Worldly Entanglements
Notes
Transcript
8 “Ephraim mixes with the nations;
Ephraim is a flat cake not turned over.
9 Foreigners sap his strength,
but he does not realize it.
His hair is sprinkled with gray,
but he does not notice.
10 Israel’s arrogance testifies against him,
but despite all this
he does not return to the Lord his God
or search for him.
11 “Ephraim is like a dove,
easily deceived and senseless—
now calling to Egypt,
now turning to Assyria.
12 When they go, I will throw my net over them;
I will pull them down like birds of the air.
When I hear them flocking together,
I will catch them.
13 Woe to them,
because they have strayed from me!
Destruction to them,
because they have rebelled against me!
I long to redeem them
but they speak lies against me.
14 They do not cry out to me from their hearts
but wail upon their beds.
They gather together for grain and new wine
but turn away from me.
15 I trained them and strengthened them,
but they plot evil against me.
16 They do not turn to the Most High;
they are like a faulty bow.
Their leaders will fall by the sword
because of their insolent words.
For this they will be ridiculed
in the land of Egypt.
Introduction
Introduction
One of the great concerns with Christians should be when they become entangled with the world.
There are many ways that one may become entangled with this world. One may, perhaps, indulge in the sinful pleasures of this world, and so be entangled. One may indulge in those things which are not necessarily wrong or sinful, but become so overly focused on them that one is entangled by them.
But what we find in our text before us is the entanglement of Israel as they had sought to find support and help from surrounding nations rather than looking to God.
This is not the first time that Hosea is addressing this matter with Israel. He has already spoken of their various attempts to place their trust in other people. But here is another indictment against Israel, words spoken against Israel due to their trust that was being placed in other nations.
As with other sinful dangers in this life, this danger remains so relevant for us today. In summary, there is no hope to be found outside of God. There is no hope to be found by placing our trust in people, in rulers, in the institutions of society. Rather, our trust should be firmly grounded in Jehovah!
Let us then consider this together.
Firstly, we see in our passage...
1. The Folly of Ephraim (vv.8-12)
1. The Folly of Ephraim (vv.8-12)
Verses eight through twelve outline for us the follow that Ephraim was engaging in. As Hosea brings across this message of the folly of Israel, he does so by using different pictures in order to drive home the point.
The first metaphor that Hosea uses is...
1.1. Unturned Cakes (vv. 8-10)
1.1. Unturned Cakes (vv. 8-10)
Already in the previous passage of Hosea, he used the picture of the bakers oven. We saw as we considered that account how the leaders of Israel were failing to take their responsibilities seriously. They were failing to lead Israel as they ought to have in the ways of God. We saw also that there were those who were deceiving the leaders of Israel, and ultimately the leaders risked their own destruction, particularly as a result of their failures.
In this passage before us, Hosea picks up on that metaphor of the baker, and he now refers to Israel as a cake not turned. Read with me in verse 8:
8 “Ephraim mixes with the nations;
Ephraim is a flat cake not turned over.
We see firstly here the charge that Israel is mixing with the nations. This does not refer merely to their political mixing, or trusting in these nations in terms of the political alliances. Rather, what is being referred to here is a complete mixing of the nation Israel with others nations.
Israel was mixing with them on a religious level. You will recall that much of God’s charge against them through Hosea has been directed at their idolatrous practices. They have worshiped and embraced the false gods of the nations around them.
They had also been influenced by the surrounding nations culturally. There is often a great influence on a culture by the religion. Usually a religion defines, or at least has a great influence on the culture. And so Israel was indulging in the cultural practices of the nations around them.
Going on in verse 8, Hosea refers to Israel as a flat cake not turned over.
