and return unto the Lord. The spirit of idolatry had so completely overwhelmed and conquered them that they could not escape its deadly hold. Any real knowledge that they had possessed of the Lord was erased from their memories. Their pride, their unwillingness to rightly assess their deplorable spiritual condition was to be the cause of their down fall.Hos. 5:4 They fit the condition found in Ps. 10:4. To save face, they will not admit to their unclean ways. Any and all thoughts of the Lord, they reject from their minds. They are about to know the rejection of the Lord in casting them out of their country. Pride precedes destruction and a prideful, haughty spirit is a sure sign of a fall to come. Prov. 16:18 Most unfortunately, not only will they fall and be separated from the Lord but they will also have great influence on Judah/Jerusalem and as a result will cause them also to fall. Hos. 5:5 Everyone has a sphere of influence, perhaps some smaller than others but even so our actions will have an effect on one another. May it always be for good.