Psalm 150 (continued, part 29)
The end (vv. 8–13). "How long?" and "How will it end?" are questions that we ask when the times are difficult and the future in doubt. "What's the purpose of it all?" Daniel did what all of us must do: he humbly asked God for the wisdom that he needed. But He may not tell us (Deut. 29:29)! He knows how much we need to know and how much we can take (John 16:12). He did promise that all these things would be clearer for those living in the end times, which is an encouragement for us to prayerfully study the prophetic Scriptures.
But the Lord did reveal that, in the end times, as trials come to the people on the earth, these trials will make the believers purer and wiser, but the wicked will only become more wicked. "But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived" (2 Tim. 3:13 nkjv; see Rev. 22:11). The unbelievers will be ignorant of the truth but the believers will have their eyes opened to the truths of the Word. The Word of prophecy is our light when things get dark (2 Peter 1:19).
The significance of the 1,290 days and the 1,335 days isn't made clear, but there is a blessing attached to the second number. The starting point is the middle of the tribulation, when the abomination of desolation is set up in the temple. Since there are 1,260 days (three and a half years) before the tribulation ends, the 1,290 days would take us 30 days beyond the return of the Lord, and the 1,335 days 75 days beyond the end of the tribulation. We aren't told why these days are important or how they will be used to bring blessing to God's people. Certainly there are activities that the Lord must direct and tasks to accomplish, all of which will take time. Perhaps the greatest task is the regathering of His people from the nations of the world (Ezek. 20:33–38; Isa. 1:24–2:5; 4:2–6; 11:1–16), their
Daniel
given in Daniel 1:8—"But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself." He was a resolute man. He wasn't intimidated by powerful people or frightened by difficult circumstances. Like Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms, he said, "Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen."
CHAPTER THIRTEEN A Review of Daniel A RESOLUTE MAN GOD GREATLY LOVED I
But what was the source of this man's courageous and resolute heart? For the answer to that important question, let's review the life of Daniel.
t's important to study the prophecies that Daniel wrote, but it's also important to understand the life that Daniel lived. Knowing God's future plan and obeying God's present will should go together. "And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" (1 John 3:3 nkjv). "Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness?" (2 Peter 3:11 nkjv)
He Believed in a Sovereign God "The Most High rules in the kingdom of men" (Dan. 4:25, 32 nkjv; 5:21) is one of the basic truths taught in the book of Daniel. Dictators and petty politicians may have thought they were in control, but Daniel knew better. As a devoted Jew, Daniel knew that there was but one true God, the Lord Jehovah, and that He ruled all things with wisdom and power. The Babylonians changed Daniel's address, his name, and his education, and they tried to change his standards, but they couldn't change his theology! God was sovereign when He permitted Babylon to conquer Judah, and He was sovereign in sending Daniel and his friends to Babylon. In every aspect of Daniel's life and service, he depended totally on the God of heaven who is sovereign over all things.
Both Daniel and Joseph were called of God to serve Him in difficult places at the center of authority in pagan empires. Both were cruelly taken from their homes and handed over to foreign masters. Both went through periods of testing, both were lied about and falsely accused, but both maintained godly character and conduct and became respected leaders in the nation. Most of all, both were able to minister to God's people and help preserve and encourage the nation of Israel when the days were difficult. What Daniel wrote gave the Jews courage in the centuries following their release from captivity, and it will encourage them in the end times when they again experience severe persecution from their enemies.
Some people associate sovereignty with slavery, when actually our surrender to God's sovereign will is the first step toward freedom. "And I will walk at liberty, for I seek Your precepts" (Ps. 119:45 nkjv). We can yield ourselves to Him with great confidence because He is our Father, and He loves us too much to harm us and He is too wise to make a mistake.
It's interesting to note that the book of Daniel and Paul's letter to the Ephesians have much in common. Ephesians teaches us about the spiritual battle in the heavenlies (Eph. 6:10–18), and Daniel participated in such a battle (Dan. 10:10–21). Paul prays two prayers in Ephesians, the first for enlightenment (Eph. 1:15–23) and the second for enablement (3:14–21). Daniel and his friends also prayed that way, that they might understand God's plan and receive the power they needed to serve Him and remain true to the end.
Nor should divine sovereignty be confused with fatalism, "What will be will be." Fatalism is belief in an impersonal force that's working out its blind but inevitable purposes in this world, whether it's the economic forces of materialism and Communism or the "survival of the fittest" in Darwinian evolution. One is tempted to ask, "What established this force? What keeps it going? If it's inevitable, why can we resist it or choose not to accept it?" The Christian believer's faith is in a personal God, a loving God who plans for us the very best (Jer. 29:11). "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want" (Ps. 23:1).
Paul's epistle to the Ephesians emphasizes the spiritual posture of believers: we are seated with Christ (2:5–6), we walk with Him (4:1, 17; 5:1–2, 8, 15), we take our stand in Christ (6:11, 13–14), and we bow our knees to Christ (3:14). Daniel was a man who bowed his knees to the Lord, walked with Him, and was able to take his stand against Satan. He was given a place of authority in Babylon, but that was nothing compared to the authority God gave him from the throne of heaven. Daniel was a pilgrim and stranger in Babylon because his home was in Israel, and we are pilgrims and strangers on this earth because our citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20–21). Like Daniel and Joseph, we live in an alien culture with people whose thinking, values, actions, and goals are totally different from and opposed to that of God's people. And yet, just as Daniel and Joseph kept themselves pure and helped to transform people and circumstances, so we can become transformers in our world today.
He Had a Disciplined Prayer Life Jewish people were accustomed to pray at nine o'clock in the morning, noon, and three o'clock in the afternoon, the third, sixth, and ninth hours of the day, and Daniel carried that discipline with him to Babylon. Those who set aside special times of prayer are more likely to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thess. 5:17), for the special times of prayer help to sanctify all times and keep us in touch with God.
When Daniel and his friends needed to know Nebuchadnezzar's dream and understand it, they gave themselves to prayer, and when the Lord gave them the answer, they prayed further and thanked Him (Dan. 2:14–23). When Daniel's life was in danger, he went to
The key to Daniel's successful life and ministry is
Daniel
and depend on God's power, God gives us the ability to "stand" and to "withstand" (Eph. 6:10–14). We aren't just brave targets—we're energized combatants! We hold the ground God has given us and we move ahead to capture new ground.
his home and prayed, and the Lord delivered him from the lions (6:10). Frequently Daniel asked the Lord or His messengers for wisdom to understand the visions the Lord gave to him. Daniel depended on prayer.
In the church today, it seems that many people turn to prayer only when everything else has failed. Their translation of Psalm 46:1 is, "God is our last refuge when our own strength is gone and we don't have anywhere else to turn." What a tragedy! A. W. Tozer used to say, "Whatever God can do, faith can do, and whatever faith can do prayer can do, when it is offered in faith."1 Daniel not only prayed alone but he also prayed with his friends, because he knew the value of two or three believers assembling together to cry out to God. "I'd rather be able to pray than to be a great preacher," said evangelist D.L. Moody; "Jesus Christ never taught His disciples how to preach, but only how to pray."
I recognize the fact that the whole concept of spiritual warfare has been abused by some and ridiculed by others, but that shouldn't stop us from imitating great saints like Daniel and Paul who invaded Satan's territory and stood their ground when they were threatened. Isaac Watts said it perfectly:
Are there no foes for me to face? Must I not stem the flood? Is this vile world a friend to grace,
to help me on to God? Sure I must fight, if I would reign;
increase my courage, Lord; I'll bear the toil, endure the pain,
He Studied the Word of God and Believed It When Daniel and his friends left Jerusalem for Babylon, they carried with them some of the scrolls of the Old Testament Scriptures. We know that Daniel studied the prophecies of Jeremiah (Dan. 9:2), and we can assume that these godly young men had other portions of the Word as well.
supported by Thy word.
