Haazinu Haftorah in a Nutshell

Nutshell for Shabbat Shuvah Haftorah

Hosea 14:2-10; Micah 7:18-20.

The Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is known as Shabbat Shuva or "Shabbat of Return (Repentance)." The name is a reference to the opening words of the week's haftorah, "Shuva Israel — Return O Israel." This haftorah is read in honor of the Ten Days of Repentance, the days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

The prophet Hosea exhorts the Jewish people to "Return, O Israel, to the L-rd your G‑d," encouraging them to repent sincerely and ask for G‑d's forgiveness. Hosea urges the Jews to put their trust in G‑d, not in Assyria, powerful horses or idols. At that point, G‑d promises to remove His anger from Israel, "I will be like dew to Israel, they shall blossom like a rose." The prophet then goes on to foretell the return of the exiles and the cessation of idol-worship amongst the people.

The haftorah concludes with a  brief portion from the Book of Micah, which describes G‑d's kindness in forgiving the sins of His people. "He does not maintain His anger forever, for He is a lover of kindness. He will have mercy on us, He will grasp our iniquities and cast all our sins into the depths of the sea." Micah concludes with an enjoinder to G‑d to remember the pacts He made with the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

The above special Haftorah is read since this Shabbat is Shabbat Shuvah - the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. In other years, we would read the following text:

II Samuel 22:1-51.

This week's haftorah describes the song King David composed in his old age, echoing the weekly Torah reading, where Moses delivers his parting words to the Jewish nation in song form.

David's song expresses gratitude to G‑d for saving him from all his enemies. He starts with the famous words, "The L-rd is my rock and my fortress." He goes on to describe the pain and hardships he encountered and reiterates that he always turned to G‑d in his moments of distress. He recounts G‑d's reaction to those who tormented him: "The Lord thundered from heaven; and the Most High gave forth His voice. And He sent out arrows and He scattered them, lightning and He discomfited them. . . I have pursued my enemies and have destroyed them; never turning back until they were consumed."

The King attributes his salvation to his uprightness in following G‑d's ways: "The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands He recompensed me..."

The song ends with David's expression of thankfulness: "Therefore I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the nations, and to Your name I will sing praises. He gives great salvation to His king, and He performs kindness to His anointed; to David and to his seed, forevermore."