Hosea 2:11
I will put an end to all her exultation: her feasts, New Moons, and Sabbaths--all her appointed feasts.
I will put an end
This phrase signifies a decisive action by God, indicating His sovereign power to cease the practices of Israel. The Hebrew root word here is "שָׁבַת" (shavat), which means to cease or rest. This is the same root used for the Sabbath, emphasizing a complete cessation. Historically, this reflects God's judgment on Israel for their unfaithfulness, as their religious observances had become empty rituals devoid of true worship.

to all her celebrations
The term "celebrations" encompasses the various religious festivals that were integral to Israelite worship. These celebrations were meant to be times of joy and remembrance of God's provision and deliverance. However, in the context of Hosea, they had become corrupted by idolatry and syncretism. The Hebrew word "חַג" (chag) often refers to pilgrim feasts, highlighting the communal and sacred nature of these events.

her feasts
The "feasts" refer to the three major pilgrimage festivals: Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. These were times when the Israelites were to gather in Jerusalem to worship and offer sacrifices. The Hebrew word "מוֹעֵד" (moed) implies an appointed time or season, underscoring the divine appointment of these feasts. The cessation of these feasts signifies a break in the covenant relationship between God and Israel due to their disobedience.

New Moons
The New Moon festivals marked the beginning of each month in the Hebrew calendar and were times of worship and sacrifice. The Hebrew word "חֹדֶשׁ" (chodesh) means new moon or month, indicating a regular, cyclical observance. These festivals were intended to remind Israel of God's creation and sovereignty over time. Their cessation indicates a disruption in the rhythm of worship and acknowledgment of God's order.

and Sabbaths
The Sabbath, observed weekly, was a day of rest and worship, rooted in the creation narrative and the Ten Commandments. The Hebrew word "שַׁבָּת" (shabbat) means rest or cessation. The Sabbath was a sign of the covenant between God and Israel, a time to cease from labor and focus on spiritual renewal. The end of Sabbath observance signifies a profound spiritual crisis and a loss of identity for Israel as God's chosen people.

all her appointed feasts
This phrase encompasses all the sacred assemblies and times set apart for worship. The Hebrew word "מוֹעֵד" (moed) is again used, emphasizing the divinely ordained nature of these gatherings. The appointed feasts were central to Israel's religious life, serving as reminders of God's past acts of salvation and His ongoing relationship with His people. The termination of these feasts represents a severe judgment, reflecting the depth of Israel's apostasy and the seriousness of their breach of covenant.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Hosea
A prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel, called by God to deliver a message of judgment and redemption to the Israelites.

2. Israel
The Northern Kingdom, often depicted as an unfaithful wife in the book of Hosea, symbolizing the nation's spiritual adultery and idolatry.

3. Feasts, New Moons, Sabbaths
These are religious observances commanded by God in the Torah, which had become empty rituals due to Israel's unfaithfulness.
Teaching Points
The Danger of Empty Rituals
Religious observances without a heart for God are meaningless. God desires genuine worship and obedience over mere ritualistic practices.

The Call to Repentance
Just as God called Israel to repentance, He calls us to examine our hearts and turn away from any form of idolatry or unfaithfulness.

Understanding True Worship
True worship involves spirit and truth, as Jesus taught. It is not confined to rituals but is a lifestyle of devotion and obedience to God.

The Role of Traditions
While traditions can be valuable, they must not replace a personal relationship with God. Evaluate whether traditions draw you closer to God or serve as mere formalities.

God’s Sovereignty in Judgment and Restoration
God’s judgment is a means to bring about restoration. His desire is not to destroy but to purify and renew His people.
Bible Study Questions
1. How can we ensure that our religious practices remain meaningful and not just empty rituals?

2. In what ways might we be guilty of spiritual adultery today, similar to Israel in Hosea's time?

3. How do the themes of judgment and restoration in Hosea 2:11 relate to the New Testament understanding of grace and redemption?