He Sought Only to Glorify God "There is a God in heaven who reveals secrets," Daniel told the powerful monarch, giving all the glory to the Lord (Dan. 2:28 nkjv), and later Nebuchadnezzar himself was glorifying God (v. 47; 4:34–35). When the king rewarded Daniel for his service, Daniel asked him to include his three friends, for they were an important part of the praying that brought the answer. When Belshazzar tried to smother Daniel with compliments and influence him with gifts, the prophet brushed it all aside and courageously interpreted the bad news to the king (5:13–17).
Prayer and the Word of God go together (Acts 6:4). Someone asked an old saint, "Which is more important in my Christian life, praying or studying God's Word?" The saint replied, "Which wing on a bird is more important for his flight, the right one or the left one?" As we read the Word of God and study it, we must pray for wisdom to understand and power to obey. We should also turn the Word into prayer. As we pray, we must remember what we've learned from the Scriptures, for the Word increases our faith (Rom. 10:17) and helps us pray in God's will (John 15:7). Daniel didn't study the Word to impress people; he studied it to ascertain the will of God and obey it. When God enlightened him concerning the seventy years of captivity, Daniel immediately began to pray that God would forgive His people and fulfill His promises, and He did. When you know the Word of God and walk in communion with the God of the Word, you will have a resolute heart and be able to withstand the attacks of the devil.
Throughout his long life, Daniel was a great man in the kingdom, but he used his gifts, abilities, and opportunities to honor God and minister to others. It has well been said that true humility isn't thinking meanly of yourself, it's just not thinking of yourself at all! Jesus came as a servant (Phil. 2), and His example is the one we should follow. I see many leadership conferences for Christians advertised these days; perhaps we need to organize some "servanthood" conferences; for a true leader is always a humble servant. This was true of Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David, and Nehemiah, as well as our Lord and His apostles. Can we improve on what they teach us?
He Had an Understanding of Spiritual Warfare Daniel 10 is a key chapter for prayer warriors, people who wrestle in prayer (Col. 4:12) and seek under God to tear down the strongholds that block God's truth from getting into the minds of unbelievers (2 Cor. 10:1–6). When I was pastoring the Moody Church in Chicago, I met regularly with three ministerial friends, and together we devoted ourselves to warfare praying. By faith, we sought to attack Satan's strongholds and open the way for the Word of God to change the lives of people in trouble. God gave us many wonderful victories in ways that we could never have imagined.
He Realized That He Had a Work to Do Like Joseph in Egypt, Daniel didn't complain about his lot in life but tried with God's help to make the best use of it. He knew that the sovereign Lord whom he trusted had a special plan for his life and he sought to fulfill it. He didn't campaign for promotions; the Lord brought them to him. He did his work well, he was a faithful and dependable servant, and even his enemies couldn't find anything to criticize (Dan. 6:1–5). If anybody deserved the divine approval of Jesus found in Matthew 25:21, it was Daniel.
Daniel was both a government employee and a
When by faith we put on the whole armor of God
Daniel
changed him into an animal (Dan. 4), and it is pride that turns leaders into worse than animals as they devour one another. In one sense, our world is improving, and we're grateful for every advancement in medicine, communications, transportation, security, and comfort. But in another sense, the nations of the world are becoming "cheaper and cheaper," as God revealed in the vision of the great image (Dan. 2). It goes from gold to silver, from silver to bronze, from bronze to iron, and from iron to clay! There's not only a decrease in value, but there's also a decrease in strength. By the time you get to the feet and toes of the image, there's nothing but clay to hold it together!
prophet of the Lord. God gave him his high position so he could use it to serve the Lord and the Lord's people. The record doesn't tell us, but there may have been many times when Daniel represented the Jewish captives before the king and helped to make life easier for them. He may have influenced the decision of Cyrus to allow the Jews to go back home. We need dedicated believers in places of authority, men and women who can be examples of godliness and instruments of righteousness.
He Was Tactful and Considerate Some people have the idea that the only way to change things in the political world is to blow up buildings, block traffic, or attack people they consider evil. Daniel exerted considerable influence during the reigns of four kings, and yet he never resorted to force, accusations, or threats. "And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all" (2 Tim. 2:24 nkjv).
Daniel had no illusions about the future. He knew what the human heart was like and he knew what God had planned to do. No wonder his heart was resolute and nothing moved him or changed him! He could say as Paul did in the storm, "Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me" (Acts 27:25 nkjv).
When Daniel and his friends wanted to eat clean food, not food dedicated to idols, they didn't stage a hunger strike or argue with those in charge. Daniel knew that any problems they created would reflect on the prince who was assigned to them and get him into trouble, so he took a different approach. He tactfully asked if they could be tested for ten days, knowing that the Lord would make the test successful. He won the respect and confidence of the prince in charge, and the word got out in the palace that the four Jewish boys in the training classes weren't troublemakers.
He Lived Up to His Name Daniel means "God is my judge." Daniel lived his life before the all-seeing eyes of the Lord and did the things that pleased Him. He didn't worry about what the king thought of him or his interpretations; he simply delivered the message God gave him and left the results with the Lord. What difference did it make that the other counselors despised him and tried to have him killed? His life and reputation were in the hands of the Lord, and the will of the Lord was always best. Is it any wonder that the Lord greatly loved Daniel?
Certainly Daniel didn't agree with the theology or lifestyle of the people in charge, but even if he couldn't respect the officers, he respected their offices. (See Paul's teaching on this subject in Rom. 13.) He spoke respectfully to them and about them and cultivated "sound speech that cannot be condemned" (Titus 2:8 nkjv). Too often believers adopt a "holier than thou" attitude and fail to show proper respect for officials they disagree with, and this always hurts the cause of Christ.
D. L. Moody often preached on Daniel, and here's an excerpt from the message:
Daniel thought more of his principles than he did of earthly honor or the esteem of men. Right was right with him. He was going to do right today and let the morrows take care of themselves. That firmness of purpose, in the strength of God, was the secret of his success.2
He Had Insight into Human History Scholars have attempted to put together the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that we call "history," but their best attempts have failed. Like the telephone book, the book of history has a huge cast of characters but no plot. Apart from knowledge of Scripture, we can't interpret history accurately.
One of Mr. Moody's associates, musician Philip P. Bliss, expressed this truth in a song that's not used much today, but the message is certainly needed. The chorus says:
At the center of history is the nation of Israel. Why? Because Israel is God's chosen vehicle to bring salvation to the world, for "salvation is of the Jews" (John 4:22). At the center of the Israel's history is God's covenant with Abraham (Gen. 12:1–3) as well as God's covenant with the Jews at Sinai (Ex. 20—24) and in the plains of Moab (Deut. 27–30). If Israel obeyed, God would bless them and make them a blessing to the Gentiles; if Israel disobeyed, God would discipline and use the Gentile nations to do it.
Dare to be a Daniel! Dare to stand alone! Dare to have a purpose firm! Dare to make it known!
Be resolute!
But the visions also taught Daniel that the nations of the world were beastly in character, like lions, bears, leopards, rams, and goats. Nebuchadnezzar's pride
1 A. W. Tozer, The Set of the Sail (Christian Publications), 33. 2 D. L. Moody, Bible Characters (New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1888), 9.
