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The proclamation of the Lord as to His Lordship and guidance. Also His feelings toward them, like a father with his children. In spite of their waywardness He was still their God. They were to follow and serve no other God but He who was their savior and deliverer. He had brought their fathers out of Egypt, through the desert and had consistently provided for them. Even though He demonstrated His great and marvelous care and love for them, they forgot Him. Hos. 13:4-6.
The dealings of the Lord are always merciful. After their return from the captivity in Babylon, Israel, (two tribes) had a revival of the confession of their sin and they worshipped the Lord. At that time they reiterated the history of the deliverance from Egypt and the subsequence disobedience of Israel. Neh. 9:17 In their confession to the Lord once again we are made to understand the heart of the Lord. He is always ready to pardon. It is the goodness of the Lord that leads us to repentance. Their offences were great and serious, yet had they turned to Him, His pardon would have been extended to them. He is gracious, always ready to receive those who will turn to Him. Showering them with His abundant favor. He is mercy personified. Unconditional compassion is His being. It is the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. Lam. 3:22. Slow to anger. When we consider the depths of His rejection by Israel and the extended length of time involved, He is extremely slow to anger and is exceedingly longsuffering. The Lord is of great kindness, showing favor to all who will call upon His name. All of these chrematistics of the Lord would have been abundantly manifest to Israel (ten tribes) had they but turned to Him in repentance.
When He prospered them and greatly blessed them, in their prosperity, they forgot the source of their success. Pride and self sufficiency filled their hearts and they turned away from the very source of their wealth. Therefore, the Lord would become like a wild beast to them, causing them to cease from being a nation. The fault was entirely on their part. Their actions were to their own destruction. Humanity has not changed. Those of our day who persist in their sin, do so to their own destruction. Sin destroys the individual as well as a nation. They understood perfectly the results of idol worship, yet practiced it. For all this promise of impending judgment, He still appealed to them and offered to be their help. How loving and tender He is. What action of others is more devastating than rejection. For all their contrary ways and utter rejection of the Lord His character of love and compassion is aptly demonstrated in His offer of forgiveness and pardon. He would was still willing and offered to receive them as His people. Hos.13:10.