Hosea 6-7

6:1-3 | The Ideal: Repent and turn to the Lord

Return to the Lord

Hosea, Joel (1) The Prophet’s Call to Repent (6:1–3)

Every time the word “return” is used with Israel as the subject and Yahweh as the one to whom return is made, it indicates a true repentance and not a pseudoreturn. In fact, returning to Yahweh is a major theme of the book.

As Hosea presents the word of the Lord his message carries with it a call - a call to return. As Gomer should have returned, so the people of God should return to him. But what does returning require?

In order to return to the Lord we must repent - own our sin, confess our sin & forsake our sin. This is a true return.

Illustration: Have you ever had someone come in and out of your life? We see this with church people sometimes. Maybe they come faithfully for a time and then they’re gone again. Sometimes you wander, “Are they really back?”

It turns out, this has been the call to God’s people since the fall of man - return to the Lord from your wayward condition and until the return of the Lord is complete there will always be a need to return.

We could say that a person who belongs to the Lord continues to return to the Lord.

One of the great mysteries of the condition of one’s heart is that there are times in which a person can go long periods of time without returning to the Lord. Many times this si a result of harbored sin, but it is also the result of spiritual pride. We must see the sin that necessitates a return to the Lord and we must return regularly to the Lord in order to remain alert to our sin and brokenness.

Do you need to return to the Lord?

What does that return look like for you?

The result of return is revival (v.2). The

When you read vs. 2 - what does it remind you of?

What resurrection similarities do we see in vs. 2 and Jesus’ work on the cross?

3rd day resurrection - unique passage that could be used to support a Friday crucifixion?

Revival from the hand of the Lord - our revival never comes from our own hand much like a death person could never wake themselves up. (Ill - Cryogenics)

Life as the result - the result of returning to the Lord is always life. The result of rejecting the Lord is ultimately death.

Know the Lord

ESV - “Let us know; let us press on to know.” What do you think is the distinction if any between these two phrases?

KJV paints this as conditional - all other translations understand this phrase to be a 3rd person imperative; let us know.

We must know the Lord

This is not something that just happens once

It requires a certain amount of devotion and persistence in the lives of every believer to know the Lord.

We must press on to know the Lord.

Another helpful reality is that God isn’t going anywhere. He is as constant as the most constant thing we can imagine. His procession is as sure as the dawn of the next day; He will be known.

When we turn to the Lord we are told that his presence comes to us like spring rain that waters the earth - the living water brings strength and supply to our weary and sin-sick hearts.

Do you know the Lord?

Are you pressing on to know the Lord?

6:4-6 | God’s Sorrow with Israel’s Direction

Do you ever catch yourself saying to your kids: “What am I going to do with you?” That is the exasperated statement that God makes to the whole of his people in vs. 4. It’s like God is saying Israel, Judah; what am i going to do with you? We’ve already seen the ideal here as God reveals what he requires and what he enables his people to accomplish, yet the reality of the situation is much less than ideal. And we know that that this is the way that life really works - we rarely see ideal.

God uses a contrast in vs. 4 that helps us to see the frailty of man: remember in vs. 3 we just saw how constant God is - now notice Hosea’s description of man’s flighty devotion. Man is like a morning cloud and the waning dew. (Think desert climate)

Verse 5 starts with a connecting word - “therefore.” In other words what we see now is Gods response to the condition of his people. Up to this point in the chapter God is pictured almost as a reluctant parent. Now, however, the Lord tells how he will handle the negligence and selfishness of his people.

Look at vs. 5 and tell us how does God deal with his people?

Hewn, Slain, Judgment

This judgment comes through the decrees of God through the prophets.

God is not literally cutting his people in half, instead his words have a piercing effect on his people.

against the backdrop of his sinful people his words are like light in the darkness; truth in a sea of deceit; beauty in a quagmire of filth.

Just as Hosea begins this section with God’s heart, he ends in vs. 6 by revealing again the true nature of God’s will - that his people would know him and be faithful to him.

Sacrifices were not bad - but sacrifices devoid of love were an abomination. Burnt offerings that were separate from a knowledge of God were similarly despicable to God. It was not God’s renunciation of a system of worship, but instead God’s emphasis on the heart in worship. Again we see this coupler in Hosea (and throughout scripture) God wants us to love and know him.

(Matt. 9:13; 12:17)

6:7-11 | The Reality of Ephraim’s Sin

Connects Ephraim’s sin with the first sin of Adam. This is true of all sin.

Connects Ephraim’s sin with the sin of Adama (the city) where the high places held a shrine in worship of Adam.

Connect’s Ephraim’s sin with Jacob’s failures and none of his redeeming qualities. It is like Hosea is saying that Israel actually looks more like Jacob than Israel.

Gilled is where Jacob wrestled with God among other things

Shechem is where Simeon and Levi murdered a city in retaliation for their sister’s rape.

These things help us understand the horror of vs. 10 - what was designed to be a thing of beauty has in fact turned out to be a monster.

Sin brings consequences - a harvest is appointed.

7:1-12 | God’s Judgment for Their Sin

In verse 3 we are reminded that the Israelites had replaced their true king with a king who rejoices in iniquity. They followed after the loves and whims of the world over the desires of their perfect King - YHWH.

In vs. 10 the pride of Israel is revealed as they fail to return to the Lord

Cake in the Fire

Bird in a Net

In 5:1 the priests are seen as those who set the snare or net to trap the wayward people - here in 7:12 we are reminded that God in fact is the one who has set the net to capture the wayward priests.

7:13-16 | Yahweh’s Lament