Hosea 6:8

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Hosea 6:4-11

Two things, two evil things, both Judah and Ephraim are here charged with, and justly accused of:? I. That they were not firm to their own convictions, but were unsteady, unstable as water, Hos. 6:4, 5. O Ephraim! what shall I do unto thee? O Judah! what shall I do unto thee? This is a strange expression. Can Infinite Wisdom be at a loss what to do? Can it be nonplussed, or put upon taking new measures? By no means; but God speaks after the manner of men, to show how absurd and unreasonable... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Hosea 6:8

Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity ,.... The chief city in the land of Gilead, which lay beyond Jordan, inhabited by Gad and Reuben, and the half tribe of Manasseh; and so belonged to the ten tribes, whose sins are here particularly observed. It had its name from the country, or the country from that, or both from the mountain of the same name. It is thought to be Ramothgilead, a city of refuge, and put for all the cities of refuge in those parts, which were inhabited by priests... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Hosea 6:8

Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity - In this place Jacob and Laban made their covenant, and set up a heap of stones, which was called Galeed, the heap of testimony; and most probably idolatry was set up here. Perhaps the very heap became the object of superstitious adoration. read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Hosea 6:8

Verse 8 I shall first speak of the subject, and then something shall be added in its place of the words. The Prophet here notices, no doubt, something special against Gilead, which through the imperfection of history is now to us obscure. But in the first place, we must remember, that Gilead was one of the cities of refuge; and the Levites possessed these cities, which were destined for fugitives. If any one killed a man by chance, that the relatives might not take revenge, the Lord provided... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Hosea 6:4-9

Israel's inconstant. The Lord had just comforted the truly godly portion of the people; he now turns aside and expostulates with the ungodly. Judah as well as Ephraim—the two tribes and the ten—fell far short, unspeakably short, of the picture of penitence, with the annexed promises, which he had just placed before them. Their state had become so desperate that destruction had become their desert, not because of his severity, but their own sin, themselves being judges. I. THE ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Hosea 6:6-11

Religion and irreligion. In the verse immediately preceding, God has spoken of sending his prophets to "hew," and his words to "slay," and of visiting the nation with a sunrise of judgment. And now, in the remainder of the chapter, he proceeds to justify these threatenings by setting forth the reason why he felt compelled to deal with the Hebrews in this fashion. I. THE NATURE OF TRUE RELIGION . ( Hosea 6:6 , Hosea 6:7 ) It is described here in a twofold manner. 1. ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Hosea 6:7-11

The broken covenant. Israel had broken covenant with God. In the rupture of this bond was ruptured also the bond which bound society together. Fearful wickedness was the result. I. THE BOND BROKEN WITH GOD . ( Hosea 6:7 ) 1. The primal sin . "They, like Adam, have transgressed the covenant." Our first parents were placed under arrangements involving in them the essentials of a covenant. Through breach of this covenant came "death into our world, and all our woe." ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Hosea 6:8

Divine institutions corrupted. "Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity, and is polluted with blood." It is supposed that Gilead here means Ramoth-gilead, the metropolis of the mountainous region beyond Jordan and south of the fiver Jabbok, known by the name of Gilead ( Joshua 21:28 ; 1 Kings 6:18 ). It was here that Jacob and Laban entered into a sacred covenant with each other. It was once a very sacred place; it was one of the celebrated cities of refuge ( Deuteronomy 20:1-20 ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Hosea 6:8-9

In these two verses the prophet adduces proof of that faithlessness with which he had just charged Israel. Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity, and is polluted with blood. The latter clause is more literally rendered, foot-printed or foot-tracked from blood . Two things require consideration here—the place and its pollution. Gilead is sometimes a mountain range, and sometimes the mountainous region east of the Jordan; it has Bashan on the north, the Arabian plateau on the east,... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Hosea 6:8

Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity - If we regard “Gilead,” (as it elsewhere is,) as the country beyond Jordan, where the two tribes and a half dwelt, this will mean that the whole land was banded in one, as one city of evil-doers. It had an unity, but of evil. As the whole world has been pictured as divided between “the city of God” and the city of the devil, consisting respectively of the children of God and the children of the devil; so the whole of Gilead may be represented as one... read more

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