"They shall eat and not be satisfied; they have committed harlotry and shall not increase, for they have forsaken Hashem to observe. Harlotry, wine, and new wine take away the heart."
"They shall eat and not be satisfied." Since their eating is not according to the law, Radak explains, their eating will naturally not bring blessing: "They shall eat and not be satisfied." And we saw that they were also promiscuous; because their relations with women were through harlotry, "they shall not increase." "They shall not increase" means they will not have children, and if they do have children, they will die from the womb. Today, perhaps, this might be seen as an advantage, as nowadays someone engaging in promiscuity is not interested in having children. But it is implied that in their time they were promiscuous yet still wanted children. Even so, the prophet tells them that their punishment will be "and they shall not increase" - their offspring will not multiply; they will not have children. And the reason: "for they have forsaken Hashem to observe." What does "forsaken Hashem to observe" mean? They ceased to observe. They abandoned Hashem, forsaking the observance of His ways; they have no desire for Hashem and do not wish to keep His paths.
The Malbim explains, "They shall eat and not be satisfied..."
The leaders caused the people to pursue harlotry, therefore "they shall not increase" - they will not have an abundance of sons and daughters. The reason is: "for they have forsaken Hashem to observe harlotry, wine, and new wine, which take away the heart." The explanation the Malbim offers here follows the line of Rav Saadia Gaon, which is also cited by Radak. Radak in his first interpretation explained "for they have forsaken Hashem to observe" as: they abandoned Hashem, forsaking observance. In contrast, Rav Saadia Gaon reads the two verses together: "for they have forsaken Hashem to observe [in order to pursue] harlotry, wine, and new wine that take away the heart." They abandoned Hashem, and what did they go off to observe? They went to observe harlotry, wine, and new wine. That is what they kept! Thus, it turns out that "to observe" (lishmor) is not the end of the thought, but the beginning and continuation of the next verse. They abandoned Hashem to keep harlotry, wine, and new wine. Instead of the Kohen being commanded to keep the charge of Hashem, instead of being commanded to be holy unto his God - what does holy unto his God mean? The Torah warns him: "A woman who is a harlot, or profaned, they shall not take." Instead, on the contrary, "to observe harlotry, wine, and new wine." They go searching and seeking harlotry, wine, and new wine. The Kohen was also warned not to consume wine: "Drink no wine nor strong drink... when you go into the Tent of Meeting." That is to say, he was restricted in drinking wine. Yet despite all this, you see that they seek after the very two things forbidden to them: harlotry and wine/new wine.
Promiscuity and wine - regarding this the verse says: "Harlotry, wine, and new wine take away the heart." What is the meaning of "takes away the heart"? The Malbim explains - perhaps we can bring this closer to human understanding: when we speak of the heart, the heart is autonomous. Autonomous means that we have free will; a person can direct his heart wherever he desires. Man possesses free choice. All of this holds true as long as a person has not introduced or consumed substances that can seize control of his free choice. Today this is familiar to all of us through narcotics: when a person takes drugs, one cannot say he is acting with awareness and rational discernment. That person is now driven by the power of the drug. So too with an intoxicated person. When a person is drunk, one cannot say he has free will, nor that his heart is in his own hands, doing whatever enters his mind - no! Rather, the wine acts upon his heart. His heart is drawn away and captured by the wine. The same is true of a person steeped in promiscuity and lust. One cannot say he acts rationally; rather, the lust pulls him along, and then he can commit very grave acts that an ordinary person would be ashamed of. But because lust pulls him, his heart is no longer in his hands. This is what is written here: "Harlotry, wine, and new wine take away the heart." They seize the heart and turn it away from the holy path. When promiscuity and wine are present, a person neither acts nor thinks rationally, and his heart is not his own. They abandoned keeping the charge of Hashem, and what do they keep? They keep harlotry, wine, and new wine. That has replaced Hashem's charge. And this "charge" that they keep - meaning that very thing they crave and seek - that very thing captures their heart and leads them astray. Harlotry, wine, and new wine take away their heart.
