Hosea 2
COMMENTARY:
: 7 She will chase her lovers, But not overtake them; Yes, she will seek them, but not find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, for then it was better for me than now.
DEVOTION: Too often we are prone to wander. There are many songs that deal with the fact that we are a fickle people. We tend to think that that grass is greener on the other side of the fence. We look at what is happing in the lives of those around us and see that they don’t love the LORD and seem to be having a good time without HIM.
In the book of Hosea we find a wife thinking that worshiping the gods of this world is better than worshiping the TRUE God of the Bible. She thought it was her false gods that were giving her all she wanted in life. She had food, riches and friends that she thought were all she really needed in life.
However, the LORD took all these from her and she realized that she needed one thing only in life and that was a proper relationship with the LORD. She decided to return to her first husband or first love. She found out that it was far better.
We need to remember that the world looks very tempting on a regular basis. They seem to have all the fun, food and friends that we want. It is not true. The relationships are very shallow most of the time. Once the good times are over, no one is around to help.
We need to watch who we consider a true lover. The LORD loved us so much HE sent HIS Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins and give us joy.
CHALLENGE: We need the joy that the LORD promises to provide even in tough times.
: 8 For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal. (6213 “prepared” [‘asah] means wrought, commit, make, manufacture, do, deal with, celebrate.)
DEVOTION: One of the things that we sometimes don’t realize as we look at all our possessions is the fact of where they really came from. Most of the things that we received when we were children were given to us by our parents or grandparents. We think that things come from people most of the time.
As we get older we feel that the things we have come from us as we work for a paycheck and use our money to buy what we like to have in our life. We accumulate many things and think that we can enjoy them without giving credit to anyone else.
Gomer and the nation of Israel thought that what she received came from her friends or lovers. She thought she was earning a living by doing things that were displeasing to the LORD but she didn’t care as long as she was having fun and receiving gifts.
The LORD corrected her wrong thinking. HE took everything away from her to show her that it was HIS place to provide all that she needed. Sometimes the LORD will do this in our life to get our attention.
We need to not give our worship to the false god of possessions or selfishness and greed.
Don’t give your wealth to false gods. The LORD is the one who gives HIS children strength to be able to earn a living. Give your tithe or ten percent back to the LORD to show you understand everything is a gift from HIM.
CHALLENGE: The LORD is the source of all we own and we need to show our appreciation to HIM alone.
: 15 And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt. (8615 “hope” [tiqvah] means cord, expectation, outcome, or looking forward to.)
DEVOTION: Hosea tells his children to plead with their mother because of her sin. He says that his relationship with the children is at stake. He doesn’t claim Gomer as his wife. He doesn’t want to be remembered as her husband because of her unfaithfulness.
If she doesn’t listen to the children he is going to have to judge her. He will take all her possessions away and send her off to the wilderness. She thought that all her blessing was coming for her lovers when in reality they were coming from Hosea.
Remember that the relationship between Hosea and Gomer were an illustration of the relationship of the LORD and the children of Israel. Hosea was a prophet to the ten northern tribes that were very rebellious. They were going to be going into captivity soon. They were going to lose all the protection of the LORD that they had in the Promised Land.
The next part of the chapter informs us about all the LORD is going to do to the northern tribes because of their sins. HE lists their sins. They were supposed to be related to the LORD but were thinking that Baal was providing all they needed. They were going to lose everything because of their worship of false gods.
However, HE has Hosea tell them that all is not lost. There is a future expectation of restoration for them. When the children of Israel were coming out of Egypt they came to the Valley of Achor. In that valley was the place that Achan hid the things he had taken from the city of Jericho. Now there was going to be blessings in that same valley.
The people were going to be singing in that valley. The people were going to call upon the name of the LORD in that valley. The LORD was going to take away the names of all false gods from the mouths of the people. They were going to renew their vows with the LORD. The LORD was showing mercy to HIS people.
We are presently living in a world that is full of suffering. Even the children of God are suffering today. There might be more suffering before the LORD returns. I receive email almost daily of suffering in Africa. They don’t have enough of everything most of us take for granted. They are not only pleading for basic necessities but also for more Bibles in their own language.
Our responsibility is to realize that we have the expectation of the return of the LORD at any time. We have to be a witness to all those in our world. We have to spread the Good News in a world that needs good news. The LORD judges sin. HE has provided salvation.
