seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Hosea 11:1 “When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.
2 But the more they were called,
the more they went away from me.[a]
They sacrificed to the Baals
and they burned incense to images.
3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them by the arms;
but they did not realize
it was I who healed them.
4 I led them with cords of human kindness,
with ties of love.
To them I was like one who lifts
a little child to the cheek,
and I bent down to feed them.
5 “Will they not return to Egypt
and will not Assyria rule over them
because they refuse to repent?
6 A sword will flash in their cities;
it will devour their false prophets
and put an end to their plans.
7 My people are determined to turn from me.
Even though they call me God Most High,
I will by no means exalt them.
8 “How can I give you up, Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah?
How can I make you like Zeboyim?
My heart is changed within me;
all my compassion is aroused.
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger,
nor will I devastate Ephraim again.
For I am God, and not a man—
the Holy One among you.
I will not come against their cities.
10 They will follow the Lord;
he will roar like a lion.
When he roars,
his children will come trembling from the west.
11 They will come from Egypt,
trembling like sparrows,
from Assyria, fluttering like doves.
I will settle them in their homes,”
declares the Lord.
12 Ephraim has surrounded me with lies,
Israel with deceit.
And Judah is unruly against God,
even against the faithful Holy One.[b]
a. Hosea 11:2 Septuagint; Hebrew them
b. Hosea 11:12 In Hebrew texts this verse (11:12) is numbered 12:1.
Just reading this.... it sounds like God is saying Israel and the surrounding area are doomed..... absolutely doomed..... and then in verses 8 and 9 He seems to realize He's heartsick over destroying them..... and He saves them.
This is from the easy English site.
In verse 3, there is a beautiful picture of a father. Israel was like a small child whom God helped to walk. It was God who did this. Israel could not see that. When the people of Israel grew up, they did not want to live like true sons.
Assyria will win against Israel in a war. The people of Israel will not be safe. The walls of their cities will come down. The sword of the enemy will become the sword of God. He uses the sword to keep his *covenant. The people will find it difficult to live without God. They will not want to turn away from him (verse 7). Then they will want to come back to God. But he will not listen. It will be too late.
In verse 8 there is a change in ideas. Again, there is hope for Israel. In exile, Israel will turn back to God. God is a God of mercy. He does not want to punish Israel too much. He could never let other nations win against Israel. Admah and Zeboiim were cities that were near Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 10:19). God destroyed Admah and Zeboiim when he destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24-25). This was when he was very angry. But God says that he will change his mind.
There is not a man anywhere who is completely true. But God is not like this. He will be true to the love that he has shown to Israel in the past. This is the only place in Hosea where we see the word ‘holy’. We see the word 26 times in Isaiah. God is different from men. He acts in different ways. This is not a promise for the people who are living with Hosea. It is a promise for the children of these people. God’s ‘anger’ is the right attitude for him to show. This is when the people have done wrong things. But, because he loved them, he wanted them to *repent. Then he could forgive them.
This is from Bibletrack.org.Here, the prophecy reflects back on how much God loved Israel and protected them. Yet, they showed nothing but ingratitude in return. God does promise not to completely destroy them (verse 8) as he did Admah and Zeboim in Deuteronomy 29:23 . Admah and Zeboim were two neighboring cities in the plain of Sodom who were destroyed along with Sodom and Gomorrah, as mentioned in that passage and this. Verses 10-11 allude to a restoration one day of Israel - probably a reference to the return from exile to the homeland in 535 B.C.
I've told this story before.... my dad beat me once.... only once.... but it was so severe it left welts and bruises all over me.... from head to toe. When the violence was done.... he picked me up and put me in a cool bath. He was crying..... his anger had gotten the best of him. Only once.... but I remember it like it was yesterday.... not because it took me so long to sit without wincing.... but because of the cool bath. The beating happened because I would not listen and I put myself in harms way. I was listening to my "friends" and not my parents. My friends told me it was ok to do what I did. I knew better.... that feeling in my gut said I was in trouble.... but my ego said "don't be a sissy".
Israel and Judah had no business split like that..... God gave Canaan to the twelve tribes. The further the descendants of Jacob [Israel] got from Jerusalem, where the Temple was built, the more they listened to their "friends". God had warned them to be careful of going where they didn't belong. But just like me.... they wouldn't listen. They had a need to belong.
I remember when the Harry Potter movies came out. I was listening to WAVA to and from work at the time. Boy what a hubbub. Parents were told the movie was basically satan worship. They were told not to let their innocent children see the film or read the book. Spells and incantations are evil. I remember thinking.... these kids are going to want to see that movie more than anything their parents will allow them to watch.... just because it's taboo. That's how I got in trouble.
The people of Israel and Judah were going through the same thing. There were lists of things they could not do. There were always lots of chores, rituals, sacrifices, and kneeling.... but there weren't many causes for jubilation. Meanwhile.... the kids down the block were dancing and singing and whittling and smelting and having sex in church! Who's having more fun for crying out loud??? It's no wonder those descendants of Jacob wanted to go off-base with their "friends".
No wonder God had to beat them so badly...... God could completely obliterate them.... just as He obliterated Sodom and He could have let everyone forget it even happened.... just like the obliteration of Admah and Zeboiim. No one was watching what happened in Admah and Zeboiim..... and only God cared.
God had a change of heart. He wouldn't obliterate the humans He loved so much. He would have to beat them to get their attention..... He would have to curb His anger..... He promised to curb His anger..... He promised not to obliterate them as He did Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim.
Back in the days of Noah.... God said He would hold up on anymore worldwide floods. Hosea says God promised not to obliterate the humans in Israel and Judah. I've heard some preach that the reason God didn't obliterate the humans in Israel.... was because He didn't want a black eye having back the wrong stupid humans.... But I wonder..... God is God and He controls the past and the future. If God didn't love those stupid humans.... He could have just wiped them all off the earth and started over.... a new history..... a new future.... with adoring single minded humans.
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