"The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed; thorn and thistle shall come up on their altars, and they shall say to the mountains, 'Cover us!' and to the hills, 'Fall on us!'" (Hoshea 10:8). "Shall be destroyed" - through this, the high places of Aven were also destroyed. The high places of Aven, as Rashi explains based on Targum Yonatan, refers to the high places of Beit El. These high places were the sin of Israel; they were the stumbling block of Israel: "The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel." In these places, "thorn and thistle shall come up on their altars." The expression "thorn and thistle" receives several interpretations here. The first interpretation connects to the previous verse, where Targum Yonatan explains, "Samaria is cut off with her king" - Samaria was ashamed of her king. "Ashamed" comes from the Aramaic word for shame (*behtat*). Samaria was ashamed of her king, who was "like foam upon the water." We thought the king would save us, yet look: like foam upon the water. Foam upon the water is an expression for something insubstantial, something that is completely nullified. We thought he would save us, but his strength was worth no more than foam on the water. Foam upon the water vanishes in an instant, wiped away in a moment. That is the expression "Samaria is cut off (*nidmah*) with her king." Rashi explains that *nidmah* is from the root of silence, as in "Keep not silence (*al domi*)" (Tehillim 83:2). The king of Samaria was silenced, becoming like foam upon the water. Radak explains that it denotes destruction and being cut off, as in "My people are destroyed (*nidmu*)" (Hoshea 4:6) - cut off. Thus, "Samaria is cut off with her king" means that the king of Samaria was cut off. For so long he was under siege, and in the end he could not escape it, and was ultimately exiled. It turns out, then, that the king of Samaria was silenced and cut off like foam on the water. What is *ketzef* (foam)? Radak offers an interesting explanation. He does not explain it as Targum Yonatan does - "like boiling froth upon the surface of the water" (*kerutḥa al apei maya*), where froth refers to bubbling foam, which Rashi translates in Old French as *escume* (foam). Rashi also explains it this way in the Talmud, where the Gemara mentions *ketzef* - noting that one should not drink the foam atop a beverage - where Rashi explains it as *escume*, the foam on water. In contrast, Radak says that *ketzef* means tree bark, as in "and barked my fig tree (*liktzafah*)" (Yoel 1:7), referring to the bark of the fig tree. Thus, "like *ketzef* upon the water" means like a piece of tree bark tossing upon the surface of the water.
The Malbim explains that the prophet is now describing how he would be ashamed of his counsel - how that very counsel by which they thought to overthrow Hoshea ben Elah, by inviting the king of Assyria here and telling him that Hoshea had rebelled against him, brought downfall upon themselves. According to the Malbim, *nidmah* is related to *dimyon* (likeness) and parable, as in "to what shall we liken..." This is the connotation of *nidmah* here. The verse tells you, "Samaria and her king are likened" - they were likened to foam upon the surface of the water. When water boils, foam is produced, but as the water shifts and moves, the foam dissolves, disappears, and the water becomes smooth again. The movement of the water creates the foam, which eventually settles until the foam vanishes. Such was the reality here. Through the king, there was, as it were, a boiling up among the people; there was anger and agitation (*ketzef*). The people were enraged, and as a result, they rebelled against the king. They conspired with Hoshea ben Elah against Pekach ben Remalyahu, killed him, and crowned Hoshea in his place. Through this, this foam went into exile. Through what? Through the slander - that you went and slandered Hoshea to the king of Assyria! And as a result of that movement, just as the motion of the water dissolves the foam, so too here, as a result of this movement, they were led away to Assyria. Thus, their schemes to reinforce the worship of the calf failed, because in the end, everyone was exiled to Assyria. It emerges, then, that *nidmah* here means either shame, silencing, destruction, or likeness and metaphor.
