Hosea 12:5
the LORD God of Hosts,
What it says
The LORD, the God of hosts, is His memorial name.
What it is doing
This verse grounds the call to return in the enduring identity of Israel's covenant God.
In context
1Ephraim feeds on the wind 2The LORD has a charge to bring against Judah. 3In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel, 4Yes, he struggled with the angel and prevailed; 5the LORD God of Hosts, 6But you must return to your God; 7A merchant loves to defraud 8And Ephraim boasts: “How rich I have become! 9But I am the LORD your God 10I spoke through the prophets 11Is there iniquity in Gilead? 12Jacob fled to the land of Aram 13But by a prophet the LORD brought Israel out of Egypt, 14Ephraim has provoked bitter anger,