Scripture Text: Hosea 1:1-9
And the Lord said, “Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God.”
Hosea 1:9
Israel was divided. The Southern Kingdom of Judah was ruled by the descendants of David, according to God’s covenant with him (2 Sam. 7:16). On the other hand, the Northern Kingdom of Israel was characterized by assassinations and brutal coup d'état, and each king was more wicked than the last. The House of Jehu, mentioned in verse 4 in this passage, was actually the Northern Kingdom’s longest reigning family. After wiping-out all the descendants of Ahab, Jehu received a promise from the Lord that four generations of his descendants would take the throne (2 Kings 10:30).
In this period of proportionate peace and prosperity, there was the presence of uncontrollable wickedness. Hosea ministered as a prophet to Israel (v.1), but as the rule of Jeroboam II came to a close, the house of Jehu and the northern kingdom of Israel met a rapid and bloody decline (v.5, cf. 2 Kings 15:10–12). Five of Israel’s last six kings were assassinated or killed, a string of violence that culminated in Assyrian captivity. Hosea was the last prophet this nation would ever hear. It would take a shocking wake-up call to move this wayward nation to repentance.
God delivered the shock through Hosea and his marriage to a prostitute named Gomer. Scholars aren’t sure whether Gomer was a prostitute when Hosea married her, but the text clearly states that his marriage to an unfaithful wife was divinely appointed (v. 2). The Bible also points to the likelihood that the second and third children born to Gomer were not Hosea’s children at all (vv. 2, 6, 8). Only verse 3 specifically mentions Hosea as the father of Gomer’s first child.
The adultery of Gomer and the names of her children (“not loved” and “not my people”) reveals the depth of how far Israel has forsaken God whom they have a covenant relationship with and ought to be “fully devoted to”. We need to see how the Lord depicts the depth of His love — His steadfast faithfulness and devotion to His people; that despite His just anger, God did not abandon His people, as we’ll see tomorrow.
Additionally, we must not view God’s love as not soft or sentimental, for the paramount message of Hosea is extreme judgment for extreme disobedience. Israel’s wickedness was despicable in God’s eyes.
Reflect
Do we worship anyone or anything other than the one true God?
Think in terms of the marriage illustration: Is your heart dedicated to God alone?
Does money, control, entertainment, or pleasure compete for your affection?
Remember
Idols like theirs still tempt us to divert our worship away from God and competes with the Lordship of Jesus Christ in our lives.
Affirm your commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ today and be prepared to surrender anything that draws you away from Him.
Read
Exodus 34:15-16; Jeremiah 3:1-4; Psalms 73:27
Pray
Dear God, as you have made me see the depths of Your love for me, Your steadfast faithfulness and devotion to our covenant relationship, as I walk through this day, may I be aware of the things that divert my worship away from my Lord Jesus and those that compete with Him in my life.
Holy Spirit, as you reveal them to me, take them away from me and as I surrender my whole self to you — FULLY DEVOTED to my Lord Jesus.
In my Lord Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Amen!🙏
Hallelujah to the great God!
Amen! This is strucking truth about our God, "His steadfast faithfulness and devotion to His people; that despite His just anger, God did not abandon His people, as we’ll see tomorrow."