"The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed; thorn and thistle shall come up on their altars, and they shall say to the mountains, 'Cover us!' and to the hills, 'Fall on us!'" Through this, the high places of Aven were also destroyed. The high places of Aven, as Rashi explains based on the Targum, refers to the high places of Beit El. These high places were the sin of Israel; they were Israel's downfall: "The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel." In these places, "thorn and thistle shall come up on their altars." The expression "thorn and thistle" indicates that this place is no longer frequented or inhabited. An uninhabited place grows thorns and thistles. The prophet says: since the altars will no longer be active, "thorn and thistle shall come up on their altars." Thorns and thistles will overgrow the altar; they will become desolate and ruined, to the point where the altars will say to the mountains, "Cover us!" and to the hills, "Fall on us!" The altars will speak to the mountains - since the altars were situated on mountains and hills - and say to them, "Cover us and fall upon us." That is, out of sheer desolation, the mountains and hills will collapse and cover the altars, and the altars will be buried under mounds of earth. What is the idea behind this? When there is a mountain and a desolate site, dust gradually accumulates and piles up until it buries it. Just as we can see at the Western Wall, where meters of the wall lie deep below ground because the earth covered it over time. The prophet says that this will be the reality for those altars, as if the altars themselves cry out to the mountains, "Cover us!" and to the hills, "Fall on us!" - because the place will be so desolate and abandoned.
Radak and Rashi, on the other hand, explain that the plea, "to the mountains, 'Cover us!' and to the hills, 'Fall on us!'" is not spoken metaphorically by the altars, but by the Jewish people. When the people of Israel see the great shame that has befallen them and the immense calamity into which they have plunged, they will beg the mountains and hills to cover them so that they might be buried beneath them rather than endure this suffering, calamity, and shame. In other words, this is an appeal where they plead, as it were: I would rather be buried alive than undergo the disaster that is now befalling us.
"Since the days of the Gibeah, you have sinned, O Israel; there they stood. Did not the battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity overtake them?" (Hoshea 10:9). "Since the days of Gibeah" - meaning Gibeah of Binyamin - "you have sinned, O Israel," as Rashi explains. Rashi explains here, as he explained earlier, that "the days of Gibeah" refers to the incident of the Concubine of Gibeah (*Pilegesh b'Givah*), from the era of Otniel ben Kenaz. The prophet's point is: your sin is ancient. Even since the days of Gibeah, Israel has sinned. Ever since the time of Otniel ben Kenaz, who was the first of the Judges in the days of Kushan Rishatayim - in whose days the idol of Michah also existed - you were already committing grave sins at the time of the Concubine of Gibeah. "There they stood" - what does "there they stood" mean? It means you remain in that exact same state today. You cling to that same conduct; you remain in that same corruption. "There they stood" - in that same corrupt character trait from back then, they stand today as well. "Did not the battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity overtake them?" Rashi explains that since they possessed the sin of idolatry and had not eradicated it, the battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity did not overtake them with immediate victory. This refers to what happened at Gibeah. To refresh our memory: Scripture recounts that all of Israel went out to battle against Binyamin.
They demanded that Binyamin hand over the perpetrators, those who had abused the concubine at Gibeah. But the members of Binyamin refused; they wanted to judge their own tribesmen themselves rather than leave it to the jurisdiction of the other tribes, and following their refusal, the children of Israel went to war against them. This came after the concubine's husband took her body after her death, cut it into twelve pieces, and sent them throughout all the borders of Israel to declare: "Be astonished at this, O heavens, and execute judgment upon the wicked!" They went out to battle against them, and in the first two battles Israel suffered defeat; only in the third battle did Israel prevail over Binyamin. In the first two battles, the men of Binyamin subdued Israel. Now the verse explains: "The battle in Gibeah did not overtake them."