H O S E A
G e n e s i s E x o d u s L e v i t i c u s N u m b e r s D e u t e r o n o m y J o s h u a J u d g e s R u t h
J o n a h M i c a h N a h u m H a b a k k u k Z e p h a n i a h H a g g a i Z e c h a r i a h M a l a c h i
1 S a m u e l 2 S a m u e l 1 K i n g s 2 K i n g s 1 C h r o n i c l e s 2 C h r o n i c l e s E z r a N e h e m i a h
E s t h e r J o b P s a l m s P r o v e r b s E c c l e s i a s t e s S o n g o f
J e r e m i a h L a m e n t a t i o n s E z e k i e l D a n i e l H o s e a J o e l A m o s O b a d i a h
S o l o m o n I s a i a h
OUTLINE Key theme: Devotion to the Lord is like faithfulness
Hosea 1—3 1394 You Married a What?
in marriage. Idolatry is like adultery. Key verse: Hosea 2:20
Hosea 4—10 1397 What Will I Do with You?
I. ISRAEL'S UNFAITHFULNESS DESCRIBED
Hosea 11—14 1402 Love So Amazing
(1—3)
A. God is gracious—1:1—2:1 B. God is holy—2:2–13 C. God is love—2:14—3:5
II. ISRAEL'S SINS DENOUNCED (4—7)
A. Ignorance—4:1–11 B. Idolatry—4:12—5:15 C. Insincerity—6:1—7:16
III. ISRAEL'S JUDGMENT DETERMINED (8—10)
A. The Assyrian invasion—8 B. The nation scattered—9 C. Reaping what they have sown—10
IV. ISRAEL'S RESTORATION DECLARED (11—14)
A. God's past mercies—11 B. God's present disciplines—12—13 C. God's future promises—14
Hosea 1
into the land, and the result was a mixed race known as the Samaritans.
CHAPTER ONE Hosea 1—3 YOU MARRIED A WHAT? P
What a time to be serving the Lord! Murder, idolatry, and immorality were rampant in the land, and nobody seemed to be interested in hearing the Word of the Lord! On top of that, God told His prophet to get married and raise a family!
rophets sometimes do strange things. For three years, Isaiah embarrassed people by walking the streets dressed like a prisoner of war. For several months, Jeremiah carried a yoke on his shoulders. The prophet Ezekiel acted like a little boy and "played war," and once he used a haircut as a theological object lesson. When his wife suddenly died, Ezekiel even turned that painful experience into a sermon.1
The marriage (1:2). Here we meet a bit of a problem because not every Bible student agrees on the kind of woman Hosea married. Hosea either married a pure woman who later became a prostitute, or he married a prostitute who bore him three children.2
I. Israel's unfaithfulness described (1—3) A.God is gracious—1:1—2:1
In the Old Testament, prostitution is symbolic of idolatry and unfaithfulness to God (Jer. 2—3; Ezek. 16; 23). Since the Jews were idolatrous from the beginning (Josh. 24:2–3, 14), it seems likely that Gomer would have to be a prostitute when she married Hosea; for this would best symbolize Israel's relationship to the Lord. God called Israel in the idolatry; He "married" them at Mount Sinai when they accepted His covenant (Ex. 19—21); and then He grieved over them when they forsook Him for the false gods of the land of Canaan. Like Gomer, Israel began as an idolater, "married" Jehovah, and eventually returned to her idolatry.
Why did these men do these peculiar things? "These peculiar things" were really acts of mercy. The people of God had become deaf to God's voice and were no longer paying attention to His covenant. The Lord called His servants to do these strange things—these "action sermons"—in hopes that the people would wake up and listen to what they had to say. Only then could the nation escape divine discipline and judgment.
If Hosea had married a pure woman who later became unfaithful, "wife of whoredoms" in 1:2 has to mean "a wife prone to harlotry who will commit it later" but this seems to be a strained reading of the verse.3 But could God ask His faithful servant to marry a defiled woman? Why not? We might as well ask, "Could God permit Ezekiel's wife to die?" Though marrying a prostitute might not be the safest step to take, such marriages were forbidden only to priests (Lev. 21:7). Salmon married Rahab the harlot who became the great-grandmother of King David and an ancestress of Jesus Christ (Matt. 1:4–5).
But no prophet preached a more painful "action sermon" than Hosea. He was instructed to marry a prostitute named Gomer, who subsequently bore him three children, and he wasn't even sure the last two children were fathered by him. Then Gomer left him for another man, and Hosea had the humiliating responsibility of buying back his own wife.
What was this all about? It was a vivid picture of what the people of Israel had done to their God by prostituting themselves to idols and committing "spiritual adultery." Since God's people today face the same temptation (James 4:4), we need to heed what Hosea wrote for his people. Each of the persons in this drama—Hosea, Gomer, and the three children—teach us important spiritual lessons about the God whom Israel was disobeying and grieving.
The names (1:3–9). As with Isaiah's two sons (Isa. 7:3; 8:3), and numerous other people in Scripture, Gomer's three children were given meaningful names selected by the Lord.
The first child, a son, was called Jezreel (Hos. 1:4–5), which means "God sows" or "God scatters." Jezreel was a city in the tribe of Isaachar, near Mount Gilboa, and is associated with the drastic judgment that Jehu executed on the family of Ahab (2 Kings 9— 10; and see 1 Kings 21:21–24; 2 Kings 9:6–10). So zealous was Jehu to purge the land of Ahab's evil descendants that he murdered far more people than the Lord commanded, including King Ahaziah of Judah and forty-two of his relatives (9:27—10:14).
The Children: God Is Gracious (1:1—2:1) The times (1:1). Hosea names four kings of Judah and only one king of Israel, Jeroboam II. The kings of Judah, of course, belonged to David's dynasty, the only dynasty the Lord accepted (1 Kings 11:36; 15:4). The kings of Israel were a wicked lot who followed the sins of Israel's first king, Jeroboam I, and refused to repent and turn to God (2 Kings 13:6).
After Jeroboam II died, his son Zechariah reigned only six months and was assassinated by his successor Shallum, who himself was assassinated after reigning only one month. Menahem reigned for ten years; his son Pekahiah ruled two years before being killed by Pekah, who was able to keep the throne for twenty years. He was slain by Hoshea, who reigned for ten years, the last of the kings of Israel. During his evil reign, the nation was conquered by Assyria, the Jews intermingled with the foreigners the Assyrians brought
Through the birth of Hosea's son, God announced that He would avenge the innocent blood shed by Jehu and put an end to Jehu's dynasty in Israel. This was fulfilled in 752 BC when Zechariah was assassinated, the great-great-grandson of Jehu and the last of his dynasty to reign. (See 2 Kings 10:30.) God also announced that the whole kingdom of Israel would come to an end with the defeat of her army, which occurred in 724.
The second child was a daughter named Lo-ruhamah
Hosea 1—2
famine in the land, the Jews repeatedly turned to Baal for help instead of turning to the Lord. (See 1 Kings 18—19.) Pagan worship involved sensual fertility rites; and for these rites, both male and female prostitutes were provided. In a literal as well as a symbolic sense, idolatry meant prostitution.6
(Hos. 1:6–7), which means "unpitied" or "not loved." God had loved His people and proved it in many ways, but now He would withdraw that love and no longer show them mercy. The expression of God's love is certainly unconditional, but our enjoyment of that love is conditional and depends on our faith and obedience. (See Deut. 7:6–12; 2 Cor. 6:14—7:1.) God would allow the Assyrians to swallow up the northern kingdom, but He would protect the southern kingdom of Judah (Isa. 36—37; 2 Kings 19). Lo-ammi (Hos. 1:8–9) was the third child, a son, and his name means "not My people." Not only would God remove His mercy from His people, but He would also renounce the covenant He had made with them. It was like a man divorcing his wife and turning his back on her, or like a father rejecting his own son (See Ex. 4:22; Hos. 11:1).