"My people asks of its wood, and its staff declares unto them. For the spirit of harlotry has led them astray, and they have gone astray from under their God." "My people asks of its wood, and its staff declares unto them." Today, this is used as a witty idiom when someone wants to describe a person who does not have a Rav to consult and ask, but instead has "Rebbe Google" - that is, "my people asks of its wood." Whom are you asking? Wood and stone, your computer, you ask questions! "My people asks of its wood." Or there are those who look for "user-friendly" Rabbis - some sort of elastic Rabbi, one who moves with the spirit of the times, a convenient Rabbi who understands "the spirit of the people," who is ready to accommodate the changes that the people have undergone and the shifts brought by the new reality, falling right into line. Such a person - "its staff declares unto him" (maklo yagid lo, punning on makel, one who is lenient). He looks for the one who is lenient. "Who will be lenient for him? His staff will tell him" - whoever is lenient, that is whom he wants to rule the Halachah for him; him he asks, he is his posek. Well, that is said in jest. Now let us explain the literal meaning of the text.
Radak explains: "My people asks of its wood, and its staff declares unto them" - like a blind person whose walking stick guides him along the way, and through it he knows which way to go. So too, "My people asks of its wood, and its staff declares unto them." Meaning, "its wood" is the idol, and "its staff" is the cane with which the blind person walks along the way. They walk with such a staff, and the staff misleads them. Who is their staff? The false prophets. He is your staff who shows you the way. You are like a blind person relying on what the staff tells you. That staff is the false prophets. "For the spirit of harlotry has led them astray, and they have gone astray from under their God." A spirit of harlotry misleads the false prophets, and through this they mislead the nation. Radak says: it turns out that these people who inquire of idols or through the staff - who are the false prophets - go astray after a spirit of harlotry that misled those false prophets and that idolatry.
The Malbim explains: "My people asks of its wood" - this is the idol. The idol was made of wood, and he wants to seek an answer from it, so "of its wood he asks." But the idol does not answer him. Then the prophet is told: "and its staff declares unto them." What is "its staff" (maklo)? Hashem says: You will receive answers not from the wood, but from the rod. What is the staff? A makel, the Malbim notes, differs from wood (etz). When speaking of etz, it can refer simply to the raw material called wood. But when speaking of a makel (rod or stick), says the Malbim, it always appears in the context of striking. If it says here "and its staff declares unto him," it means the rod that delivers blows! That is what is being discussed. Therefore, the Malbim says, one cannot interpret like the other commentators who explained that "its staff" is the walking staff (mateh) upon which one leans. A staff upon which one leans is always called a mateh, not a makel. A makel is exclusively something that strikes and beats. Thus, "My people asks of its wood" - My people inquire of idols and stray from the path. He says: Do you know who will set you straight on the path? "Its staff will tell him." The rod that administers beatings to you - then you will understand that you erred; then you will understand that your way was wrong. That rod will tell you. You will not receive any answer from the idol. On the contrary, "for a spirit of harlotry has led them astray." The rod will tell you: Sir, a spirit of harlotry has misled! The rod will tell you that a spirit of harlotry led the false prophets astray, led the Jewish people astray, led everyone astray from the path. And through this spirit of harlotry, "they have gone astray from under their God." It turns out, therefore, that the rod is what will straighten them onto the right path. The rod that chastises them, that afflicts them, will show them the right way.
The Malbim says that one can also say: What is "its staff"? The staff that comes from the idol itself. "My people asks of its wood" - that is the idol, which, as we said, is made of wood. And from this idol, as it were, emerges a rod, and this rod "declares unto him." And what does "declares unto him" mean? It strikes him! This is in the same vein, except the difference, according to what the Malbim now adds, is that the rod itself comes out of the idol. This corresponds to what we have discussed several times: that the evil that befalls a person is the sin itself. "Your own wickedness shall chastise you." Or as Ezekiel says: "Violence has grown into a rod of wickedness." Violence itself, robbery itself, the transgression itself becomes the rod that strikes the wicked. Thus, in effect, the transgression turns into the destroyer. This is what we saw written in another verse: "Your own wickedness shall chastise you, and your backslidings shall reprove you." That is to say, evil itself chastises man; the sin itself chastises man. There is another verse: "The foolishness of man perverts his way, and his heart frets against Hashem." Who is it that chastises you? It is the sins you committed; it is the destructive forces (mashchitim) you created! Thus, a man's foolishness perverts his way, and as a consequence he suffers, "and his heart frets against Hashem." He is angry at Hashem: "Master of the Universe, why did You do this to me?" "Why did I do this to you? This is only one of a thousand destructive agents you created that I released upon you! If I were to release any more, the slightly larger destroyers, you could not survive for a moment." It emerges, then, that "My people asks of its wood," and from that wood emerges a rod that will tell him - it will chastise him. This sin produces a rod of affliction that will chastise him and tell him that a spirit of harlotry led him astray, and this is what caused them to "go astray from under their God."
