Hosea 13
COMMENTARY:
: 4 Yet I am the Lord your God from the land of Egypt, and you shall know no god but ME: for there is no Savior beside ME. (3467 “Savior” [yasha‘] means deliverer, helper, person who delivers others from pain, suffering, hardship or death, save from moral troubles, to set free or to give victory to.)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel were taught about the exodus from Egypt. They were told that it happened because of the LORD sending signs and wonders in Egypt. The people of Egypt wanted them gone because of the plagues the LORD sent.
HE expected them to realize that HE was the only TRUE God. The problem was that they liked some of the practices of the heathen nations when they worshiped their false god. They thought they could do both. That was not acceptable to the LORD. HE wanted them to realize that HE was the ONLY God and that HE was the only one who could DELIVER them from all their troubles.
We need to realize these facts as well. There is only one way to heaven and that is through Jesus Christ who died on the cross for our sins. HE is the only Savior of the world. There are still false gods being worshiped in many lands. Some of them are not made in images. Some of them are not made with stone. Some of them are the gods we make up in our hearts.
CHALLENGE: Examine your heart to see if there are any other gods there.
: 9 O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help. (5828 “help” [‘ezer] means succor, assistant, or acts of supplying what is needed to another.)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel were bent on ruining themselves. They were a rebellious people. They were worshipers of idols. They made their living making idols. They told the people to “kiss the calves.”
Therefore the LORD had to judge them. He was going to come as a whirlwind and drive them as chaff. HE was going to be as a leopard, lion and bear. They had destroyed themselves by their worship of idols. HE was the ONE who delivered them from Egypt. HE was their only Savior. HE was their only suppler of all they needed. But they had forgotten HIM. They had been supplied with blessings from the LORD but didn’t honor HIM as their provider.
Instead they made images to worship with the supplies the LORD had given them. They were going in the wrong direction and didn’t care. The LORD told them that HE was the only one who could assist them during this time period but they didn’t want HIS assistance.
THEREFORE, HE judged them with the nations they thought they could trust in. These nations came in and tortured them. They tortured their men, women and children. They had made their choice. They were rebellious!!
What choices are we making in regard to allowing the LORD to help us in our times of trials? Are we going to allow HIM to assist us? Are we willing to trust HIM to help us, even though, we can’t see HIM physically? It is a hard choice to make.
It is our prayer that we made the right decisions in our times of trouble. The chastening of the LORD is to bring us closer to HIM. Our sin has causes us to walk away from HIM. HE wants to ransom and redeem HIS people. There must be repentance of sin for this to happen. HE wants us back. HE wanted the children of Israel to repent and serve HIM. They made the wrong choice. Remember each day we made a choice to follow or disobey the LORD!!
CHALLENGE: Evaluate your actions of the last few weeks. Do we think we need the help of the LORD in our life? Can HE tell we are thinking those thoughts? Are we acting on those thoughts?
: 14 I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes. (5162 “repentance” [nacham] means comfort, compassion, regret, pity, or sorrow.)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel had reached a point of no return. The LORD is asking questions that have a negative response. HE is not going to ransom them from the grave. HE is not going to redeem them from death. HE is not going to save them because they don’t want HIM to save them.
HE has offered them a solution to their present situation but they don’t want HIS solution. They thought they could come up with a better solution to their problem. They were looking other places for help. None of their solutions were going to work.
They were headed for captivity because they didn’t want to serve the LORD. They liked their foreign gods. They thought God should just continue to put up with their partial worship.
We have to face the facts that we are just like the children of Israel in our attitude toward the LORD. We look other places until the only one left is the LORD. Our prayer life shows how much we trust in the LORD. Our time in the Bible shows how much we want to learn about the LORD. Our service shows how important the LORD is to us. Finally, our checkbook really shows if we love HIM.
God expects a lot from us but HE is willing to bless us for our obedience. HE promises a hope in the future that nothing and no one can match. We are impatient. WE want everything now!
CHALLENGE: Does God have a reason to ransom, redeem and change HIS mind toward us because of our present actions?
: 15 Though he be fruitful among his brethren, an east wind shall come, the wind of the LORD shall come up from the wilderness, and his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up: he shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels. (6500 “fruitful” [para’] means to bear fruit, to flourish, to grow vigorously, or thrive.)
DEVOTION: What would you think if everything you own was carried away? You would end up with nothing except what you were wearing. Only the clothes on your back would be left.
Too many people are in love with their possessions. All of us have something that we call our favorite. We might have a favorite collection of coins or baseball card or dolls for some.
People can fall in love with their home or car or their vacation times or their sport’s team. Some even love to just look at their money. Some even worship their families. Possessions can keep you from serving the LORD. There was a bumper sticker that stated: He who dies with the most toys WINS!
The children of Israel seemed to love their treasure of pleasant vessels. If you had land that produced food and clothes you were rich in their culture. God was going to take it all away through foreign nations coming into the land and conquering them. HE was also give them a famine to take away their food and water.
Even with all that the LORD allowed in their life they didn’t repent and come back to HIM. Hard times seemed to drive them away from the LORD rather than closer to HIM.
What is happening in our life? Are we going through good times or hard times? What is that doing to our relationship to the LORD? Do we love HIM more than our possessions? The answer can only be given if they are taken away. Israel found out that it could happen.
Do you think that the LORD could send judgment on America because of their desire for possessions rather than HIM? Does it seem like we are more interested in taking the God of the Bible out of our schools and national courts? Is HE going to have to judge us for our actions?
CHALLENGE: Where are we headed? Are we going the way of the children of Israel in our relationship with God?
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