The usual interpretation of this is the fact that a baker would slap the flat disk of dough onto the side of the oven, but then the baker would fail to turn it. This would result in it being crusty and burned on one side, while the other side remain soft, doughy and uncooked. According to one commentator:
Hosea: An Introduction and Commentary vii. Judgment Metaphor of the Inedible Bread (7:8–10)
The result was inedible raw dough on one side, scorched crust on the other. It may not be pushing the imagery beyond its bounds to say that Ephraim’s side that was turned towards the nations was badly burnt, while the other side—the unpalatably weak commitment to Yahweh—was underdone.
As Hosea goes on in verse 9, he presents tow specific areas of the neglect of the leaders of Israel.
9 Foreigners sap his strength,
but he does not realize it.
His hair is sprinkled with gray,
but he does not notice.
The first concern is that foreigners sap the strength of the leaders of Israel. There are two possibilities of what is causing this.
Firstly, it may refer to the foreign powers taking away the wealth of Israel as Israel tried to pay them off in order to obtain their allegiance and support. An example of this is found in 2 kings 15:20...
20 Menahem exacted this money from Israel. Every wealthy man had to contribute fifty shekels of silver to be given to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria withdrew and stayed in the land no longer.
The other possibility is that the foreign leaders were leading Israel away from God, and towards their own idols, thus rendering them powerless and ineffective.
Hosea also then refers to the grey hairs. As we consider this metaphor of gray hairs, we must take into consideration that gray hair itself within the Israelite culture was not a negative thing. In fact, gray hair was highly regarded.
31 Gray hair is a crown of splendor;
it is attained by a righteous life.
In the context of this passage, it is more likely that the gray hair is referring to the growth of mould on bread, as the bread is ignored due to neglect. This will tie in well with the basic theme that we’ve already established through Hosea 7.
The fact that the leaders of Israel have been negligent in terms of their responsibilities and inactivities has led to the increase in decay of Israel. This correlates with what we saw in Hosea 5:12...
12 I am like a moth to Ephraim,
like rot to the people of Judah.
Sadly, this situation is only exacerbated by the fact that they do not even see their own folly. Twice Hosea says here that “They do not know it.” They blissfully unaware of their sorry state, and the destruction that it is causing.
One of the key reasons of this is the arrogance of Israel. Verse 10 brings this across.
10 Israel’s arrogance testifies against him,
but despite all this
he does not return to the Lord his God
or search for him.
Israel has become arrogant. They trust in their own strength and their own wisdom.
Not only this, but they have failed to repent. They have failed to turn back to the Lord. They have failed to search for God.
In fact, their arrogance is in its essence a rebellion against God.
Another example of this is found in Nehemiah 9:29...
29 “You warned them to return to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, by which a man will live if he obeys them. Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen.
We must consider this arrogance, and our own posture before God. The heart of man is so prone towards arrogance...
This leads us to consider another metaphor that Hosea uses to describe the people of Israel....
1.2. A Senseless Dove (vv.11-12)
1.2. A Senseless Dove (vv.11-12)
While the previous metaphor appeared to focus in on the neglect of the leaders of Israel, this one points to their frantic efforts to find help in all the wrong places. This really presents the other side of the same coin. They were apathetic in upholding the laws of God, and teaching the people the ways of God. They failed to place their trust in God.
But on the other hand, they were frantic in their efforts to find support from other nations. They sought out the ways and practices these other nations. They trusted in the gods of these other nations. They sought alliances with these other nations.
Verse 11 reads...
11 “Ephraim is like a dove,
easily deceived and senseless—
now calling to Egypt,
now turning to Assyria.
Hosea likens the people of Israel to a bird that is lacking direction. Very possibly the idea behind this is a homing pigeon. If you look further on in Hosea at 11:11...
11 They will come trembling
like birds from Egypt,
like doves from Assyria.
I will settle them in their homes,”
declares the Lord.
But these doves are proving to be incapable of doing that which they should have been doing. While the direction that they ought to set their sights on and moving in is the way of Yahweh, they instead were aiming their sights at Assyria and Egypt. They’re unable to find their way to their true home.