"They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under oak and poplar and terebinth, because the shadow thereof is good; therefore your daughters commit harlotry, and your daughters-in-law commit adultery." "They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains" - that is, we are describing the state in which they went astray from under their God. "Harlotry" in this sense means straying, deviating from one's path, and turning away from one's Husband, the Holy One, blessed be He. Knesset Yisrael goes and strays after their gods, their idols. The prophet describes how slaughtering sacrifices (zevicha) to idols was the primary form of worship, while burning incense (kitor) was secondary. When they wished to worship the idol, they would offer a sacrifice to it. Beyond that - to make a distinction of thousands of degrees, just as there is the burning of incense in the Beit HaMikdash - they performed corresponding actions, burning incense to idols. We see many expressions of this in the Prophets: the women would burn incense, etc. - not just complaining to their husbands, as the modern slang goes, but in the sense of offering incense to the Baal, to idols. So the primary worship was slaughter and sacrifice, while incense was secondary. Therefore he says, "They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains." On the mountain peaks they offered sacrifices, because mountain peaks are high places, indicating that they worshipped in assemblies, publicly, in large numbers, on mountain summits in an elevated, prominent, and conspicuous location. By contrast, the burning of incense, which was considered the less significant rite in their eyes, each person performed individually upon the hills: each man by himself, "under oak and poplar and terebinth, because the shadow thereof is good." They would go and burn incense in more private places, locations set aside specifically for their worship, not publicly as with the sacrifices, since it was not as prominent in their eyes as sacrifice.
There is an additional point here: alongside sacrificing and burning incense, they also engaged in harlotry. For as is well known, promiscuity was intertwined with idol worship. As we will see further on, attached to every house of idolatry was a house of harlotry. We will also explain later what they gained by this. Here too, the Malbim notes, there were two kinds of promiscuity: public promiscuity and private promiscuity. Public promiscuity took place on the mountains, while private promiscuity took place on the hills, as we will see in the following verse. Regarding this, he tells them: "Therefore your daughters commit harlotry, and your daughters-in-law commit adultery." "Therefore your daughters commit harlotry" - just as your fathers committed harlotry, so too your daughters will commit harlotry. Daughters, the Malbim explains, were typically married off and sent to live with their husbands, whereas daughters-in-law remained in the household. That is, the son remained at home - much like the common practice in Arab society to this day, where a son builds a home in the courtyard or an apartment below his parents, whereas a daughter is sent off to the groom who marries her. Regarding this he tells them: the daughters will commit harlotry (tiznenah). Because zenut indicates that she strayed from under her husband. We previously explained that the term zenut always implies straying from under a husband. The act of the sin itself is called ni'uf (adultery). The act of transgression is called ni'uf even if she were unmarried, as it refers to the act itself. In contrast, we always use the term zenut when she leaves the authority of her husband; then the term zenut is used. We would not use the term zenut for an unmarried woman, because there she has not strayed from under her husband. Nor is zenut necessarily tied only to marital infidelity, as we say, "and you went astray (vatezenu) after the Baalim," which refers to idolatry. Zenut means deviating from the one who rules over you. We had Someone who ruled over us, and we strayed after the Baalim. The husband is the master, and the wife strayed and went to the adulterers. So the act itself is called ni'uf, while leaving the authority of her husband is called zenut. This is what the verse means here: The daughters are described as committing harlotry (tiznenah), because they strayed from under their husbands. "And your daughters-in-law commit adultery (tena'afnah)" - the daughters-in-law were in the home, as we explained, and since promiscuity and illicit relations were openly permitted in public, they did not consider it straying from under the husband, since it occurred right there at home. So what is it called? Merely ni'uf (adultery). He does not call it zenut, since it was with the husband's tacit consent. Because this was done in a manner not viewed as zenut and leaving the husband's authority, regarding the daughters-in-law who were at home, he uses the term tena'afnah.
