He hath a sharp sword

With reference to Hosea 6:5—The sword directed by the mouth of the similitude is said to be sharp and two-edged. It is sharp for cut and thrust -- the sword of a Mighty Man ready for execution, and whichever way directed is sure to smite effectively. The voice of the words of the great multitude symbolized by this sword, is the voice of the Eternal Spirit speaking through them as the ministers of his vengeance. Hence the sword is symbolical of what Paul styles, "the Spirit of his Mouth," which is the Lord Jesus Anointed, the Mouth of the Body. Thus, though represented by this cutting instrument, Paul says, "The Word of Deity is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart". The word is sharper now, for it can penetrate in argument where a sword cannot reach; but, how much sharper will it be when the word of command shall find expression through a two-edged sword in the hands of the Saints. But while Jesus is mouth in a personal sense, He and the Saints are the Mouth of the Son of Man in a corporate sense. This personal and corporate sense, in its conjoint signification, must not be lost sight of in the prophetic and symbolic scriptures; or we shall fail to perceive their meaning in the full extent. Thus, Isaiah speaking of the One Body in its Alpha and Omega manifestation, says, in ch 11:4, that "the Rod of Jesse's stem shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked ... and the earth shall be full of the knowledge of YAHWEH as the waters cover the sea:" and in ch. 49:2, "He hath made my mouth like a sharp sword;" so that the enemy is "slain by the words of his mouth" (Hos. 6:5). By reading Isai. 49 it will be seen what is to be effected by this sword of the Spirit wielded by David's house -- it effects the restoration of Israel, and the salvation of the nations from the superstition, and misgovernment that destroys them on every side.