‘When the tribe of Ephraim spoke, the people shook with fear, for that tribe was important in Israel. But the people of Ephraim sinned by worshiping Baal and thus sealed their destruction. Now they continue to sin by making silver idols, images shaped skillfully with human hands. “Sacrifice to these,” they cry, “and kiss the calf idols!” Therefore, they will disappear like the morning mist, like dew in the morning sun, like chaff blown by the wind, like smoke from a chimney. “I have been the Lord your God ever since I brought you out of Egypt. You must acknowledge no God but me, for there is no other savior. I took care of you in the wilderness, in that dry and thirsty land. But when you had eaten and were satisfied, you became proud and forgot me. So now I will attack you like a lion, like a leopard that lurks along the road. Like a bear whose cubs have been taken away, I will tear out your heart. I will devour you like a hungry lioness and mangle you like a wild animal. “You are about to be destroyed, O Israel— yes, by me, your only helper. Now where is your king? Let him save you! Where are all the leaders of the land, the king and the officials you demanded of me? In my anger I gave you kings, and in my fury I took them away. “Ephraim’s guilt has been collected, and his sin has been stored up for punishment. Pain has come to the people like the pain of childbirth, but they are like a child who resists being born. The moment of birth has arrived, but they stay in the womb! “Should I ransom them from the grave ? Should I redeem them from death? O death, bring on your terrors! O grave, bring on your plagues! For I will not take pity on them. Ephraim was the most fruitful of all his brothers, but the east wind—a blast from the Lord — will arise in the desert. All their flowing springs will run dry, and all their wells will disappear. Every precious thing they own will be plundered and carried away. The people of Samaria must bear the consequences of their guilt because they rebelled against their God. They will be killed by an invading army, their little ones dashed to death against the ground, their pregnant women ripped open by swords.”’ Hosea 13:1-16(NLT)
As much as Hosea pleaded for Judah’s repentance, he still knew that Judah’s leaders needed hope for the northern tribes in exile as well. Hosea had made it clear in the first division of his book that God’s blessings would come after Israel and Judah were reunited in submission to David’s house. So, Judah’s hope for latter day blessings could only come if Israel returned to the Lord. Because of this, Hosea closed this last section of his book with a lengthy call for Israel to repent in chapter 14:1-8.
Consider chapter 14:1-3:
Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord; say to him, “Take away all iniquity; accept what is good, and we will pay with bulls the vows of our lips. Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses; and we will say no more, ‘Our God,’ to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy.”
In effect, Hosea called for northern Israelites, whether living with him in Judah or scattered in other regions, to “Return … to the Lord your God.” And to insure that they knew how to do this, he provided them with a liturgy of repentance. They were to say to the Lord, “Take away all iniquity.” They were to ask God to “accept what is good … the vows of our lips.” They were to reject any hope in Assyria and horses, or human military strength. They were to reject all idolatry, never saying, “Our God” to an idol. And what would be God’s response to their sincere repentance?
In chapter 14:7, God said:
They shall return and dwell beneath my shadow; they shall flourish like the grain; they shall blossom like the vine; their fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon.
When northern Israelites humbled themselves in this way, God promised to pour out blessings.
from The Prophetic Wisdom Of Hosea