Hosea 8:1

The shift of emphasis in this chapter is to the broken covenant between God and Israel, as outlined in the Decalogue and the entire Pentateuch. The long prior existence of the Decalogue and the whole law of Moses in written form is the stark background against which every line of Hosea is written. Nothing in the prophecy makes any sense at all without the situation provided by that background. In vain, the critics have attempted to get rid of the stern echoes of God's written covenant through the employment of every device known to them. The echo of that holy Law which Israel had wantonly broken and disobeyed occurs in every other line of Hosea's entire writing. As Ralph Smith observed:

Chapter 8 is a summary of Israel's sins, especially related to covenant breaking, in which those who "sow the wind reap the whirlwind."[1]

But this chapter actually takes up no new theme; it is really a continuation of the sad lament and prophecy of forthcoming destruction which is the unique theme of the entire prophecy. Despite this, there are many new glimpses into the condition of Israel which are afforded in this chapter.

Hosea 8:1

"Set the trumpet to thy mouth. As an eagle, he cometh against the house of Jehovah, because they have transgressed my covenant, and trespassed against my law."

"Set the trumpet to thy mouth ..." A glance at the American Standard Version text will reveal that these are not full sentences in the Hebrew, the translators providing certain words which seem to be implied. If we were to leave out the supplied words, the text would read something like this: "Trumpet to mouth ... as an eagle against the house of Jehovah, etc." The meaning is clear enough. The first staccato sentence commands that a general alarm and warning be sounded.

"As an eagle he cometh against the house of Jehovah ..." Who is the eagle? It really makes no difference. Ward thought:

"The eagle was a familiar Assyrian state symbol; and since Assyria was the obvious threat to Israel's sovereignty in the eighth century B.C., there is every reason to conclude that the eagle symbolizes Assyria here."[2]

Whether Ward's comment is correct, or Keil's understanding of the eagle as "the judgment of Jehovah,"[3] the meaning is exactly the same either way, because God used Assyria as his chosen instrument in bringing about the destruction and captivity of the northern Israel, that, in fact, being his special object in the commission to Jonah; because, after their temporary repentance following the mission of Jonah, Assyria was preserved until the time was ripe for God to use that nation against Israel.

The actual figure of "eagle" could possibly be that of a "vulture," as the place is rendered in some translations. Neither the common turkey buzzard, nor the American bald eagle, however, is the actual bird used in this metaphor.

"It is the griffon vulture which is mentioned. The slaughter has already taken place, since this bird is a scavenger of carrion.[4] So Job, referring to this very eagle, writes: `Her young ones suck up blood; and where the slain are, there is she" (Job 39:30).'"[5]

Thus, the movement of the eagle against Israel here is spoken of prophetically, the destruction as sure to occur as if it had already done so.

"Against the house of Jehovah ..." This does not mean the temple, nor the land of Israel; but it means that the destruction is directed against the people of Israel. They are "God's house" as used here. Although directed especially against the northern Israel, they were nevertheless considered "God's house" because they were a part of the congregation of the Lord.[6] The New Testament writers also used this same terminology in speaking of ancient Israel (Hebrews 3:2).

"Because they have transgressed my covenant, and trespassed against my law ..." What is this? if not the Pentateuch and the Decalogue. Why should God at that particular moment in history have destroyed Israel for idolatry and associated sins, and have refrained from destroying Assyria and all the other pagan nations for doing the very same things? The only answer lies in the prior existence of God's own sacred covenant with Israel and the specific terms of it spelled out in the Decalogue and the writings of Moses. It is difficult indeed to refrain from designating the blindness of many scholars in this matter as willful and self-induced. Without the prior fact of the Law of Moses and the tables of the Decalogue, Hosea's prophecy has no meaning at all. Furthermore, in this very chapter, as we shall see, Hosea spelled out specific instances in which the sacred covenant had been ignored and disobeyed. Israel had incurred the greater wrath of God because they had covenanted with the Lord to enter into his plans for redeeming all men in the eventual coming of the blessed Messiah into our world; and, in order to prevent the total frustration of that purpose, God punished and removed the northern kingdom and severely disciplined the southern kingdom.