In Hos 2:16 (v. 18 in the Hebrew), we read:
And it
shall be at that day, saith the Lord, that thou shalt call me Ishi; and shalt
call me no more Baali.
Commenting on the use of אִישִׁ֑י Ishi
for Yahweh, Hans Walter Wolff wrote:
The change
of address from one to the other should be understood in terms of the metaphor of
marriage Hosea uses. “My husband” (אִישִׁ֑י) is apparently an endearing
expression; it addresses the husband as one who belongs to and who even enjoys
a deep personal relationship with the “wife” (אִשָּׁה). (2:9, Gen 2:23f; cf. Gen
29:32, 34; 20:15, 20; 2 Sam 14:5; 2 Kgs 4:1) On the other hand, the address “my
lord,” “my Baal” (בעלי) emphasizes the legal position of the husband as lord
and “owner” of the wife. This is not necessarily a correspondingly genuine and
personal devotion to her as his wife. (Ex 21:22; Dtn 22:22; 24:2; cf. Gen 20:3)
Hence, this saying announces that Israel will not just respect Yahweh somewhat
reluctantly, since he is its legal lord, but it knows itself to be placed in a completely
new, loving relationship with him. In addition to the primary sense of the
saying, there is a punlike polemic against the cult. The word for “Lord” in
this parable is the same Hebrew word that denotes the Canaanite god, Baal. This
undertone is intentional. It presupposes the existence of a syncretism in which
Yahweh was worshipped as Baal. (Hans Walter Wolff, Hosea [Hermeneia—A Critical
and Historical Commentary on the Bible; Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1974], 49)
Further Reading:
Hans Walter Wolff, "Yahweh as Baal" and the use of in Hosea 2:16 בַּעְלִֽי Baali
