If I were a prophet in the OT, I might make a sermon out of the names of my daughters. I might say, “Jewell – means that you all are precious to God, as jewels.” Or, “Ana – means that you will receive the grace of God,” since “Ana and Hannah” both come from the Hebrew word for grace. We’re going to study a prophet, a minor prophet, who had children named by God as a lesson, a message, to the children of Israel. Each year I focus on one of the dozen minor prophets just to help us understand these books, to encourage all of us to read these books, and to see why their message is still relevant for us today. Hosea and the other “minor” prophets are called “minor” because they are smaller, shorter, than the “major” prophets; that’s the only reason they are called that.
Israel had one job throughout the OT. Have you seen some of these memes on Facebook where someone messed up a very simple task? Israel had one job: stay faithful to God. That’s all. Israel could not do it because they, like us, had a tendency to put their trust in someone else besides God and His written word in the Law of Moses.
Let’s begin a study of Hosea…
CHAPTER 1 – HOSEA’S FAMILY:
The marriage and first son (1:2-5): Gomer is described as a “wife of harlotry.” The word “harlotry” or “prostitutions” is plural and it denotes a sexually immoral woman. As offensive as this command is, Hosea’s marriage to Gomer is clearly intended to be an object lesson, a parable, for the people of Israel. The land “commits flagrant harlotry,” which is identified as “forsaking the Lord.”
The first child born to Hosea and Gomer was a little boy whom God commanded Hosea to name “Jezreel.” “Jezreel” is a play on a Hebrew verb that can mean “to sow” in a positive way or in a negative way, “to scatter.” It will have both a negative connotation, God will “scatter” Israel from her land, and a positive connotation, God will “sow” blessings when Israel repents and returns to Him.
The daughter (1:6-7): The daughter was to carry the name “Lo-Ruhamah” which means “no compassion.” God was fed up with Israel and her prostitution. Why would anyone call a daughter that? To teach Israel that God’s compassion was running out with their behavior.
The birth of the second son (1:8-11): Three years or so after Lo-Ruhama was weaned, Gomer gave birth to her third child, the second son, whom Hosea named “Lo-ammi,” “Not my people.” Why? Because Israel, in her idolatry, was “not God’s people” and He was “not their God.” This reverses the language of God at Mount Sinai in Exo 6:7.
So, people would ask Hosea about his wife, or about his children (“Why did you name your kids that?”) and he would have an opportunity to share with them God’s word.
CHAPTER 2 – LACK OF TRUST / OBEDIENCE WILL BE PUNISHED:
Punishment for harlotry (2:1-7): We see God sowing blessings again as He changes the name of the children from “Not my people” to “My people” and “Not compassion” to “Compassion.” But if that change is to become a reality, there must be a change of behavior. There must be repentance.
In verses 5-6, Hosea portrays the “payment” that Gomer received (aka Israel), from her “lovers:” bread, water, wool, flax, oil, drink. Those were supposedly given through worship to Baal. God wants Israel to understand that it is He who has given her these blessings (vs 8). It is like a frustrated parent who holds both sides of the child’s face so that he/she must look into the parent’s eyes. God must get her attention! He wants her to return to Him, her first husband (vs 7).
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Israel does not know God (2:8-13): This section begins with God saying, “She does not know that it was I” and ends in verse 13 with the expression: “she forgot Me.” Israel did not realize it was God who had given them all those blessings mentioned in verse 5, not Baal! But, they used those blessings to serve Baal or to justify serving Baal!
Israel will be restored (2:14-23): Verse 14 pictures God leading Israel into the wilderness like He did out of the Egyptian slavery, in order to begin a new relationship with her. At that point (vs 16), they will call God “my husband” (Ishi) rather than “My Master” (Baali). There will be no mixing religions. God will remove “Baal” from their mouths.
CHAPTER 3 – GOD WILL LEAD:
God pleads with Israel as Hosea pleads with Gomer (1-3): Hosea continued to love Gomer, even as she sunk deep into “moral degradation” (Hailey, 145). This is the first time “to commit adultery” is used by Hosea. “Raisin cakes” were dried raisins pressed together and were used in worship to the “queen of heaven” (a reference to the goddess Ashtarte) in Jer 7:18; 44:17-19.
Standing stones were places of worship, perhaps where Asherah poles were located, she being the fertility goddess. God will send Israel a new leader, “David their King” – Jesus, the Son of David (Matt. 1:1).
CHAPTER 4 – DON’T TRUST AND FOLLOW ANYONE BUT GOD:
Israel’s sins: Inhumanity (1-3): Their inhumanity results from their lack of knowledge of God’s word, God’s expectations. There was no “faithfulness” – failure to keep their promises, to be dependable: “a life that follows principle rather than expediency,” – no “kindness” – hesed (loyalty), no “knowledge” – of His covenant.
All of that ignorance leads Israel to violate God’s law; verse 2 includes five of the Ten Commandments: #9, 6, 8, 7, 3. The priests were to teach the law (Lev 10:8-11) and so were prophets. But, they were not teaching and encouraging Israel to obey the law of God. If you want to be right with God, you’ve got to obey Jesus Christ. Pure and simple. Not the pastor, not the priest, not Paul Holland. Jesus Christ. Money in the bank is not a sign that our lives are right with God. God blesses us because He loves us but He does not want us to twist those blessings into an excuse to live the way we want to live.
There have been many times when I have been studying with someone and I’ve showed them the Bible teaches them something different than what they had been taught to believe. But then they’ll say, “Yes, but my pastor explains it differently.” That, family, is idolatry. For Christians to act that way, to put man’s word above what the Bible clearly teaches, is spiritual adultery. That’s how Israel was living in the days of Hosea.
We should be extremely dedicated to following Christ’s commandments and His only. Anything else is adultery.
Paul Holland