The consequence will be that Yahweh will frustrate their efforts, and ultimately He will have them to be captured.
Verse 12...
12 When they go, I will throw my net over them;
I will pull them down like birds of the air.
When I hear them flocking together,
I will catch them.
It’s an interesting phrase that is used at the end of verse 12… “When I hear the flocking together...”
The picture that is given here is of an assembly of the people coming together. As the nation gathers together in a grand assembly, eagerly expecting some feedback regarding the negotiations and discussions with their political allies, God will hear them and he will move into action in order to catch them.
His net will be thrown over them. They will be pulled out of the sky, and brought into captivity, and they will be held in bondage under the rule of other nations… even these very nations that they were seeking to form alliances with.
This leads us to consider the second main point from this passage...
2. The Lament of The Lord (vv.13-16)
2. The Lament of The Lord (vv.13-16)
In these next few verses, we find a fitting conclusion to the overall lament that had begun in Hosea 6:4… Recall that God had said....
4 “What can I do with you, Ephraim?
What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
like the early dew that disappears.
Having thus begun the lament, and then continued to outline the sins of Israel through these various pictures that Hosea has been using, we now come to the concluding words by God Himself. In these next few verses, we will find God’s words of woe directed towards Israel as they have failed to obey Him.
There are two broad sections that this lament of the Lord can be divided into.
Firstly, we see...
2.1. Paganism and Apostasy (vv.13-14)
2.1. Paganism and Apostasy (vv.13-14)
13 Woe to them,
because they have strayed from me!
Destruction to them,
because they have rebelled against me!
I long to redeem them
but they speak lies against me.
The section begins with a general statement of apostasy and judgment upon Israel.
“Woe to them.” This is is a phrase that speaks of being accursed as a result of their actions.
Generally speaking, the charge is that the Israelites have wandered away from God. They are like sheep that have gone astray, and have not remained with their True Shepherd.
God goes on by declaring “Destruction to them...” They have rebelled against God, He says of them. They have turned away from God, despite their ignorance in many respects. Their hearts had become so deceived that they could not even perceive the extent of what they had done.
But God clearly says that they are a people in rebellion against Him.
Notice the phrase there, “I long to redeem them but they speak lies against me.”
In one sense, God longs to be a redeemer to them, but they refuse to turn to Him. We will see more of this lack of repentance in a moment, but for now take note of the desire of God that they turn to Him and receive redemption.
God is actually presenting a question - He’s saying, I would redeem them, but how can I, since they speak lies against me.
In other, they are to take responsibility for their failure to acknowledge God for who He has revealed Himself to be to them.
In verse 14, the Lord continues...
14 They do not cry out to me from their hearts
but wail upon their beds.
They gather together for grain and new wine
but turn away from me.
A few things are noteworthy here.
Firstly, God says tat they do not cry out to him from their hearts.
When they face their burdens and their struggles in this life, they are not looking to Him, crying out to Him. They do not place their trust in the Almighty God.
Then we see a contrast. God says “But [they] wail upon their beds...”
Now this was not merely meaning that instead of crying out to God in their times of trouble, they simply lie and wallow in self-pity. Certainly to do that is no commendable thing. But really this is going beyond that, and would appear to refer to some of the pagan practices of crying out to other gods.
An example of this is in Ezekiel 8:14...
14 Then he brought me to the entrance to the north gate of the house of the Lord, and I saw women sitting there, mourning for Tammuz.
Tammuz was the Mesopotamian god of fertility.
Well the same was happening with the Israelites with their cultic worship of Baal. Recall that earlier in the book of Hosea we considered this together. The people would cry out to Baal for the growth of their crops. This itself was a fertility cult.
The fact that this is what is referred to becomes all the more evident as we read the next line in our text: “They gather together for grain and new wine but turn away from me.”
So the people of Israel is turning to Baal. They are crying out, wailing on their beds, asking Baal to provide for them, to bring them an abundance and an increase.