4. What are some modern-day "feasts" or traditions that might distract us from genuine worship, and how can we refocus on God?

5. How can we apply the lessons from Hosea 2:11 to foster a deeper, more authentic relationship with God in our daily lives?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Isaiah 1:13-14
This passage also speaks of God’s disdain for empty religious rituals when the heart is far from Him, emphasizing the importance of genuine worship.

Amos 5:21-23
Amos echoes a similar sentiment, where God rejects the festivals and offerings of Israel because of their injustice and unrighteousness.

Colossians 2:16-17
Paul discusses how these religious observances are a shadow of things to come, pointing to the substance found in Christ.
Mingled Promise and ThreateningHosea 2:11
The Conjunction of Sin and MirthHomilistHosea 2:11
The Conjunction of Sin and MirthD. Thomas Hosea 2:11
Prosperity Abased and BlightedC. Jerdan Hosea 2:8-13
God's Punishments are JustHosea 2:10-12
The Lord's SentenceGeorge Hutcheson.Hosea 2:10-12
RetributionJ. Orr Hosea 2:10-13
People
Hosea, Ishi, Jezreel, Zephaniah
Places
Egypt, Jezreel, Valley of Achor
Topics
Appointed, Assemblies, Cause, Caused, Cease, Celebrations, Feast, Feasts, Festal, Festival, Festivals, Gaiety, Joy, Meetings, Mirth, Moon, Moons, Regular, Sabbath, Sabbaths, Seasons, Solemn, Solemnities, Yearly, Zephaniah
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Hosea 2:11

     7355   feasts and festivals, nature of
     7398   New Moon festival
     7429   Sabbath, in OT

Hosea 2:2-13

     5721   mothers, a symbol
     7312   Baal
     8764   forgetting God

Library
The Valley of Achor
'I will give her ... the valley of Achor for a door of hope.'--HOSEA II. 15. The Prophet Hosea is remarkable for the frequent use which he makes of events in the former history of his people. Their past seems to him a mirror in which they may read their future. He believes that 'which is to be hath already been,' the great principles of the divine government living on through all the ages, and issuing in similar acts when the circumstances are similar. So he foretells that there will yet be once
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Unknown Giver and the Misused Gifts
"For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal. Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax."--Hosea 2:8-9. In reading any of the records concerning the people of Israel and the people of Judah, one stands amazed at two things, and scarcely knows which to wonder at most. The first thing which causes astonishment is the great
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 38: 1892

27TH DAY. Everlasting Espousals.
"He is Faithful that Promised." "And I will betroth thee unto Me for ever."--HOSEA ii. 19. Everlasting Espousals. How wondrous and varied are the figures which Jesus employs to express the tenderness of His covenant love! My soul! thy Saviour-God hath "married thee!" Wouldst thou know the hour of thy betrothment? Go back into the depths of a by-past eternity, before the world was; then and there, thine espousals were contracted: "I have loved thee with an everlasting love." Soon shall the bridal-hour
John Ross Macduff—The Faithful Promiser

"I Know, O Lord, that Thy Judgments are Right, and that Thou in Faithfulness Hast Afflicted Me. " -- Psalm 119:75.
"I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope; and she shall sing there." -- Hosea 2:14,15. "I know, O Lord, that Thy judgments are right, and that Thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me." -- Psalm 119:75. I will love Thee, O Lord, my strength -- Thee shall my rescued heart embrace; Thy love, in all its breadth and length, Shall be my peaceful dwelling place. Whom have
Miss A. L. Waring—Hymns and Meditations

The Secret of his Pavilion
Gerhard Ter Steegen Hos. ii. 14 Allured into the desert, with God alone, apart, There spirit meeteth spirit, there speaketh heart to heart. Far, far on that untrodden shore, God's secret place I find, Alone I pass the golden door, the dearest left behind. There God and I--none other; oh far from men to be! Nay, midst the crowd and tumult, still, Lord, alone with Thee. Still folded close upon Thy breast, in field, and mart, and street, Untroubled in that perfect rest, that isolation sweet. O God,
Frances Bevan—Hymns of Ter Steegen, Suso, and Others

