Hosea 4:7

"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you, that you may be no priest to me. Because you have forgotten your God’s law, I will also forget your children."

Key Reflection

In Hosea 4:7, the prophet speaks of Israel's destruction due to a lack of knowledge and understanding of God. The verse highlights that because the people have rejected this essential knowledge, they are being abandoned by their divine Father; not only will He cease to recognize them as His children, but He will also revoke their priestly role, stripping them of their spiritual leadership and connection with Him. This harsh pronouncement underscores the critical importance of knowing and obeying God’s law in maintaining a relationship with Him, highlighting the reciprocal nature of that relationship—Israel's rejection of divine knowledge leads to God's rejection of them in return.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

As they were increased, so they sinned against Me -The “increase” may be, either in actual number or in wealth, power or dignity. The text includes both. In both kinds of increase, the bad abuse God’s gifts against Himself, and take occasion of them to offend Him. The more they were increased in number, the more there were to sin, the more they were who sinned. God promised to make Abraham’s seed, “as the stars of heaven.” They were to shine in the world through the light of the law, and the glory which God gave them while obeying Him. “Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons; and now the Lord thy God hath made thee like the stars of heaven for multitude.

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