Hosea 4:11-5:10

Hosea 4 11-19

v.11 In this verse Hosea gives three things that “take away the heart.” These are things that blur our sense of morality. They will cause us to excuse sinful behavior.

The first thing is “whoredoms”. Sexual immorality will bring greater perversion into a person’s life than existed before. Those who engage in sexual immorality continually often find themselves excusing their behavior. They do it for so long their conscience becomes seared.

Hosea also mentions “wine and new wine”. “New wine” is wine that is very low in its alcohol content. Alcohol will affect our moral compass as well. Even if the alcohol is not strong, it can affect us morally. The implication is that we should avoid these things so we can make proper moral decisions. Israel’s indulgence in alcohol and sexual immorality destroyed her sense of what was right and wrong. As a result, she excused the many sins she was guilty of.

v.12-13 These verses describe a specific type of idolatry the Israelites engaged in. It occurred “on the tops of the mountains, under oaks and poplars, and terebinth”. This describes groves used by pagans in special worship services. The place was both beautiful and comfortable. They would lie under the shade of the trees and relax as they committed great sin.

The “piece of wood” refers to idols made from the trees. The “staff” was a wooden rod thought to have some type of spiritual power by the pagans. The Israelites had been infected with the “spirit of whoredoms”. There was a real spiritual presence influencing the people. Sadly, it was a demonic spirit. It encouraged them to bow down to the wooden idols and partake in cultic rituals. Instead of seeking the Lord for guidance, they were seeking direction from idols.

The final part of verse 13 is disturbing. The young women will no longer value their virginity. The wife will no longer value the commitment she made to her husband. The women, young and old, would indulge in sexual immorality of the worst kind.

v.14 God will not even judge the people for this. He will let the people continue to sin. He will allow it to go until the whole nation falls. In a sense, God will say “Have it your way.” Eventually He will judge them. But for the time being He will allow them to continue to plunge deeper into their sin because that is the desire of their hearts.

v. 15 In this verse Hosea addresses Judah, the Southern kingdom. Judah had not fallen to the same level of ungodliness as Israel had at this point. Hosea gives three commands to the Southern kingdom to protect them.

* Do not come up to Gilgal.

*Do not come up to Beth-haven.

* Do not swear “the Lord liveth”.

Beth-haven is also known as Bethel. Both were located in Southern Israel. Therefore, it would have been easy for Judah to travel to these areas. Hosea commands Judah to stay away from them because they had become places of serious idolatry. Jeroboam transformed Bethel into a place of idolatry to give the Northern kingdom a place of worship without traveling to Jerusalem (1 Kings 12: 25-33). Amos described Gilgal as a hot bed of hypocritical worship in Amos 4:4-5. Israel was worshipping idols as well as going through the motions of worshipping the One True God. They were taking oaths in the LORD’s name. Their allegiance to idols made all their worship useless. When they used the name of the Lord, they were simply taking it in vain. Hosea warns Judah not to become like their sister nation.

v.16 The LORD wanted to treat Israel like a lamb. He wanted to place her in beautiful pastures to feed. However, she was acting like a stubborn heifer! Israel was no different than a stubborn cow that refuses to allow her owner to take her to the field to eat. Israel resisted the prompting of the Lord because she wanted her own way. Her spiritual ignorance would not allow her to see that God wanted to bless her.

v.17 “Ephraim” was a region in Southern Israel. It is used here to generically describe Israel. She has joined herself to idols. Judah should leave her alone. If the people of Judah come up to Israel, they may fall into her ways. We do well to remember to stay as far away as we can from sin.

v.18 This verse gives a threefold description of Israel.

* Their drink is gone. The idea is that they drink until they have no more to drink.

* They commit sexual immorality continually. While they may run out of drink, they do not run out of the opportunity for sexual immorality. It is a constant sin they indulge in.

* Her rulers love their sin so much that they cry out for more. There was no shame in Israel. They were unapologetically living in sin.

v.19 This verse speaks prophetically of the judgment that would come upon Israel. The judgment is described as a wind that would sweep them away. The Assyrian army would soon come and take them into captivity. Their idols would do nothing to help them. Israel would then recognize that their sacrifices to idols had brought judgment rather than blessing. This truth would bring a much-needed shame to the people of Israel. Judah should take Hosea’s warning and stay away from Israel. If they did not, they too could be swept away in the wind of God’s judgment.

Thoughts To Consider

1. We should be ever mindful of things that can carry our heart away from God.

2. The shade and comfort that sin offers is only temporary.

3. When the neighbors are sinning, stay at home.

4. The ungodly will always find another sin to commit when the wine runs out.

Hosea 5 1-10

v.1 Hosea begins this section with a rebuke to three different classes of people in Israel:

* The priests- These were the religious leaders of Israel. In chapter four Hosea laid most of the blame on these people (4:6-8).

