Hosea: You shall have no other gods before Me
An object lesson in, "You shall not make for yourself an idol" (Exodus 20:3-4)
In case it is not yet abundantly clear, God cares about our relationship with Him. He considers anything that interferes with that relationship as the sin of adultery, or infidelity. He had the prophet Hosea live that out demonstrably by actually marrying a harlot as an object lesson.
As in other books of prophecy, the context and timing is set for us in the first verse: “The word of the LORD which came to Hosea the son of Beeri, during the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and during the days of Jeroboam [the second] the son of Joash, king of Israel” (Hosea 1:1).
The full text of Hosea is available on Day 201 and Day 202.
Historical context is important. The united kingdom, twelve tribes, of Israel divided under the rule of King Rehoboam, Solomon’s son, as punishment for Solomon’s many wives leading him astray to worship other gods. All except Judah, Benjamin, and the Levites (and all those faithful to the God of Jerusalem) formed the kingdom of Israel under King Jeroboam, Solomon’s former servant. Because he did not want the people of his kingdom to ever rekindle their allegiance to Jerusalem and Judah, he established worship to golden calves in Bethel and Dan.
None of the subsequent kings of Israel ever departed “from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel sin.” It seems appropriate that when God spoke of the consequences of this sin to Hosea, He did so during the reign of the king who was named for the first rebellious king of Israel.
We just read about the worship reforms of Hezekiah, calling all tribes back to worship of the One True God (Day 200), but we must remember his father Ahaz “walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and even made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had driven out from before the sons of Israel” (2 Kings 16:3), sealing Judah’s fate that they too would ultimately enter exile.
While these prophecies are important for their historical context and fulfillment, we also have to remember they can have multiple fulfillments. We can be guilty of infidelity to God as well. We can deserve His just punishment. He promises forgiveness and restoration to all those who return to Him. His temporary punishment can mean our eternal healing.
Chapter 1:
God gives Hosea a strange command: to marry a harlot. He wants Hosea to act out the nation of Israel’s adultery in going after other gods.
“Go, take to yourself a wife of harlotry and have children of harlotry; for the land commits flagrant harlotry, forsaking the LORD.”
They have a son, who God tells him to name Jezreel. Jezreel means, “God sows.” It was a town in Issachar on Mount Gilboa (where Saul and his sons were killed) where Ahab, king of Israel, and his successors had a palace, and where Jehu fulfilled the word of the Lord by destroying the house of Ahab.
“And the LORD said to him, ‘Name him Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will punish the house of Jehu for the bloodshed of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. On that day I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.’”
King Jeroboam the second was a descendant of King Jehu, who killed the house of Ahab. King Jehu’s house was to be destroyed after four generations, according to the word of the Lord (2 Kings 15:12).
They have a daughter, who God tells him to name Lo-ruhamah, which means “no mercy.”
“for I will no longer have compassion on the house of Israel, that I would ever forgive them. But I will have compassion on the house of Judah, and will not deliver them by bow, sword, battle, horses or horsemen.”
They have another son, who God tells him to name Lo-ammi, which means, “not my people.”
“for you are not My people and I am not your God.”
God pairs His punishment with hope. He will not forsake His covenant with Israel. God is the covenant keeper. Though we break His covenants, He always keeps them.
“in the place
Where it is said to them,
‘You are not My people,’
It will be said to them,
‘You are the sons of the living God.’
And the sons of Judah and the sons of Israel will be gathered together,
And they will appoint for themselves one leader”
Chapter 2:
God uses very symbolic language to convey that Israel has been unfaithful by worshiping other gods and relying on other nations.
“‘For she does not know that it was I who gave her the grain, the new wine and the oil,
And lavished on her silver and gold,
Which they used for Baal.
Therefore, I will take back My grain at harvest time
And My new wine in its season.
I will also take away My wool and My flax
Given to cover her nakedness.
And then I will uncover her lewdness
In the sight of her lovers,
And no one will rescue her out of My hand.
I will also put an end to all her gaiety,
Her feasts, her new moons, her sabbaths
And all her festal assemblies.
I will destroy her vines and fig trees,
Of which she said, ‘These are my wages
Which my lovers have given me.’
And I will make them a forest,
And the beasts of the field will devour them.
