Israel had entered into the covenant with Jehovah its God; and therefore its idolatry became a breach of the fidelity which it owed to its God, an act of apostasy from God, which was more culpable than the idolatry of the heathen. . Rashi 's Commentary: Show Hide. (Remes) does not mean reptiles, but that which is active, the smaller animals of the land which move about with velocity. Affection is the prominent idea in "Husband"; rule, in "Lord." The valley of Achor, which was situated to the north of Gilgal and Jericho (see at Joshua 7:26), is mentioned by the prophet, not because of its situation on the border of Palestine, nor on account of its fruitfulness, of which nothing is known, but with an evident allusion to the occurrence described in Joshua 7, from which it obtained its name of (‛Akhōr), Troubling. As formerly Israel, after their tedious journey through the wilderness, met with the trouble resulting from Achan's crime in this valley, on the very threshold of Canaan, and yet that trouble was presently turned into joy at the great victory at Ai, which threw all Canaan into their hands (Joshua 7:1-8:28'); so the very trouble of Israel's wilderness state will be the "door of hope" opening to better days. 1. Comp. Chapter 2. earrings--rather, "nose-rings" ( Isaiah 3:21 , Ezekiel 16:12 , Margin), with which harlots decked themselves to attract admirers: answering to the ornaments in which the Israelites decked themselves on the idols' feasts. . There is hardly any need to say that these words to not refer to the sojourn of Israel in the Arabian desert; for there the Lord fed His people with manna from heaven, and gave them water to drink out of the rock. They had applied their gold and silver to Baal, however, not merely by using them for the preparation of idols, but by employing them in the maintenance and extension of the worship of Baal, or even by regarding them as gifts of Baal, and thus confirming themselves in the zealous worship of that god. ענה does not mean “to sing,” but “to answer;” and שׁמּה, pointing back to משּׁם, must not be regarded as equivalent to שׁם. ), and the word cannot be traced to תּנן, to extend; whilst, on the other hand, the תּנה, התנה (Hosea 8:9-10) is most probably a denominative of אתנה. Used by Permission. my wool . As Rückert aptly says, “The significant pair give place to the thing signified; Israel itself appears as the adulterous woman.” The Lord Himself will set bounds to her adulterous conduct, i.e., to the idolatry of the Israelites. The address is to "her children," that is, to the individual citizens of the state (compare Isaiah 50:1 ).