Rashi explains the matter of "therefore your daughters commit harlotry": Rashi explains that the meaning is that since you attach yourselves to idolatry, and the Torah forbade associating with idolaters so that "you shall not give your daughter to his son, nor take his daughter for your son" - Rashi says, this is what is written here. Since you join with idolatry, associating with the gentiles, this causes you to take their daughters for your sons and give your daughters to their sons, resulting in an aspect of harlotry. Through this you intermarry with them, and the sons and daughters born to you from their daughters follow the customs of their mothers and act promiscuously. Ibn Ezra explains that this matter of "therefore your daughters commit harlotry" is a description of consequence: since you go out to burn incense on the mountains and on the hills, you are not at home. Once you are not at home, your daughters are left at home alone, and the daughters and daughters-in-law commit harlotry and adultery, because there is no one left to guard them, as the members of the household have gone outside the city to the mountains and hills.
"I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry, nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery; for they themselves separate with harlots, and sacrifice with the consecrated prostitutes; and the people that does not understand shall stumble." "I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry" - because the guilt, says the Malbim, does not lie with the daughters, but with their fathers, from whom they learned to pervert their ways. "For they themselves separate with harlots, and sacrifice with the consecrated prostitutes" - meaning, they were joined with the harlots and the consecrated women (kedeshot). The kedeshot were designated for cultic prostitution; this was public promiscuity. "With them they sacrifice." The sacrificing, as the Malbim noted earlier, was upon the mountains, done publicly before the masses, as it is written: "They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains." And they were promiscuous with the kedeshot, who were designated for idol worship. That is, as the Malbim explains - and as we explained previously in the name of the Vilna Gaon - we have a tradition that adjacent to every house of idol worship was a house of prostitution. That is why we see the rebukes continually linking idolatry with promiscuity. Having a house of prostitution next to the house of idolatry served two purposes. One purpose was to draw the hearts of the people. Why should they remain faithful to Hashem and His faith when He places so many restrictions, whereas idolatry is liberal? It allows such acts, and not merely permitted, but all under the mantle of idol worship! All these actions were done ostensibly for the sake of the idol, not out of mere base lust. In this way, they drew many followers. The second purpose was to increase the revenue of the house of idolatry. The hire given to the prostitute, says the Malbim, was taken by the priests of Baal, the priests of the idol, for the temple of idolatry, ostensibly to maintain the place and develop it. It turns out, therefore, that the role of these kedeshot was ostensibly "for holiness" - for the idol, to glorify it, to attract people to it, and to fund it. That is why the title used for these prostitutes is kedeshot, which is a derisive play on the concept of kedushah (holiness). They viewed this as "sanctity," while from our perspective it is the absolute opposite. Just as we say: a person who prays in a shul is engaged in tefillah, but what do we call a Reform temple? A house of tiflah (frivolity and inanity, related to tafel, tasteless). We do not call their prayer tefillah, but tiflah. So too here, we do not call them kedoshot (holy women), but kedeshot, meaning cult prostitutes. Why do we also use this term from the standpoint of Lashon HaKodesh? We explained in the past that kadosh means set apart and designated. When we say an item was consecrated (hekdesh) for the upkeep of the Temple, it was separated and set apart from ordinary use for the Temple. When a man says under the chuppah, "Behold, you are consecrated (mekudeshet) to me," she does not become a Sefer Torah; rather, mekudeshet means she is set apart and designated from all other men exclusively for me. That is the meaning of kadosh. When we speak of kedeshot, Rashi says: they are designated for harlotry, separated and set apart from the rest of women and designated for transgression. Therefore, in terms of the Holy Tongue as well, the origin of this term is clear. So this is what it says here: "and with the kedeshot they