Since the people were acting like prostitutes, God would treat them like prostitutes and shame them publicly. He would no longer claim the nation as His wife because she had broken the solemn marriage covenant and consorted with idols. According to Hebrew law, adultery was a capital crime, punishable by death, but God announced that He would discipline Israel and not destroy her.7
Unfaithfulness to the Lord is a serious sin, just as unfaithfulness to one's mate is a serious sin. The man who says he's 90 percent faithful to his wife isn't faithful at all. As Israel was tempted to forsake God for idols, the church is tempted to turn to the world system that hates God and wants nothing to do with God.
The new names (1:10—2:1). Here is where the grace of God comes in, for God will one day change these names.4 "Not my people" will become "My people," "unloved" will become "My loved one." These new names reflect the nation's new relationship to God, for all of them will be "the sons of the living God."5 Judah and Israel will unite as one nation and will submit to God's ruler, and the centuries' old division will be healed.
We must be careful not to love the world (1 John 2:15–17), be friendly with the world (James 4:4), become spotted by the world (1:27), or conform to the world (Rom. 12:2). Each believer and each local church must remain true to Jesus Christ the Bridegroom until He returns to take His bride to the heavenly wedding (2 Cor. 11:1–4; Eph. 5:22–33; Rev. 19:6–9). Ingratitude (vv. 5b–9). Instead of thanking the true God for His blessings of food, water, and clothing, the nation thanked the false gods and used those gifts to serve idols. What ingratitude! God provided rain for the land (Deut. 11:8–17), but the Israelites gave the credit to Baal, the rain god. Because it is God who gives us power to earn wealth (8:17–18) and enjoy the blessings of life (1 Tim. 6:17), we must thank Him and acknowledge His goodness. What wickedness it is to take the gifts of God and use them to worship false gods!
Instead of "Jezreel" being a place of slaughter and judgment, it will be a place of sowing, where God will joyfully sow His people in their own land and cause them to prosper. Today, the Jews are sown throughout the Gentile world (Zech. 10:9), but one day God will plant them in their own land and restore to them their glory. As God promised to Abraham, Israel will become like the sand on the seashore (Gen. 22:17).
When will these gracious promises be fulfilled for the Jews? When they recognize their Messiah at His return, trust Him, and experience His cleansing (Zech. 12:10—13:1). Then they will enter into their kingdom, and the promises of the prophets will be fulfilled (Isa. 11—12; 32; 35; Jer. 30—31; Ezek. 37; Amos 9:11–15). The three children teach us about the grace of God. Now we'll consider the lesson that Gomer teaches us.
God had every right to abandon His people, but instead, He chose to discipline them. The nation would chase after false gods, but Jehovah would block their paths and confuse their plans so that they would stumble on the way. He would take back His gifts and leave the nation as naked as a newborn baby and as barren as a desert.
B.God is holy—2:2–13
Gomer: God Is Holy (2:2–13) Hosea is preeminently the prophet of love, but unlike some teachers today, he doesn't minimize the holiness of God. We're told that "God is love" (1 John 4:8, 16), but we're also reminded that "God is light, and in him is no darkness at all" (1:5). God's love is a holy love, not a sentimental feeling that condones sin and pampers sinners.
It's remarkable how many times God's people are admonished in Scripture to be thankful. I've noted at least fifteen places where we're commanded to "give thanks to the Lord," and Psalm 100:4 and Colossians 3:15 both admonish us to be thankful. Both Jesus and Paul set the example by giving thanks often to the Lord for His blessings. One of the first steps toward rebellion against God is a refusal to give God thanks for His mercies (Rom. 1:21). God will not allow us to enjoy His gifts and at the same time ignore the Giver, for this is the essence of idolatry.
The prophet focuses on three particular sins: idolatry (spiritual adultery), ingratitude, and hypocrisy.
Idolatry (vv. 2–5a). God speaks to the children and tells them to rebuke their mother for her unfaithfulness. Israel was guilty of worshipping the gods of the pagan nations around them, especially the Canaanite rain god, Baal. Whenever there was a drought or a
Hypocrisy (vv. 10–13). The people still enjoyed celebrating the Hebrew festivals, but in their hearts,
Hosea 2—3
God's third promise is "I will take away" (Hos. 2:16–17). God declares an end to idolatry among His people. They would have a new vocabulary and the "baals" would never be named again. "Ishi" means "my husband" in Hebrew and "Baali" means "my master." Both terms were used by Jewish wives when addressing their husbands, but in the future kingdom, every Jew will call God "my Husband," for the divine marriage relationship will be restored. Israel will no longer prostitute herself before idols, but will love and serve the true living God.
they gave the glory to Baal and the other false gods that they worshipped. Unfortunately, the same sin was being committed by their brothers and sisters in the temple of Jerusalem (Isa. 1). How easy it is to attend divine services and go through the motions of worshipping God when our hearts are really far from Him (Matt. 15:7–9).
But the truth would eventually come out, for God would judge His people and expose their hypocrisy. He would take away their blessings and abandon them to their sins, for one of the greatest judgments God can inflict on any people is to let them have their own way. God is holy and will not permit His people to enjoy sin for long or to live on substitutes. Eight times in the Bible we read, "Be holy, for I am holy"; God means what He says.
God's fourth promise is "I will betroth" (vv. 18–20). God's wooing of Israel will result in her yielding to Him and entering into a covenant relationship that would never end. This new covenant will include a restored creation (see Gen. 9:1–10; Rom. 8:18–22) and peace among the nations. Among the "wedding gifts" will be such blessings as righteousness, justice, love, compassion, and faithfulness—everything that Israel had lacked during her years of separation from her Husband, Jehovah God.
Hosea: God Is Love (2:14—3:5) The three children have taught us about the grace of God, and Gomer has taught us about the holiness of God. Now Hosea will teach us about the love of God.
The fifth promise is "I will respond" (Hos. 2:21–22 niv), (kjv, "I will hear"). These two verses describe a tremendous cosmic conversation in which the Lord speaks to the heavens and the earth and they respond to each other and bring blessings to God's people. The heavens send the rain, the earth brings forth the produce, and the Lord sends His rich blessings. It's the picture of a restored universe where sin and death no longer reign (Rom. 5:12–21).
"Hosea takes his place among the greatest lovers of all the ages," wrote Kyle M. Yates. "His love was so strong that the vilest behavior could not dull it. … Gomer broke his heart but she made it possible for him to give to the world a picture of the heart of the divine Lover."8
C.God is love—2:14—3:5
God's love promised (vv. 14–23). The repeated "I will" statements in these verses assure us that God has a wonderful future planned for the Jewish people. Let's note His promises.
The final promise in this text is "I will plant" (Hos. 2:23 niv). The word Jezreel means "God sows." The image is that of God sowing His people in their land the way a farmer sows seed. He says to them, "You are my people." They respond, "You are my God" (niv). This relates back to the names of the children that God in His grace had changed.