We were unable to defeat them in the battle fought against Gibeah, against Gibeah of Binyamin. And what was the reason for this? The reason was that in that generation, as we explained, the idol of Michah existed. There were wicked people in that generation, and because wicked people were tolerated among them, their merits were insufficient to defeat the tribe of Binyamin. As the Gemara recounts, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to them: "For My honor you did not protest, yet for the honor of flesh and blood you protest?! The idol of Michah stands and its smoke mingles with the smoke of Shiloh and the smoke of the altar, yet you did not protest against that, but over the honor of flesh and blood you protest?" That was the reason why the battle against the children of iniquity in Gibeah did not overtake them. "Children of *alvah*" means children of iniquity (*avlah*), as Radak explains that this is an inverted form, similar to *za'avah* and *zevah*, *keves* and *kesev*, *simlah* and *salmah*, *ya'ef* and *ayef*, and other examples of words whose letters swap places. Here too, *bnei alvah* means children of iniquity (*bnei avlah*).
Targum Yonatan explains that "Since the days of Gibeah you have sinned, O Israel" refers to when you asked for a king. So explains Targum Yonatan: this took place at Givat Shaul, where they requested a king and crowned Shaul, and that was the grievance against them. However, Rashi notes: "This does not sit well with the Hebrew language, and the rest of the passage aligns with the first interpretation rather than the matter of asking for a king." Radak likewise writes that the verse does not fit this interpretation well, and therefore the more plausible explanation is that of Rashi.
Radak similarly explains: "Since the days of Gibeah you have sinned, O Israel" - when the tribe of Binyamin stubbornly persisted in that disgraceful deed and refused to hand over the criminals and sinners. And the other tribes who were punished suffered because, as we explained, there were idolaters among them. "There they stood" - the wicked of this current generation persist in that very same conduct, as Rashi explained, and since that is so, they will now pay the price for what they did back then as well.
The Malbim explains: "Since the days of Gibeah you have sinned, O Israel" means that the high places and the sins of Israel - which is idolatry - date back to the days of Gibeah. That is, according to the Malbim, "Gibeah" here does not refer directly to the concubine of Gibeah itself (though we will mention that shortly), but rather to the idolatry that existed at that time. The idol of Michah was in Dan; later, the Malbim notes, Yeravam also placed one of his golden calves in Dan. Why place an idol in Dan? Because that location had already been primed in their eyes as a site of idolatry, since the idol of Michah had been so popular there, making it an established center of idolatry. Thus, when Yeravam came and sought to establish a site of idolatry, he built upon the existing inclination toward idolatry in Dan - namely, that lingering pull toward the idol of Michah. It turns out, then, that ever since the days of Gibeah their sins began, when they set up idols for themselves.
According to the Malbim, "there they stood" means that there the high places and idols stood from ancient times. It does not mean, as Rashi and Radak explained, that they merely continue along that path. Rather, the high places and idols stood there from ancient times, and this was also the reason why the people of Israel did not succeed in the battle, because of the idol of Michah. This is what is meant by: "Did not the battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity overtake them?" The Malbim explains that *tasigem* ("overtake them") has the sense of causing them to retreat (*nasog achor*). The battle in Gibeah failed to overtake them, to make the children of Binyamin retreat. That is the meaning of "the battle in Gibeah did not overtake them" - the battle did not force the children of Binyamin to retreat, even though it was a battle against the children of iniquity (*alvah*), namely Binyamin, who were wicked. This shows that even back then they had idolatry, and even back then they did not zealously oppose idolatry.
