An Unfaithful Wife and a Faithful Husband (Hosea)

Let's turn to the book of Hosea.

The book of Hosea and I am very excited that I'm starting a new series in before I start into my notes proper. I want to just kind of see by show of hands. I don't ever do this. But how many of you have heard a sermon on the Minor Prophets in church. Okay, one, two, three, four, five six seven two of you praise the Lord. I imagine most of us myself included growing up. I never heard. I may be a sermon on Jonah like if we said who's heard a sermon on Jonah all of us, but if we start talking about the rest of the Minor Prophets, we can't name them much less know if we've ever heard a sermon about them. So the goal of this 12-week series is to go one minor Prophet a week. And really look at Christ in the Minor Prophets. Now the Minor Prophets are called this not because they're unimportant somehow the minor league of prophets. It's not like well, you know, they couldn't quite cut it to the major leagues like Isaiah and Jeremiah. So they're just sort of the so-so second Benchwarmers of prophets. That's not the reason they're called the Minor Prophets not because of their content, but because of their link, they're very short. In fact, all 12 books could be fit in one scroll. And so that one scroll was called the book of The Twelve. We know them as the Minor Prophets, but they were originally called the book of The Twelve and they are the last 12 books in our English Old Testament. And so as your, you know, getting ready for church on a given Sunday, it might be encouraging for you to read through. If you've never read through it before because some of them I won't be able to read every verse because we're going one book A Week summer very short. I will read the whole thing. Obadiah's one chapter will get through that one here this morning. Jose is 13 chapters. I can't read every verse to you this morning. But the question that I think helps us to look at the Minor Prophets in and see their significance. Is this how much did the nation of Israel know about the coming Messiah? How much did the nation of Israel know about the coming Messiah had the opportunity to teach this set of sermons as a class at the Bible College level in the Seminary level and make the students read books about this in the background and how they're later in the Old Testament Canon and how they're reflecting on earlier Old Testament promises. And so I could give you a huge argument about the fact that the Minor Prophets talk about this Messiah who's coming who's going to restore everything lost in the garden that it is a reiteration of the promise to Abraham and Isaac into Jacob in a reiteration of the promise to David. There's allusions to all of the prophecies that Moses had about this Prophet who is going to come who is the Latter-Day Prophet who is going to be a greater profit than Moses and all of these things are true in the Minor Prophets, but it's one thing for me to say Get to you. I want you to see it for yourselves in this series. That's the goal is that you would at least have a at the end of it of familiarity with a part of your Bible that maybe you've already given up your Bible reading in a year. You don't ever get to the Minor Prophets cuz Leviticus wiped you out right here like man, I make it to March and that's it. I can't March Madness of Leviticus and it's over I can't make it. So the thought of reading the last 12 books of your Old Testament or like I don't know, you know, so I want you to have a familiarity with it and I want you to see most of all that this promise was to a people who are desperate and needy and longing for a savior and God who brings salvation. Gets glorified in the Salvation he brings and this he does through judgment.