sacrifice" - the place of the kedeshot was the place of sacrifice, since sacrifice was public and the kedeshot were designated for this sin, making it a public affair. "And with the harlots (zonot) they separate" - a zonah here refers to a married woman who strays under her husband; she has something to fear! She will not go and do this publicly. Since that is so, "with the harlots they separate" - she separates herself from the company of people to commit adultery with a stranger, because she is terrified that if her husband sees her, she will never see anyone again. Below ten handbreadths it is hard to see anything! She is terrified that this will be the end of the story. So what does she do? "With the harlots they separate." Those who commit adultery against their husbands must separate themselves from the public, withdraw from the congregation, and perform their deeds in the dark, acting promiscuously on the hills in a hidden place under the terebinth, as we saw in the previous verse. This is what the Malbim tells us, and this connects to what we saw earlier: "and its staff declares unto him." What will the staff declare? When you receive afflictions, the rod will reprove you and tell you that a spirit of harlotry led them astray. Through the lust of harlotry they strayed from serving Hashem and went to worship idols. That is what the rod that strikes him will declare. And this is why the verse concludes: "and the people that does not understand shall stumble (yilavet)." Why are they struck with a chastising rod? Because they do not understand. "Shall stumble" (yilavet) - meaning he will be worn out and exhausted from the multitude of blows, as Rashi explains yilavet in the sense of weariness, like "how we toiled (lavatnu) on the way." On the other hand, Radak's father and Ibn Ezra explain the word yilavet as it is familiar to us today; he explains that in Arabic, yilavet means one who is confused and bewildered, not knowing what to do, like "a prating fool shall stumble (yilavet)." This is the exact root of the modern Hebrew word lehitlabet (to deliberate, hesitate): a person who is in doubt, confused, and does not know how to act. And why does this happen? Because they do not understand their sin, and the rod must strike them so that they realize where they corrupted their ways and where they went astray.
Rashi explains: What is "they separate with harlots"? "I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry." Rashi explains that when a woman strays and commits adultery against her husband, the Sotah waters test her. She is made to drink the bitter, curse-bearing waters, and the waters reveal whether she truly committed adultery or not. In contrast, when her husband - as the Gemara says, "he is among the thorns and she is among the pumpkins" - meaning her husband is no less tainted than she is, then the waters do not test her. When do the waters test her? Only when the husband is clean from iniquity. When the man is not clean from iniquity, the waters do not test his wife. Not that if he is not clean from iniquity she is permitted to do such a thing - of course it is forbidden to her! He will settle his account and she will settle hers. But in any case, you cannot bring your wife to drink the bitter waters when you yourself are doing things that are no less bitter. This is what is written here: "I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry" - the bitter waters will not expose your daughters when they commit harlotry, nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery. And why? "For they" - the husbands - "themselves separate with harlots." The husbands themselves engage in promiscuity with harlots! Since that is so, how can the waters test the woman when the husband himself is flawed and corrupt? Radak cites in the name of his father that yifaredu comes from the word pered (mule). The meaning is that a mule is more consumed by lust than any other animal. Thus, "for they with the harlots yifaredu" means they engage with harlots steeped in lust after the manner of mules. He also brings another explanation in the name of some commentators: that they act with the harlots after the manner of a mule. Meaning, a mule does not reproduce, since a mule is the offspring of a donkey and a mare, or a horse and a she-ass. The resulting creature cannot reproduce - it is a mule, barren as a mule. A mule cannot give birth. They wanted the women not to conceive, and therefore they practiced the act of Er and Onan. Through this, he says, "with harlots yifaredu" - they act like the mule, meaning an act that does not lead to conception, thereby comparing their deeds to the nature of a mule.