He begins with "I will allure" (v. 14). God doesn't try to force His people to love him. Instead, He "allures" (woos) them as a lover woos his beloved, seeking her hand in marriage. Certainly God spoke tenderly to His people through His Word and through the manifold blessings He bestowed on them in their land. Just as He led her through the wilderness and "married" her at Sinai, so God will meet His beloved in the wilderness in the last days and lead her into her land and her glorious kingdom.
God's love pictured (3:1–5). This is another "action sermon" as Hosea reclaims his estranged wife and brings her home to himself. Gomer had left Hosea and was living with a lover, another picture of the way Israel had treated the Lord. Hosea had to buy her back at a cost of fifteen pieces of silver (half the price of a slave, Ex. 21:32) and about ten bushels of barley. This was not an exorbitant price, but she had cheapened herself by her sins. We need to remember that God has purchased us at the tremendous cost of the precious blood of His only Son (1 Peter 1:18–19).
The next promise is "I will give" (v. 15) as the Lord guarantees a return to their land and a restoration of their prosperity. Once again, the Lord changes the meaning of a name, this time, "the Valley of Achor." To Israel, the Valley of Achor ("trouble") was the place where Achan stole from God and brought shameful defeat to Israel's army (Josh. 7), but that memory would be erased from their minds. The valley would become a "door of hope" through which Israel would enter into a new life. The experience would produce singing, as when Israel escaped from Egypt and saw her enemies defeated before their very eyes (Ex. 14–15). "And Sharon shall be a fold of flocks, and the valley of Achor a place for the herds to lie down in, for my people that have sought me" (Isa. 65:10). This is an Old Testament version of Romans 8:28, for only the Lord can take defeat and shame and turn it into victory and glory.
Hosea 3:3 suggests that Hosea didn't immediately enter into intimate relations with Gomer, but waited awhile to make sure she would be true to him. It's also possible that he wanted to make sure she wasn't pregnant with another man's child. But even this has a spiritual message attached to it: Israel today, though purchased by their Messiah (John 11:47–52; Isa. 53:8), has not yet returned to the Lord.
Israel today is without a king because she rejected her King and therefore has no kingdom. "We will not have this man to reign over us" (Luke 19:14). "We have
Hosea 3—4
Hosea ultimately divorced her and married another woman who was an adulteress (3:1). It's easy to lose sight of the main message God wanted to get across: He loved His people and wanted them to return that love to Him. They were committing evil by worshipping idols, just like a woman who is unfaithful to her husband. They were not only sinning against God's law, but also sinning against God's love. As to the legitimacy of the children, the fact that 1:6 and 8 don't read "and bore him a daughter … a son" does not mean Hosea wasn't the father of these children. It seems natural to assume from the context that Hosea is the father. See Genesis 30:17–24 for a similar statement. 3 TLB reads, "Go and marry a girl who is a prostitute." 4 In Scripture, a change of names is often evidence of God's gracious working in people's lives. Abram became Abraham, and Sarai was renamed Sarah (Gen. 17). Simon became Peter (John 1:42), and Saul of Tarsus became Paul (Paulus = little). 5 Paul quoted Hosea 1:10 and 2:23 in Romans 9:25–26 to prove that the salvation of the Gentiles was always a part of God's plan. He applied "not My people" to the Gentiles as he did in Ephesians 2:11–22. In the early church, some of the more legalistic believers thought that the Gentiles had to first become Jews before they could be Christians (Acts 10–11; 15), but Paul defended the gospel of the grace of God and proved that both Jews and Gentiles are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. 6 The Hebrew words referring to prostitutes and prostitution (kjv, "whoredom," "harlotries") are used twenty-two times in Hosea's prophecy (1:2, 2:2, 4–4; 3:3, 4:10–15, 18; 5:3–4; 6:10; 9:1). Words connected with adultery are used six times (2:2; 3:1; 4:2, 13–14; 7:4). God looked upon His covenant relationship with His people as a marriage, and He saw their idolatry as marital unfaithfulness. 7 Hebrew law stated that a divorced woman could not return to her former husband and marry him again (Deut. 24:1–4). God gave unfaithful Israel a "divorce" in that He no longer shared His intimacy and His mercies with her (Isa. 50:1; Jer. 3:1–5). One day He will take her back and restore the broken relationship and heal their land (Isa. 54:4–8; 62:4). 8 Kyle M. Yates, Preaching From the Prophets (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1942), 53.
no king but Caesar" (John 19:15). She has no prince because there is no reigning dynasty in Israel. All the records were destroyed when the Romans captured Jerusalem in AD 70, and nobody can prove to which tribe he or she belongs.
The Israelites have no sacrifice because they have no temple, altar, or priesthood. They don't have a pillar (image) or a household god (teraphim), because idolatry was purged from their culture during the Babylonian captivity. (Like the Gentiles, they may have other kinds of idols in their hearts!) They lack an ephod (Ex. 28:1–14) because they have no high priest. The only High Priest God will acknowledge is the interceding Son of God in heaven.
But there is an "afterword"! Israel won't stay "without," for she will see her Messiah, repent of her sins, and say, "You are my God." They will enter into that blessed relationship in which the Lord says, "You are My people." This will occur in "the latter days" when the messianic King sits on David's throne and judges righteously (Matt. 19:28; Luke 1:32–33).
The key word is return (Hos. 3:5), a word that's used twenty-two times in Hosea's prophecy. When Israel repents and returns to the Lord, then the Lord will return to bless Israel (2:7–8). God has returned to His place and left Israel to herself (5:15) until she seeks Him and says, "Come, and let us return to the Lord" (6:1 nkjv).
This is Hosea's message: "O Israel, return to the Lord thy God.… Take with you words, and turn to the Lord: say unto Him, 'Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously'" (14:1–2).
That prayer is good for any sinner, Jew or Gentile. To summarize:
God is gracious, and no matter what "name" our birth has given to us, He can change it and give us a new beginning. Even the "valley of trouble" can become a "door of hope."
God is holy and He must deal with sin. The essence of idolatry is enjoying the gifts but not honoring the Giver. To live for the world is to break God's heart and commit "spiritual adultery."
God is love and promises to forgive and restore all who repent and return to Him. He promises to bless all who trust him.
CHAPTER TWO Hosea 4—10 WHAT WILL I DO WITH YOU? I
1 See Isaiah 20; Jeremiah 27—28; Ezekiel 4:1–8; 5:1ff.; 12:1–16; 24:15ff. 2 When you study the commentaries, you discover a number of different views defended: (1) Gomer was a pure woman who later became a prostitute and bore Hosea three children; (2) Gomer was a pure woman who became a prostitute and bore Hosea a son, but also gave birth to a daughter and son who were not fathered by Hosea; (3) Gomer was a prostitute from the beginning and bore Hosea three children; (4) Gomer was a prostitute from the beginning and bore Hosea his own son, but also bore two children by another man; (5) Gomer was a prostitute who already had three children, but
ndeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just."
Thomas Jefferson wrote those words about the United States of America, and as the prophet Hosea surveyed the kingdom of Israel, he would have agreed. From his bitter experience with his wife, Hosea knew that sin not only breaks the heart of God, but also offends the holiness of God, for "righteousness and justice are the foundation of [His] throne" (Ps. 89:14 nkjv).
II. Israel's sins denounced (4—7)
God wanted to forgive the sins of His people and
Hosea 5—6
God to discipline His people. Whether to bless or to judge, God always keeps His covenant promises.2
restore their fellowship with Him, but they weren't ready. They not only would not repent, they wouldn't even admit that they had sinned! So God conducted a trial and brought them to the bar of justice. It's a basic spiritual principle that until people experience the guilt of conviction, they can't enjoy the glory of conversion.