"When it is My desire, I will chastise them, and nations shall be gathered against them when they are bound to their two furrows" (Hoshea 10:10). "When it is My desire, I will chastise them" - Rashi explains: in My will and My desire (from the root *avah*, to desire), I will discipline them. Since they do not accept My reproof through the prophets who admonish them, "When it is My desire, I will chastise them" - it is My desire to afflict them. How? "Nations shall be gathered against them" - by having nations assemble against them in war, through which they will suffer chastisements that will prompt them to repent and mend their evil deeds. "When they are bound to their two furrows" (*b'osram lishtei onotam*) - just as oxen are bound to plow, where *onotam* refers to their furrows (*ma'anitam*), the plowed trenches of the field. Radak explains that plowing the field produces furrows, and the ridges of earth on either side are called *t'lamim*. Here Radak explains that Yehudah and Ephraim are compared to two plowing cows: I expected them to plow well, but ultimately they plowed evil. They bound themselves to one another "when they are bound to their two furrows." What does this mean? For a long period, Binyamin [and Yehudah] were righteous. But in a later period, an alliance was formed between the head of Binyamin - meaning Yehudah - and the head of Ephraim, meaning Samaria and the Ten Tribes. When was this? When Yehoshaphat made a marriage alliance with Achav, king of Israel. A match was forged between them, and the Holy One, blessed be He, sent a prophecy to Yehoshaphat: "Because you have joined with Achav, the Lord has broken your works" (Divrei HaYamim II 20:37). Even though Yehoshaphat was a righteous king, his very association with the wicked had a negative effect upon him. Thus, "when they are bound to their two furrows," Radak explains, refers to this alliance where they were bound and harnessed together (from the root *le'esor*, to bind), like two cows harnessed together that, instead of plowing well, do evil in the eyes of Hashem. As we see with Yehoram, who did what was evil in the eyes of Hashem and walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and in whose days Edom revolted from under the hand of Yehudah; and Achazyahu acted likewise. Thus, this alliance brought no good, only harm.
The Malbim explains: "When it is My desire, I will chastise them." When I desired to chastise them and punish them for the sin of idolatry, says the Malbim, I did not assemble a force from among the people of Israel to fight against the sinners, because the people of Israel were not zealous against idolatry. There was no point in raising people from within them to fight against them and rebuke them, since they were all sinners, all continuing on that negative path. Therefore, the only alternative was: "Nations shall be gathered against them." There was no choice but to bring outside nations - the Assyrian army. "When they are bound to their two furrows" - the Malbim explains that they were bound to two furrows of their plow. That is, when one wishes to overburden an ox, one sets it to plow not a single furrow, but two furrows simultaneously. This is vastly more difficult, effectively double the ox's capacity to plow. The Holy One, blessed be He, says: What was the punishment I brought upon them? I chastised them "when they are bound to their two furrows" - I made them plow two furrows at once, so that perhaps the hardship of subjugation would bring them to mend their ways.
"Ephraim is a trained heifer that loves to thresh, and I passed over her fair neck; I will harness Ephraim, Yehudah shall plow, and Yaakov shall break the clods" (Hoshea 10:11). The Malbim explains: "Ephraim is a trained heifer." As we have seen, Hashem placed upon them the yoke of a plow meant to carve two furrows at once, a heavy burden even for an ox. Yet look: here we are not dealing with an ox at all. Ephraim is not even an ox; he is a heifer, lacking the strength of an ox to plow the ground. Rather, he is like a young heifer trained only to perform light labor, not accustomed to arduous tasks. "That loves to thresh" - what are light tasks? Loving to thresh grain. What is threshing? Walking upon the grain and treading it down. There is no pulling, no hauling, no heavy load. It is merely treading on the grain - that is threshing, the work of a calf that prances across the stalks, threshing them while also eating during the threshing. After all, this is rewarding work; the Torah commands, "You shall not muzzle an ox while it threshes," so it is permitted to eat while threshing. Thus, plowing was never Ephraim's work; Ephraim is a trained heifer that loves to thresh, preferring light servitude and refusing to take upon itself heavy labor. This is why Ephraim turned to the king of Egypt for help. The king of Egypt did not impose hard labor upon them, and on the other hand, they enjoyed the bounty of the land and profited from trade there, as Egypt was considered an economic powerhouse. They felt things would be easier in Egypt; they