He says, "I will deliver this people from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death, are your plagues? Where, O grave, is your destruction?" (Hosea 13:14) Many scholars interpret this as a twofold prophecy. The ancient northern kingdom of Israel will be conquered by the Assyrian Empire and the majority of its citizens, who survive the war, will be taken captive and removed from the land; in this sense the deliverance from "the grave" and "death" may represent the Lord's intention to allow them to return to the land. In a future sense, this verse represents the literal resurrection of the dead, for the Apostle Paul quoted (and paraphrased somewhat) this verse from the book of Hosea as a promise to believers who would be raised from the dead never to die again. "When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: 'Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?'" (1 Corinthians 15:54-55)
We know from our previous studies of the book of Revelation that all the dead will rise from the grave at the end of time as we know it; believers will spend eternity in the Lord's presence and those who have rejected Him will spend eternity separated from His presence. But Paul was speaking to those who had accepted the Lord as their Savior. And for anyone who has made Him the Lord of their lives, death has no victory or power over them. Believers will rise in a perfect, immortal body like that of the Lord Jesus Christ.
But the promise of a return to the land and the promise of an end to death are still in the future here in the book of Hosea. The people have so far refused to repent of idolatry and will continue to refuse to repent until they are conquered by the enemy. The Assyrian army was known for its callous treatment of prisoners and for its lack of compassion on women, children, the elderly, and the infirm. Because it is the Lord who is going to allow Assyria to perpetuate cruelty upon the nation that has rejected Him, He speaks of the deeds of the Assyrians as though it is He Himself who is carrying out these acts because He is allowing these things to take place as judgment for sin. If the people had remained faithful to Him, He promised them long ago that no enemy could prevail against them, but He also warned them long ago that they would be conquered if they turned away from Him. He warns, "I will have no compassion, even though he thrives against his brothers. An east wind from the Lord will come, blowing in from the desert; his spring will fail and his well dry up. His storehouse will be plundered of all its treasures. The people of Samaria must bear their guilt, because they have rebelled against their God. They will fall by the sword; their little ones will be dashed to the ground, their pregnant women ripped open." (Hosea 13:15-16)
The segment above ends on a very graphic note. The behavior mentioned there is the type of behavior heathen soldiers typically engaged in when attacking another nation. The Lord's references to "he" is a reference to Ephraim, the name by which He has been calling the entire northern kingdom of Israel in our current chapter. His reference to Samaria, the capital city of the northern kingdom, is likely due to the way the Assyrians will attack that city in particular since it is the seat of government. It is also probably the most idolatrous city of the nation since the primary golden calf site, where the king and the royal officials took sacrifices and offerings, was located very close to Samaria at Bethel.
These things do not have to happen, not if the people will repent. "Return, Israel, to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall! Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to Him: 'Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips.'" (Hosea 14:1-2) I think some people may have repented at the preaching of Hosea or at the preaching of the other prophets and I hope the lives of those were spared, but the majority of the people scoffed at the warnings of the prophets. Earlier in the book of Hosea we learned that they rejected his message and called him a madman. But to those few who may have repented and made God the Lord of their lives, we know they have the promise of an eternal life with Him, regardless of how things may have turned out for them here on earth.
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