John Calvin Commentary Hosea 2:21-22

"And it shall come to pass in that day, I will answer, saith Jehovah, I will answer the heavens, and they shall answer the earth; and the earth shall answer the grain, and the new wine, and the oil; and they shall answer Jezreel." — Hosea 2:21-22 (ASV)

The Lord promises again that he will not fail the people when they are reconciled to him. We must, indeed, in the first place, seek that God may be propitious to us; for they are very foolish who desire to live well and happily, and in the meantime care nothing for God’s favor.

The Prophet shows when human happiness begins: it begins when God adopts them as his people, and when, having abolished their sins, he espouses them to himself. It is therefore necessary, in the first place, to seek this; for as we have said, the desire of being happy is preposterous when we first seek the blessings of an earthly life, when we first seek ease, abundance of good things, health of body, and similar things.

Hence the Prophet now shows that we are happy only when the Lord is reconciled to us, and not only so, but when he in his love embraces us and contracts a holy marriage with us. This means that he will be a father and preserver to us, and that we will be safe and secure under his protection and defense.

But at the same time, he comes down to secondary matters. Our happiness is, indeed, as we have said, in the enjoyment of God’s love; but there are additional benefits that follow, for the Lord provides for us and exercises care over us, so that he supplies whatever is needed to sustain life. The Prophet now addresses this latter part: he says, In that day. We see that he reminds us of the covenant, lest we be content with worldly abundance; for as it has been said, people are commonly devoted to their immediate advantages. Hence, the Prophet here sets before our eyes the Lord’s covenant; he afterwards adds that God’s favor would extend to the corn, and the wine, and the oil.

But we must notice the Prophet’s words: I will hear, he says, or I will answer (the Hebrew word ענה, anah, means to answer, but it is here equivalent to hear), I will hear then, I will hear the heavens, and they will hear the earth. The repetition is not superfluous, for the Israelites had been for some time consumed by famine before they were led away into exile; as though the heavens were iron, no drop of rain came down.

They might therefore have thought that there was now no hope. But God here raises them up, saying, I will hear, I will hear,. It is as though he said, “There is no reason for the miserable condition, in which I have allowed you to languish for a long time as your sins deserved, to discourage you; for from now on I will hear the heavens.” As the Prophet reminded them before, when the beasts were cruel to them, it was a sign of God’s wrath.

So also he teaches by these words that the heavens are not dry because of some hidden influence, but that when God withholds his favor, there is no rain with which the heavens irrigate the earth. God plainly shows here that the whole order of nature, as it is called, is in his hand. No drop of rain descends from heaven except by his command, nor can the earth produce any grass; in short, all nature would be barren if he did not make it fruitful by his blessing. And this is the reason why he says, I will hear the heavens and they will hear the earth, and the earth will hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil, and all these will hear Jezreel.

The Prophet used the word Jezreel before in a negative sense, for his purpose was to reproach the Israelites with their unfaithfulness. When they boasted of being the seed of Abraham and always claimed that honorable and noble distinction, the Lord said, You are Jezreel, and not Israel. It may be that the Prophet wished to show again what they deserved. But he teaches, at the same time, that God would in no way be prevented from showing kindness to the unworthy when reconciled to him. Though, then, they were Jezreelites rather than Israelites, their unworthiness would be no impediment to God dealing bountifully with them.

There may also be an allusion here to a new people, for it follows in the next verse, וזרעתיה, usarotie, and I will sow her; The word Jezreel has an affinity to this verb; it is indeed derived from זרע, saro, which means to sow. And as the Prophet soon adds that Jezreel is, as it were, the seed of God, I do not disagree with this supposed allusion. Yet the Prophet seems here to commend the grace of God when he declares that they were Jezreelites with whom God would deal so kindly as to make the earth fruitful for their sake.

Let us now again review the substance of the whole: The corn, and the wine, and the oil, will hear Jezreel. The Israelites were famished, and as is usual with those in want of food, they cried out, ‘Who will give us bread, and wine, and oil?’ For the stomach, as it is said, has no ears, nor has it reason and judgment. When there is extreme want, people, as if they were distracted, will call for bread, and wine, and oil.

God then has regard for these blind instincts of people, which only crave what will gratify them. Hence he says, The corn, and wine, and oil, will hear Jezreel, — but when? When the earth supplies trees with sap and moisture, and extends its strength to the seed. It is then that the earth will hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil, for these do not grow of themselves but derive supplies from the earth; and hence the earth is said to hear them.

But can the earth of itself hear the corn, or the wine, or the oil? By no means, except when rain descends from heaven. Since, then, the earth itself draws moisture and wetness from heaven, we see that people cry out in vain in famine unless they look up to heaven. And heaven is ruled by the will of God. Let people, therefore, learn to ascend to God, that they may seek from him their daily bread.

We now see, then, how suitable this gradation employed by the Prophet is, by which God, on account of the unrefined and weak understanding of people, eventually leads them up to himself. For they turn their thoughts to bread, wine, and oil; from these they seek food. They are very stupid in this matter. So be it; God is indulgent towards their simplicity and ignorance. For by degrees he proceeds from corn, wine, and oil, to the earth, and then from the earth to heaven; and he afterwards shows that heaven cannot pour down rain except at his will. It follows at last—