“How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I surrender you, O Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I treat you like Zeboiim? My heart is turned over within Me, all My compassions are kindled. I will not execute My fierce anger; I will not destroy Ephraim again. For … Continue reading –>
“When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son. . . . I taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by their arms; but they did not know that I healed them.” (Hos. 11:1-3, NKJV). In these verses, Hosea is saying that the Lord’s way is like the tender … Continue reading –>
Read Hosea 10:11-13. What message is the Lord giving to His people here? How do we understand the phrase, “until he comes and showers righteousness on you”? (NIV). In Hosea 10, God’s child Ephraim is compared to a trained heifer who loves to thresh grain because she could eat as she threshed. Thus, instead of being productive, … Continue reading –>
“‘Ephraim is like a dove, easily deceived and senseless—now calling to Egypt, now turning to Assyria. 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’” (Hos. 7:11-12, NIV). Read these verses in context. What … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Hos. 7:11-12, 10:11-13, Matt. 11:28-30, Rom. 5:8, 1 Pet. 2:24, Hosea 14. Memory Text: “But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always” (Hosea 12:6, NIV). Key Thought: Hosea reveals more of God’s love for His wayward people. A common way in which biblical authors talk about God’s love relationship with … Continue reading –>
“As time went by, Hosea became aware of the fact that his personal fate was a mirror of the divine pathos, that his sorrow echoed the sorrow of God. In this fellow suffering as an act of sympathy with the divine pathos the prophet probably saw the meaning of the marriage which he had contracted … Continue reading –>
Eight-year-old Sharoon [shah-ROON] leaned forward in his seat as his Sabbath School teacher told a Bible story. She asked a question, and Sharoon’s hand shot into the air. The teacher called on him, and Sharoon answered her question. Sharoon loves Sabbath School, especially the Bible stories his teacher tells. The church Sharoon attends meets in … Continue reading –>
“‘And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent’” (John 17:3, NKJV). The name Hosea in Hebrew means “the Lord saves,” and is related to the names Joshua, Isaiah and even Jesus. The prophet calls the people to reject sin and find refuge in their Lord God because He … Continue reading –>
Hosea 4:1-3 presents God as one who brings a charge or a legal dispute (Hebrew rîb) against Israel. The chosen nation stood guilty before her God because the people had failed to live up to the terms of the covenant. Truth, mercy, and the knowledge of God were to be qualities of Israel’s unique relationship with Him. … Continue reading –>
Read Hosea 2. What is God’s basic message to His people here? How is the gospel revealed in this chapter? Hosea’s message presents the profound truth of God’s steadfast love for an undeserving people. Hosea 2 contains a lengthy speech by the Lord about Israel’s apostasy, which is then contrasted with God’s unfailing love for His people. After … Continue reading –>
