Taking pride in wealth (v 7-8)

In the previous passage, God commanded Ephraim to pursue a way of life like that of their ancestor Jacob, but contrary to God’s expectation, Ephraim came to live like the Canaanites. In verse 7 it says, “A merchant, in whose hands are fraudulent balances, loves to exploit,” but the word translated “merchant” can also be translated “Canaanite” (in this context, it should be translated as Canaanite). (1) Our ancestor Jacob left the land of Canaan and went to the home of relatives in Aram for two reasons. One was to escape from his brother Esau, and the other was to avoid marrying Canaanites (Esau had already married daughters of the Canaanites). In this way, Jacob pursued God’s blessing. (2) In contrast, Ephraim, a descendant of Jacob, lived a life that took pride in wealth. Ephraim (the Northern Kingdom of Israel) was most prosperous during the reign of Jeroboam II. Ephraim understood the wealth they came to possess as a sign of God’s blessing. Their ancestor Jacob took pride in God, but Ephraim took pride in wealth. Jacob acknowledged his own sin, but Ephraim boasted that he could find no unrighteousness within himself. What a contrast.

God’s judgement (v 9-11)

God’s judgment comes upon Ephraim for its unrighteousness. (1) God says, “But I have been the Lord your God since the land of Egypt; I will make you live in tents again, as in the days of the appointed festival.” “The days of the appointed festival” refers to the Feast of Booths. During that festival, the Israelites lived in “booths.” This was to commemorate their wandering life in the wilderness. When God’s judgment comes down, Ephraim will be forced into a way of life like that during the Feast of Booths. “I will make you live in tents again” means to make them live in temporary shelters. Unlike the Feast of Booths, however, this will not be a short-term temporary dwelling, but a miserable condition that will continue for a long time. (2) This judgment is something the Lord has already spoken through the prophets. However, Ephraim remains ignorant concerning the word of the Lord. One of the themes that runs through the Book of Hosea is “ignorance of the word of the Lord.” (3) Gilead is a city east of the Jordan River, and Gilgal is a city west of the Jordan River. That is, idolatry was being practiced both east and west of the Jordan River. What do you take pride in? Let us learn from the failure of Ephraim, who took pride in visible things. Like Jacob, let us learn to take pride in God. “But far be it from me to boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Gal. 6:14).