{"id":76363,"date":"2020-06-24T17:49:42","date_gmt":"2020-06-24T14:49:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=76363"},"modified":"2020-06-24T17:49:42","modified_gmt":"2020-06-24T14:49:42","slug":"points-to-ponder-hosea-10","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/points-to-ponder-hosea-10\/","title":{"rendered":"Points to Ponder – Hosea 10"},"content":{"rendered":"
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  1. A ‘ravaged’ vine?<\/em> (verse 1). Some translate this phrase – <\/span>gefen bokek<\/span><\/em> – as positive. If it means a fruitful vine, the prophecy essentially means – however good it is now, that\u2019s how bad it will become. According to the height of the expectations, such will be the depth of disappointment at the actual behavior. And if it\u2019s bad, indeed, a ravaged vine – well, then, it\u2019s bad.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Anarchy in the kingdom<\/em>. There\u2019s no fear of God, and no respect for the kingship. This is the situation in the kingdom of Israel from the end of the days of Jeroboam II until the destruction. Rebellions, internal and external. A civil war, and also senseless violence. More details? See II Kings 15.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Pulling their weight?<\/em> Hosea calls Ephraim \u201ca trained heifer\u201d (v. 11). 79 chapters ago, in Jeremiah, Ephraim sounded chastened: \u201cI can hear Ephraim lamenting: You have chastised me, and I am chastised Like a calf that has not been broken. Receive me back, let me return, For You, O LORD, are my God\u201d (Jeremiah 31:18). A trained, or broken heifer knows how to pull the yoke of the plow. An unbroken one does not pull their weight. So has Israel been trained, and do they know how to accept authority and pull their weight? And if so – just which yoke are they pulling? The yoke of Heaven, or the yoke of the subjugating nations? That is the difficult question.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Idolatrous calves in the background<\/em>. In the kingdom of Israel, the worship of God involves calves. The founder of the kingdom, Jeroboam ben Navat, established two temples with golden calves. The central one was in Beit El. You can read about the calf, the temple and what will happen to them in the destruction in verses 5 and 15. And perhaps the image of Ephraim as a calf, was inspired by those statues.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. The way it might have been<\/em>. This is how the field of a flourishing kingdom of Israel might have looked: sowing justice. Enjoying the fruits of righteousness. And with a blessed connection with God: \u201cSow righteousness for yourselves; Reap the fruits of goodness; Break for yourselves betimes fresh ground Of seeking the LORD, So that you may obtain a teacher of righteousness.\u201d (verse 12). It\u2019s really too bad that that\u2019s not how it turned out.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","image":{"ID":53645,"id":53645,"title":"general-qs-points to ponder","filename":"general-qs-points-to-ponder.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/points-to-ponder-chapter-9\/general-qs-points-to-ponder\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"general-qs-points-to-ponder","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":53644,"date":"2019-04-13 21:49:41","modified":"2019-04-13 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