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            God withdrew from Israel due to its vast amount of sin. "Faced with the distress 

and calamity of civil warfare Israel responded in repentance,"¹ but Israel's repentance 

was insincere. 5:15-6:3 of Hosea can be divided into two parts: "a statement on God's 

return 'to my place' (5:15) and a liturgy of repentance (6:1-3)."²

            Hosea spoke on a series of occasions over a period of many years. Like most 

prophets of the Old Testament, he proclaimed his message orally. His "speeches in 

chapters 4-6 were primarily indictments or sentences directed against the people of 

Israel or specific groups (such as the priests), although there were some prophesies of 

salvation as well."³ Most of the speeches communicated God's word by either indirectly 

or directly stating it. Verses 5:15-6:3 were probably proclaimed during the time that 

Israel was in alliance with all its neighbors (except Judah) against the Assyrians. 
. 
. 
God Returns to His Place, 5:15 

             (NRSV) 
             "I will return again to my place
                     until they acknowledge their guild and seek my face.
                     In their distress they will beg my favor;"

            I will return to my place is stated in Harper-Collins Study Bible⁴ and the 

Oxford Bible⁵ speaks of the Lord's withdrawal from the land. There were many 

theories on what Hosea meant by my place. Some view it as the Lord's departure 

into the wilderness. A more widely accepted view is that he was returning to His place 

in heaven waiting to be sought. The Good News Bible⁶ stated I will abandon my

people. This translation emphasizes the seriousness of the people's sin because God 

made himself inaccessible to them. Until was used to emphasize that the withdrawal is 

only temporary. Until they acknowledge their guilt, also found in Oxford⁷ and 

^{--------------------------------}

            ¹Roy L. Honeycutt, Jr., "Hosea," in The Broadman Bible Commentary, ed. Clifton J. Allen (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1972), 31. 

            ²Honeycutt, "Hosea," 31. 

            ³Gene M. Tucker, "Hosea." in Harper's Bible Commentary. ed. James L. Mays. (San Francisco: Harper and Row, Publishers, 1988), 708. 

            ⁴Hos. 5:15 HC. 

            ⁵Hos. 5:15 O. 

            ⁶Hos. 5:15 GN. 

            ⁷Hos. 5:15 O. 

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as the Hebrew 'asam nowhere else bears this meaning. Its common meaning was 

'become guilty', which was unlikely here, but it occasionally meant 'suffer the 

consequences of guilt, where 'be condemned' was too weak."⁹ In short, the Israelites 

should recognize their guilt and suffer the consequences. The Good News Bible¹⁰ 

appeases this translation problem by using until they have suffered for their sins. The 

Life Application Bible,¹¹ Oxford,¹² and Harper-Collins¹³ are exactly the same in their 

wording of they will seek my face. The phrase was derived from the royal court 

situation where subjects would try to gain favor from the king. God wanted the Israelites 

to seek Him in submission to pay Him homage. In their distress used by 

Harper-Collins¹⁴ and Oxford¹⁵ or in their misery by Life Applications¹⁶ alluded to an 

emotional state but what really is meant is physical suffering. Good News¹⁷ clarifies 

that by saying perhaps in their suffering they will try to find me. 

-------------------------- 

            ⁸Hos. 5:15 HC. 

            ⁹Francis I. Anderson and David Noel Freedman, Hosea, The Anchor Bible Commentary, (Garden City: Doubleday and Company, Inc., 1983), 414. 

            ¹⁰Hos. 5:15 GN. 

            ¹¹Hos. 5:15 LA. 

            ¹²Hos. 5:15 O. 

            ¹³Hos. 5:15 HC. 

            ¹⁴Hos. 5:15 HC. 

            ¹⁵Hos. 5:15 O 

            ¹⁶Hos. 5:15 LA. 

            ¹⁷Hos. 5:15 GN. 

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sinning. The only way to learn their lesson is for them to suffer or to go through trials. It 

is then that they remember their Lord and again seek Him and do His will. "He is waiting 

to be sought; and people will do this when they are in distress."¹⁸ It is in the troughs of 

life that we are closest to God. 
. 
. 
Israel's Repentance in a Song of Liturgy, 6:1-3 

            (NRSV)
            "Come, let us return to the LORD;
              for it is he who has torn, and he will heal us;
                     he has struck down, and he will bind us up.
              After two days he will revie us;
                     on the third day he will raise us up,
                     that we may live before him.
              Let us know, let us press on to know the Lord;
                     his appearance iis as sure as the dawn;
              he will come to us like the showers,
                     like the spring rains that water the earth."

            "This unit combined a lamentation of affliction (v.1) with a song of trust (vv.2-3) 

and made them (Israel) a unified whole gathered around the motif of repentance."¹⁹ It 

was a highly rhythmic passage with parallelism similar to those used in many religious 

rites. It may be a invitational song made up by Hosea or the priests hearing his oracles 

liturgical response. Good News²⁰ inserted the people say in its translation of verse 6:1. 

----------------------- 

           ¹⁸Anderson and Freedman, Hosea, 416. 

            ¹⁹Roy L. Honeycutt, Jr., "Hosea," in The Broadman Bible Commentary, ed. Clifton J. Allen (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1972), 31. 

            ²⁰Hos. 6:1 GN.