Recall that account with the prophet Elijah - 1 Kings 18:28 - where the prophets of Baal cried out for him to perform the miracle that they wanted him to, but he was silent. They eventually engaged in the cultic act of cutting themselves until their blood flowed!! That was the extent to which they would go as they cried out.
But they should have been crying out to the Almighty.
This leads us to consider the second broad theme in this section, and that is...
2.2. Political Failure (vv.15-16)
2.2. Political Failure (vv.15-16)
15 I trained them and strengthened them,
but they plot evil against me.
In this verse we see that Israel rejected the grace of God. He trained them and strengthened them.
As Israel was led out of slavery from Egypt, and as they entered into the promised land of Canaan, who was it that fought for them? Who was it that strengthened their men for battle? Who was it that marched ahead of them and defeated their enemies? It was the Lord, mighty in battle!!
The most visible picture of this was as the Israelites planned to enter Jericho.
13 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
15 The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
God’s presence was with the Israelites. There was no nation that could stand against them as they trusted in the Almighty.
I think of the account of Gideon, and how the Lord led him to defeat the Midianites with just 300 men. Recall, the Lord told Gideon that if he was concerned about fighting the Midianites, he should go down to their camp and listen...
13 Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. “I had a dream,” he was saying. “A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed.”
14 His friend responded, “This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.”
And most certainly, God defeated them...
Example after example are recorded for us in the Scriptures of the great power of God working on behalf of Israel.
But instead of maintaining trust in Him, God says, they plot evil against me.
This was treason against the Almighty God. They were in rebellion against God by praying to and trusting in false gods and political powers.
Verse 16 continues...
16 They do not turn to the Most High;
they are like a faulty bow.
Their leaders will fall by the sword
because of their insolent words.
For this they will be ridiculed
in the land of Egypt.
God continues His accusation against them. They do not turn to the Most High. They fail to trust in Him.
God calls them a faulty bow.
The faulty bow is a picture of the lack of diligence of the Israelite leaders. As a result, they have become useless in terms of their own military strength. They have become impotent. When once the nations around them quivered out of a deep understanding of the power of God working in their midst, they have now become weak, and the nations have no fear.
As a result, their leaders will fall by the sword. Their apostasy would be the cause of their doom. They would be destroyed, and ultimately they would be ridiculed int he land of Egypt - even the Gentile powers - those who hated God - would ridicule them.
Application and Conclusion
Application and Conclusion
As we consider this text, it has so much bearing on our lives as Christians. It has much bearing on our lives as the church.
Christ came into the world as the perfect revelation of God. He lived a life of perfect righteousness, revealing the ways of God to man. He has paid the price for our sin. He has defeated Satan, He has defeated death through His own resurrection. And He calls us to follow Him and to live in obedience to Him in this world.
The first things we should ask ourselves is this: Are we mixing with the nations?
We are called to be in the world, but not of the world. Is this how we are living as we interact with the people around us. In other words, are we living among those who are unbelievers, but in such a way as to demonstrate visibly through our lives, the Christ’s fruit in our lives, that we are not the same as this world?
In 2 Corinthians 6:14ff, Paul urges the believers in Corinth to not be yoked with unbelievers.
14 Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?
1 Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.
Are we mixing ourselves with the world by allowing, indulging in practices which do not promote holiness and godliness?
Secondly we must recognise that our battle in this world is not against flesh and blood, and our trust and focus must be fully on Christ.
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
As we have been called to be soldiers in this world, Christian soldiers fighting in a spiritual battle, do we recognise that every battle is not against the people in this world?
The strength that we need to fight the spiritual battle in this world is in God Almighty. Are we looking to God almighty? Are our hearts looking to Him. Is our trust for every situation in this life in Him?
As we see elections unfolding; as we see political forces rising up and causing fear in the hearts of various groups; as we see growing tensions in the world; as we see the advancing of liberal agendas, where is our trust?