Those who follow the LORD can look forward with the same expectation that HE gave Israel. We have heaven being prepared for our inheritance. Praise the LORD!!!
CHALLENGE: The LORD gives us the expectation of eternity in heaven. We need to give those around us the same expectation. We can even give them assistance in their daily battles through prayer. Prayer is a mighty weapon in the hands of the LORD’S people.
: 19 And I will betroth thee unto me forever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in loving-kindness, and in mercies. (781 “betroth” [aras] means espouse, become engaged to, to make a spouse, or pledge to marriage.)
DEVOTION: In a perfect world those who marry each other will stay married until they die. Here we find Hosea married to a woman, Gomer as a type of marriage between Israel and the LORD.
The LORD gave instructions for Hosea to marry Gomer and have children by her but then she runs away after other lovers. These other lovers represent Israel running after false gods. They worshiped Baal and thought that it was this false god that provided all they needed to live. The LORD instructs them in the fact the HE is the one who provides all that Israel needs. HE will demonstrate this fact by taking away the basic necessities of life, so that, they will return to HIM rather than worship this false god. Once the famine hit, they thought it was better to return to the LORD.
In the future, the LORD is going to reestablish HIS relationship with Israel. They are going to be husband and wife in a proper relationship. HE is going to show HIS love through his four basic characteristics to them: righteousness, judgment, loving-kindness and mercy.
HE shows these characteristics in HIS relationship with us. We are espoused to Jesus Christ. We are HIS bride. HE is the bridegroom according to the New Testament. HE is coming for HIS bride in the future. The problem is that we act just like the children of Israel by thinking that we are providing all our needs by ourselves. We think at times that we don’t need to have a close relationship with the LORD because we can take care of ourselves. This is wrong and the LORD is going to show us that it is truly HIM that provides for our every need.
CHALLENGE: Do we truly realize that the LORD is the one who is providing all our needs? If not, watch out for HIS actions to show you that HE is the one you need to totally depend on DAILY for your basic needs.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Answered prayersverse 21
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Mirthverse 11
Feast daysverse 11
New moonsverse 11
Sabbathsverse 11
Solemn feastsverse 11
Singverse 15
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
I will not have mercyverse 4
I will hedge up your way with thornsverse 6
I gave her corn, wine, and oil and multiplied her silver and goldverse 8
I will return and take away MY corn and
Wine and recover MY wool and MY flax given to cover her nakednessverse 9
None shall deliver her out of MINE handverse 10
I will cause all her mirth to cease
and her feast days, her new moons
and her sabbaths and all her solemn feastsverse 11
I will destroy her vines and her fig treesverse 12
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal)verses 13, 16, 20, 21
Allure Israelverse 14
Speak comfortably to Israelverse 14
Give vineyardsverse 15
Give door of hopeverse 15
Call Ishi by Israelverse 16
I will take away the names of Baalimverse 17
I will make a covenantverse 18
Control of Animalsverse 18
I will break the bow and the sword and the
battle out of the earth and make them
to lie down safelyverse 18
I will betroth Israel to me forever
in righteousness, judgment,
lovingkindness, and mercyverse 19
I will betroth you to ME in faithfulnessverse 20
Hear from Heavenverse 21
I will have mercy upon Israelverse 23
God’s peopleverse 23
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign, Plural name)verse 23
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Land of Egyptverse 15
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Whoredomsverses 2, 4
Adulteriesverse 2
Harlotverse 5
Done shamefullyverse 5
Loversverses 5, 7, 10, 12, 13
Worship of Baalverses 8, 17
Lewdnessverse 10
Days of Baalimverse 13
Burned incense to false godsverse 13
Forgot Godverse 13
Baaliverse 16
Name of Baalimverse 16
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Pleadverse 2
Merciesverses 4, 19, 23
Hopeverse 15
Covenantverse 18
Safetyverse 18
Righteousnessverse 19
Judgmentverse 19
Loving-kindnessverse 19
Faithfulnessverse 20
Know the LORDverse 20
LORD hears prayersverses 21, 22
Confession: You are my Godverse 23
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Ammiverse 1
Ruhamahverse 1
Gomerverses 2-13
Hoseaverse 7
No more remembered by the names of Baalimverse 17
Shall know the LORDverse 20
Hear the LORD on earthverse 21
Earth shall bear corn, wine, oilverse 22
Hear Jezreelverse 22
God’s peopleverse 23
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
In that dayverses 18, 21
Betroth Israel foreververse 19
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