"Though you, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah become guilty; and come not unto Gilgal, neither go up to Beit-Aven, nor swear: 'As Hashem lives.'" "Though you, Israel, play the harlot" - why does he now turn to Israel, and how does he connect this to Judah? The Malbim explains: We already saw earlier in the first chapter, in the first verse, that Hoshea began prophesying during the reign of Jeroboam son of Joash. At that time, the kingdom of Judah was subjugated under the kingdom of Israel, until the twenty-fourth year of Uzziah, when Uzziah ruled independently; only then did the kingdom of Judah break away and throw off the yoke of the kingdom of Israel. During the period we are discussing, Judah was subservient to the kingdom of Israel, and the kingdom of Israel was called the kingdom of Ephraim. The prophet therefore says: "Though you, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah become guilty." Judah at that time was still serving Hashem. As is well known, ever since the era of Jeroboam son of Nebat, the kingdom had split. From that time on, Israel strayed from the path - Israel meaning the Northern Kingdom of Shomron. All the kings of Israel were wicked. In contrast, the kings of Judah for a very long period were righteous kings. Even when there were wicked ones among them, it was sometimes a wicked king followed by a righteous king, then another wicked king followed by a righteous king; there were righteous kings. In Israel, however, there was never a single righteous king. They were entirely wicked, and therefore they were exiled first, and to this day they have not returned - the Ten Tribes were lost to us, and we hope the Mashiach will return them (there is a discussion in the Gemara, but we hope they will return). In any case, the kingdom of Judah served Hashem intermittently. During that period when the kingdom of Judah was subjugated under the kingdom of Israel, the people of Israel were wicked, as the kingdom of Israel was consistently wicked; but the kingdom of Judah still served Hashem and still observed the mitzvot. Therefore, the prophet warns Judah: You, Judah, are currently under the kingdom of Israel; you must be careful not to learn from their deeds. Since calves had been set up in Israel ever since the days of Jeroboam son of Nebat, creating a pull toward idolatry, there was a real concern that now that Judah was subject to Israel, they would act like them, be drawn after their ways, and Israel would corrupt Judah. Regarding this the prophet says: "Though you, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah become guilty." If you, Israel - which is the kingdom of Ephraim, as we will see later that Israel is also called Ephraim - if you play the harlot against your God by making calves and worshipping idols, you must at least take care that Judah does not become guilty: do not cause Judah to sin, so that they do not learn from your deeds. He therefore commands the tribe of Judah, telling them: "Come not unto Gilgal, neither go up to Beit-Aven." Gilgal - let us begin with Beit-Aven: this was the place known as Beit-El. It is called Beit-Aven as a derogatory name based on aven, meaning an act of iniquity and wickedness, because it was a center of idolatry. Gilgal was also a place where they worshipped the golden calves. Both of these places, the Malbim notes, were steeped in idolatry, as it is written in Amos: "Come to Beit-El and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression... in Gilgal they sacrifice bullocks." These places bordered Judah - metzarniyim, meaning right on the boundary, like a bar metzra. Both places lay directly on Judah's border. There was thus a grave danger that Judah, currently under Israeli rule, would come and cling to the idolatry situated right at its border in Gilgal and Beit-El. He therefore warns them: "Come not unto Gilgal, neither go up to Beit-Aven, nor swear: 'As Hashem lives.'" What does this mean? In Gilgal and Beit-El they would swear by the idols. He says to them: You in Judah swear by the life of Hashem. If you go there and become corrupted like them, you will no longer swear, "As Hashem lives"; you will swear by the life of Baal, you will swear by idols! He tells them: Therefore, do not come to Gilgal, do not go up to Beit-Aven, lest you swear, "As Hashem lives" falsely or cease swearing by Him altogether. If you go there, you will end up corrupting your oaths. Therefore, do not go there.
"For Israel has behaved stubbornly like a stubborn heifer; now Hashem will feed them as a lamb in a broad place." "For Israel has behaved stubbornly like a stubborn heifer" - the Jewish people are like a rebellious cow, and now Hashem wanted to shepherd them like a lamb in a broad place. The Malbim explains that in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash, Hashem had mercy on Israel. The king of Aram had afflicted them, tortured them, and made them like dust at threshing time. Then the Holy One, blessed be He, sent a king who saved them - Jeroboam son of Joash. It is written of him that "he restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath unto the sea of the Arabah." Hashem then pastured them in broad pastures, "like a lamb in a broad place." What does this mean? If until then the border was narrow and constricted, then following Hashem's restoration of the border from the entrance of Hamath to the sea of the Arabah, you entered an expansive expanse. You emerged from confinement into broad borders. Hashem thought that just as a lamb follows the shepherd, not separating from the flock but following the shepherd faithfully, so too the Jewish people, upon seeing Hashem's lovingkindness - that Hashem saved us from Aram and expanded our borders - would act like sheep, like a lamb that follows its shepherd. (Even today this is an idiom: like sheep to the slaughter, like a lamb led to slaughter.) We were expected to be like sheep, behaving in the right and proper way, not separating from the flock to wander upon wild mountains, as the Malbim notes - referring to what we saw earlier, that they went to burn incense and offer sacrifices upon the mountains and hills. Hashem thought: Perhaps now you will not rebel against Him. But instead: "Israel has behaved stubbornly like a stubborn heifer." Hashem says: What did I receive instead? You became a stubborn cow! When a cow is brought out to a wide pasture, it abandons the shepherd, turns rebellious, and wanders away from the shepherd. In the same way, you distanced yourselves from Hashem precisely at the moment when you should have drawn closer to Him, following His providing for you: "Now Hashem will feed them as a lamb in a broad place." He had just given you abundance and prosperity; you should have been pastured under His care. Instead, you turned away and drifted far.
"Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone." There are several verses in Tanach where anyone you ask to explain them will give a particular explanation, and they will all be mistaken. Why? Because the explanation they give is a derash, homiletic interpretation, whereas almost no one knows the plain meaning (peshat) of the verse. Now, when I say derash, I do not mean to say they are "wrong" in the sense that what they said is untrue, because derash is also true and valid. But it is not the peshat of the verse. That is, you took a verse and interpreted it homiletically in a certain way, but that is not the plain contextual meaning. Anyone who reads the verses in order understands that it was stated as a derash. Let us give an example: "For your destroyers and they that made you waste shall go forth from you" (meharasayich umacharivayich mimech yetze'u). What does this mean? Ask any person, and he will tell you: "Our troubles come from within ourselves; your destroyers and ruiners come from within you! The fifth column is our own; the Haaretz newspaper belongs to us! 'Your destroyers come from within you.'" You do not see this as much among other nations, but among the Jewish people you see that those drilling holes in the ship are always from within. "Your destroyers shall come from you." That is a very nice derash, and unfortunately true in reality, but that is not the plain meaning of the text there! The plain meaning there is a wonderful promise from Hashem: the destroyers and ruiners will depart from us and go far away: "Your destroyers and ruiners shall depart from you." Ask a person: What is "Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone"? He will tell you that even when the Jewish people worship idols (atzabim), as long as they are "joined" together (chavur), united, Hashem says: "Let him alone - do not punish them!" But when "their heart is divided, now shall they be found guilty" - when there is division, polarization, and strife among them, then Hashem says: "Now shall they be found guilty; now I will punish them." This is Chazal's exposition contrasting the era of Saul, where soldiers went to war and fell, with the era of Ahab, where they were victorious. What was the difference? In the time of Ahab they were united: fifty prophets hidden in a cave, and not one person revealed it to Ahab, even though Jezebel was hunting the prophets. Whereas in the time of Saul, there were informers among them: every time David fled, they said, "Behold, David is hiding among us," "Behold, David is in Keilah," constantly gossiping and slandering David. They had informers and talebearers among them. Truly, a very beautiful derash, but that is not the plain meaning of the text! Now let us explain the verse according to its peshat.
"Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone." Rashi explains: chavur atzabim - chavur means joined, atzabim means idols. Ephraim refers to the Kingdom of Israel; whenever Scripture speaks of Ephraim, it is in distinction to Judah. Ephraim refers to Shomron, the Ten Tribes. Ephraim is joined, attached, and bound to idols. Therefore: "Let him alone." Do not prophesy to him to rebuke him, Hashem says. It is futile; it will accomplish nothing, for they will not accept it. Since he is joined to idols, bound to idolatry, there is no one to talk to - so leave him alone. Ibn Ezra explains that while some explain atzabim as idols, like "all your idols," it is more correct that atzabim stems from the word itzavon (sorrow or grief). In fact, Ibn Ezra says, the two ideas complement each other. Why? Because idols bring sorrow to the hearts of those who worship them. You cry out to it, and cry out, and cry out, and it informs you that the idol you have reached is currently unavailable; please try again later! In short, you come away from it in grief (itzavon). That is why they are called atzabim (and in modern Hebrew slang, one might say you come away "with atzabim", frustrated and aggravated). Hashem says: "Let him alone" until their eyes are opened. Radak explains: to the Baalim - that is, the golden calves, the Baal, the Asherah - Israel is so attached that there is no one who can speak to him, no one who can rebuke him. Therefore, "let him alone" - do not rebuke them. Radak points out: take note that this is stated by way of exaggeration or rhetorical threat. What does this mean? Radak explains that it is like a person who becomes furious with his friend who refuses to listen, and says: "You won't listen to me? Fine, I am finished with you! I won't say another word to you!" Yet despite this, a short time later he returns and rebukes him again. You see that he does not keep his threat: he says, "That's it, I won't rebuke you," and then rebukes him again; "I won't correct you anymore," and then corrects him again. The same is true here: Hashem says, as it were, "Let him alone," but in a hyperbolic manner, for in reality we immediately see the prophet returning to rebuke Israel. The Malbim explains: the kingdom is called Ephraim. He is joined to idols; he refuses to part from idolatry, as is written of Jeroboam son of Joash: "And he did that which was evil in the sight of Hashem; he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam." Therefore - take note! - according to the Malbim, the directive "let him alone" is not addressed to the prophet ("leave them alone because they do not listen"), but to Judah: "You, Judah, leave them alone and do not associate with them!" For as we saw earlier, Judah was subjugated under Israel at that time. We saw that the prophet warns them: do not learn from them, do not be corrupted by their deeds. This is part of that warning. Since Ephraim is attached to idols, "let him alone" - meaning separate from him! Do not come to Gilgal, do not come to Beit-Aven, do not learn from his corrupt deeds, so that you, Judah, do not become corrupted like Ephraim.
