The reality of our heart and what we mourn for
Hos 10:1-8
The house we bought a few years ago came with a beautiful garden including some roses under our bedroom window. All that first summer after our move, it annoyed me that the middle rose produced no flowers and grew like a tangled bramble. I was wondering if we should replace it, but when next spring arrived, it suddenly came out in an orgy of deep red roses. My excitement quickly evaporated, however, when that first flush was not followed by anything more. The wretched plant went back to behaving like a wild bramble for the rest of the year. Hosea’s description of the ‘luxuriant’ vine (Hos 10:1) reminds me of that rose. The Hebrew word (boqeq) is a rare one and has a homonym meaning ‘empty’. Although ‘the vine’, Israel, has fruit (agricultural bounty) for now, one cannot but hear in the sound of the word the emptiness behind it all.
The reality of the heart: luxuriant and empty
Israel’s prosperity led to increased religious devotion (Hos 10:1) in the hope of continuing a life of ease and plenty. However, their worship is full of pagan elements and the people’s heart is ‘faithless’ (ḥalaq; Hos 10:2). This word means ‘smooth’ or ‘slippery’ in a metaphorical sense elsewhere, used of flattering, false speech, of saying one thing and meaning another (Ps 55:22). Appearance and reality do not match in Israel’s life. Behind the seeming piety and religious devotion is an arrogant attitude that does not ‘fear’ (in the sense of revere) God, nor acknowledge His authority as king (‘We have no king’), nor has any use for Him or for the human king (‘What can he do for us?’; Hos 10:3).[1] Israelites’ words are false oaths, making commitments they do not intend to keep. Neither is ‘judgment’ (i.e. justice, mishpat) in the land the life-giving verdict that ensures a just and fair society. Rather, continuing the agricultural imagery, it is like a poisonous weed (Hos 10:4) that destroys cultivated plants and a grain harvest.
Israel’s misplaced trust
Moreover, Israel is so enamoured with their form of worship, especially the golden calf at Bethel (Beth-aven is Hosea’s nickname),[2] that they will mourn its loss with the same intense grief as the people mourned the capture of the ark centuries earlier (note the wording common to both about the glory departing; Hos 10:5 cf. 1 Sam 4:21-22). The Lord must remove this idol (carried as spoil to the great king of Assyria) to make the people see their misplaced trust (Hos 10:6).[3] The end for Israel and its king (Samaria as the capital stands for the country; Hos 10:7) is near. The picture of Israel as a twig or chip of wood floating away on the current well expresses the country’s insignificance, adrift and swept away on the tide of the mighty Assyrian empire (v.7). The image of disused altars overgrown by thorns and weeds and the terrified death wish (Hos 10:8) are intimations of devastation and horrors to come.
The reality of our heart and what we mourn for
Two issues are particularly highlighted in our reading. One is the contrast between Israel’s seeming piety and their inward emptiness, together with their toxic attitude. In our context, it is possible to go along to church and soak up the encouragement of worship and uplifting sermons (much like Israel worshipped to get God’s blessings) but resist an obedient life that acknowledges God as king. Such an attitude shows itself in an absence of godliness in relationships: gossip, easily taking offense, lack of generosity, petty criticism, envy, selfishness and so on. Second, God’s people are deeply attached to their idol (the golden calf), which represents God’s presence to them and is seen as the guarantor of their hopes for flourishing.[4] Asking what we look to as a guarantee for our wellbeing, where we see that ‘sure thing’ that will enable us to be happy and fulfilled can highlight where our ‘gods’ might be. There are, of course, plenty of good things we may enjoy even as we follow God faithfully. The question is the ‘ordering of our loves’, as Augustine taught it, what we give priority and our heart to. Perhaps the best indication of where we stand is our attitude when the things we love and value are taken away. Are we inconsolable or do we look to the Lord even in our loss or disappointment?
[1] Interpreters are divided over how best to read Hos 10:3. Are the references to the human king or to God as king? Further, is the tone genuinely repentant (i.e. they did not revere God and that is why they now have no king as they go into captivity) or is it sarcastic? Given that the chapter elsewhere shows no sign of repentance and the context continues the description of Israel’s false attitude (false oaths and injustices in the next verse, Hos 10:4), a sarcastic tone fits the verse better. Since Israel’s kings were not appointed by God’s will (Hos 8:4), the explanation that Israel did not acknowledge the human king (‘we have no king’) because they did not fear/revere God (Hos 10:3) makes no sense. Thus, I take the reference of ‘we have no king’ to mean God. This is similar to how the Book of Judges assesses the moral-spiritual chaos in Israel as a result of not having a king (i.e. not acknowledging God as king) and everyone doing what is right in their own eyes (Judg 17:6; 21:25). Whether the second reference to a king is about a human king or still about God is difficult to assess. In any case, the people find either or both of no use to them. It should also be noted that this is not a speech that Israel would have made – they are outwardly pious and say they know the Lord (Hos 8:2), but the prophet puts words into their mouths to describe their inner attitude.
[2] Beth-el means ‘house of God’ while Beth-aven means ‘house of sin/wickedness. Since Bethel had the main shrine where the golden calf was set up (1 Kings 12:26-30), it was the centre of paganised worship even if the people understood the calf to be a visible manifestation of God’s presence.
[3] There is no known Assyrian king called Jareb, so this is better translated as a descriptor rather than as a personal name. Originally, the Hebrew Bible was written as a consonantal text without the vowels; the latter were added later. Thus, reading the consonantal text with a slightly different arrangement of vowels gives us the meaning ‘great king’ (reading melekh yarev ‘King Jareb’ as malki rav ‘great king’).
[4] It is important to note that even though the golden calf is an idol and an alien god in our understanding, Israel seemed to have thought of it not as a different god from Yahweh, Israel’s God, but as a representation of Him in the form of a calf. This is reflected in Jeroboam I’s words when he set up the calves (one in Bethel and one in Dan) and said that these were Israel’s gods who brought them out of Egypt in the exodus (1 Kings 12:28).
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