The phrase implies a limited but substantial period of time in the near future. Like Gomer, Israel will endure a time of discipline by being separated from their idol lovers. This exile, though long, will end. And when it does, Israel will have entered the “latter days” (Hosea 3:5). It will be the start of a never-ending reunion between God and his people that surpasses their former glory altogether.
3 And I said to her, “You must dwell as mine for many days. You shall not play the whore, or belong to another man; so will I also be to you.”