The priests (4:4–14). When Jeroboam I set up his own religious system in Israel, many of the true priests fled to Judah; so the king ordained priests of his own choosing (2 Chron. 11:13–15). Of course, these counterfeit priests knew neither the Lord nor His law. They were primarily interested in having an easy job that would provide them with food, clothing, and pleasure, especially opportunities to be with the shrine prostitutes. "Don't blame the people for what's happening," Hosea said to the corrupt priests, "because they're only following your bad example!"
God Convenes the Court (4:1—5:15) Just as Hosea had experienced a quarrel with his wife, so God had a quarrel with His estranged wife, the people of Israel. But it wasn't a personal quarrel; it was an official controversy: "The Lord has a charge to bring against you who live in the land" (4:1 niv). The picture of God bringing men and nations to trial in His courtroom is a familiar one in Scripture (see Isa. 1:13; Jer. 2:9, 29; 25:31; Mic. 6:2; Rom. 3:19). "Rise up, O Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve" (Ps. 94:2 niv).
When you obey God's Word, you walk in the light and don't stumble (Prov. 3:21–26; 4:14–19), but when you reject the Word, you walk in the darkness and can't find your way (Isa. 8:20). Worldly and ignorant spiritual leaders produce worldly and ignorant people, and this brings destruction to the land. The phrase "your mother" in Hosea 4:5 refers to the nation of Israel (2:2, 5). As goes spiritual leadership, so goes the church; as goes the church, so goes morality; and as goes morality, so goes the nation. God's people are both salt and light in society (Matt. 5:13–16); when they are corrupt, society becomes corrupt.
A.Ignorance—4:1–11 B.Idolatry—4:12—5:15
The Judge read the charges to the accused as they stood before him.
The nation as a whole (4:1b–3). The basis for judgment was the holy law of God, the covenant God made with Israel at Mount Sinai. "All that the Lord has spoken we will do," was their promise (Ex. 19:8), but that promise was soon broken. Just as Gomer didn't take her marriage vows seriously but went to live with another man, so Israel reneged on her promises to God and turned to pagan idols. There was no faithfulness (truth) in the land, no loyal love to the Lord.
God rejected Jeroboam's man-made religion3 and warned the priests that their easy jobs would soon end in disaster. Instead of seeking God's will, they consulted their idols.4 The more the people sinned, the more food the priests enjoyed. The more shrines the people built, the more they and the priests could indulge in lustful pleasures as they participated in the fertility rites. But the rites wouldn't accomplish anything, because God would cause the population and the produce to decrease instead of increase. Furthermore, the priests' own daughters and daughters-in-law would become shrine prostitutes and commit adultery!5 Their sins would bring judgment to their families and to the land.
When people reject God's covenant, they begin to exploit each other, for the Ten Commandments deal with our relationship with our neighbor as well as with the Lord. If we love the Lord, we will also love our neighbor (Matt. 22:34–40; Rom. 13:8–10). But there was no mercy in the land, no love for one's neighbor, no compassion for the poor and needy. People were falsehearted toward God and hardhearted toward one another.
The basic sin was ignorance; there was "no knowledge of God in the land." "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge" (Hos. 4:6).1 This means much more than knowledge about God; it refers to a personal knowledge of God. The Hebrew word describes a husband's most intimate relationship with his wife (Gen. 4:1; 19:8). To know God is to have a personal relationship with Him through faith in Jesus Christ (John 17:3).
The spectators in the court (4:15–19). Now the prophet turns to the people of the southern kingdom of Judah who were carefully watching events in Israel. Hosea's warning is clear: don't meddle in the affairs of Israel because their doom is sure! "Ephraim is joined to idols: let him alone" (v. 17). The people of Judah were supposed to worship in Jerusalem and not go to the hill shrines in Israel or to the special shrines at Gilgal6 and Bethel. (Hosea calls Bethel "Bethaven," which means "house of evil or deceit." Bethel means "house of God.") Israel was like a stubborn heifer, not a submissive lamb; and God's whirlwind of judgment would sweep the kingdom away.
The Judge pointed to the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:1–17) and reminded the people of how they had violated His law by pronouncing curses, telling lies, murdering, stealing, and committing adultery. As a result, they had brought suffering to themselves, to the land, and even to the animals. God's covenant promise was that He would bless the land if the people obeyed Him, but that He would punish the land if they disobeyed (Lev. 26; Deut. 27—28).
Priests, rulers, and people (5:1–7). This is a summation of the evidence that the Judge applied to all the accused. He condemned the leaders for trapping innocent people and exploiting them. There was no justice in the land. They were sinking deep in sin and lacked the power to repent and turn back to God, for their sins had paralyzed them.
The land belonged to God (Lev. 25:23), and the sins of the people polluted the land (18:25–28; 26:32–33). Natural calamities like droughts, famines, and the devastations of war were sometimes sent by
Hosea 6—7
cians putting suntan lotion on a cancerous tumor instead of calling for drastic surgery. Expecting a "quick fix" is one of the marks of an unrepentant heart that doesn't want to pay the price for deep cleansing (Ps. 51:6–7). There is a third evidence of their shallowness: they saw forgiveness and restoration as a "mechanical" thing that was guaranteed and not as a relational matter that involved getting right with God. To paraphrase Hosea 6:3, "If we seek Him, His blessing is sure to come just as the dawn comes each morning and the rains come each spring and winter." This is formula religion, like getting a candy bar out of a vending machine: put in the money, push the button, and out comes the candy. The Christian life is a relationship with God, and relationships aren't based on cut-and-dried formulas.
What was the cause? They did not know the Lord (5:4; 6:3) and their arrogance only led them to stumble and fall (5:5; Prov. 16:18). Even if they came to the Lord with entire flocks and herds to sacrifice, God would not meet them; for He had withdrawn Himself from them. He rejected their illegitimate children,7 and their monthly feasts would soon become funerals.
The sentence is pronounced (5:8–15). There could be only one verdict: "Guilty!" A day of judgment was coming when the cites of Israel would be conquered by the invading Assyrian army and the citizens taken into capitivity. "Ephraim will be laid waste on the day of reckoning" (5:9 niv).8 The inner decay of the nation was like the slow hidden destruction caused by a moth (v. 12), but the coming of the Assyrians was like the sudden open attack of a lion (v. 14). Both were unavoidable and both brought ruin.
One more evidence of their shallowness is the fact that they depended on religious words rather than righteous deeds. When we truly repent, our words will come from broken hearts and they will cost us something. Hosea considered words to be like "spiritual sacrifices" brought to the Lord (14:2), and we must not give Him something cheap (2 Sam. 24:24). Words can reveal or conceal, depending on the honesty and humility of the sinner.10 We must take to heart the warning in Ecclesiastes 5:1–2.
Israel and Judah were weak, sick nations (Isa. 1:5–6; Jer. 30:12–13), but instead of turning to the Lord for healing, both of them turned to the king of Assyria for help (Hos. 5:13).9 They needed prayer and true repentance, but instead, they trusted politics and useless treaties. All the Lord could do was withdraw and wait for them to seek His face in truth and humility.
God Rejects the Appeal (6:1—7:16) It isn't unusual for the accused in a trial to express regret and remorse for what they've done and to ask for another chance. That's just what Israel did, but God anticipated their hypocritical subterfuge and exposed not only their duplicity but the sinful way they had treated their Lord.
The nation's true condition (6:4—7:16). In a series of vivid similes and metaphors, Hosea revealed the true character of the people of Israel.
