Hosea 11:7
And my people are bent to backsliding from me: though they called them to the most High, none at all would exalt him.
Original Language Analysis
Cross References
Historical Context
Hosea prophesied in the Northern Kingdom of Israel during its final decades before Assyrian conquest (circa 755-725 BCE). This was a period of political instability, social corruption, and rampant idolatry, particularly Baal worship. Despite experiencing temporary prosperity under Jeroboam II, Israel's spiritual condition had deteriorated catastrophically.
The prophetic ministry during this era included contemporaries like Amos and Isaiah who likewise called the people to repentance. The phrase "they called them to the most High" references these prophetic appeals that went largely unheeded. Israel's syncretism blended Yahweh worship with Canaanite fertility cult practices, creating a corrupt religious system that maintained outward forms while abandoning covenant faithfulness.
The historical trajectory culminated in 722 BCE when Assyria destroyed Samaria and scattered the Northern Kingdom's population. Hosea's prophecy warned of this coming judgment while offering hope for ultimate restoration. His message, rooted in his own painful marriage to an unfaithful wife, illustrated God's anguished love for a persistently rebellious people. The verse thus serves both as historical indictment and timeless warning about the human heart's tendency toward spiritual adultery despite divine grace.
Questions for Reflection
- What patterns of "backsliding" or spiritual drift do you recognize in your own walk with God, and what specific disciplines help counter these tendencies?
- How does understanding humanity's bent toward rebellion apart from grace affect your evangelism, discipleship, and pastoral ministry?
- In what ways do modern believers resist or ignore prophetic calls to deeper faithfulness, similar to Israel's response here?
- How does God's persistent love despite Israel's persistent rebellion demonstrate the nature of covenant grace that culminates in Christ?
- What warning does this verse provide about maintaining outward religious forms while the heart remains bent away from God?
Analysis & Commentary
And my people are bent to backsliding from me: though they called them to the most High, none at all would exalt him. This verse captures Israel's tragic pattern of persistent rebellion despite repeated prophetic calls to return to God. The Hebrew word "bent" (telu'im, תְּלוּאִים) means hung up, suspended, or inclined toward—indicating a fixed disposition or habitual tendency. "Backsliding" (meshubati, מְשׁוּבָתִי) describes turning away, apostasy, or covenant unfaithfulness.
The phrase "though they called them to the most High" refers to the prophets' repeated appeals for Israel to return to Yahweh, the supreme God (al, עַל, meaning "upward" or "to the most High"). Yet tragically, "none at all would exalt him" (lo yerommenenhu, לֹא יְרוֹמְמֶנְהוּ)—the people refused to lift up, honor, or worship God despite clear invitations to do so.
This verse reveals the depth of human sinfulness: even when confronted with truth and offered redemption, the rebellious heart resists returning to God. The pattern described here transcends Israel's specific historical situation, illustrating humanity's universal condition apart from grace. Romans 3:10-12 echoes this reality: "there is none that seeketh after God." Yet Hosea's larger message provides hope—God's covenant love persists despite Israel's unfaithfulness, pointing forward to the new covenant established through Christ's atoning work.