Hosea 2:19
So I will betroth you to Me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in loving devotion and compassion.
I will betroth you to Me forever
The phrase "I will betroth you" comes from the Hebrew root word "ארש" (aras), which means to engage or pledge in marriage. In the ancient Near Eastern context, betrothal was a binding agreement, more solemn than modern-day engagements, signifying a deep commitment. This reflects God's unwavering promise to His people, Israel, symbolizing a covenant relationship that is both intimate and enduring. The use of "forever" emphasizes the eternal nature of this divine commitment, transcending time and human limitations. It reassures believers of God's unending faithfulness and love, offering hope and security in His promises.

in righteousness and justice
The terms "righteousness" (צדק, tsedeq) and "justice" (משפט, mishpat) are foundational to God's character and His dealings with humanity. "Righteousness" refers to moral integrity and the fulfillment of divine standards, while "justice" involves fair and equitable treatment. In the context of Hosea, these attributes highlight God's intention to restore His people not only through love but also through a moral and ethical framework. This assures believers that God's covenant is not arbitrary but grounded in His holy nature, calling them to reflect these virtues in their own lives.

in loving devotion and compassion
"Loving devotion" (חסד, chesed) is a rich Hebrew term often translated as "steadfast love" or "mercy." It conveys God's loyal love and kindness, which are central to His covenant relationship with Israel. "Compassion" (רחמים, rachamim) speaks to God's tender mercy and empathy towards His people. Together, these words paint a picture of a God who is not only just but also deeply caring and affectionate. This duality assures believers of a relationship with God that is both just and tender, inviting them to experience His grace and mercy in their daily walk.

I will betroth you in faithfulness
The word "faithfulness" (אמונה, emunah) signifies trustworthiness and reliability. In the context of marriage, it implies a steadfast commitment that is unwavering. God's promise to betroth His people in faithfulness underscores His unchanging nature and His dedication to His covenant. For believers, this is a call to trust in God's promises, knowing that He is faithful even when circumstances seem uncertain. It encourages a reciprocal faithfulness in their relationship with God, fostering a deep and abiding trust.

and you will know the LORD
The phrase "you will know" (תדע, teda) goes beyond intellectual understanding to imply an experiential and relational knowledge. In Hebrew, "to know" often connotes intimacy and personal acquaintance. "The LORD" (יהוה, Yahweh) is the covenant name of God, emphasizing His eternal presence and unchanging nature. This promise assures believers of a personal and intimate relationship with God, where they can experience His presence and character firsthand. It invites them into a deeper communion with Him, characterized by love, trust, and understanding.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Hosea
A prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel during the 8th century BC, called by God to deliver His message to the Israelites.

2. Israel
The Northern Kingdom, often depicted as an unfaithful spouse in the book of Hosea, symbolizing the nation's infidelity to God.

3. God
The central figure who speaks through Hosea, expressing His desire to restore and renew His covenant relationship with Israel.

4. Betrothal
A significant event in ancient Jewish culture, symbolizing a committed and binding promise of marriage, used metaphorically here to describe God's covenant with Israel.
Teaching Points
God's Unfailing Commitment
Despite Israel's unfaithfulness, God promises a permanent relationship, highlighting His unwavering commitment to His people.

Attributes of the Betrothal
The betrothal is characterized by righteousness, justice, loving devotion, and compassion, reflecting God's nature and His expectations for His people.

Covenant Renewal
The promise of betrothal signifies a renewal of the covenant, offering hope and restoration to those who return to God.

Personal Application
Believers are called to reflect God's attributes in their relationships, striving for righteousness, justice, loving devotion, and compassion in their daily lives.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the concept of betrothal in Hosea 2:19 deepen our understanding of God's relationship with His people?

2. In what ways can we see God's attributes of righteousness, justice, loving devotion, and compassion in our own lives and communities?

3. How does the promise of a renewed covenant in Hosea relate to the new covenant described in the New Testament?

4. What practical steps can we take to ensure our relationships reflect the qualities of God's betrothal to Israel?

5. How can the imagery of marriage in Hosea 2:19 inspire us to remain faithful in our spiritual walk with God?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Jeremiah 31:31-34
This passage speaks of a new covenant that God will make with the house of Israel, emphasizing forgiveness and a renewed relationship, similar to the betrothal imagery in Hosea.

Isaiah 54:5
God is described as the husband of Israel, reinforcing the marriage metaphor and His commitment to His people.

Ephesians 5:25-27
Paul describes Christ's love for the church as a husband loves his wife, drawing a parallel to the betrothal language in Hosea.
Israel's RestorationC. Jerdan Hosea 2:14-20
God's LoveJ. Gregory Mantle.Hosea 2:18-19
The Betrothment of the ChurchT. Bagnall-Baker, M. A.Hosea 2:18-19
The Covenant of Outward PeaceGeorge Hutcheson.Hosea 2:18-19
The Everlasting EspousalsT. Boston, D. D.Hosea 2:18-19
The Great BetrothalJeremiah Burroughs.Hosea 2:18-19
The Promise of PeaceJeremiah Burroughs.Hosea 2:18-19
The Restored Order of NatureHosea 2:18-19
The Spirit of the Lord's EspousalsHosea 2:18-19
The Sublime Privileges of the GoodD. Thomas Hosea 2:18, 19
The Sublime Privileges of the GoodHomilistHosea 2:18-19
The Threefold BetrothalE. B. Pusey, D. D.Hosea 2:18-19
The Wooing and the WeddingJ. H. Jowett, M. A.Hosea 2:18-19
The New BetrothalJ. Orr Hosea 2:18-23
Divine BetrothalJ.R. Thomson Hosea 2:19, 20
People
Hosea, Ishi, Jezreel, Zephaniah
Places
Egypt, Jezreel, Valley of Achor
Topics
Age, Betroth, Betrothed, Bride, Compassion, Forever, Judging, Judgment, Justice, Kindness, Love, Loving, Lovingkindness, Loving-kindness, Mercies, Mercy, Righteousness, Steadfast, Truly, Yea, Yes
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Hosea 2:19

     1140   God, the eternal
     1210   God, human descriptions
     5895   intimacy
     6667   grace, in OT
     8296   love, nature of
     8299   love, in relationships

Hosea 2:14-20

     1085   God, love of
     6730   reinstatement

Hosea 2:16-20

     5717   monogamy

Hosea 2:18-23

     1352   covenant, the new

Hosea 2:19-20

     1155   God, truthfulness
     5654   betrothal
     5712   marriage, God and his people
     5732   polygamy
     7021   church, OT anticipations

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

Links
Hosea 2:19 NIV
Hosea 2:19 NLT
Hosea 2:19 ESV
Hosea 2:19 NASB
Hosea 2:19 KJV

Hosea 2:19 Commentaries

Bible Hub
Hosea 2:18
Top of Page
Top of Page