Their love for the Lord was like a morning cloud and the dew (6:4–11). Early in the morning, the dew looks like sparkling jewels, but as soon as the sun comes up, the dew is gone. Israel's devotion to the Lord was temporary, lovely but not lasting. To give some substance to their faith, God sent them His prophets with the Word of God, which is like a penetrating sword (Eph. 6:17) and a flash of lightning (Hos. 6:5), but the people turned a deaf ear.
The nation's false repentance (6:1–3). When you read these words, you get the impression that the nation is sincerely repenting and seeking the Lord, but when you read what God says, you see how shallow their "confession" really was. "They do not return to the Lord their God, nor seek him" (7:10). "They have spoken lies against me" (v. 13). "They return, but not to the Most High" (v. 16). What went wrong with this "confession"?
C.Insincerity—6:1—7:16
God doesn't want our relationship with Him to be one of shallow, transient feelings and empty words and rituals, hearts that are enthusiastic one day and frigid the next. "For I desired mercy [loyal love], and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings" (v. 6). A superficial ritual can never take the place of sincere love and faithful obedience (1 Sam. 15:22–23; Amos 5:21–24; Mic. 6:6–8; Matt 9:13; 12:7). "But like Adam they have transgressed the covenant" (Hos. 6:7 nasb).11 God promised Adam His blessings if he obeyed His commands, but Adam deliberately destroyed and plunged the human race into sin and death (Rom. 5:12–21; 1 Cor. 15:21–22). God promised Israel the blessings of the Promised Land if they would obey Him (Deut. 28), but they broke the covenant and suffered the consequences. For both Israel and Judah, God had appointed a harvest, and they would reap just what they had sown (Gal. 6:7–8).
To begin with, their concern was for healing and not for cleansing. They saw their nation in difficulty and wanted God to "make things right," but they did not come with broken hearts and surrendered wills. They wanted happiness, not holiness, a change of circumstances, but not a change in character. Many times in my own ministry I've met people in trouble who treated God like a celestial lifeguard who should rescue them from danger but not deliver them from their sins. They shed tears of remorse over their suffering, but not tears of repentance over their sin.
Furthermore, the people of Israel thought that the remedy would work quickly: "After two days will he revive us; in the third day he will raise us up" (6:2). What blind optimism! They were like the false prophets in Jeremiah's day who offered the nation superficial remedies but never got to the heart of the problem (Jer. 6:14; 8:11–16). They were like physi-
Their lust was like an overheated oven (Hos. 7:1–7). It's probable that the last statement in 6:11
Hosea 7—8
and there" would come to an end when He caught them in His net and gave them to the king of Assyria. God is in control of the nations, but His people would not obey Him.
should be joined with 7:1 to read, "When I would have returned the captivity of my people, when I would have healed Israel." What prevented God from helping His distressed people? They wanted Him to act on their terms and not according to the condition of His holy covenant. They thought they could get away with their many sins, but God saw them all and remembered them (v. 2; contrast Heb. 10:16–17).
According to the covenant God had with His people, the Jews could trade with the other nations, but they were not to enter into political alliances that would compromise their obedience to the Lord. "I see a people who live apart and do not consider themselves one of the nations" (Num. 23:9 niv). "You are to be holy to me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own" (Lev. 20:26 niv). Solomon used many wives to form alliances with other nations, and this was the beginning of the nation's downfall (1 Kings 11:1ff.).
Their passion for sin was like a fire in an oven: bank the fire at night, and it will be ready to blaze out in the morning. The oven was so hot that the baker could ignore it all night and know it would be ready for baking his bread in the morning. The "fuel" for the fire was wine, for alcohol and sin often go together.
Hosea describes a palace celebration during which the king and his officers get drunk, and this gives the king's enemies opportunity to overthrow him and even kill him. Remember, Israel had five kings in thirteen years, and four kings were assassinated in twenty years. From Jeroboam I, the first king of Israel, to Hoshea, the last king, there were nine different dynasties! Because the leaders were far from the Lord, the political situation was confused and corrupt.
The final image is a faulty bow (Hos. 7:13–16), because God couldn't depend on Israel to be faithful. (This image is also used in Ps. 78:57.) God had called Israel and trained them, so they should have been able to "hit the target." But because they had strayed from the Lord, rebelled against Him, lied to Him (in their feigned repentance), and refused to call upon Him, they could not win the battle.
The third simile is that of a half-baked cake (Hos. 7:8). The nomadic peoples of the East baked their bread on hot rocks. If the dough wasn't turned, one side of the loaf would be burned and the other side uncooked. Instead of remaining separate from the nations, Israel mixed with the nations and became like them. Because of her compromising political posture, the nation was "burned" by Assyria on the one hand and left uncooked on the other.
As we review these images, we might take inventory of our own devotion to the Lord. How lasting is it? How deep is it? How strong is it? How serious is it? How dependable is it?
God Pronounces the Sentence (8:1—10:15) For the second time, Hosea calls for the trumpet to be blown (8:1; 5:8). According to Numbers 10, the Jews used trumpets to announce special occasions, to sound alarms, to gather the people for assemblies, and to proclaim war. This call was a trumpet of alarm because the enemy was coming and God was giving His people opportunity to repent. Hosea again used a number of familiar images to show the people what God would do to them because of their sin.
When it comes to our relationship with the Lord, we must be thorough and not "half-baked." His gracious work must permeate our whole being so that heart, mind, and strength are all devoted to Him. Compromise with the world leads to unbalanced conduct and immature character.
III. Israel's judgment determined (8—10) A.The Assyrian invasion—8
Continuing the theme of compromise, Hosea pictures Israel as a man getting gray and not knowing it (vv. 9–10). By mixing with the nations and ignoring the Lord, the nation was secretly losing her strength, like someone getting older and weaker but in her pride refusing to admit it. This is the tragedy of undetected losses that quietly lead to ultimate failures. Samson made this mistake (Judg. 16:20) and so did the church in Laodicea (Rev. 3:17). Israel saw her political strategy failing, but the leaders still refused to turn to the Lord. "The pride of Israel" (Hos. 7:10; see 5:5) refers to Israel's national glory, which had greatly eroded since the days of David and Solomon. Selfish politicians and corrupt priests had brought the nation to ruin.
The eagle (8:1–6). "The house of the Lord" refers to the nation of Israel, for the people were God's dwelling-place (9:15; Ex. 15:17; Num. 12:7). The Assyrian eagle was about to swoop down and destroy God's house because the nation was given over to idolatry, and the leaders were not seeking God's will in their decisions. They made kings and removed kings to satisfy their own desires, and they manufactured gods (especially the golden calves at Bethel and Dan) that could not help them.12
Sowing and reaping (8:7). The concept of sowing and reaping as it relates to conduct is often used in Scripture (Job 4:8; Prov. 22:8; Jer. 12:13; Gal. 6:7–8), and Hosea used it twice (Hos. 8:7; 10:12–13). In their idolatry and political alliances, the Israelites were trying to sow seeds that would produce a good harvest, but they were only sowing the wind—vanity, nothing— and would reap the whirlwind. Nothing could stop the force of the Assyrian army. The harvest would be more powerful than the seed!
