The Book of Hosea
Let’s take a trip to the past, to understand where God’s people where before the exile to Babylon.
The book of Hosea takes place under extreme political and spiritual decline in Israel. Not only were the people practicing idolatry, it was institutionalized.
Hosea preached among a nation that had lost its heart for God. The book of Hosea includes an overarching idea of “joy in the midst of judgement.” Hosea prophesied that there would be sorrow and judgement, but it would be followed by restoration.
The book of Hosea highlights God’s redeeming love for Israel. For Hosea, God assigned a family life that was reminiscent of His relationship with His people, Israel. The key theme is how far true love will go in order to keep its covenant. God’s love for us is true, and stretches farther and wider than we could ever imagine.
Historical Context: During the time of the prophet Hosea, Israel was going through great stress surrounding its leadership. There was much turnover with the kings who ruled Israel, many of whom took power by force. Israel was literally caught between the growing Assyrian empire and Egypt. Israel itself was split between the Northern Kingdom, Ephraim and its capital Samaria, and the Southern Kingdom, Judah.
Hosea 1
God called Hosea to prophesy by words and actions.
God told Hosea to “Go marry a promiscuous woman”
Hosea’s marriage to Gomer was interwoven with his prophetic work. It was necessary. Hosea needed to understand Israel’s unfaithfulness to the Lord on a personal level, through the betrayal of his wife.
Gomer wasn’t initially promiscuous, but she did have adultery in her heart. God’s directive was a sign of a future act that she would commit, much like Israel was originally chaste, but God knew she would become unfaithful.
At Jezreel, God gave Jehu directions, but he wrongly carried them out. Jehu continued to practice idolatry, despite his faith. Because of the actions that occurred at Jezreel, God cursed Ahab and kept Jehu in the line of judgement.
The names of Hosea & Gomer’s children were symbolic of the break in the Israelite’s covenant relationship with God
Jezreel: where God would break Israel’s bow
Lo-Ruhamah: meaning ‘not loved,’ for God would no longer show love to Israel (north), but to Judah (south)
Lo-Ammi: meaning ‘not my people’ (Hosea 1:8)
Hosea prophesies a move from judgement to blessing. ‘Lo’ is removed from the names, and they become ‘my people’ and ‘mercy is shown.’ In the Bible, ‘love’ and ‘mercy’ are often interchangeable.
Gomer: Gomer committed adultery in a loud way. She was irresponsible, and ultimately found herself in bondage from which Hosea had to redeem her, after a short period of disciple. Sound familiar? God himself paid the price to redeem us. The aim of God’s love is reconciliation, restoration and forgiveness.
Hosea 2
Hosea imparts the same separation from his wife that God imparts on His people. “She is not my wife” and “I am not her husband”
Israel is charged with adultery, a violation of the covenant of love. Hosea’s personal experience allowed him to understand God’s heartbreak over His people’s unfaithfulness.
The people refused to credit God as the source of all of their blessings, and instead used their blessings of gold and silver to make idols to worship. As a punishment, God would take it all away and force them into isolation. He would lead Israel into the wilderness, speak tenderly to her and then give her back her vineyards. Separation/Isolation. Love. Restoration.
Hosea lists the ingredients for a betrothal relationship: (Hosea 2:19)
Legal requirements: righteousness and justice
Personal ties of affection: love and compassion
Faithfulness: seal of exclusivity and permanent commitment
Restoration and redemption. God would again show love to the one called ‘not my loved one,’ calling them His people and He their God.
*Marriage: A Metaphor of Union with God
Marriage is often used as a metaphor or picture of the relationship between God and his people
Israel is depicted as the wife of Yahweh, in the Old Testament. When Israel becomes unfaithful, she is described as a prostitute. Israel’s spiritual adultery causes God to issue a writing of divorcement. But, God could not bear to cut off Israel without promise of renewal (Hosea 2:14)
In the New Testament, the church is the bride of Christ.
Marriage and becoming a child of God both demand dying to oneself and accountability to God and others. We shouldn’t hesitate to give ourselves in totality to God because He paid the highest price for us.
In marriage two hearts are joined together, making them dependent on one another for life. The Holy Spirit fills and fulfills both marriage and our relationship with Christ.
Hosea 3
The Lord sent Hosea to reconcile with his wife, despite her adultery. God commanded him to demonstrate in his marriage the same redeeming love God has for Israel, and for us. Hosea has to buy Gomer back out of the bondage she was in with her “lover(s),” much like Jesus paid the price to free us from our sins, including the ones we enjoy.
Hosea outlines rules Gomer must follow going forward. Reciprocity in commitment is essential. He tells Gomer that she must be faithful to him, and he will behave the same way toward her. Forgiveness and restoration are possible only if you are committed to going God’s way.
The period of waiting before Hosea buys her back is representative of Israel’s impending exile. Hosea prophesied Israel’s coming separation from God
*Notes on Adultery: Unfaithfulness in Marriage
God’s intent was for husbands and wives to be faithful to each other. Fidelity was always part of God’s plan for His kingdom.
Believers are required to practice faithfulness, both to God and in our personal relationships. Adultery is regarded as such a severe breach of fidelity that it is listed as grounds for divorce.
Jesus teaches that adultery begins in the heart and is rooted in lust. Adultery is likened to idolatry in the Old Testament. To commit adultery is to distort the relationship God wants with those whom He loves.
Hosea 4
The Lord charged Israel with a breach of contract: they broke their covenant with God. Faithfulness and love are nonexistent and they have deserted the Lord. The land is full of cursing, lying, murder, stealing and adultery.