And After. (xxx, xxxi, xxxix-Xliv. )
There are two separated accounts of what befel Jeremiah when the city was taken. Ch. XXXIX. 3, 14 tells us that he was fetched from the guard-court by Babylonian officers,(609) and given to Gedaliah, the son of his old befriender Ahikam, to be taken home.(610) At last!--but for only a brief interval in the life of this homeless and harried man. When a few months later Nebusaradan arrived on his mission to burn the city and deport the inhabitants Jeremiah is said by Ch. XL to have been carried off
George Adam Smith—Jeremiah

And that this Race was to Become an Holy People was Declared in the Twelve...
And that this race was to become an holy people was declared in the Twelve Prophets [283] by Hosea, thus: I will call that which was not (my) people, my people; and her that was not beloved, beloved. It shall come to pass that in the place where it was called not my people, there shall they be called sons of the Living God. (Hos. ii. 23, i. 10) This also is that which was said by John the Baptist: That God is able of these stones to raise up sons to Abraham. For our hearts being withdrawn and taken
Irenæus—The Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching

Entire Sanctification in Prophecy.
The Major Prophets are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel. The twelve prophetic books in the Old Testament following the book of Daniel are called the Minor Prophets. In the writings of both classes we find many allusions and predictions as to the entire sanctification of believers in the gospel dispensation and under the reign of Messiah or Christ. The sixth chapter of Isaiah is usually regarded as his call to the prophetic office. Whether this be so or not, it records a very wonderful experience
Dougan Clark—The Theology of Holiness

The Prophecy of Obadiah.
We need not enter into details regarding the question as to the time when the prophet wrote. By a thorough argumentation, Caspari has proved, that he occupies his right position in the Canon, and hence belongs to the earliest age of written prophecy, i.e., to the time of Jeroboam II. and Uzziah. As bearing conclusively against those who would assign to him a far later date, viz., the time of the exile, there is not only the indirect testimony borne by the place which this prophecy occupies in
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

The Controversy Concerning Fasting
"And John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting: and they come and say unto Him, Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but Thy disciples fast not?" MARK 2:18 (R.V.) THE Pharisees had just complained to the disciples that Jesus ate and drank in questionable company. Now they join with the followers of the ascetic Baptist in complaining to Jesus that His disciples eat and drink at improper seasons, when others fast. And as Jesus had then replied, that being a Physician,
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

'Fruit which is Death'
'Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images. 2. Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: He shall break down their altars, He shall spoil their images. 3. For now they shall say, We have no king, because we feared not the Lord; what then should a king do to us? 4. They have spoken words, swearing falsely in making a covenant: thus
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Wilderness State
"Ye now have sorrow: But I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you." John 16:22. 1. After God had wrought a great deliverance for Israel, by bringing them out of the house of bondage, they did not immediately enter into the land which he had promised to their fathers; but "wandered out of the way in the wilderness," and were variously tempted and distressed. In like manner, after God has delivered them that fear him from the bondage of sin and Satan;
John Wesley—Sermons on Several Occasions

How the Rude in Sacred Learning, and those who are Learned but not Humble, are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 25.) Differently to be admonished are those who do not understand aright the words of the sacred Law, and those who understand them indeed aright, but speak them not humbly. For those who understand not aright the words of sacred Law are to be admonished to consider that they turn for themselves a most wholesome drought of wine into a cup of poison, and with a medicinal knife inflict on themselves a mortal wound, when they destroy in themselves what was sound by that whereby they ought,
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

Of Inward Silence
Of Inward Silence "The Lord is in His Holy Temple, let all the earth keep silence before him" (Hab. ii. 20). Inward silence is absolutely indispensable, because the Word is essential and eternal, and necessarily requires dispositions in the soul in some degree correspondent to His nature, as a capacity for the reception of Himself. Hearing is a sense formed to receive sounds, and is rather passive than active, admitting, but not communicating sensation; and if we would hear, we must lend the ear
Madame Guyon—A Short and Easy Method of Prayer

