Bible Commentaries
Hosea 11

Verse 1

In tender words reminiscent of the Exodus from Egypt (cf. Exodus 4:22-23), the Lord reassured Israel of His intense love for her. His compassion for her was aroused (cf. Isaiah 12:1; Isaiah 40:1-2; Isaiah 49:13; Jeremiah 31:10-14; Zechariah 1:12-17).

Verse 4

yoke -- ref. to Egyptian slavery.

Verse 5

This was going to happen if-because they refused to repent.

He will return to the land of Egypt -- English translations have produced contradictory readings of this phrase. Some translations read, “shall return” or “surely shall return,” which would parallel the punishment described in Hosea 8:13. Other translations say “shall not return,” perhaps indicating a change in the punishment (from returning to slavery in Egypt to domination by Assyria; compare Hosea 9:3). Another approach is to read the opening part of the verse as a rhetorical question: “Will they not return … ?” - FSB

Assyria A region in north central Mesopotamia centered around the Tigris River and the cities of Asshur and Nineveh. Assyria was the dominant military power in Mesopotamia from 745–612 bc with an empire spanning from western Iran to eastern Asia Minor and included Syria-Palestine. - FSB

Verse 6

bars of gates.-- Two gate doors were generally set into stone sockets buried just under the ground. The posts flanked the gate on either side. They were made of wood and joined to the wall. The Iron Age outer gate excavated at Tell en-Nasebeh has slots in the stone beside the gate, where bars would have been placed. They would lock the gates by sliding the bars into sockets in the wall. - IVP

Verse 8

Admah and Zeboiim. --These two cities, neither of which have been positively identified by archaeologists, are traditionally tied to Sodom and Gomorrah as sites of utter destruction and evidence of God’s judgment (see comment on Genesis 19:1). These cities are generally located in the Jordan Valley southeast of the Dead Sea. Among the more prominent sites discovered in this area are the Early Bronze cities of Bab edh Dra’ and Numeira. IVP