I will punish her for the days of the Baals
When she used to offer sacrifices to them
And adorn herself with her earrings and jewelry,
And follow her lovers, so that she forgot Me,’ declares the LORD.”
The purpose of God’s punishment is to bring Israel back to faithful covenant relationship with Him. Hardship will mean hope.
“I will allure her,
Bring her into the wilderness
And speak kindly to her.Then I will give her her vineyards from there,
And the valley of Achor as a door of hope [place in desert during exodus where Achor & his family were stoned].
And she will sing there as in the days of her youth,
As in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt.”
“‘It will come about in that day,’ declares the LORD,
'That you will call Me Ishi [husband]
And will no longer call Me Baali [the name of foreign god.]
For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth’”“‘In that day I will also make a covenant for them
With the beasts of the field,
The birds of the sky
And the creeping things of the ground.
And I will abolish the bow, the sword and war from the land,
And will make them lie down in safety.
I will betroth you to Me forever;
Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice,
In lovingkindness and in compassion,
And I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness.
Then you will know the LORD.
It will come about in that day that I will respond,’ declares the LORD.
‘I will respond to the heavens, and they will respond to the earth,
And the earth will respond to the grain, to the new wine and to the oil,
And they will respond to Jezreel.
I will sow her for Myself in the land.
I will also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion,
And I will say to those who were not My people,
“You are My people!”
And they will say, “You are my God!”’”
Chapter 3:
God then has Hosea buy “a woman who is loved by her husband, yet an adulteress, even as the LORD loves the sons of Israel, though they turn to other gods.” His buying her kept her from her harlotry. By exiling Israel, God will do the same for them, keeping them from adultery and helping them to realize their love and need for Him.
“For the sons of Israel will remain for many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar and without ephod or household idols.”
“Afterward the sons of Israel will return and seek the LORD their God and David their king; and they will come trembling to the LORD and to His goodness in the last days.”
Chapter 4:
It’s important to read the word of God asking what it can mean for us. God was calling Israel to repentance in Hosea’s day, but judgment awaits all of us.
“Listen to the word of the LORD…
For the LORD has a case against the inhabitants of the land,
Because there is no faithfulness or kindness
Or knowledge of God in the land.”
“Yet let no one find fault, and let none offer reproof”
Back to Israel, still with implications for us
“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you from being My priest.
Since you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.“And it will be, like people, like priest;
So I will punish them for their ways
And repay them for their deeds.“Harlotry, wine and new wine take away the understanding.
My people consult their wooden idol, and their diviner’s wand informs them;
For a spirit of harlotry has led them astray,
And they have played the harlot, departing from their God.”
Before Ahaz, there was still hope for Judah:
“Though you, Israel, play the harlot,
Do not let Judah become guilty”
Particular names that are mentioned can remind us of Old Testament history
“Also do not go to Gilgal” [“the first site of an Israelite camp west of the Jordan, east of Jericho, here Samuel was judge, and Saul was made king; later used for illicit worship”]
“Or go up to Beth-aven” [a city east of Bethel; implies a house of vanity or iniquity]
“And take the oath:
‘As the LORD lives!’”You cannot worship false gods and then claim to worship the true God
Chapter 5
God is patient, until He is not
“Their deeds will not allow them
To return to their God.
For a spirit of harlotry is within them,
And they do not know the LORD.
Moreover, the pride of Israel testifies against him,
And Israel and Ephraim stumble in their iniquity;
Judah also has stumbled with them.
They will go with their flocks and herds
To seek the LORD, but they will not find Him;
He has withdrawn from them.”“Ephraim will become a desolation in the day of rebuke”
There was hope for Judah, but it is lost
“The princes of Judah have become like those who move a boundary;
On them I will pour out My wrath like water.”
“Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment,
Because he was determined to follow man’s command.”
The exile of the kingdom of Israel to Assyria was God’s specific punishment
“Ephraim went to Assyria
And sent to King Jareb.
But he is unable to heal you,
Or to cure you of your wound.”
But Judah will not be spared either
“For I will be like a lion to Ephraim
And like a young lion to the house of Judah.
I, even I, will tear to pieces and go away,
I will carry away, and there will be none to deliver.”
God’s purpose in punishment is repentance, reconciliation, and restoration
“I will go away and return to My place
Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face;
In their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.”
Chapter 6:
Our response in affliction should be:
“Come, let us return to the LORD.
For He has torn us, but He will heal us;
He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.
He will revive us after two days;
He will raise us up on the third day,
That we may live before Him.
So let us know, let us press on to know the LORD”
God’s punishment is just:
“What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?
What shall I do with you, O Judah?
For your loyalty is like a morning cloud
And like the dew which goes away early.
Therefore I have hewn them in pieces by the prophets;
I have slain them by the words of My mouth;
And the judgments on you are like the light that goes forth.”
We are confused if we ever believe it is the rituals of religion which save us:
“For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice,
And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
But like Adam they have transgressed the covenant;
There they have dealt treacherously against Me.”
Despite punishment, God’s promises endure:
“O Judah, there is a harvest appointed for you,
When I restore the fortunes of My people.”
Chapter 7:
Judgment on Israel:
“they do not consider in their hearts
That I remember all their wickedness”“Though the pride of Israel testifies against him,
Yet they have not returned to the LORD their God,
Nor have they sought Him, for all this.”“So Ephraim has become like a silly dove, without sense;
They call to Egypt, they go to Assyria.”“Woe to them, for they have strayed from Me!
Destruction is theirs, for they have rebelled against Me!
I would redeem them, but they speak lies against Me.”
Chapter 8:
More judgment on Israel:
“Like an eagle the enemy comes against the house of the LORD,
Because they have transgressed My covenant
And rebelled against My law.”“They have set up kings, but not by Me”
“With their silver and gold they have made idols for themselves”
“He has rejected your calf, O Samaria”
“How long will they be incapable of innocence?”
“A craftsman made it, so it is not God;
Surely the calf of Samaria will be broken to pieces.
For they sow the wind
And they reap the whirlwind”“For they have gone up to Assyria,
Like a wild donkey all alone;
Ephraim has hired lovers.
Even though they hire allies among the nations,
Now I will gather them up”
This appears to be imagery that refers to Satan (idol worship is Satan worship)
“Because of the burden of the king of princes.
Since Ephraim has multiplied altars for sin,
They have become altars of sinning for him.”
God takes no delight in worship or sacrifice that does not acknowledge Him or simply pays lip service to Him
“Though I wrote for him ten thousand precepts of My law,
They are regarded as a strange thing.
As for My sacrificial gifts,
They sacrifice the flesh and eat it,
But the LORD has taken no delight in them.
Now He will remember their iniquity,
And punish them for their sins”
Chapter 9:
Israel will return to being enslaved, just like they were in Egypt, and they will no longer be able to keep their religious rituals:
“But Ephraim will return to Egypt,
And in Assyria they will eat unclean food.”
God’s promised punishment has come:
“The days of punishment have come,
The days of retribution have come;
Let Israel know this!
The prophet is a fool,
The inspired man is demented,
Because of the grossness of your iniquity,
And because your hostility is so great.”
God reminds Israel of their past, in the desert, after the exodus from Egypt, when, even then, they participated in idol worship:
“I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness;
I saw your forefathers as the earliest fruit on the fig tree in its first season.
But they came to Baal-peor and devoted themselves to shame,
And they became as detestable as that which they loved.”“My God will cast them away
Because they have not listened to Him;
And they will be wanderers among the nations.”
Chapter 10:
The sin of Israel. Luxury produced unfaithfulness.
“Israel is a luxuriant vine;
He produces fruit for himself.
The more his fruit,
The more altars he made;
The richer his land,
The better he made the sacred pillars.
Their heart is faithless;
Now they must bear their guilt.
The LORD will break down their altars
And destroy their sacred pillars.”“They speak mere words,
With worthless oaths they make covenants
And judgment sprouts like poisonous weeds in the furrows of the field.”
The fate of the golden calf
“The inhabitants of Samaria will fear
For the calf of Beth-aven.
Indeed, its people will mourn for it,
And its idolatrous priests will cry out over it,
Over its glory, since it has departed from it.
The thing itself will be carried to Assyria
As tribute to King Jareb”
Continued reference to places and times of idolatrous worship:
“Also the high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, will be destroyed;
Thorn and thistle will grow on their altars;
Then they will say to the mountains,
'Cover us!’ And to the hills, ‘Fall on us!’
From the days of Gibeah you have sinned, O Israel;
There they stand!
Will not the battle against the sons of iniquity overtake them in Gibeah?[Gibeah was Saul’s home; he lost the kingdom for inappropriate sacrifice and not being obedient to the Lord”
God’s punishment occurs in His time
“When it is My desire, I will chastise them”
The remedy to escape punishment?
”Sow with a view to righteousness,
Reap in accordance with kindness;
Break up your fallow ground,
For it is time to seek the LORD
Until He comes to rain righteousness on you.”The pronounced judgment
“You have plowed wickedness, you have reaped injustice,
You have eaten the fruit of lies.
Because you have trusted in your way, in your numerous warriors,
Therefore a tumult will arise among your people,
And all your fortresses will be destroyed,
As Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel on the day of battle,
When mothers were dashed in pieces with their children.
Thus it will be done to you at Bethel because of your great wickedness.
At dawn the king of Israel will be completely cut off.”
Hosea 11
The history of Israel:
“When Israel was a youth I loved him,
And out of Egypt I called My son.”“They kept sacrificing to the Baals
And burning incense to idols.”“Yet it is I who taught Ephraim to walk,
I took them in My arms;
But they did not know that I healed them.”
The fate of Israel:
“Assyria—he will be their king
Because they refused to return to Me.”
But the faithfulness of our loving Father:
“How can I give you up, O Ephraim?
How can I surrender you, O Israel?”“My heart is turned over within Me,
All My compassions are kindled.”“I will not destroy Ephraim again.
For I am God and not man, the Holy One in your midst,
And I will not come in wrath.
They will walk after the LORD,
He will roar like a lion;
Indeed He will roar
And His sons will come trembling from the west.
They will come trembling like birds from Egypt
And like doves from the land of Assyria;
And I will settle them in their houses, declares the LORD.”
Chapter 12:
More infidelity of Israel:
“he makes a covenant with Assyria,
And oil is carried to Egypt”
Judah will not escape:
“The LORD also has a dispute with Judah,
And will punish Jacob according to his ways;
He will repay him according to his deeds”
God recounts the history of Jacob, later named Israel, the father of the 12 tribes:
“In the womb he took his brother by the heel,
And in his maturity he contended with God.
Yes, he wrestled with the angel and prevailed;
He wept and sought His favor.
He found Him at Bethel [note the tragedy of idol/golden calf worship at Bethel, where Jacob wrestled met God]
And there He spoke with us,
Even the LORD, the God of hosts,
The LORD is His name.
Therefore, return to your God,
Observe kindness and justice,
And wait for your God continually.”“Now Jacob fled to the land of Aram, [good reminder of the significance of the Arameans]
And Israel worked for a wife,
And for a wife he kept sheep.”“But by a prophet the LORD brought Israel from Egypt,
And by a prophet he was kept.”
Chapter 13:
The sin of Israel:
“through Baal he did wrong and died.
And now they sin more and more,
And make for themselves molten images,
Idols skillfully made from their silver,
All of them the work of craftsmen.”“Yet I have been the LORD your God
Since the land of Egypt;
And you were not to know any god except Me,
For there is no savior besides Me.”“As they had their pasture, they became satisfied,
And being satisfied, their heart became proud;
Therefore they forgot Me.”“I gave you a king in My anger
And took him away in My wrath” [refers to Saul]“Samaria will be held guilty,
For she has rebelled against her God.”
Chapter 14:
God will be gracious to any who repent and return to Him:
“Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God,
For you have stumbled because of your iniquity.
Take words with you and return to the LORD.
Say to Him, ‘Take away all iniquity
And receive us graciously,
That we may present the fruit of our lips.
Assyria will not save us,
We will not ride on horses;
Nor will we say again, “Our god,”
To the work of our hands;
For in You the orphan finds mercy.’”“I will heal their apostasy,
I will love them freely,
For My anger has turned away from them.”“O Ephraim, what more have I to do with idols?
It is I who answer and look after you.
I am like a luxuriant cypress;
From Me comes your fruit.”“Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;
Whoever is discerning, let him know them.
For the ways of the LORD are right,
And the righteous will walk in them,
But transgressors will stumble in them.”