In their political policies, the Israelites were like a silly dove (7:11–12). First they turned to Egypt for help and then to Assyria, and both nations proved to be false allies (5:13; 8:8–10; 12:1). If the leaders had listened to the prophets, they would have known that Assyria would one day invade the land (9:3; 10:5–6; Isa. 7:18—8:10). God warned that Israel's "flying here
The sowing/reaping image continues with the
Hosea 8—10
Assyria, Israel fortified her towns and sought help from foreign nations, and from a spiritual point of view, this was like prostitution. (During the harvest season, prostitutes frequented the threshing floors where the men slept to guard the grain.) The harvest season was a time of great joy (Isa. 9:3), but there would be no joy in Israel. And when the people ended up in a foreign land, everything would be unclean to them, but they were an unclean people anyway, so what difference would it make?
picture of a blighted crop of grain. The rulers of Israel thought their worship of Baal and their foreign alliances would produce a good crop of peace and prosperity; but when the time came for the harvest, there was nothing to reap. And even where heads of grain did appear, the enemy reaped the harvest and Israel gained nothing. In the image of the wind, Hosea said, "You will reap far more than you sowed, and it will be destructive!" In the image of the grain, he said, "You will reap nothing at all, and your enemies will get the benefit of all the promises you made."
B.The nation scattered—9 C.Reaping what they have sown—10
Agriculture (9:10—10:10). God reviews the history of His relationship with the Jews. You don't find grapes in the desert, but if you did, it would thrill you. That's how God felt when He called Israel. The early fruit of the fig tree is especially good, and Israel was special to the Lord. But this joyful experience didn't last, for King Balak gave Israel her first taste of Baal worship, and the nation indulged in idolatry and immorality with its neighbors (Num. 25).
Worthless pottery (8:8). There was no grain for Israel to swallow, but she herself would be "swallowed up" by Assyria. She was a useless vessel "in which no one delights" (nasb). Their compromise had so cheapened them that Israel was of no value to the community of nations. Nobody feared them, nobody courted them, nobody wanted them.
A stupid donkey (Hos. 8:9a) Israel wanted to be a part of the alliances that were forming to fight Assyria, but she was actually very much alone. She was like a dumb animal that had lost its way in the wilderness. Israel had forsaken her God, and she had been forsaken by her allies, so she was abandoned to face a terrible future alone.
God planted His people in a special land, but they polluted the land with their idols (Hos. 9:13). The more prosperous they became, the more they turned away from God. Now they must suffer a bitter harvest for their sins, they and their children.13 The nation is blighted, having no roots and bearing no fruits. She was a "spreading vine" (10:1 niv), but now she is without fruit.14 These agricultural images remind us that we reap what we sow.
A prostitute (8:9b–10). In negotiating with the Gentile nations for protection, Ephraim (Israel) acted like a common prostitute selling herself for money. Israel's kings paid tribute to the king of Assyria and also sent gifts to Egypt (12:1). Instead of being faithful to her Husband, Jehovah God, Israel prostituted herself to the Gentile nations—and lost everything. God promised to gather them together for judgment, and they would "waste away" (niv) under the ruthless hand of the Assyrian king.
There's an interesting agricultural image in 10:4: "Therefore lawsuits spring up like poisonous weeds in a plowed field" (niv). People couldn't trust one another and few were keeping their promises; therefore, they had to sue one another to get what they deserved. The multiplying of laws and lawsuits is one evidence that integrity and credibility are vanishing from society.
Egyptian bondage (8:11—9:9). Hosea mentions Egypt thirteen times in his book, and these references fall into three distinct categories: past—the exodus of the Jews from Egypt (2:15; 11:1; 12:9, 13; 13:4); present—Israel's unholy alliances with Egypt (7:11, 16; 12:1); future—Egypt as a symbol of their impending bondage to Assyria (8:13; 9:3, 6; 11:5, 11). Three times in this section, the prophet announces, "They shall go to Egypt" (8:13; 9:3, 6); but 11:5 makes it clear that "Egypt" is a symbol for Assyrian bondage: "He shall not return to the land of Egypt; but the Assyrian shall be his king" (nkjv).
The final agricultural image is in verse 8: the idolatrous shrines will become nothing but clumps and weeds, and the people will beg the Lord to destroy them quickly (v. 8; see Luke 23:30; Rev. 6:16).
Twice in this passage, Hosea mentions "the days of Gibeah" (Hos. 9:9; 10:9). The reference is to the awful sins of the men of Gibeah and the tragic civil war that followed (Judg. 19—21). The men of Gibeah practiced unnatural lust and killed an innocent woman in a gang rape episode. The city would not punish the offenders, so the whole nation attacked Benjamin and almost destroyed the tribe. In Hosea's day, all the ten tribes of Israel were practicing these abominable things, but God would judge them and they would reap what they had sown.15
The prophet contrasts the past exodus from the bondage of Egypt with the impending "exodus" into bondage of Assyria, the new "Egypt." When the Jews left Egypt, they had not yet received the law, nor did they have the tabernacle and its system of sacrifices. But now the Jews had heard the law for centuries, and the temple had been standing since Solomon's time. Yet they ignored the law, and the priesthood became corrupt. The NIV catches the irony in 8:11, "Though Ephraim built many altars for sin offerings, these have become altars for sinning."
The chapter closes (Hos. 10:11–15) by comparing Israel to a young heifer that enjoys treading out the grain because she can eat and work at the same time. But then she is yoked to another beast and forced to do the hard work of plowing. Israel's "salad days" were over and she would feel the Assyrian yoke.
In verse 12, the prophet gives one more appeal to the nation to repent and seek the Lord. "Fallow ground" is land that has lain idle and become hard and
Instead of trusting the Lord to protect her from
Hosea 10—11
full of weeds. This appeal sounds like the preaching of John the Baptist: "Repent! Bear fruits worthy of repentance!" (Matt. 3:1–12). The plow of conviction must first break up hard hearts before the seed of the Word can be planted and the gracious rain be sent from heaven.
contend, to strive." This could be a nickname for the king of Assyria, such as "King Contention." Israel and Judah turned to the king of Assyria for help and all he did was pick a fight! 10 This is made clear in 1 John 1, where the phrase "if we say" is repeated three times. See also King Saul's "religious lies" in 1 Samuel 15:10–35. 11 Since the Hebrew word translated "Adam" means "red earth," it's been suggested that verse 7 be translated, "They have treated the covenant like dirt."Adam also stands for mankind in general, so we might translate it, "Like mere humans, they have transgressed the covenant." 12 Dr. Leon Wood translated Hosea 8:5, "Your calf stinks!" The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Frank E. Gaebelein, gen. ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1985), vol. 7, 201. J. B. Phillips isn't quite that blunt in his translation: "Samaria, I reject your calf with loathing!" Four Prophets: A Translation Into Modern English (New York: Macmillan, 1963), 41. 13 The adults sin and the children have to suffer: "Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the murderer" (9:13 kjv). When Hosea speaks in verse 14, he asks God to keep the women from having children so they won't be murdered. He is pleading for mercy for the innocent. See our Lord's words in Luke 23:29. 14 The vine as a symbol of the Jewish nation is also found in Deuteronomy 32:32; Psalm 80:8–11; Isaiah 5:1–7; and Jeremiah 2:21. The vine also pictures Christ and His church (John 15) and the Gentile world system ripening for judgment in the last days (Rev. 14:17–20). 15 The references to Israel's past history—Baal-Peor (Hos. 9:10) and Gibeah (9:9; 10:9)—show that "the only thing we learn from history is that we don't learn from history." Both of these events brought the judgment of God on the nation, yet later generations turned a blind eye to this fact. The sins of the fathers are committed by their children—and grandchildren. 16 Any group that calls itself "the lost tribes of Israel" is suspect, for only God knows where all the tribes are. See Acts 26:7; James 1:1; and Revelation 7:1–8.