Israel is referred to as “your mother,” as the nation gave birth to the people. The Northern Kingdom (Ephraim) had been destroyed and disappeared as an entity.
The Israelites were participating in pagan rituals, offering sacrifices outside of Jerusalem and allowing their daughters to participate in cultic prostitution. God would not punish the daughters without punishing the men who pursued them.
Hosea prophesies the exile of the Israelites and the conditions under which they would once again experience the redeeming love of God. Until then, “they will eat, but not have enough.”
Hosea presented Israel as an example to Judah, warning them not to go to the Northern Kingdom, where idolatry was common.
Hosea 5
Israel’s judgement would start with its covenant leadership, including the priests and the king, as the Lord disciplines all of them. The Lord is withdrawing from His people, as they seek Him in vain.
Hosea warns the people of the coming doom, telling them to employ warning systems and to take cover. The day of reckoning was coming.
Ephraim prophesies that Israel would seek Him in their misery, but would it be enough?
Ephraim’s response to the day of judgement was to seek help from the king of Assyria, and not God.
Hosea 6
Israel hoped for mercy, but they lacked the required admission of guilt. They knew God was capable, but their faith was surface-level. Israel knew they needed to acknowledge the Lord, but weren’t willing to admit their fault.
God wants our actions to reflect what’s in our hearts, otherwise our outward rituals are pointless. “For I desire mercy, not sacrifice; and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6) This was a horrible thing.
Hosea 7
Ephraim’s rebellion blocked God’s intention to heal and restore Israel. God wanted to renew His people, but Ephraim and Samaria were too corrupt. They made renewal impossible. God remembered their evil deeds.
Despite all that Israel experienced, it did not return to God. Their kings fell, and they still did not turn to God. And He WANTED to redeem them.
Israel’s ruler turned to Egypt for assistance while under the leadership of Assyria, which led to his death and the capture of Israel. “For this they will be ridiculed in the land of Egypt.” (Hosea 7:16)
Hosea 8
Hosea again prophesies the exile of Israel. God’s anger continued to grow, as His people used their blessings to make idols like the calf of Samaria, fashioned to take the place of Yahweh.
Hosea prophesies Israel being under the rule of the king of Assyria. The nation would be swallowed up by foreigners and would be in a foreign land. They would return to Egypt, because they disregarded the law God wrote out for them.
Hosea 9
Israel’s rejection of God was complete. The Israelites put their hope in false gods and cultic rituals. They would fall to Assyria and be outside of the covering of the Lord. If they sought refuge in Egypt, they would be buried in its city of Memphis.
“The days of punishment are coming, the days of reckoning are at hand.” (Hosea 9:7)
When Israel first formed their covenant with God in the wilderness, God was overjoyed. But Israel committed adultery with the Moabites and devoted themselves to idols.
God’s judgement of Israel included stripping them of their “glory",” which would be their descendants. There would be no children, no new life, which was very important to them.
Hosea 10
Samaria’s kings attempted to find security in alliances and treaties, instead of in God.
God’s judgement of Israel was going to be severe, and they would cry out for the mountains and hills to cover them. This image was again used by Jesus when describing the Jews’ reaction to their destruction by Rome, and will again be used by those in great tribulation at the end of time.
God would have to punish Israel, to forcefully discipline them like a trained heifer that loves to thresh, until they seek the lord again.
Hosea is a warning to us not to depend on our own strength or the strength of kings, because both will be destroyed.
Hosea 11
God’s love for Israel truly is like a father’s love for his child, in addition to a husband’s love for his wife. This amplified the absurdity of Israel’s rejection of God’s love, because of the tender care and affection He’s always had for His people. It was God who “raised Israel,” and yet they continued to pull away from him.
God had sympathy for His people, He did not want to see them destroyed. Their refusal to repent would lead them back to Egypt and under the rule of Assyria. God’s compassion did not want His people to suffer.
God’s repentant people will return to their land. Christ is the Lion of Judah, God continues to call His people to Him as He “roars like a lion.” Only after they serve their time of punishment in exile, would God’s obedient people return.
Hosea 12
The leaders of Ephraim were playing both sides. Ephraim was courting two foreign powers that were enemies of each other, making a treaty with one and paying tributes to another. This would ultimately anger both countries and lead to Ephraim’s destruction.
God was with Israel since its days in Egypt.
Hosea 13
The Israelites continued to sin and make idols to worship from the blessings they received from God. Like Hosea laid out the rules for moving forward with Gomer, God tells the Israelites that they shall acknowledge no God or Savior but Him. He reminds the Israelites that it was He who carried them through the wilderness.
Israel has turned against its helper, and because of this, they would be destroyed. The sufferings and calamities Israel was experiencing were meant as refining judgements, which could lead Israel to a new birth.
God has authority over death and the “grave.” He promised to redeem His people from all powerful “death.” (Hosea 13:14)
The people of Samaria would no longer enjoy God’s protection when the wrath of Egypt and Assyria fell upon her.
Hosea 14
Hosea issued a final call for repentance, by both words and actions. Israel’s sins have been they’re downfall, its time to return to God. Hosea pushed the Israelites to return to the Lord and ask for forgiveness. To never again claim other gods and to know that no man could save them.
Hosea prophesied Israel’s restoration. Despite his warnings of judgement and exile, the Book of Hosea ends on a note of hope.
The wise and discerning will know this: the way of the Lord is the only way. The righteous walk in the ways of the Lord, while the rebellious stumble in them.