* The house of Israel- This could simply mean the people of Israel. Some have suggested that it was the middle to upper class that exercised some measure of power in the country because of their economic position.

* The house of the king- This is the political leaders of the country.

The judgment of God will be upon them. These three groups of people encompass virtually everyone in Israel. It does, however, suggest that those who have more power will be more accountable. The reason for the judgment is that “ye have been a snare” and “spread a net”. Mizpah and Tabor were likely places that had become sites of pagan worship. The idols built in these cities had become a trap to the people. Israel would be judged for placing stumbling blocks before the people.

v.2 Israel is described as “revolters”. They had rebelled against the Lord. An interesting phrase is used in this verse, “gone deep into slaughter”. The word used for “slaughter” is used to describe the slaughter of animals in sacrificial worship. Israel continued to be religious. They made sacrifices daily to the Lord as well as to false gods. Yet God was going to rebuke (discipline) them. The religious activity of Israel did not please God. It is sad that we can rebel against God and at the same time seek to please Him through religious activity. Religious action will not atone for spiritual rebellion. Israel would soon learn that.

v.3 “Ephraim” was a tribe of Israel. It is often used to describe the Northern kingdom in general. Therefore, Ephraim and Israel should be understood to represent the nation. God knew the nation. She had not covered her sin in her religious activity. God could see her to the core. What He saw was a dirty prostitute that pretended to be a beautiful bride.

We do well to remember that God knows us. He knows our thoughts, our hearts, our intentions, and everything else about us. We cannot hide from Him. We can not cover up our sin with activity.’

v.4 “Their deeds do not permit them to return to God..” means that their sinful actions will not allow them to turn to God. They had been so filled with their sin that they had passed a point of repentance. The “spirit of whoredoms” was encompassing them because they had desired it so greatly.

This verse ends with a sobering note. “They know not the Lord.” In the previous verse we saw that God knew them. He knew them in the sense that He was completely aware of their sinfulness. Israel, however, did not know the Lord in that they did not have a relationship with Him. They thought they knew Him, but they did not. This section reminds of Jesus words to some religious people that stand before Him on the day of judgment. They will boast in their religious activity, and He will reply to them “Depart from Me, I never knew you” (Matt. 7:23).

v.5 Israel’s pride is the real problem. The religious leaders had become so proud in their time of prosperity that they believed they could do no wrong. Their constant sin brought them pleasure and they believed that it must therefore be good. Pride will cause us to please ourselves first and foremost. Their pride would cause them to fall (Proverbs 16:18). Hosea adds another truth to the end of this verse. Judah would eventually fall as well. It would be pride that caused both Israel and Judah to fall.

v.6 While Israel will not return to God, they will attempt to come to God. They will bring their offerings to Him in sacrifice. Yet, they will not find Him. The altar and the sanctuary will be there, but God will not. Sadly, Israel will not even notice He is not there. Israel thought they were on good terms with the Lord. The problem was that the Lord had withdrawn Himself from them. We cannot come to God on our own terms. Sacrifice does not please Him in itself. We must come to the Lord with humility and devotion. Israel had not learned that.

v.7 “Faithlessly” means that Israel had betrayed the Lord. They had left the Lord and joined the people of Baal. They had brought up a generation that was illegitimate. The children of Israel did not know the Lord. Baal was their father.

The final part of this verse is difficult to interpret. I think its safe to say the verse describes pagan practices associated with different phases of the moon. Israel’s participation in these rituals would lead to their judgment. The Israelites and their land would be devoured because of their devotion to pagan gods through ritualistic worship.

What Israel thought was helping them was hurting them. They believed they benefited from indulging in pagan worship. On the contrary, they would lose themselves and their property as a result of it.

v.8 The horn is the shofar or rams horn. The trumpet is another type of horn blown by Israel. Israel blew the trumpet to assemble the people for several different reasons. Numbers 10 describes these reasons. The trumpet is probably to be blown to let the people know that a battle is coming.

The three cities mentioned are all located in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin. Benjamin was known for its ability to fight (1 Chr. 12:1-2). The enemy coming against them should be understood as an act of God’s judgment. Therefore, even the most skilled and prepared army could still expect to be defeated. When God’s judgment comes know amount of ability or might can stay His hand.

v.9-10 Ephraim (Israel) and all the tribes of Judah would experience judgment. The northern and Southern kingdoms would both eventually be left desolate. The reference in verse 10 to “move the landmark” describes an attempt to illegally take someone else’s property and expand your own. This action would bring the curse of God (Deut. 27:17). The rulers of Israel would be cursed by God in the way that a thief would be cursed. He would pour out His wrath upon both nations because of their rebellion.

Thoughts to Consider

1. Increasing religious activity does not decrease God’s hatred for sin.

2. God sees through our entire exterior into the core of our being.

3. Knowing God is more important than serving God.

4. The only appropriate way to prepare for the great battle is to prepare our hearts.