Therefore I will take back my grain in its time, and my wine in its season, and I will take away my wool and my flax, which were to cover her nakedness.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The phrase "take away my wool and my flax, which were to cover her nakedness" reveals a profound tragedy: God's provisions, meant to clothe and protect Israel, are being stripped away because she's using them to adorn her idolatry. This highlights how the very things God gives for our good can become instruments of shame when we turn them against Him.
Therefore I will take back my grain in its time, and my wine in its season, and I will take away my wool and my flax, which were to cover her nakedness.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Because Israel has attributed their harvests and clothing to the Baal gods instead of the Lord, God declares He will take back the very provisions He had given them—grain, wine, wool, and flax. This isn't just about withholding future blessings, but reclaiming what was already given, even as it's ready for harvest or use, revealing their utter dependence on Him and exposing their nakedness, which He had originally covered.
What happens when the very things we rely on are taken away? Hosea shows us that God's 'gifts' aren't always comfortable.
Israel had turned God's provision—the grain, wine, wool, and flax that sustained them—into tools for idolatry. They were meant to cover their nakedness, symbolizing protection and provision, but instead, they were used to deck out their idols and fuel their sin.
God declares He will 'take back' these blessings. This isn't arbitrary punishment; it's a necessary withdrawal of what's being misused. It's like a parent taking away a car from a teen who keeps getting speeding tickets. The car is a gift, but its misuse requires its removal.
This act serves two purposes:
God's judgment isn't just about punishment; it's a painful, yet loving, intervention. What does it look like when God withdraws His favor?
The phrase 'Therefore I will return' signals a shift. God is turning from His previous posture of giving and blessing towards a disciplinary action. It's not that God ever truly leaves His people, but His presence is felt differently—through chastening rather than comfort.
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This withdrawal is particularly sharp because it happens 'in its time' and 'in its season.' This means the bounty is taken away at the peak of expectation—when the grain is ripe for harvest, when the wine is ready to be pressed. This maximizes the sense of loss and underscores that these good things were never truly theirs to control.
The taking away of wool and flax, which covered their nakedness, is especially poignant. It signifies not just material loss but also exposure and shame. The very things meant to provide dignity are removed, leaving them vulnerable and stripped bare before their false gods, who are powerless to help.
The prophecy in Hosea 2:9 speaks of God withdrawing agricultural blessings and resources like wool and flax, directly referencing the devastating Assyrian invasions that plundered Israel's wealth and disrupted its very way of life.
c. 740 BC
Assyrian Incursions into Israel
Under Tiglath-pileser III, Assyria launched campaigns into the Northern Kingdom of Israel, leading to the capture of many cities and the deportation of a significant portion of the population.
c. 734 BC— this verse
Tiglath-pileser III's Campaign and Deportations
Tiglath-pileser III invaded Israel again, this time focusing on the northern and eastern regions. Many Israelites were taken captive and relocated to other parts of the Assyrian empire, a major blow to the kingdom.
722 BC
Fall of Samaria and End of the Northern Kingdom
The Assyrian king Shalmaneser V laid siege to the capital city of Samaria. After a prolonged siege, the city fell, and the Northern Kingdom of Israel ceased to exist as an independent entity.
This passage vividly describes Israel's state of nakedness and God's act of providing coverings, echoing Hosea's theme of God withdrawing the very provisions meant to cover her shame when she turns to idolatry.
Deuteronomy 28:30Here, Moses warns Israel that if they disobey God, they will lose the fruits of their labor, like their grain and wine, directly paralleling God's judgment in Hosea for their unfaithfulness.
Leviticus 26:16This verse details God's promised punishments for disobedience, including blight and scarcity of produce, which aligns with Hosea's prophecy of God withholding grain and wine from unfaithful Israel.
Matthew 6:33Jesus calls us to seek God's kingdom and righteousness first, implying that material blessings like food and clothing are secondary and provided by God, a stark contrast to Israel's misuse of these gifts in Hosea.
Romans 8:20-22This passage speaks of the creation groaning under the bondage of corruption due to humanity's sin, reflecting the idea that even God's created provisions (grain, wine, wool, flax) are affected and withdrawn when humanity rebels.
ellicottHosea 2:9: "Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax given to cover her nakedness."
(9) Therefore will I return, and take . . .—The Hebrew form of saying, “Therefore I will take back.” Jehovah resumes all that had been misappropriated. The king of Assyria (Tiglath-pileser, 734 B.C.) was the agency whereby this was to be accomplished. (Comp. Isaiah 10:5 .) The raiment (wool and flax) was Jehovah’s…
barnesHosea 2:9: "Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax given to cover her nakedness."
Therefore I will return - God is, as it were, absent from men, when He lets them go on in their abuse of His gifts. "His judgments are far above out of their sight." He returns to them, and His presence is felt in chastisements, as it might have been in mercies. He is not out of sight or out of mind, then. Others r…
The phrase "take away my wool and my flax, which were to cover her nakedness" reveals a profound tragedy: God's provisions, meant to clothe and protect Israel, are being stripped away because she's using them to adorn her idolatry. This highlights how the very things God gives for our good can become instruments of shame when we turn them against Him.
Because Israel has attributed their harvests and clothing to the Baal gods instead of the Lord, God declares He will take back the very provisions He had given them—grain, wine, wool, and flax. This isn't just about withholding future blessings, but reclaiming what was already given, even as it's ready for harvest or use, revealing their utter dependence on Him and exposing their nakedness, which He had originally covered.
Because Israel has attributed their harvests and clothing to the Baal gods instead of the Lord, God declares He will take back the very provisions He had given them—grain, wine, wool, and flax. This isn't just about withholding future blessings, but reclaiming what was already given, even as it's ready for harvest or use, revealing their utter dependence on Him and exposing their nakedness, which He had originally covered.
"Therefore I will take back my grain in its time, and my wine in its season, and I will take away my wool and my flax, which were to cover her nakedness." — The phrase "take away my wool and my flax, which were to cover her nakedness" reveals a profound tragedy: God's provisions, meant to clothe and protect Israel, are being stripped away because she's u…
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Last reviewed October 2026