So the prophet's name Hosea means salvation for the very first book of The Twelve the name of the Prophet means salvation Hosea and his message was to the northern kingdom by this time. Israel is split into the northern kingdom in the southern Kingdom and it was because of Civil War and strife and I don't have time to go through all of the the reasons for that but the northern kingdom which was called Israel. The southern kingdom was called Judah Israel the northern kingdom. They didn't really ever have any good Kings at least you two had some good Kings. Good King Josiah. Good King Hezekiah, but northern kingdom was just a mess. And Hosea was a prophet to the northern kingdom and he was going because Israel the northern kingdom was unfaithful to Yahweh. And so there was a threat of Assyria the one of the world powers of the day Assyria was coming to conquer them and Hosea rain during Minister during the reign of jeroboam the second in Israel, and he was a contemporary of Isaiah and Amos. So if you start to build a picture of these prophets, Isaiah and Amos and Hosea all lived at the same time. No. What was going on is that Israel was prospering greatly under jeroboam's kingship. I'll read you a little bit of a commentary here, they experienced political and economic Resurgence which led to the development of a wealthy Merchant class in Israel. So they were flourishing financially in the north. They had a a middle-class of merchant class that was making tons of money and fat God commissioned Amos at the same time to prophesy against the corruption in decay of the leadership, but nobody listened to the message because after all things were good life was good money was flowing business was good life was good. So Yahweh then sends Hosea to give another prophecy and he prophesize that judgements coming on this nation. And Jose is threats become a reality when the northern kingdom begins to decline and then a c Conquers them and so you might know this book because Jose is told to take a prostitute for a wife. I will look at that here in the first chapter and he was told that this was going to be a living Parable to the Nation about how they have treated. God. God was married to his people as it were by picture by metaphor and they were Unfaithful in the marriage. They were like this prostitute wife Gomer. So Hosea was charged to call this rebellious people back to Devotion to Yahweh. And there's two major sections of the first three chapters are this living parable of Gomer and her children picturing the Covenant marriage between Israel and Yahweh and then the rest of the prophecy from chapter 4 to 14 are accusations that warned against coming judgment and Promises of redemption that would come after that. And so it breaks up pretty simply which makes it nice for an outline. I have it up there behind me or it will be behind me in a moment's ironically God's judgment against the people in this book. It targeted the areas of life that were most sacred to this wealthy Israel living near the Canaanites agricultural abundance material Prosperity sexual vitality and fertility shrines altars idols and Military might so that was the what the the Canaanites prized what when they worship the god bail, but all that's what they worshipped and Israel had fallen into the same pattern, but I want you also to see this afternoon is that Jose has story is our story. The story of Hosea is our story that is not just Israel who lived just some you know, 2700 years ago 2800 years ago who were Unfaithful and God judge them know we are the same. We've been like Gomer unfaithful to God Time and Again by our idolatries, but God is faithful and while we were sinners Christ brought us back with his blood. So let's dig into this Hosea. I'm going to read chapter 12 begin and I'll have a different strategy every week on how much I read at a given time. So bear with me.

Hosea chapter 1

the word of the Lord that came to Hosea the son of b r e in the days of use Daya jotham, ahaz and Hezekiah Kings of Judah and in the days of jeroboam the son of Joe Ash king of Israel, when the Lord first spoke through Jose the Lord said to Hosea go take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom for the land commits great hoard them by taking the Lord. So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Dibley Eamon. She conceived and bore him a son in the Lord said to him call him jezriel for in just a little while. I will punish the house of Jacob for the blood of jezriel and I will put it into the kingdom of the House of Israel and on that day. I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel. So she conceived again in bore daughter and the Lord said to him call her name no mercy for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel to forgive them at all. But I will have mercy on the house of Judah and I will save them by the Lord their God. I will not stay them by boat or by sword or by war or buy horses or by Horsemen and when she had wings no mercy, she conceived and bore a son and the Lord said call his name not my people for you are not my people and I am not your god get the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea which cannot be measured or numbered and in the place where it was said to them. You are not my people. It should be said to them children of the Living God. The children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together and they shall appoint for themselves one head and they shall go up from the land for great shall be the day of Jezreel. So we jump right into this book and it's right immediately. God tells Hosea go Mary Gomer a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom from her in the children's names will be prophecies and the three names will be prophecies concerning my people who've been unfaithful and yet in the midst of this judgment There's Hope already in chapter 1. So there's this command and and what a picture what a picture It almost has salts us with the the command go and marry a wife of whoredom. And you think it time out wait a second. Is that even right? Is that even something that could be honorable and what you always saying is this is exactly what my people are doing to me Hosea. I'm going to use your life as a picture of parable of what it's like between me and my people. That Hosea as a husband endured the same treatment. God has endured as a covenant Lord of Israel. And you know what? This means it means more than any other Hosea has a right to speak in God's name. He shared in God's experiences and therefore can speak with God's heart on the matter as a prophet. And Israel, we see here that God's not happy with them. But this is been their condition from the very beginning hasn't it? Even when they were in the wilderness they disobeyed God. They wanted to go back to Egypt where everything was great. Deuteronomy. 9:6 says know therefore that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land to possess it because of your righteousness for you are a stubborn people. He uses such endearing words, like stiff-necked rebellious hard-hearted to refer to his people and yet he gives them the land because of his mercy and his grace and his steadfast love because he chose them and set his affection upon them as His People. But every Act of apostasy Every Act of immorality drives a wedge between the relationship of Yahweh to his people.

Back it might cause you to cringe just thinking about this picture and you might be squirming a little bit and thinking Ryan get off of her stew and move on.

This is how God feels about his people when they turn their back on him. God knows this is this is what drives a wedge between our relationship with God is the same sins the same immoralities the same apostasies the same love for wealth and prosperity and comfort and enjoyment apart from God.

