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"The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up"

Text: Hosea 13:12

THE INIQUITY OF THE NATION

The word “iniquity” suggests that there was much more than an act of transgression. Iniquity suggests the idea of “evil”.

“The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up;
His sin is stored up.
The sorrows of a woman in childbirth shall come upon him.
He is an unwise son,
For he should not stay long where children are born.”
Hosea 13:12-13

1. “The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; His sin is stored up.”

a) Sin and iniquity are closely associated.

b) Evil is present in sin.

c) Sin and iniquity:

i) When they are not confessed and cleansed.

ii) They are then stored away.

iii) Until the day of judgment from the LORD.

2. Imagery of a woman who is heavily pregnant

a) Sorrows are felt.

b) Intense pain is experienced.

c) She longs to deliver but is in distress until the baby is born.

3. Imagery of an unwise son

a) A “wise” baby would desire to be born into the world when its time is due.

b) But Israel was an “unwise son”.

i) He did not wish to be delivered.

ii) He stayed in the mother’s womb.

iii) Staying longer in the womb would cause further sorrow and pain to the mother.

4. The meaning of this imagery

a) Ephraim was that unwise son.

b) It should have sought the Lord for His mercy and desired deliverance.

c) But instead it chose to stay in sin.

d) It caused great sorrow to the mother (the nation of Israel).