"Thou Shalt Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother. "
From this Commandment we learn that after the excellent works of the first three Commandments there are no better works than to obey and serve all those who are set over us as superiors. For this reason also disobedience is a greater sin than murder, unchastity, theft and dishonesty, and all that these may include. For we can in no better way learn how to distinguish between greater and lesser sins than by noting the order of the Commandments of God, although there are distinctions also within the
Dr. Martin Luther—A Treatise on Good Works

Nature of Covenanting.
A covenant is a mutual voluntary compact between two parties on given terms or conditions. It may be made between superiors and inferiors, or between equals. The sentiment that a covenant can be made only between parties respectively independent of one another is inconsistent with the testimony of Scripture. Parties to covenants in a great variety of relative circumstances, are there introduced. There, covenant relations among men are represented as obtaining not merely between nation and nation,
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

Of Rest in the Presence of God --Its Fruits --Inward Silence --God Commands it --Outward Silence.
The soul, being brought to this place, needs no other preparation than that of repose: for the presence of God during the day, which is the great result of prayer, or rather prayer itself, begins to be intuitive and almost continual. The soul is conscious of a deep inward happiness, and feels that God is in it more truly than it is in itself. It has only one thing to do in order to find God, which is to retire within itself. As soon as the eyes are closed, it finds itself in prayer. It is astonished
Jeanne Marie Bouvières—A Short Method Of Prayer And Spiritual Torrents

The Beginning of Justification. In what Sense Progressive.
1. Men either idolatrous, profane, hypocritical, or regenerate. 1. Idolaters void of righteousness, full of unrighteousness, and hence in the sight of God altogether wretched and undone. 2. Still a great difference in the characters of men. This difference manifested. 1. In the gifts of God. 2. In the distinction between honorable and base. 3. In the blessings of he present life. 3. All human virtue, how praiseworthy soever it may appear, is corrupted. 1. By impurity of heart. 2. By the absence of
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Covenanting According to the Purposes of God.
Since every revealed purpose of God, implying that obedience to his law will be given, is a demand of that obedience, the announcement of his Covenant, as in his sovereignty decreed, claims, not less effectively than an explicit law, the fulfilment of its duties. A representation of a system of things pre-determined in order that the obligations of the Covenant might be discharged; various exhibitions of the Covenant as ordained; and a description of the children of the Covenant as predestinated
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

The Gospel Feast
"When Jesus then lifted up His eyes, and saw a great company come unto Him, He saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread that these may eat?"--John vi. 5. After these words the Evangelist adds, "And this He said to prove him, for He Himself knew what He would do." Thus, you see, our Lord had secret meanings when He spoke, and did not bring forth openly all His divine sense at once. He knew what He was about to do from the first, but He wished to lead forward His disciples, and to arrest and
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VII

The Worst Things Work for Good to the Godly
DO not mistake me, I do not say that of their own nature the worst things are good, for they are a fruit of the curse; but though they are naturally evil, yet the wise overruling hand of God disposing and sanctifying them, they are morally good. As the elements, though of contrary qualities, yet God has so tempered them, that they all work in a harmonious manner for the good of the universe. Or as in a watch, the wheels seem to move contrary one to another, but all carry on the motions of the watch:
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial

The Prophet Hosea.
GENERAL PRELIMINARY REMARKS. That the kingdom of Israel was the object of the prophet's ministry is so evident, that upon this point all are, and cannot but be, agreed. But there is a difference of opinion as to whether the prophet was a fellow-countryman of those to whom he preached, or was called by God out of the kingdom of Judah. The latter has been asserted with great confidence by Maurer, among others, in his Observ. in Hos., in the Commentat. Theol. ii. i. p. 293. But the arguments
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

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