John Gill Commentary Hosea 8:2

"They shall cry unto me, My God, we Israel know thee." — Hosea 8:2 (ASV)

Israel shall cry unto me, my God, we know thee .
In their distress they shall cry to the Lord to help them, and have mercy on them, as they used to do when in trouble, (Isaiah 26:16) ; when the eagle has come upon them, and just ready to devour them; when Samaria is besieged with the Assyrian army, their king was taken prisoner, and they just ready to fall into the hands of the enemy, then they shall cry to God, though in a hypocritical manner; own him to be the true God, and claim their interest in him, and pretend knowledge of and acquaintance with him; though they have not served or worshipped him but idols for hundreds of years; like others who profess to know God, but in works deny him, (Titus 1:16) . Israel is the last word in the verse, and occasions different versions: "they shall cry unto me"; these transgressors of the covenant and the law, these hypocrites, shall pray to God in trouble, saying, "my God, we Israel", or Israelites, "know thee"; or, "we know thee who are Israel" ^F24;

and to this sense is the Targum,``in every time that distress comes upon them, they pray before me, and say, now we know that we have no God besides thee; redeem us, for we are your people Israel;'' why may they not be rendered thus, "they shall cry unto me; my God, we know thee, Israel" shall say? Castalio renders them to this sense, "my God", say they; but "we know thee, Israel"; we, the three Persons in the Trinity, Father, Son, and Spirit, we know your hypocrisy and wickedness, that it is only outwardly and hypocritically, and not sincerely, that you cry unto and call upon God.

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FOOTNOTES:

• F24: (larvy Kwnedy yhla wqezy yl) "ad me clamant, Deus mi, novimus te nos Israel", De Dieu; "clamabunt ad me, O Deus meus, nos Israelitae cognoscimus te", Tigurine version, so Tarnovius; "mihi vocant, Deus mi, cognovimus, [vel] agnoscimus te Israel", vel "nos lsrael, seu Israelitae", Schmidt.