did not wish to bear the yoke of the king of Assyria, which was a heavy burden on their neck. Hashem says: "And I passed over her fair neck." That is, I looked upon her favorably because I saw that her neck was fat, delicate, and tender. A yoke rests upon the neck and chafes it, but her neck was so tender that I took pity on her, on that heifer. My intention was not to deliver her into the hand of the nations to bind her to two furrows, overburdening her with the double furrow of plowing. I intended for them to enter My service, which is light service requiring no great strain, and thereby not be delivered into the hands of harsh masters. I thought they would unite with the kingdom of Yehudah to serve Hashem and plow My land, the Holy Land. "Ephraim is a trained heifer" - Hashem says: I intended to harness Ephraim, meaning to join and unite Ephraim with Yehudah, and together "Yaakov shall break the clods." Together they would perform the service of Hashem: "Yehudah shall plow, and Yaakov shall break the clods." Yehudah, the tribe of Yehudah that was already accustomed to the service of Hashem, was trained to plow, as it were; Yehudah would do the plowing, while Yaakov - those who were not trained to plow, for Yaakov represents the lower level, the aspect of the "heel" (*ekev*), as in Yaakov versus Israel where Israel is a higher rank, and Yehudah is on a higher spiritual plane while Yaakov is lower - would perform the lighter work. That is *yeshaded*, harrowing: after plowing, large clods of earth remain, which must be crushed into smaller pieces so the ground is suitable for planting. Crushing the clods is easier work. In depth, the Malbim explains: Yehudah would prepare the soil of the soul, plowing it until it was ready to receive the seeds of righteousness and good deeds, and Yaakov - the Ten Tribes - would come and complete the plowing through this preparation. In other words, this entire passage is a metaphor for the spiritual preparation I made for them to be ready to receive the service of Hashem. Yet instead, that very "Ephraim, a trained heifer that loves to thresh," went to serve Egypt. I thought he was seeking easy work, so I offered him My service, which is light; but if he insists on harsh labor, Hashem says, I will bind them to their two furrows - I will harness them to Assyria like an ox to two furrows, forcing them into grueling labor that will break their bodies.
"Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap according to lovingkindness; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek Hashem, until He comes and rains justice upon you" (Hoshea 10:12). "Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap according to lovingkindness." But you plowed evil! The Holy One, blessed be He, says: I ask of you, sow for yourselves righteousness and reap according to lovingkindness - perform deeds that will bring you closer to spirituality. And what does "Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap according to lovingkindness" mean? Radak explains: do what is good in My eyes, and what I give you in return will be manifold times greater than what you invest and give. Therefore, says Radak, it is written, "Sow for yourselves righteousness." Tzedakah (righteousness/charity) is the act you perform, like sowing seed. No one sows a kilogram of wheat merely to harvest a kilogram of wheat; a person sows a kilogram of wheat in order to harvest a hundred kilograms. Thus, "Sow for yourselves righteousness" - you perform the act of sowing, and what will My response be? You will "reap according to lovingkindness (*chesed*)." Chesed is always greater than tzedakah. Tzedakah implies strict justice (*tzedek*) - I give you what you deserve. I require you to do what you are obligated to do: sow for righteousness. And I promise to grant you far, far more than you give. Yet even this did not convince them to do the will of Hashem. Our Sages teach: "Acts of lovingkindness are greater than charity, as it is stated: 'Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap according to lovingkindness.' One who sows is uncertain whether he will eat or not, whereas one who reaps is certain to eat." When you sow, you do not know whether the crop will grow; but when you reap, the harvest is in your hands. This demonstrates that performing acts of lovingkindness is greater than charity. Charity means giving money, and when the recipient receives money he still needs to exert effort - speaking of the poor in those days: he must take the money and buy wheat, sort the wheat, grind it, and so forth, until his soul nearly departs before he sees bread. In contrast, with chesed, the recipient benefits immediately. As the Gemara relates regarding the sage whose feet were burned in an oven, and his wife said to him, "Place your feet upon mine." When he wondered how her feet were not burned, his spirits fell. She said to him: "Because my bread is readily available to the poor, whereas you give them coins, and until the poor person buys food, it takes time." Thus we see that chesed is greater than tzedakah.
