John Trapp on Hosea 14:5

Verſe 5. I will be as the dew unto Iſrael,] I will give good in abundance: and and this is ſweetly ſet forth in a ſeven-fold Metaphor, all anſwering to the name of Ephraim, (which ſignifieth fruitfull) and to the ancient promiſes made unto him: and all again oppoſite to the many contrary curſes, threatned in the former parts of the Propheſie, under Metaphors of a contrary importance, as Pareus and (out of him) Tarnouius have well obſerved. As Firſt, of ſolid and fruit-cauſing dew, in oppoſition to that vaniſhing and barren dew, chap. 6.4. and 13.3. Secondly, of the flouriſhing lilly, contrary to thoſe nettles, thorns, and thiſtles, chap. 9.16. and 10.8. Thirdly, of the well-rooted and durable trees of Libanus, contrary to dry-roots, chap. 9.16. Fourthly, of ſpreading and growing branches, inſtead of branches conſumed, chap. 11.6. and 9.16. and 10.8. Fiftly, of trees yeelding pleaſant ſhade and repoſe, contrary to chap. 9.3, 6. Sixtly, of corn to fatisfie hunger, contrary to chap. 8.7. Laſtly, of a Vine bringing forth excellent wine,Adricom. Brocard. Hierom. contrary to chap. 9.16. and 10.1. And all theſe fruits, the fruits of Lebanon, a moſt ſertile mountain, the valleys whereof were moſt rich grounds for paſture, corn, and vineyards.

as the dew unto Iſrael, he ſhall bloſſom as the lilly,] Quot verba tot lumina imo flumina orationis. This Prophet aboundeth with ſimilitudes, as is before noted, (See chap. 12.10. with the Note there.) He beginneth here with a Simile drawn from the dew of heaven; a mercy very much ſet by, in thoſe hotter countreys eſpecially, where from May to October they had no rain. The Chaldee Paraphraſe, and Hebrew Doctours, underſtand this Text concerning Chriſt, and his benefits.Pſal. 73.1. Gal. 6.16. Epheſ. 1.3. Truely, He is good to Iſrael, to the pure in heart. Peace and mercy, ſanctity and ſafety, all ſpirituall benedictions in heavenly things in Chriſt, ſhall be upon the Iſrael of God. What the dew is to the herbs, fields, fruits, that is Chriſt to his Iſrael. 1. The dew comes when the air is clear: ſo doth Chriſt by his bleſſing,Ariſtot. lib. 1. meteor. cap. 10. Plin lib. 2. cap. 60. & lib. 18. cap. 29. when the light of his countenance is lift up upon us. 2. As the dew refreſheth, and cheriſheth the dry and fady fields, (hence it is called the dew of herbs, Eſay 26.19. which thereby recover life and beauty) ſo doth Chriſt our hearts, ſcorcht with the ſenſe of ſinne, and fear of wrath. 3. As the dew allayeth great heats, and moiſteneth, and mollifieth the earth, that it may fructifie: ſo Chriſt cooleth the Devils fiery darts, and filleth his people with the fruits of righteouſneſſe. He is unto them as a cloud of dew in the heat of harveſt, Eſay 18.4 and maketh their ſouls as ſo many watered gardens, Jer. 31.12. 4. As the dew falls in a narrow compaſſe, without noiſe, and is felt onely by thoſe (in the force of it) on whom it deſcends: ſo the grace of Chriſt watereth his faithfull onely; ſecretly and ſweetly inſinuating into their hearts: the ſtranger medleth not with their comforts. See Joh. 14.17. The cock on the dunghill knows them not.

he ſhall grow as the lilly.] which hath its name in the Hebrew, from its ſix leaves, and ſerves here, and elſewhere to ſet forth the great comelineſſe,Cant. 2.1. [non-Latin text not transcribed]. ſweet odour and true humility of the Church: for the lilly groweth in vallies (as Theophylact upon this Text noteth) ſweet it is but not great, and the more it bloſſometh, the more it ſhooteth upwards: to teach us heavenly-mindedneſſe. It is alſo of a perfect whiteneſſe, to mind us of innocency. Her Nazarites were purer then ſnow, whiter then milk,Lib. 21. cap. 5. Lam. 4.7. Laſtly, Lilio nihil eſt foecundius, ſaith Pliny, nothing is more fruitfull then the lillie, Et lachrymâ ſuâ ſeritur, ſaith the ſame Authour, it is ſown in its own tears. Weeping Chriſtians grow amain, &c.

and caſt forth his roots as Lebanon.] i. e. As the Cedars of Lebanon, as the Chaldee Paraphraſt interpreteth it: or as the frankincenſe-tree, which taketh very deep rooting, ſo Cyril ſenceth it. The lilly (with its ſix white leaves, and ſeven golden-coloured grains within it) ſoon fadeth, and loſeth both beauty and ſweetneſſe:Rom. 6.10. but ſo doth not Chriſt and his People. He can as well die at the right hand of his Father, as in the hearts of his Elect, where he dwels by faith: whereby they are rooted and grounded in love, ſtrengthened with might, by his Spirit in the inner man, Epheſ. 3.16, 17. ſo that the gates of hell cannot prevail againſt them. Immo[illegible: 1 letter]a manet, is the Churches Motto; Nec fluctu, nec flatu movetur, which is the Venetian Motto. They that truſt in the Lord ſhall be as Mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever, Pſal. 125. Winds and ſtorms move neither Libanus, nor the well-rooted Cedars thereof: which the more they are aſſaulted, the better they are rooted So fareth it with the Saints. Plato compareth man to a tree inverted. The Scripture oft compareth a good man to a tree planted by the rivers of waters, that taketh root downward, and beareth fruit upward, 2 King. 19.30.

—quae quantum vertice ad auras,Virg. Aeneid. lib. 4. Aethereas, tantum radice ad tartara tendit.

Let us caſt forth our roots as Lebanon: ſtand faſt rooted in the truth, being ſtedfaſt and unmoveable, alwayes abounding in the work of the Lord, and with full purpoſe of heart cleaving cloſe unto him, 1 Cor. 15. ult. being eſtabliſhed by his grace, Col. 1.11. Heb. 12.28. and 13.9. In the Civil Law, till a tree hath taken root, it doth not belong to the ſoil whereon it is planted. It is not enough to be in the Church: except like the Cedars of Lebanon, we caſt forth our roots, and are ſo planted, that we flouriſh in the Courts of our God, and bring forth fruit in our old age, Pſal 92.12, 13, 14.