God knew they needed to save your he knew they needed to be delivered. He's going to say I'm not going to deliver You by an army by the strength of horses and bows and chariots and Horsemen, you need to be delivered by the power of the Holy Spirit you need an internal delivery. What did he takes in names these children? He says you're going to have children with this woman and in the context, it seems to mean when they're children of whoredom in verse 3 that their children who bear the disgrace of their mother's Behavior. Meaning their reputations are this not that they are this way any names them and we have the first name is not translated for us. It's jezriel. It's given in my ESV. Anyway, it means scattered God's going to scatter Israel throughout the world for their unfaithfulness this the second name is translated in my ESV no mercy. Lo-ruhamah, no not loved not pitied no mercy. The sin of the people is caused God to have no pity on them. In other words, they're going to reap what they sow. Yet even in judgement. God shows the mercy looking for 7 for a second. I will have mercy on the house of Judah and I will save them by the Lord their God. There's not a whole lot of data yet in this book. But here's this first hint of a promise that oh, yeah. God had promised Judah and David who was a descendant of Judah that there was going to be one of his descendants who was going to restore what was lost who is going to bring Salvation who was going to sit on the throne forever and hear Hosea. God through Hosea is mentioning. Oh, yeah. You want to know where the Mercy's going to come in this situation. It's going to come on the house of Judah in Salvation is going to be through the house of Judah.

Anticipation of Jesus who was a descendant of David the lion of the tribe of Judah. How can a nation no longer loved by God? That's the name not pitied no mercy not loved yet be forgiven and shown Mercy in this descendant of Judah up David who we know is Jesus. Isn't that great Hulk even in the midst of this judgment and it reminds me of the garden when Adam and Eve were being kicked out of the garden and yet even in the midst of it God promises Mercy through this descendants of Eve Who's going to come and crush the head of the serpent.

