51 Hear this , O priests ! Give heed , O house of Israel ! Listen , O house of the king ! For the judgment applies to you, For you have been a snare at Mizpah And a net spread out on Tabor . 2 The revolters have gone deep in depravity , But I will chastise all of them. 3 I know Ephraim , and Israel is not hidden from Me; For now , O Ephraim , you have played the harlot , Israel has defiled itself. 4 Their deeds will not allow them To return to their God . For a spirit of harlotry is within them, And they do not know the Lord . 5 Moreover, the pride of Israel testifies against him, And Israel and Ephraim stumble in their iniquity ; Judah also has stumbled with them. 6 They will go with their flocks and herds To seek the Lord , but they will not find Him; He has withdrawn from them. 7 They have dealt treacherously against the Lord , For they have borne illegitimate children . Now the new moon will devour them with their land .
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Hosea 5:1-7
Commentary on Hosea 5:1-7
(Read Hosea 5:1-7)
The piercing eye of God saw secret liking and disposition to sin, the love the house of Israel had to their sins, and the dominion their sins had over them. Pride makes men obstinate in other sins. And as Judah was treading in the same steps, they would fall with Israel. By dealing treacherously with the Lord, men only deceive themselves. Those that go to seek the Lord with their flocks and their herds only, and not with their hearts and souls, cannot expect to find him; nor shall any speed who do not seek the Lord while he may be found. See how much it is our concern to seek God early, now, while it is the accepted time, and the day of salvation.