After saying, "Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap according to lovingkindness," the prophet says, "Break up your fallow ground (*niru lachem nir*)." This means that after you reap, you must plow once more and sow again, ensuring that good deeds never cease. Often, a person performs a good deed and rests on his laurels. It must not be so! The prophet says: "Break up your fallow ground" - continue plowing anew, never resting from good deeds. *Nir* refers to a fresh plowing. Radak explains that plowing the ground means awakening the heart to receive words of reproof: "Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns" (Yirmiyahu 4:3). When one sows among thorns, the seeds cannot grow, because the thorns choke everything that sprouts. Therefore he says: first break up your fallow ground, plow the field, and then your sowing will grow properly. This is like the parable told of the Maggid of Dubno. Some people ask: "I strengthened myself in this area and in that area, yet I find it so difficult and nothing seems to work!" He answered with a parable: A man who had long worn the tattered rags of a beggar finally went to a tailor to order a new suit. The tailor took measurements and crafted the suit. When the man came to try it on, he struggled to pull it on and cried, "It doesn't fit! It won't go on!" The tailor looked at him and said, "You foolish man! Take off the old suit, and then put this one on! Do you expect to wear this fine suit over your old rags? Of course it won't fit!" Often, a person wants to improve and takes upon himself all sorts of resolutions, but fails to cleanse the filth and corruption within. He wants to do good deeds while clinging to his bad habits. He remains steeped in his corruption, thinking he can simply add mitzvot on top. That does not work. Every time you perform a mitzvah alongside a sin, the sin extinguishes the mitzvah. When a sin extinguishes the mitzvah, the mitzvah does not radiate, one mitzvah does not pull along another, and you become like a yo-yo - drawn toward good one moment and toward evil the next. That is not the way. The way is: "Break up your fallow ground." First plow, "and sow not among thorns." If you sow among thorns, what will grow? Uproot the thorns; discard all the corruption, filth, and defilement. When a person comes to repent, he is told first: cease committing sins, and gradually take upon yourself good resolutions. A person cannot continue desecrating Shabbat, frequenting all the clubs and places he used to visit, watching everything he used to watch, and simultaneously take upon himself mitzvot, complaining, "My heart just isn't opening up!" How can it open when you try to put a new suit over filthy garments? Remove the soiled clothes and then put on the new suit, and you will see that it fits wonderfully. This is the meaning of "Break up your fallow ground" - first plow, awakening the heart to accept reproof, and only then will the sowing bear fruit rather than falling among thorns.
All of this leads to: "For it is time to seek Hashem, until He comes and rains justice upon you." This means: seek Hashem to know His Torah, and "until He comes and rains justice upon you" - in the sense that "one who comes to purify himself is assisted from Above." Hashem will guide you in justice. You will see divine assistance; the Holy One, blessed be He, will grant you double the lovingkindness of what you invest. This is the meaning of "He will guide you in justice" (*yoreh tzedek lachem*) - Hashem will instruct you in the path of righteousness. Indeed, at the highest levels, Hashem sends an angel to teach a person Torah; this too is *yoreh tzedek lachem*. The Beit Yosef reached such heights that Hashem sent him a *maggid* (a heavenly mentor). Here was someone who guided him in righteousness. As is known, the *maggid* rebuked the Beit Yosef on many matters, offering words of admonition for his actions. From his rebukes alone one can appreciate the Beit Yosef's lofty level: a rebuke for having once drunk an extra cup of water, for having once lifted his foot in the marketplace without thinking of Hashem for a fleeting moment, and other things of that nature. Thus you see that when one attains such spiritual heights, "He will teach you righteousness" - Hashem sends an angel to guide you in righteousness. But even if one does not reach that level, at the very least one receives divine assistance from Hashem whenever one displays genuine awakening.
Radak cites another explanation in the name of his father: "Reap according to lovingkindness" means that whatever you reap in this world is pure lovingkindness, whereas "until He comes and teaches justice to you" refers to justice (*tzedek*) - that which is due to you by right. When will that be? In the World to Come. In the World to Come, you will receive what is rightfully yours by law, whereas here you enjoy only the fruits. Thus, whatever you reap here is through *chesed* - as though Hashem performs a kindness by giving you dividends in this world, without detracting from your reward in the World to Come. Therefore it says, "For it is time to seek Hashem, until He comes and renders justice to you." Ultimately, Hashem will render justice to you, giving you what you deserve in righteousness, without in any way diminishing the reward for mitzvot in the World to Come; you receive the benefits here purely through chesed, without depleting the principal.
