Hosea 5:6

The Futility of Sacrificial Ritual without Moral Obedience

5:6 Although they bring their flocks and herds ¹ 

to seek ²  the favor of the Lord, ³ 

They will not find him –

he has withdrawn himself from them!

Keluaran 25:21-22

25:21 You are to put the atonement lid on top of the ark, and in the ark you are to put the testimony I am giving you. 25:22 I will meet with you there, ⁴  and ⁵  from above the atonement lid, from between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will command you for the Israelites.

Keluaran 25:1

The Materials for the Sanctuary

25:1 ⁶ The Lord spoke to Moses:

Kisah Para Rasul 8:10-13

8:10 All the people, ⁷  from the least to the greatest, paid close attention to him, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called ‘Great.’” ⁸  8:11 And they paid close attention to him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic. 8:12 But when they believed Philip as he was proclaiming the good news about the kingdom of God ⁹  and the name of Jesus Christ, ¹⁰  they began to be baptized, ¹¹  both men and women. 8:13 Even Simon himself believed, and after he was baptized, he stayed close to ¹²  Philip constantly, and when he saw the signs and great miracles that were occurring, he was amazed. ¹³ 

Mazmur 132:14

132:14 He said, ¹⁴  “This will be my resting place forever;

I will live here, for I have chosen it. ¹⁵ 

Yesaya 26:21

26:21 For look, the Lord is coming out of the place where he lives, ¹⁶ 

to punish the sin of those who live on the earth.

The earth will display the blood shed on it;

it will no longer cover up its slain. ¹⁷ 

Yehezkiel 8:6

8:6 He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing – the great abominations that the people ¹⁸  of Israel are practicing here, to drive me far from my sanctuary? But you will see greater abominations than these!”

Yehezkiel 10:4

10:4 Then the glory of the Lord arose from the cherub and moved to the threshold of the temple. The temple was filled with the cloud while the court was filled with the brightness of the Lord’s glory.

Yehezkiel 11:23

11:23 The glory of the Lord rose up from within the city and stopped ¹⁹  over the mountain east of it.

Mikha 1:3

1:3 Look, ²⁰  the Lord is coming out of his dwelling place!

He will descend and march on the earth’s mountaintops! ²¹ 

[5:6]  ¹ sn The terms flocks and herds are used figuratively for animal sacrifices (metonymy of association). Hosea describes the futility of seeking God’s favor with mere ritual sacrifice without the prerequisite moral obedience (e.g., 1 Sam 15:24; Ps 50:6-8; 51:17-18; Isa 1:12; Mic 6:6-8).

[5:6]  ² tn Heb “they go out to seek the Lord”; NCV “to worship the Lord”; NLT “to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”

[5:6]  ³ tn Heb “the Lord”; the phrase “the favor of” does not appear in Hebrew here, but is supplied for the sake of clarity. It is implied by the metonymical (cause-effect) reference to the Lord, the source of favor and forgiveness.

[25:22]  ⁴ sn Here then is the main point of the ark of the covenant, and the main point of all worship – meeting with God through atonement. The text makes it clear that here God would meet with Moses (“you” is singular) and then he would speak to the people – he is the mediator of the covenant. S. R. Driver (Exodus, 272) makes the point that the verb here is not the word that means “to meet by chance” (as in Exod 3:18), but “to meet” by appointment for a purpose (וְנוֹעַדְתִּי, vÿno’adti). The parallel in the NT is Jesus Christ and his work. The theology is that the Law condemns people as guilty of sin, but the sacrifice of Christ makes atonement. So he is the “place of propitiation (Rom 3:25) who gains communion with the Father for sinners. A major point that could be made from this section is this: At the center of worship must be the atoning work of Christ – a perpetual reminder of God’s righteous standard (the testimony in the ark) and God’s gracious provision (the atonement lid).

[25:22]  ⁵ tn The verb is placed here in the text: “and I will speak”; it has been moved in this translation to be closer to the direct object clause.

[25:1]  ⁶ sn Now begin the detailed instructions for constructing the tabernacle of Yahweh, with all its furnishings. The first paragraph introduces the issue of the heavenly pattern for the construction, calls for the people to make willing offerings (vv. 2-7), and explains the purpose for these offerings (vv. 8-9). The message here is that God calls his people to offer of their substance willingly so that his sanctuary may be made.

[8:10]  ⁷ tn Grk “all of them”; the referent (the people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:10]  ⁸ tn Or “This man is what is called the Great Power of God.” The translation “what is called the Great Power of God” is given by BDAG 263 s.v. δύναμις 5, but the repetition of the article before καλουμένη μεγάλη (kaloumenh megalh) suggests the translation “the power of God that is called ‘Great.’”

[8:12]  ⁹ sn The kingdom of God is also what Jesus preached: Acts 1:3. The term reappears in 14:22; 19:8; 28:23, 31.

[8:12]  ¹⁰ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[8:12]  ¹¹ tn The imperfect verb ἐβαπτίζοντο (ebaptizonto) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.

[8:13]  ¹² tn Or “he kept close company with.”

[8:13]  ¹³ sn He was amazed. Now Simon, the one who amazed others, is himself amazed, showing the superiority of Philip’s connection to God. Christ is better than anything the culture has to offer.

[132:14]  ¹⁴ tn The words “he said” are added in the translation to clarify that what follows are the Lord’s words.

[132:14]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “for I desired it.”

[26:21]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “out of his place” (so KJV, ASV).

[26:21]  ¹⁷ sn This implies that rampant bloodshed is one of the reasons for divine judgment. See the note at 24:5.

[8:6]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “house.”

[11:23]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “stood.”

[1:3]  ²⁰ tn Or “For look.” The expression כִּי־הִנֵּה (ki-hinneh) may function as an explanatory introduction (“For look!”; Isa 26:21; 60:2; 65:17, 18: 66:15; Jer 1:15; 25:29; 30:10; 45:5; 46:27; 50:9; Ezek 30:9; 36:9; Zech 2:10; 3:8), or as an emphatic introduction (“Look!”; Jdgs 3:15; Isa 3:1; Jer 8:17; 30:3; 49:15; Hos 9:6; Joel 3:1 [HT 4:1]; Amos 4:2, 13; 6:11, 14; 9:9; Hab 1:6; Zech 2:9 [HT 2:13]; Zech 3:9; 11:16).

[1:3]  ²¹ tn Or “high places” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).