Hosea 9 MCG 9-18
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Bible Study: Hosea 9 – The Consequences of Turning Away from God
**Duration: 30 minutes**
**Target Audience:** Adults
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**Opening Prayer (2-3 minutes):**
### 2. **Reading the Passage (7 minutes):**
**Read Hosea 9:1-17 aloud**, either by having one person read the entire chapter or breaking it into sections to allow for participation. You can also invite a few participants to read different parts.
I really want to hone in on the covenantal language throughout this book. It should make remind the readers of the seriousness of what is happening here.
### 3. **Key Themes and Discussion (10-12 minutes):**
**A. The False Joy of Sin (Hosea 9:1-3
Israel, do not rejoice jubilantly as the nations do, for you have acted promiscuously, leaving your God. You love the wages of a prostitute on every grain-threshing floor. Threshing floor and wine vat will not sustain them, and the new wine will fail them. They will not stay in the land of the Lord. Instead, Ephraim will return to Egypt, and they will eat unclean food in Assyria.
-Things to note
Notice here the way that Isreal is azcting in the face of their sin. hosea needs to command them ot not rejoice Thyey are rejoicing. The material blessing that they have are divertign their attention away rom the sin that they are in. They are puffed up by the thngs that they have.
9:1 Brings us back to the analogy of the wayward wife. How are they wayward? Well, we see that they are combining aspects from pagan religions into their worship. Let’s read Deuteronomy 16:13-15
Deuteronomy 16:13–15 (CSB)
“You are to celebrate the Festival of Shelters for seven days when you have gathered in everything from your threshing floor and winepress. Rejoice during your festival—you, your son and daughter, your male and female slave, as well as the Levite, the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow within your city gates. You are to hold a seven-day festival for the Lord your God in the place he chooses, because the Lord your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, and you will have abundant joy.
This is the festival of booths, a time for God’s people to come together and remember how God has blessed them and sustained them through another year. However, Israel has taken this time of remembrance, and used it as a time of pagan worship. As we see in Hos 4:10-14
Hosea 4:10–14 (CSB)
10 They will eat but not be satisfied; they will be promiscuous but not multiply. For they have abandoned their devotion to the Lord.
11 Promiscuity, wine, and new wine take away one’s understanding.
12 My people consult their wooden idols, and their divining rods inform them. For a spirit of promiscuity leads them astray; they act promiscuously in disobedience to their God.
13 They sacrifice on the mountaintops, and they burn offerings on the hills, and under oaks, poplars, and terebinths, because their shade is pleasant. And so your daughters act promiscuously and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.
14 I will not punish your daughters when they act promiscuously or your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery, for the men themselves go off with prostitutes and make sacrifices with cult prostitutes. People without discernment are doomed.
This passage shows that Israel is ignoring God’s commands for acceptable worship.
Where is it that they are supposed to sacrifice?
One of the problems that is facing Israel is that they say that they are worshiping YHWH, but they are not keeping his commands. The word for this is syncretism.
- **Discussion Question:**
Why do people often find temporary joy in things that ultimately lead them away from God? How do we see this play out in our culture today?
**Main Point:**
Israel had embraced the false joy of pagan rituals and idolatry. They engaged in celebrations that were rooted in disobedience, thinking they could find happiness apart from God. Hosea reminds them that their "joy" was fleeting, and the result of their unfaithfulness would be separation from God's blessings.
A minor - Receiving their wages Hosea 9:4-6
3 They will not stay in the land of the Lord. Instead, Ephraim will return to Egypt, and they will eat unclean food in Assyria. 4 They will not pour out their wine offerings to the Lord, and their sacrifices will not please him. Their food will be like the bread of mourners; all who eat it become defiled. For their bread will be for their appetites alone; it will not enter the house of the Lord. 5 What will you do on a festival day, on the day of the Lord’s feast? 6 For even if they flee from devastation, Egypt will gather them, and Memphis will bury them. Thistles will take possession of their precious silver; thorns will invade their tents.
What stands out to you about verses 3-6? What areas do you see that remind you of the Pentateuch.
Sin brings the curse. This section relies on a lot of covenantal language. The covenant that Israel prided them selves for being a part of. First, In verse 3, We see that they will be removed from the Land. The land that was a part of the promise to Abraham, that his descendants would inherit it. They will be returned to Egypt. They will eat unclean food. They will not sacrifice to YHWH. They will be defiled. Remember that anyone who touches a dead body is unclean. This is probably what the bread of mourners is referring to.
The important thing to see here is that sin brings death. Because of sin, the covenants that God made with the nation of Israel are invalid. Israel is not God’s people. Finally, Verse 6 starts edenic curse language. That goes through the rest of the chapter. Because of sin, the earth produces thorns and thistles
the big
**B. Consequences of Sin (Hosea 9:7-10
7 The days of punishment are coming, the days of reckoning are at hand. Let Israel know this. Because your sins are so many and your hostility so great, the prophet is considered a fool, the inspired person a maniac. 8 The prophet, along with my God, is the watchman over Ephraim, yet snares await him on all his paths, and hostility in the house of his God. 9 They have sunk deep into corruption, as in the days of Gibeah. God will remember their wickedness and punish them for their sins. 10 “When I found Israel, it was like finding grapes in the desert; when I saw your ancestors, it was like seeing the early fruit on the fig tree. But when they came to Baal Peor, they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol and became as vile as the thing they loved.