The Malbim explains that "it is time to seek Hashem" means that after preparing the plowing and sowing, when you seek Hashem properly, the rain will come. That is, the Holy One, blessed be He, will bestow abundance from Above, as rain always signifies divine bounty. Notice that according to the Malbim, "until He comes and rains justice upon you" (*yoreh tzedek lachem*) is not connected to *moreh* (a teacher of righteousness who instructs you in the upright path through divine assistance or an angelic mentor, as explained earlier). Rather, according to the Malbim, *yoreh* is related to the early rain (*yoreh umalkosh*): "until He comes and rains justice upon you" means until the Holy One, blessed be He, brings down heavenly bounty, which is the rain. What is "raining justice upon you"? It refers to that very bounty which the Holy One, blessed be He, will bestow upon you so that your spiritual efforts will take effect within you, influence you, and inspire you. Hashem will come and rain justice upon you, satisfying your thirsty soul with the showers of His might and the abundance of His holiness. As it is written, "Drip down, O heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness" (Yeshayahu 45:8) - meaning that the supreme spiritual bounty will flow down upon him. This is the rain that Hashem will pour from Above to assist our desire to draw close to Him.
"You have plowed wickedness, you have reaped iniquity; you have eaten the fruit of lies, because you trusted in your way, in the multitude of your mighty men" (Hoshea 10:13). Those were the plans, as we saw in the previous verse. And what were the results? Instead of plowing righteousness - as in the metaphors of plowing and fields mentioned earlier: "Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap according to lovingkindness," and earlier: "Ephraim is a trained heifer that loves to thresh... Yehudah shall plow, and Yaakov shall break the clods" - the prophet continues with agricultural imagery: you plowed wickedness. Here "plowing" carries a double meaning: both in the sense of plotting wicked thoughts, and in the literal sense of plowing, matching the parable of cultivating a field. He says: you plowed wickedness by devising evil deeds, and what did you reap? What did you receive? "You have reaped iniquity." And "you have eaten the fruit of lies" - you ate the fruits of deception and denial of Hashem. In simple terms, what you cultivated is ultimately what you reaped. And the reason for this: "Because you trusted in your way, in the multitude of your mighty men." Why did you not repent? Because you placed your trust in your own way, in your evil path, believing that you did not need help from Hashem, thinking: "We can manage on our own; we have mighty warriors who can wage war." You trusted in your way and in the multitude of your warriors, believing you would be saved through human strategy and military might. That was why you did not repent, why you were not awakened to the service of Hashem.
