3:3 And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for {d} me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for [another] man: so [will] I also [be] for thee.
(d) I will try you a long time as in your widowhood, whether you will be mine or not.
3:3 Abide for me - Thou shalt wait unmarried, until I espouse thee.
3:1-3 The dislike of men to true religion is because they love objects and forms, which allow them to indulge, instead of mortifying their lusts. How wonderful that a holy God should have good-will to those whose carnal mind is enmity against Him! Here is represented God's gracious dealings with the fallen race of mankind, that had gone from him. This is the covenant of grace he is willing to enter into with them, they must be to him a people, and he will be to them a God. They must accept the punishment of their sin, and must not return to folly. And it is a certain sign that our afflictions are means of good to us, when we are kept from being overcome by the temptations of an afflicted state.
