Charles Spurgeon Commentary Hosea 14

O Israel, return to the LORD your God; for you have fallen by your iniquity.

Fallen into sorrow, fallen into shame, fallen into spiritual poverty, fallen into weakness of faith, fallen almost to destruction. Though you are Israel, and God loves you, yet you have fallen by your iniquity; and the only possible way in which you can obtain restoration is to return to the Lord your God.

Seek once again your Father's face; cry, with the prodigal, I will arise and go to my Father. O Israel, return to the Lord your God. You may do so, for He bids you come back to Him.

You should do so, for it was wrong of you to wander from Him; so end your wandering, and return to Him. Return to the Lord your God. He is your God still. He does not deny the sacred bond which binds you to Himself. Though you have forsaken Him, yet still He bids you think of Him, not as a stranger, but as your God.

O child of God, are you just now very heavy in heart because of your backsliding? Is the lamp of spirituality burning very low? Do you feel as if you have gotten into a state of spiritual barrenness? Then return—return at once—to the Lord your God, for your sad condition is due to your iniquity.

O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.

Come back, poor wanderer! My brother or my sister, if your heart has grown cold toward your Lord and Master, return to him this very hour. This message comes from God himself, through his servant the prophet, O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.

O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God;

Bless his name that he is still your God. However much you may have backslidden, you have not lost your right to claim him as your God, for he is yours eternally by a fixed entail. And because he is still your God, let his everlasting kindness entice you to come back to him.

For thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.

"You have lost your comforts; you have become a poor, despicable creature; you have fallen by your iniquity. This is the prelude to all the trouble; your sin is the seed of all your ruin. Get rid of that, and you will soon have your comforts back again."

O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.

Let anyone here, who has turned aside from the Lord, hear these tender pleading words, and then yield to him who utters them. God speaks, not to condemn, but to comfort. He would gladly allure you back to him with his gracious words of love: O Israel, return unto the Lord thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.

O Israel, return unto the LORD thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity.

When we fall by sin, we must regain our comfort by going back to the place where we lost it: Return unto the Lord thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity. Then, to help us return, God, through his servant, actually makes a prayer for us.