Bible Verse Lookup
Hos 11:8
Chapter 11
8
How can I give you up, Ephraim? Can I abandon you like Admah or make you like Zeboiim? My heart is troubled inside me,and I am moved with compassion.
How can I give you up, Ephraim? Can I abandon you like Admah or make you like Zeboiim? My heart is troubled inside me,and I am moved with compassion.
Commentaries
Judgement.
This marks the beginning of a series of short poems that focus on aspects of Israel’s joyful early history, contrasting with its current situation. Throughout, Israel’s unfaithfulness and infidelity are highlighted in opposition to the Lord’s steadfastness.
The Childhood of Israel.
The husband-wife metaphor shifts to that of father-son. Israel’s childhood begins with its departure from Egypt. For Matthew 2:15, this prophecy relates to the return of the child Jesus from his exile in Egypt. The Lord cared for Israel as a child (4), and in recalling Israel’s origins, the Lord turns his anger into compassion (8). Admah and Zeboiim (8) were cities near Sodom and Gomorrah that were destroyed along with them (Gn 19:24-25).