“When
Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
Hosea 11:1
Hosea 10 [15.] So Bethel will do to you because of your great wickedness.
At daybreak the king of Israel will be destroyed.
Hosea 11 [1.] “When Israel was a child, then I loved him,
and called my son out of Egypt.
They called to them, so they went from them.
They sacrificed to the Baals,
and burned incense to engraved images.
Yet I taught Ephraim to walk.
I took them by his arms;
but they didn’t know that I healed them.
I drew them with cords of a man, with ties of love;
and I was to them like those who lift up the yoke on their necks;
and I bent down to him and I fed him.
Hosea 11 [5.] “They won’t return into the land of Egypt;
but the Assyrian will be their king,
because they refused to repent.
The sword will fall on their cities,
and will destroy the bars of their gates,
and will put an end to their plans.
My people are determined to turn from me.
Though they call to the Most High,
he certainly won’t exalt them.
“How can I give you up, Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I make you like Zeboiim?
My heart is turned within me,
my compassion is aroused.
I will not execute the fierceness of my anger.
I will not return to destroy Ephraim:
for I am God, and not man; the Holy One among you;
and I will not come in wrath.
Meaning:
Hosea prophesied to the northern kingdom of Israel, often called Ephraim, in the eighth century before Christ. It was a time of prosperity, idolatry and coming judgement through Assyria. In chapter 11 God speaks like a heartbroken parent, remembering how he cared for Israel from the very beginning. This single verse looks back to the exodus, and the Gospel of Matthew sees it fulfilled in the childhood of Jesus.
- “When Israel was a child, then I loved him”
God traces his relationship with Israel back to its earliest days, when the nation was young and helpless as a slave people in Egypt. His love came first. Israel had done nothing to earn it. Moses told the people, “Yahweh didn’t set his love on you, nor choose you, because you were more in number than any people; … but because Yahweh loves you” (Deuteronomy 7:7-8). The following verses continue the picture of a tender father: “Yet I taught Ephraim to walk. I took them by his arms” (Hosea 11:3-4).
- “and called my son out of Egypt”
Calling Israel God’s “son” goes back to the exodus itself. God told Moses to say to Pharaoh, “Israel is my son, my firstborn” (Exodus 4:22). The exodus was the moment when God claimed Israel as his own family, freeing the nation from slavery so that it could serve him. In Hosea’s day this memory was a rebuke. The very next lines say, “They called to them, so they went from them. They sacrificed to the Baals” (Hosea 11:2). The son God rescued had turned away from his Father.
- Love that will not let go
Even so, Hosea 11 does not end in rejection. God cries out, “How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel?” (Hosea 11:8-9). His love for his son is stronger than the son’s rebellion.
- “Out of Egypt I called my son” in Matthew
When Joseph took Mary and the young Jesus to Egypt to escape Herod, and later returned, Matthew wrote that this happened “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, ‘Out of Egypt I called my son’” (Matthew 2:15). Matthew knew Hosea was speaking of Israel’s past; he saw a pattern. Jesus is the true Son of God who sums up Israel’s story in himself. Like Israel, he went down into Egypt and was called out again. But where Israel failed, Jesus would remain faithful in everything.
The Significance of Hosea 11:1
- Loved before we loved
God’s love for Israel began when Israel was weak and could offer him nothing. In the same way, God’s love for us does not depend on our strength or goodness. Believers can trust that his love came first and will not be withdrawn.
- A Father who calls his children out
God called his son out of slavery in Egypt. Through Jesus he calls people out of slavery to sin and fear and into his family. Paul writes, “you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Romans 8:15).
Cross-References:
Exodus 4:22: "Israel is my son, my firstborn," God’s claim on Israel at the exodus.
Hosea 11:3-4: "Yet I taught Ephraim to walk." God’s tender care for his young people.
Matthew 2:15: "Out of Egypt I called my son." Matthew sees the verse fulfilled in Jesus.
Deuteronomy 7:8: "but because Yahweh loves you," The reason God redeemed Israel from Egypt.
Conclusion: Hosea 11:1 recalls how God loved Israel when the nation was a child and called his son out of Egypt at the exodus. The verse reveals God as a loving Father whose care came first and whose love persisted despite Israel’s rebellion. Matthew saw it fulfilled in Jesus, the faithful Son, whose family was called back out of Egypt after the flight from Herod.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible