One of the reasons Hosea is such a compelling book is the way it presents God. He is seen in the light of someone who loves people passionately.
Hosea presents God as someone who passionately loves His people, continuing to love them even when they are unfaithful, similar to how a betrayed spouse might still love their unfaithful partner.
In the Old Testament, Israel is frequently likened to a precious grapevine. However, this imagery is also often used to depict the unfaithfulness of God’s people.
This is the case in Hosea’s message to Israel.
Like grapes in the wilderness,
I found Israel.
Like the first fruit on the fig tree,
in its first season,
I saw your ancestors.
But they came to Baal-peor
and consecrated themselves to a thing of shame
and became detestable like the thing they loved. (Hosea 9.10)
Jehovah likens Himself to a traveler in the barren wastes of the wilderness, suddenly coming upon a very great find, which would be a stunningly rare event.
The blessed relationship between Jehovah and His people turned tragic at Baal Peor, as recorded in Numbers 25:1-5.
There, large numbers of Israelite men engaged with Moabite and Midianite women in sexual rites, probably in devotion to Baal.
Anyone familiar with the pain of a spouse’s unfaithfulness can understand God’s suffering. However, personal experience of such betrayal isn’t necessary.
We can reflect on our relationship with God and ask, “Where have I strayed from Him?”
The Wages of Sin
Paul was right when he wrote, “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6.23).
Death doesn’t come automatically when we sin. Rather, sin works like this: We sin a little bit and die a little bit. We sin a little bit and die a little bit, on and on, until finally, the end comes.
Israel turned its back on God and pursued Baal’s fertility religion. To dispel this false belief, God made Baal’s supposed fertility powers ineffective.
The conclusion of their behavior was death through defeat in war and removal from the land of promise.
Ephraim’s glory shall fly away like a bird—
no birth, no pregnancy, no conception!
Even if they bring up children,
I will bereave them until no one is left.
Woe to them indeed
when I depart from them! (Hosea 9.11-12)
Jesus encountered a man at the Pool of Bethesda who had been paralyzed for 38 years and healed him.
Later, He met the man again and said to him, “See, you have been made well! Do not sin any more, so that nothing worse happens to you” (John 5.14).
What is more tragic than spending most of your life paralyzed by a pool? It’s living without understanding your purpose or failing to enjoy a relationship with God.
What surpasses the grief of losing family members and loved ones in war and forced exile? It’s overlooking the reality of God and missing His call to belong to Him.
Jesus’ words to the man and Hosea’s message to the nation emphasize that God takes humans seriously.
He desires the best for us and will use any means necessary to bring us to a point where we recognize our need for Him and live in a relationship with Him.
While this approach may appear severe, it is actually a profound expression of God’s loving mercy.
YouTube Video
Rudy Ross and I discuss this passage on YouTube today. It is on the Bob Spradling channel.
Real Voices 