It seems to be God's pattern. His hard that when he promises judgment, he always promises Mercy. Even as he kicks them out, he in the garden Adam and Eve he close their nakedness, which is their shame after the fall with animals that he provided. Not loved not Petty. That's the second name the third name not my people low on me. This is God saying you're no longer my people because of your sin and because of this judgment, in fact all of chapter 2 is an elaboration on what it means that they're not his people look at this chapter 2 verse 1 say to your brother's you are not my people into your sister's you have received Mercy plead with your mother plead for she is not my wife and I am not her husband that she put away her whoring from her face and her adultery from between her breasts less. I stripped her naked and make her as in the day. She was born and make her like a Wilderness and make her like a parched land and kill her with thirst and upon her children. Also, I will have no mercy because their children and poured them for their mother has played the horror and she's conceive them who acted shamefully But she said I will go after my lovers who give me my bread in my water in my wall in my flax my oil in my drink their fill I will head your way up by the way with thorns and I will build a wall against her so she cannot find her pads. She shall pursue her Lover's but not overtake them. She shall seek them but shall not find them then she shall say I will go and return to my first husband for it was better for me than now and she did not know that it was I who gave her the grain the wine in the oil and who lavished on her silver and gold which they used for but all therefore I will take back migraine and it is time in my wine in its season and I will take away my wool in my flax which were to cover her nakedness. Now, it will uncover her lewdness in the side of her lovers and no one shall rest her rescue her out of my hand and I will put an end to our mirth her face her new moons her Sabbath's and all her appointed feasts and I will lay waste turbines and her fig trees of which she said, these are my wages which my lovers of giving me. I will make them a florist in the beasts of the field shall devour them and I will punish her for the feast days of the balls when she burned offerings to them and Adorn herself with a ring and jewelry and went after her lovers and forgot me declares the Lord therefore behold. I will Allure her and bring her into the Wilderness and speak tenderly to her and there I will give her her Vineyards and make the valley of a corridor of Hope there. She's your answer is in the days of our youth as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt and in that day declares the Lord you will call me my husband and no longer. Will you call me my butt all over I will remove the names of the balls from her mouth and they shall be remembered by name no more and I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field in the birds of the heavens in the creeping things with the ground and I will abolish the bow The Sword and War from the land and I will make you lie down in safety and I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and Injustice. And steadfast love and mercy and I will betroth you to me and faithfulness. Then you shall know the Lord and in that day. I will answer declares the Lord. I will answer the heavens and they show Answer the Earth and the Earth shall answer the grain the wine in the oil and they shall answer jezriel and I will so for her myself in the land and I will have mercy on no mercy and I will say to Not My People You Are My People and he shall say you are my god. Wow, what a what up a lot going on in this chapter. You can see again Mercy in the midst of judgment because there's going to be a multitude that cannot be counted that are going to be called Children of the Living God at the end of the chapter backed Jose a 110 is quoted in Romans 9, which you heard read earlier as well as Jose a 223 and the way that the Apostle Paul uses these bookends to talk about this whole section that I read is to to to make two comments first that Gentiles are included in God's Redemptive plan and it s a large remnant of believing Jews will be preserved. And this is how Paul understand what God is talking about here. So the book of Hosea is telling us God is going to judge sin. But he has a promise of hope in the midst of its let the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together that they will appoint for themselves 11 head. Remember I said, they've been divided and split and there's going to be one ruler. I think this is a reference to Jesus again the Messiah who's coming And they're going to go up from the land and it's going to be a great day in the day of jezriel in the names of these three children are reversed no longer are they not my people now their children of the Living God no more are they not loved and no mercy now God's mercy and faithfulness and steadfast love is poured out on them and no more they scattered jezriel, but they're gathered back together the names of these children that were curse has now become reversed when God delivers it delivers them. And when is he going to do this? Look at 3:1-5. The Lord said to me go again love a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress even as the lord loves the children of Israel. Do they turned to other gods and love cakes of raisins? So I bought it for 15 shekels of silver in a homer and a like at the barley and I said to her you must do well as mine for many days and you should not play the horror belonged to another man. So will I also be to you? Are the children of Israel shall dwell many days without king or Prince without sacrifice or pillar without ephod or household Gods afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the Lord their God and David their King and they shall come in fear to the Lord into his goodness in the latter days. So in history, we know Israel goes into Exile by Assyria and the southern Kingdom of Judah will later go into Exile by the great nation of Babylon and what it did when they were in Exile, is it broke them of their idolatry when they return to the land of Israel, they no longer worship their gods. They stopped worshipping the balls the Bales. In fact verse 4 chapter 3 they're going to be without king or Prince many days while they're in this foreign land but when they return verse 5 says they're going to seek David their King. But what is Hosea talking about? He's again alluding to this promise that was to David in 2nd Samuel 7 that he would never lack a descendant who would sit on the throne and that one was coming who's going to rain forever the Messiah? This is a picture of redemption. David will be their King Israel will return and seek the Lord and they'll come to in fear the lord into his goodness in the latter days these last days these end times when Jesus came on Earth. He said basically the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. The last days are here. The Messiah has come. And we know on this side of the cross that the means by which he brought this mercy and forgiveness and kindness and brought us to himself is through his substitutionary death his resurrection him being our high priest him being the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world takes away our sin. He took our sins upon himself and gave us his righteousness and we receive it not by works but by faith in him and that is good news. That is joy. That is peace. That is wonderful. We don't face the Judgment of God in his righteousness and holiness. Why because Jesus fasted for us? Now what we get is we get the mercy and kindness of God and we get the righteousness of Jesus imputed to us as Paul says 2nd Corinthians 5, he made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God in him.

So when you're feeling overwhelmed, I mean just think about these three chapters. We haven't even got to the rest yet, and I've got not a lot of time. To get through it. There wasn't enough laughing about that. It was more fear. I think and anxiety think about this, you know that God is righteous and holy and judgements coming. How'd you live this week? You feel the weight of that I do.

And if we were to face God apart from Jesus, there's fear. And trembling not in a holy way but in a way that knows. That we can't stand. The guilt and the shame of our sins can weigh us down. But yet in the midst of this God is not simply saying there is judgment and there's no hope he saying that in the midst of judgment there is still hope if you will turn to me and to my solution. And the solution is hinted at so far in a couple places. I'm teasing out this son of David who's coming that you will seek that we know is Jesus. Well gomers restored in these verses she returns to Hosea picture of Israel returning to Yahweh. What a what a glorious thought. This is love, isn't it? This is God loving us when we were at our worst and what the book of Hosea pictures is Hosea you go and marry that woman Gomer and you love her and she's going to be unfaithful to you and she's going to chase after other lovers and she's going to get rich off of those other lovers and you're going to be broken-hearted Hosea. And the first child we see is his because it says she has a child by him. But then in the Hebrew and even in the English the language changes about the next two children, and we're not even sure that they're his Perhaps he's not even sure. God tells him in chapter 3 you go and buy her off The Auction Block. She's been chasing after other lover. She's been sold into slavery. She can't even deliver herself. So you go in fire off The Auction Block the slavery block and you love her again and you take her to be your wife again. Why did God give us this book of Hosea to reveal his character as the Covenant keeping loving steadfast God to his people? This is what he does. He's faithful. This is why Paul writes in Ephesians 30 that you would know how high and wide and deep and long the love of Christ is so that you'd be filled with all the fullness of God, if you could understand this if I could understand this at an instinctual level how great the love of God the father is for us if we could get this we would be secure in Christ. Wouldn't we we wouldn't lack insurance we wouldn't doubt The Father's Love. We wouldn't think that we've somehow outs in the grace of God and we sure wouldn't want to send the grace would abound We would want to draw near to him and love him and Obey him and serve him. We know that everything that's going on in our lives has passed through God's hand he Sovereign but when we understand the love of God, we know that everything passing through the hands of a sovereign God is Not arbitrary. It's not pernicious. It's not from the hands of some some force of faith it that can't even be moved. This is a God who loves us. And so if he is allowed this to happen in our lives. It's because he knows it's for our best in for his good his glory. He has you right where he wants you Christian. You might be frustrated with life. You might think that God has abandoned you because of your circumstances. But he's a loving father in Heaven who never abandons his children. He's faithful. That's what the book of Hosea teaches us. Will chapters 4214 we're going to go through a lot faster, and we're not going to read every verse. So Amen to that we won't be here till 10. I mean that's if we started at 10, we will be here till 5.

So the lessons are repeated in chapters 4 to 14 The Living parable of Hosea. And Gomer marriage is repeated over and over in the next chapters. So chapters 427R accusations against Israel and he takes the names of the children and he repeats these names in accusations Chapter 4 verses 1 2 3 hear the word of the Lord O children of Israel. The Lord has a controversy with the inhabitants of the land. There's no faithfulness your steadfast love no knowledge of God in the land. They're swearing lying murder stealing and committing adultery. They break all bounds and bloodshed follows Bloodshed there for the land morons and all who dwell in it language and also the beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens and even the fish of the sea are taken away. They're scattered. Jezreel dirt that there's this scattering of the people. There's no faithfulness. No, love of God. No knowledge of God and then versus 4214 look at verse 6, my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge verse 8, they feed on the scent of my people. They're greedy for iniquity verse 10. They shall eat but not be satisfied. They shall play the horror but not multiply because they forsake in the Lord. You have this not my people in in in chapter 4 if we were to take the time to look at every verse he's really laying the blame on the leaders of Israel. They're the ones chasing after this and the people are following him. Then the leaders then he says 4:15 to 7:16 this same last name of not loved not pitied. I guess that was the second name in the list. He brings last year chapter 5 verses 1 and 2 hear this old priest pay attention o House of Israel give Iero House of the king. There's the leaders you here at priest the king. The judgment is for you. You've been a snare at mizpah Nanette set up on to board. The revolter has gone deep into Slaughter, but I will discipline all of them. Judgements coming chapter 6 verses 1 2 3 come let us return to the Lord for his torn us that he may heal us. He has struck us down and he will bind us up after two days. He will revive us on the third day. He will raise us up that we may live before him. There's a a call to repent return to the Lord and then chapter 7 look at verses 13 to 16 voted them for they strayed from me destruction to them for they have rebelled against me. I would redeem them but they speak lies against me. They do not cry to me from the heart but they wail upon their beds for grain and wine. They got themselves. They rebelled against me although I trained and strengthen their arms that they devised these evil against me they return but not upward there like a treacherous bow their princes shall fall by the sword because of the insolence of their tongue. This shall be their division in the land of Egypt. There's this People are too deep into their sins to repent has it where they know they need to repent of something but they cry out to the idols instead of crying out to God. What's interesting is Jesus uses this passage in reference to the Pharisees in Matthew chapter 9. He quotes Hosea 6:6 when Jesus is accused of eating with tax collectors and Sinners and the same accusation upon the leaders of Israel in hosea's Day. Jesus is alluding to your doing the same thing in my day. All these accusations from chapters 4 to 7 then have proclamations prophecies by Yahweh from chapter 8 to the rest of the book and it moves back and forth between the first person speaking Yahweh and third person speaking Hosea. Chapters 8 to 10 a proclamation that there's a false Security in a false prosperity in the land of Israel. 8:14 Israel has forgotten his maker in built palaces. Judah has multiplied fortified City. So I will send a fire upon As Cities and it shall devour her strongholds got acknowledged as you become rich you built palaces and yet you forgotten your maker in the midst of it. Chapter 10 verses 1 and 2 hypocritical Worship in the midst of this Prosperity Israel is a luxuriant vine that yields its fruit the more his fruit increased the more altars he built as he's country improved. He improved his pillars they're hard as false. And now they must bear their Guild the Lord will break down their altars and destroy their pillars and then look again down at chapter 10 verses 12 to 14. So for yourselves righteousness reap steadfast love break up your fallow ground for it's time to seek the Lord that he may come and Rain righteousness upon you you've plowed iniquity, you've reaped Injustice. You've eaten the fruit of lies because you've trusted in your own way and in the multitude of your warriors, there's this appeal to repentance again, so that the message is clear Israel was prosperous there their they're building palaces, but then they forgot their maker and so even the Alters to the idols. They improve their economic Prosperity. They improve the the altars to the idols. They give more and more to the idols rather than God until God says I'm going to destroy it all. I'm going to tear it all down.