Potential Side bat: The most likely reading of Hosea 9:8 is that the prophet is the watchman over Ephraim. And that the people of Israel are trying to entrap Him for preaching God’s word.
Does this sound familiar?
- **Discussion Question:**
What happens when people become desensitized to sin? How does society view spiritual truth when sin becomes normalized?
There are a few things in this passage that need to be clarified. First, Gibeah probably refers to the story in Judges 19, That is where the story took place. My mentioning this, God is setting a context fort the punishemnt that is coming.
What happened to the Tribe of Benjamin at the end of Judges?
Only 600 members survived, over 25,000 were killed. Only a very small remnant was spared at Gibeah.
Hosea is saying that Israel is as that bad. Second, Baal Peor is an idol that is mentioned in Numbers 25:5, as the idol that the people are aligning themselves with as tehy commit acts of adultery with foreign women in the wildreness. There, 24,000 died as a result fo the pleage that God sent on them. These refrences are preparign us for an utter desolation of Israel.
**Main Point:**
When sin becomes the norm, those who speak God's truth are often mocked or rejected. In Israel's case, they were so entrenched in their sinful ways that they considered prophets "fools" and "maniacs." Hosea warned that judgment would come because of their refusal to listen to God's warnings.
**C. Covenant anullment (Hosea 9:10-14
10 I discovered Israel like grapes in the wilderness. I saw your ancestors like the first fruit of the fig tree in its first season. But they went to Baal-peor, consecrated themselves to Shame, and became abhorrent, like the thing they loved. 11 Ephraim’s glory will fly away like a bird: no birth, no pregnancy, no conception. 12 Even if they raise children, I will bereave them of each one. Yes, woe to them when I depart from them! 13 I have seen Ephraim like Tyre, planted in a meadow, so Ephraim will bring out his children to the executioner. 14 Give them, Lord— What should you give? Give them a womb that miscarries and breasts that are dry! 15 All their evil appears at Gilgal, for there I began to hate them. I will drive them from my house because of their evil, wicked actions. I will no longer love them; all their leaders are rebellious. 16 Ephraim is struck down; their roots are withered; they cannot bear fruit. Even if they bear children, I will kill the precious offspring of their wombs. 17 My God will reject them because they have not listened to him; they will become wanderers among the nations.
What idea is Hosea expressing when he talks about grapes in the wilderness, and the first figs?
He is saying that it is an unexpected joy. Grapes don’t grow in the desert. However, the joy does not last long/
What is Ephraim’s glory?
It is their children, What promise does this remind you of?
This reminds me of the promise to Abraham. Rather than multiply the offspring of Abraham, he is going to diminish the offspring of, rather then multiply them.
- **Discussion Question:**
How does idolatry, whether ancient or modern, corrupt our relationship with God? What are the "idols" people in today’s world might unknowingly worship?
**Main Point:**
This chapter leaves us in tension. We see God is systematically voiding all the promises that he had previously made to Israel. These promises are all eventually focused on bringing an offspring, a blessing to all the nations to overcome the curse of sin, but because of Israel’s unfaithfulness, the promise of a savior is in jeopardy. We should be wondering how God will be able to keep His promises. However, we should not see God as being unfaithful to HIs promise, rather it should make us excited to see How God works despite unfaithful people. We are seeing a total annulment and divorce, from Israel.
*"Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal, I hated them there. Because of their sinful deeds, I will drive them out of my house. I will no longer love them; all their leaders are rebellious."* (v. 15)
- **Discussion Question:**
What are the spiritual consequences of persistent disobedience and rebellion against God?
Do we need to fear the same fate that Israel faces? Why or why not?
**Main Point:**
God's warning to Israel was that they would face exile and separation from Him. This wasn't a sudden decision but the result of years of continued rebellion. God’s holiness demands justice, and persistent disobedience leads to a loss of His protection and blessings. For us today, the principle remains the same: persistent sin distances us from God's presence and joy.
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### 4. **Application: Living in Light of Hosea’s Warning (5 minutes):**
**Reflect:**
- How can we, as a community of believers, remain vigilant in our walk with God, resisting the temptations that lead to idolatry or disobedience?
**Challenge:**
Consider one area of your life where you may be struggling with putting God first. Pray over that area this week and ask for strength to turn away from anything that is distancing you from Him.
**Encouragement:**
Hosea 9 is a chapter totally focused on condemnation and judgement. We dont God offer any affection for His people, and rightly so. They deserve judgement, but just wait for what is coming in the book.
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**Closing Prayer (2-3 minutes):**
Close the study by asking God to help you live in faithfulness to Him and to guard your hearts against the idols of this world.
*Example:*
"Father, thank You for the message of Hosea and the reminder of the dangers of turning away from You. Help us to keep our eyes fixed on You and to reject anything that would lead us astray. We ask for Your strength and guidance in living lives that honor You. In Jesus' name, Amen."
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This study aims to explore the deep consequences of Israel’s disobedience while drawing practical lessons for modern believers on the importance of faithfulness to God.