"Therefore a turmoil shall arise among your people, and all your fortresses shall be plundered, as Shalman plundered Beit Arbel on the day of battle; the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children" (Hoshea 10:14). "A turmoil shall arise among your people" - as the Malbim explains, they rebelled against the king who wanted to abolish the worship of the calves. Because turmoil and rebellion arose among your people - *sha'on* means uproar, a rebellion within the populace, and *kam* is spelled with an *aleph* to emphasize rising up - "all your fortresses shall be plundered." Through the strife among them, the fortresses were delivered into the hands of the enemy. For as we saw, they summoned the enemy to overthrow their king, and the enemy came and ultimately overthrew them along with the king. In effect, they shot themselves in the foot; they brought ruin upon themselves. This was "as the plunder of Shalman." Who was this Shalman? The commentators - Ibn Ezra, Radak quoting his father, and the Malbim follows this line as well - explain that Shalman is an abbreviation for Shalmaneser. Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, came and conquered the land. Thus, "as Shalman plundered" - that is, Shalmaneser - "Beit Arbel on the day of battle." Beit Arbel was the name of a fortress in the kingdom of Ephraim. Just as on that day of battle the fortress was delivered into his hands through the rebellion among them - thinking he would overthrow the king and grant them freedom, whereas he ended up taking them captive in addition to overthrowing the king. The Malbim offers another explanation for why it is called "the plunder of Shalman": in reality, they surrendered the fortress to him without a fight. The fifth column from within slandered the king, revealing that he had made peace with the king of Egypt, which aroused the wrath of the king of Assyria. The king of Assyria thus received the land on a silver platter, peacefully. This is called "as Shalman plundered" - the plunderer arrived and received the land peacefully, without battle. Yet notice: "Beit Arbel on the day of battle" - he treated them like a king who conquered the land by force. What is the difference between a king who receives a land peacefully and one who conquers it in battle? A king who conquers a land by force exacts vengeance on the populace for rebelling and resisting. But when he receives it on a silver platter, he is willing to be far more lenient, since they did not fight against him; he might leave them in place or grant them autonomy. Here, although he received the land on a silver platter, he treated them as if he had conquered it in battle! This is what the verse means: "as Shalman plundered Beit Arbel on the day of battle" - as though he conquered them with a heavy hand in the heat of war. And this caused "the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children." He slaughtered the entire population and subdued them ruthlessly. The Malbim explains that *rutashah* ("dashed in pieces") means not only that he killed them, but that the slaughter was so savage that the bodies were disfigured beyond recognition. Even today, the term is used to describe a body mutilated beyond recognition. It was done with such vengeance and hatred, completely devoid of mercy, that he slaughtered mothers upon their children, leaving them mutilated and shattered.
Radak offers another explanation. Beyond the view mentioned earlier that Shalman is Shalmaneser, Radak suggests that Shalman was a well-known enemy of those days who attacked Beit Arbel suddenly, and his plunderers dashed mother upon children, leaving nothing behind. Thus, when the prophet wishes to describe how the enemy will arrive mercilessly and destroy everything, he says it will be like the plunder of Shalman: just as the familiar Shalman came and plundered the place called Beit Arbel, so too will be done to you. And then, "the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children." What does "the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children" mean? Radak explains that when enemies came to seize a child from a mother, the mother would throw herself over her child to protect him, so that any arrow or sword would strike her rather than her child. Thus, "the mother was dashed upon her children" - as the mother moved to shield her child, the enemy showed no mercy and killed both mother and child together. Radak explains that *rotash* denotes dashing to the ground to split open. He also cites another explanation from our Sages, who explain that *rutashah* is related to abandonment, as in "you shall let it rest and abandon it (*u'netashtah*)" (Shemot 23:11), which the Targum renders as *terteshina*, meaning abandon it. What is the meaning here? Out of overwhelming fear of the sword and famine, men would abandon their wives and children and flee. Thus, "the mother upon her children was abandoned" - leaving the mother forsaken with her children. What is the difference between *natush* and *ratush*? Radak explains that *ratush* denotes intentional abandonment by choice, whereas *natush* denotes abandonment under compulsion, forced to leave. Here, *ratush* implies that they deliberately abandoned them and fled the area.
"So has Beit El done to you because of your great wickedness; at dawn the king of Israel shall be utterly cut off" (Hoshea 10:15). "So has Beit El done to you" - that is, the golden calf in Beit El was the cause of all this calamity. "Because of your great wickedness" - because of your immense evil, which was idolatry, all this misfortune was brought upon you. "At dawn the king of Israel shall be utterly cut off." "At dawn" means at the beginning of his reign. In his sixth year, Scripture states that the king of Assyria imprisoned him, and in the seventh year he marched against Samaria, besieged it for three years, and captured it. Even prior to that, from the beginning of his reign, Scripture notes that he paid tribute, serving the king of Assyria. Only afterward did he turn to the king of Egypt, whereupon the king of Assyria marched against him following the report of the informants here in the land. Through this, Hoshea was cut off and the people were cut off as well.