Hosea 12:1-6
Political scheming cannot replace covenant return.
1 Ephraim feeds on wind, and chases the east wind. He continually multiplies lies and desolation. They make a covenant with Assyria, and oil is carried into Egypt.
2 Yahweh also has a controversy with Judah, and will punish Jacob according to his ways; according to his deeds he will repay him.
3 In the womb he took his brother by the heel; and in his manhood he contended with God.
4 Indeed, he struggled with the angel, and prevailed; he wept, and made supplication to him. He found him at Bethel, and there he spoke with us,
5 even Yahweh, the God of Armies; Yahweh is his name of renown!
6 Therefore turn to your God. Keep kindness and justice, and wait continually for your God.
Political scheming cannot replace covenant return.
To indict Ephraim for political deception and covenant infidelity by contrasting present duplicity with Jacob’s formative struggle and repentance.
Israel's Jacob-Like Striving, False Security, and the Call to Return
Hosea 12 exposes Israel as Jacob's crooked offspring and calls the people to return to the LORD by abandoning empty strategies, dishonest gain, and covenant forgetfulness.