It's a false security and it's a false Prosperity chapters 11 to 13. This judgment then is coming. Jose 11-1 when Israel was a child. I loved him and out of Egypt. I called my son the more they were called the more they went away. They kept sacrificing to the balls and burning offerings to Idols. Now God is causing them to remember his faithfulness in his love when he delivered them out of Egypt when Israel was a child. I loved him and out of Egypt. I called my son and you know, this was quoted in the Book of Matthew you might have diverse might have sounded familiar to your ears Jesus is this ideal Israel in Matthew 22 who is faithful in the wilderness Temptation and fulfilled all the Messianic expectations. And God says just like in The Exodus. I manifested my faithfulness in my love to Israel and I delivered them out of Egypt when they were a child. I delivered them and I love Israel and I called them out of Egypt so too. Am I delivering my people through Jesus this ideal Israel? Whom I loved. Back, what's interesting in the quote in Matthew 2:15 to speak of Jesus. Jesus had to flee to Egypt from Herod when Herod was trying to kill him and then Matthew says it was to fulfill what was spoken of by the prophet. three difficult Passage to unravel, but Matthew, I think understood God to be speaking through Jose here to say that the son of David the Messiah who's the ideal Israel is faithful unlike the nation who went out of Egypt Into the Wilderness was tempted for 40 years and failed and that generation died in the wilderness. Jesus was tempted for 40 days. But unlike Israel, he was faithful and he's the one leader who is to come who will make God's people faithful to him. This is this is a great hope in the midst of all of this judgment is that God is faithful God's the hero. In fact in this whole series. That's what you're going to see you want to know who the hero of the story is and every minor prophet. Will it rain Jonah? That's for sure. I know you know that one. It's God. God is faithful. That will encourage your own face in God to see his faithfulness proved over and over and over again.

Turn over to chapter 13 verse for I am the Lord your God. From the land of Egypt, you know, no God but me and beside me. There is no savior. It was I who knew you in the wilderness in the land of drought but when they had Grey's they became full and they were filled in the heart was lifted up and they forgot me. So I am to them like a lion like a leopard. I will lurk beside the way I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her Cubs. I will tear open their breasts and I will devour them like a lion as a wild beast would rip them open man. That is graphic. He destroys you what is real for you or against me against your help or where now is your king to save you and all your cities. Where are your rulers those of whom you said give me king and princess and I gave you a king in my anger and I took him away in my wrath. The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up his scent is kept in store the Pains of childbirth come for him. But he's an unwise son for the right time. He does not present himself at the opening of the womb. I shall Ransom them from the power of sheol. I shall redeem them from death. Oh death. Where are your legs though? She'll where is your sting compassion is hidden from my eyes though. He may flourish among his brothers. The East wind the wind of the Lord shall come rising from the Wilderness and is found in Shell dry up is spring she'll be parched. It's just rip his treasury of every precious thing. So they began in the midst of this judgment. God says, you don't have a king or a prince to deliver you you don't have a hero.

There's there's no one coming out of your own people that's going to deliver you. So, you know what? I'm going to deliver you. And of course, we know Paul quotes this again in Romans old. death, where is your Where your plagues as he says hero Shield, where is your sting? What he says the sting of sin is death, but

God is the one who delivered us through Jesus Christ. Praise be to God.