"Their drink has turned sour; they have committed harlotry continually; her rulers love, 'Give ye,' shamefully." The Malbim explains the meaning of the verses: "their drink has turned sour, they have committed harlotry continually..." The prophet warns Judah, telling them: Keep your distance from them; do not trust in "her shields" (magineha). Who are her shields? The Malbim explains that this refers to the leaders of Ephraim - the officers, the warriors of Ephraim, who supposedly shielded and protected Judah. Since Judah was subservient to them at that time, if a war broke out, who would go out to fight? The nation under whose protection you reside. Judah was sheltering under Israel's protection, so Judah might worry: if a war or threat arises, who are our protectors? Israel! We take shelter under them expecting them to defend us. To this the prophet says: Do not rely on them! Do not think that they are "her shields" who will protect you. And the reason is that they suffer from three fatal flaws. The first flaw is drunkenness: "Their drink has turned sour" (sar sov'am). When someone is a drunkard and glutton (zolel v'sovei), he gorges on meat and swills wine, as Targum renders: sovei chamar, one who guzzles wine. "Their drink has turned sour" means their drinking has departed from normal bounds, reaching unreasonable and excessive levels. You rely on them? They are drenched in wine! Second, they have the flaw of harlotry and idolatry, as seen earlier. And not only are they sinners themselves, they also lead others astray: "They have committed harlotry continually" (hazneh hiznu), using the causative form. It is not enough that they act wickedly themselves; they actively lead others into sin. Furthermore: "her rulers love, 'Give ye,' shamefully" (ahavu hevu kalon magineha). They loved disgrace and cried, "Give!" That is, they cling to disgrace, engaging in shameful, contemptible practices, loving them and attaching themselves to them. Since that is the case, do not join with them!
"The wind has bound her up in its wings, and they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices." "The wind has bound her up in its wings" - Rashi explains that the wind clings to its wings, like a bird that the wind does not allow to rest until it carries it far away. The bird is suspended in the air and the wind sweeps it along. So "the wind has bound her up in its wings" means the wind binds them and carries them off in its wings. What is this prophecy actually telling them? Do not rely on Israel, for soon a wind will come and carry them off in its wings! Soon there will be an exile, and this exile will blow Israel away from here. And through this, "they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices." Those abominable sacrifices of theirs, to which they sacrificed and burned incense in the hope that the idols would protect them and keep them safe - "they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices." Where is the sacrifice now? Where are the offerings you brought to it? How did they help you? In what way did they save you? Rashi cites the Midrash Tanchuma, an aggadic interpretation: like a person threatening one who provokes him: "By your life, I will bind you in your wings!" Meaning: Beware, I will bind your wings. When one wants to prevent a bird from flying, what does one do? He binds its wings, and then it cannot fly. So too, this verse is a threat against Israel, saying to them: My zeal is bound, My wrath is bound up with you to take vengeance upon you. "The wind has bound her up in its wings" is like binding her wings to bring that spirit of zeal upon you, "and they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices."