John Calvin Commentary Hosea 14:3

"Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride upon horses; neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, [Ye are] our gods; for in thee the fatherless findeth mercy." — Hosea 14:3 (ASV)

This verse should be joined with the last, as the Israelites show here more clearly and fully how they had sinned and, at the same time, give proof of their repentance. For when they say, The Assyrian shall not save us, we shall not mount on horses, we shall not say to the work of hands, Our gods, it is to be understood as a confession that they had in these various ways provoked God's vengeance against themselves. They had hoped for safety from the Assyrians, rushed here and there, and thus alienated themselves from God; they had also fled to statues and idols and had transferred to mute images the honor due to the only true God.

From this, we see that although the faithful speak of the future, they still indirectly confess that they had grievously sinned, had forsaken the only true God, and transferred their hopes to others—either to the Assyrians or to fictitious gods. At the same time, they promise to be different in the future, as if to say that they would not only be grateful to God in celebrating His praises, but that their way of living would also be new, so as not to abuse God's goodness. This is the essence of what is said here.

By saying, The Assyrian shall not save us, they undoubtedly condemned, as I have already stated, the false confidence by which they were previously deluded when they sought deliverance through the Assyrians. Indeed, there is no doubt that the Israelites were always accustomed to pretend to trust in God's name; but in thinking themselves lost without the help of the Assyrians, they most certainly defrauded God of His due honor and adorned men with spoils taken from Him.

For unless we are convinced that God alone is sufficient for us, even when all earthly help fails us, we do not place our hope of salvation in Him; but, on the contrary, transfer to mortals what belongs to Him alone. For this sacrilege, therefore, the Israelites condemn themselves and, at the same time, show that the fruit of their repentance would be to set their minds on God, so that they would not be drawn here and there as before, or think that they could be preserved through the help of men.

From this, let us learn that people do not turn to God unless they bid farewell to all creatures and no longer fix their hopes on them. This is one thing.

What follows, On a horse we shall not mount, may be explained in two ways: first, as if they said that they would no longer be so foolish as to be proud of their own power, or consider themselves safe because they were well supplied with horses and chariots.

But the clause may be more simply explained as meaning that they would not, as before, wander here and there to procure auxiliaries for themselves. We shall not then mount a horse, but remain quiet in our country; and this sense seems more appropriate.

I do not, therefore, think that the Prophet brings forward any new idea, but I read the two sentences together: The Assyrian shall not save us, we shall not then mount on a horse, meaning, so that we may ride in haste. For they had previously wearied themselves with long journeys: as soon as any danger was near, they went far away into Assyria to seek help, when God commanded them to remain quiet.

The meaning of this will be better understood by referring to other passages that correspond with what is said here. God says by Isaiah, On horses mount not; but ye said, We will mount: then mount, says He (Isaiah 30:16). This is a striking intimation that the Jews, against God’s will, rode and hastened to seek aid.

“I see you,” He says, “to be very prompt and swift: then mount, but it will be for the purpose of fleeing.” We see the purpose of this reproof from the Prophet; it was to show that the Jews, who should have remained still and quiet, fled here and there to seek assistance.

So also in this passage, when they want to show the fruit of their repentance, they say, “We will not from now on mount a horse, for the Lord, who promises to be our aid, is not to be sought as someone far away: we will not then fatigue ourselves anymore in vain.” It seems to me that this is what the Prophet means.

Then he adds, And we shall not say, Our gods, to the work of our hands. As they had spoken of the false trust they placed in men, so now they condemn their own superstition.

And these are the two plagues that are accustomed to bring destruction on people, for nothing is more ruinous than to transfer our hope from God. This is done in two ways: either when people trust in their own strength, or pride themselves on human aid and despise God, as if they can be safe without Him—or when they give themselves up to false superstitions.

Both these diseases always prevail in the world when people entangle themselves in their own superstitions and form new gods for themselves, from whom they expect safety—as we see to be the case with those under the Papacy. God is of almost no account with them; Christ is not sufficient.

For how does it happen that they contrive so many patrons for themselves and devise so many guardianships, except that they despise God's help, or so diminish it, that they dare not hope for salvation from Him? From this, we see that superstition draws people away from God and thus becomes the cause of the worst destruction.

But there are some who are not given up to superstitions in this way, but who derive hope from their own valor or wisdom. For the children of this world are inflated with their own strength; and when princes have their armies prepared, have fortified cities, possess abundant money, and are strengthened by many alliances, they are blinded by false confidence.

So then, this verse teaches us that these are two destructive plagues which commonly draw people away from true safety. If we would then repent sincerely from the heart, we must purge our minds from these two evils, so that we do not ascribe anything to our own strength or to earthly help, nor form any idols to be in God's place, but feel assured that God alone is a sufficient help to us.

But it follows, For in thee will the fatherless find mercy. Here the Israelites show that it is necessary for us to be humbled so that we may remain dependent on God alone. For those are compared to the fatherless who are so humbled that they cast away all vain hopes and, conscious of their nakedness and need, rely on God alone.

Therefore, so that God’s mercy may find an open way to come to us, we must become fatherless. Now, what this metaphor means is well known to us. The fatherless, we know, are, first, destitute of aid; secondly, of wisdom; and they are also without strength.

They are then dependent on another's aid and need direction; in short, their safety depends on the assistance of others. Thus, we are also truly fatherless when we do not rely on our own prudence, nor rest on our own strength, nor think that we can be safe through help that comes from the earth, but cast all our hopes and cares on God alone. This is one thing.

The fatherless then shall find mercy in thee; that is, “When You, Lord, do so afflict us that we become completely cast down, then we will find mercy in You. This mercy will be sufficient for us, so that we will no longer wander and be drawn aside by false devices, as has been the case with us until now.”

When, therefore, they say, in God will the fatherless find mercy, they mean that the grace offered by the Lord will be sufficient, so that there will no longer be any need to seek aid from any other. We now understand what the Prophet means in this verse.