Israel should know no other gods, but God says she's gone after many gods turned away from her one true husband Yahweh. But there is future Grace coming. The book doesn't end with judgement chapter 14. Verseone return o Israel to the Lord your God you stumbled because of your iniquity take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him take away all iniquity except what is good and we will pay with Bulls the boughs of our lips a serious shall not save us we will not ride on the horses. We will say no more Our God to the work of our hands and use the orphan finds Mercy. I will appeal heal their apostasy. I will love them freely for my anger is turned from them. I will be like the dude is real. He shall Blossom like the Lily. He should take root like the Trees of Lebanon his shoots shall spread out his Beauty shall be like the olive anise fragrance like Lebanon they shall return in dwell beneath my shadow. They shall flourish like the grain the show Blossom like a Vine their Fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon. Ephraim what have I to do with Idols it is I who answer and look after you I'm like the Evergreen Cypress from me comes your fruit like Hosea and Gomer broken marriage that is restored. God promises healing and restoration through repentance. The love is restored through the repentance of his people and then there's this PostScript verse 9 the last verse of the book whoever is wise let him understand these things whoever's Discerning let him know them for the ways of the Lord are right and the upright walking in but transgressors stumble. in them to this last verse it it tells us that this book is not just about something that happened in the past with Israel that we don't have to worry about Hosea anymore.

No, God says I'm still the same way. I'm still the same God. I've loved you with an everlasting love stop running to idols and saviors who you think will deliver you stop chasing after other gods committing other adulteries. I think about the gods that they were worshipping the gods of wealth the gods of pleasure the gods of security because of military might

not very different than the gods we have today. We don't make an idol out of them at least not a physical I do but we still chase after money and pleasure in security and peace.

That's none of that will save you I have loved you. I created you. You see you and I are the Unfaithful objects of God's ever faithful love. And if we're honest as I said at the beginning where the Gomer in the story, not the Hosea. We're not the righteous man who was told to marry an Unfaithful wife where the Unfaithful wife who's been unfaithful to our righteous husband God. And when we understand this we begin to understand what God's love truly is. Then this is why John and his first epistle says this first John 4. Verse 9 in this the love of God was man of made manifest Among Us that God sent his only son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins. But love it. If God so loved us. We also ought to love one another What an incredible thought? Not that we loved God, but that he loved us. And that word propitiation. I mean that's like five or six syllables. I can't even count that high and he says propitiation. What does it mean? it means Jesus Christ is the satisfaction of God's righteous character for sin. That's what it means god is propitiate it his own wrath towards us. He's he's satisfied the righteous requirement of his character. Is he sometimes it seems like well that God of the Old Testament. He's a god of wrath and anger in Holiness and righteousness in the god of New Testament is the god of love Jesus and Jesus had to talk the father out of wiping us out. That's the way it's portrayed often, but it's not true you here in Hosea that the father is the one who's loved his people in this way and we hear in the New Testament whose idea was it God the father so loved the world he gave his son first John for this is love the love of God the Father Was Made manifest not that we loved him but that he loved us and sent his son to be the satisfaction the propitiation for our sins. father is the one Who made this plan and set it into motion and loved us with a faithful love? This is why Paul and Romans 9 when he's thinking about the book of Hosea. He says this love is so big that even people Gentiles who were never part of the Covenant are now in this gives glory to God it magnifies his name. That's why he had said a chapter earlier by the way of God did not spare his son. How will he not along with him freely give us all things. He gave us his best. He's demonstrated his love to the greatest. He gave us his son. Probably not give us all things when we doubt the love and goodness of our father. It's not merely that worth questioning what he's doing. We're questioning his character.

And Hosea demonstrates to us this book that his steadfast love his faithfulness his Mercy.

This is who he is. This is how he is acting towards his people from all eternity, but he will. Judge, he will discipline.

But yet there's an offer of Hope in the midst of it if you don't know Jesus come to him. Put your faith in him.

None of the Gods of this world will ever bring you hope and comfort in Salvation. They will never deliver. Stop chasing after the idols of this world. They don't save. all they do is let you down and disappoint you and bring anxiety. Only God Only God Saves only God delivers only God brings. Peace. This is what the people of Israel needed to hear. And Jose is day. So we need to hear in our day. Let me pray father. Thank you for this time and your word. what a timely word Hosea is

I think of our culture I think of my friends who don't know Jesus. chasing after the wind after prosperity and security