9:1 Rejoice not, O Israel, for joy, a as [other] people: for
thou hast gone a whoring from thy God, thou hast loved b a
reward upon every cornfloor.
(a) For even though all other people should escape, yet you
will be punished.
(b) You have committed idolatry in hope of reward, and to
have your barns filled ((Jer 44:17)), as a harlot
that had rather live by playing the whore, than to be
provided for by her own husband.
9:2c The floor and the winepress shall not feed them, and the
new wine shall fail in her.
(c) These outward things that you seek will be taken from
you.
9:4 They shall not offer d wine [offerings] to the LORD,
neither shall they be pleasing unto him: their sacrifices
[shall be] unto them as the bread of mourners; all that eat
thereof shall be polluted: for their bread e for their
soul shall not come into the house of the LORD.
(d) All their doings both with regard to administration and
religion, will be rejected as polluted things.
(e) The meat offering which they offered for themselves.
9:5 What will ye do f in the solemn day, and in the day of the
feast of the LORD?
(f) When the Lord will take away all the occasions of
serving him, which will be the most grievous part of
your captivity, when you will see yourselves cut off
from God.
9:6 For, lo, they are gone because of g destruction: Egypt
shall gather them up, Memphis shall bury them: the pleasant
[places] for their silver, nettles shall possess them:
thorns [shall be] in their tabernacles.
(g) Even though they think to escape by fleeing the
destruction that is at hand, yet they will be destroyed
in the place where they flee for help.
9:7 The days of visitation are come, the days of recompence are
come; Israel shall know [it]: h the prophet [is] a fool,
the spiritual man [is] mad, for the multitude of thine
iniquity, and the great hatred.
(h) Then they will know that they were deluded by those who
claimed themselves to be their prophets and spiritual
men.
9:8 The watchman of Ephraim i [was] with my God: [but] the
prophet [is] a snare of a fowler in all his ways, [and]
hatred in the house of his God.
(i) The Prophet's duty is to bring men to God, and not to be
a snare to pull them from God.
9:9 They k have deeply corrupted [themselves], as in the days
of Gibeah: [therefore] he will remember their iniquity, he
will visit their sins.
(k) This people is so rooted in their wickedness, that
Gibeah, which was similar to Sodom, was never more
corrupt; (Jdg 19:22).
9:10 I found Israel like l grapes in the wilderness; I saw
your fathers as the firstripe in the fig tree at her first
time: [but] they went to Baalpeor, and separated themselves
unto [that] shame; and [their] abominations were according
m as they loved.
(l) Meaning, that he esteemed them and delighted in them in
this way.
(m) They were as abominable to me, as their lovers the
idols.
9:11 [As for] Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird,
from the birth, n and from the womb, and from the
conception.
(n) Signifying that God would destroy their children by
these different means, and so consume them by little
and little.
9:13 Ephraim, as I saw o Tyrus, [is] planted in a pleasant
place: but Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the
murderer.
(o) As they kept tender plants in their houses in Tyrus to
preserve them from the cold air of the sea, so was
Ephraim at the first to me: but now I will give him to
the slaughter.
9:14 Give them, O LORD: what wilt thou give? give them a p
miscarrying womb and dry breasts.
(p) The Prophet seeing the great plagues of God toward
Ephraim, prays to God to make them barren, rather than
that this great slaughter should come upon their
children.
9:15 All their wickedness [is] in q Gilgal: for there I hated
them: for the wickedness of their doings I will drive them
out of mine house, I will love them no more: all their
princes [are] revolters.
(q) The chief cause of their destruction is that they
commit idolatry, and corrupt my religion in Gilgal.
