These next chapters of Hosea consist of God calling Israel out. It’s their judgement, God is the Judge, and Hosea is the prosecuting attorney. He cuts to the root of Israel’s problem — first the people, then the priests. There’s no beating around the bush with God. What’s more, He explains exactly what they — and likewise, YOU — need to do… repent! Let’s dig in…
Hosea 4
Hear the word of the Lord, O people of Israel!
The Lord has brought charges against you, saying:
“There is no faithfulness, no kindness,
no knowledge of God in your land.
2 You make vows and break them;
you kill and steal and commit adultery.
There is violence everywhere—
one murder after another.
3 That is why your land is in mourning,
and everyone is wasting away.
Even the wild animals, the birds of the sky,
and the fish of the sea are disappearing.4 “Don’t point your finger at someone else
and try to pass the blame!
My complaint, you priests,
is with you.
5 So you will stumble in broad daylight,
and your false prophets will fall with you in the night.
And I will destroy Israel, your mother.
6 My people are being destroyed
because they don’t know me.
Since you priests refuse to know me,
I refuse to recognize you as my priests.
Since you have forgotten the laws of your God,
I will forget to bless your children.
7 The more priests there are,
the more they sin against me.
They have exchanged the glory of God
for the shame of idols.8 “When the people bring their sin offerings, the priests get fed.
So the priests are glad when the people sin!
9 ‘And what the priests do, the people also do.’
So now I will punish both priests and people
for their wicked deeds.
10 They will eat and still be hungry.
They will play the prostitute and gain nothing from it,
for they have deserted the Lord
11 to worship other gods.“Wine has robbed my people
of their understanding.
12 They ask a piece of wood for advice!
They think a stick can tell them the future!
Longing after idols
has made them foolish.
They have played the prostitute,
serving other gods and deserting their God.
13 They offer sacrifices to idols on the mountaintops.
They go up into the hills to burn incense
in the pleasant shade of oaks, poplars, and terebinth trees.“That is why your daughters turn to prostitution,
and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.
14 But why should I punish them
for their prostitution and adultery?
For your men are doing the same thing,
sinning with whores and shrine prostitutes.
O foolish people! You refuse to understand,
so you will be destroyed.15 “Though you, Israel, are a prostitute,
Hosea 4 NLT
may Judah not be guilty of such things.
Do not join the false worship at Gilgal or Beth-aven,
and do not take oaths there in the Lord’s name.
16 Israel is stubborn,
like a stubborn heifer.
So should the Lord feed her
like a lamb in a lush pasture?
17 Leave Israel alone,
because she is married to idolatry.
18 When the rulers of Israel finish their drinking,
off they go to find some prostitutes.
They love shame more than honor.
19 So a mighty wind will sweep them away.
Their sacrifices to idols will bring them shame.
Hosea 5
“Hear this, you priests.
Pay attention, you leaders of Israel.
Listen, you members of the royal family.
Judgment has been handed down against you.
For you have led the people into a snare
by worshiping the idols at Mizpah and Tabor.
2 You have dug a deep pit to trap them at Acacia Grove.
But I will settle with you for what you have done.
3 I know what you are like, O Ephraim.
You cannot hide yourself from me, O Israel.
You have left me as a prostitute leaves her husband;
you are utterly defiled.
4 Your deeds won’t let you return to your God.
You are a prostitute through and through,
and you do not know the Lord.5 “The arrogance of Israel testifies against her;
Israel and Ephraim will stumble under their load of guilt.
Judah, too, will fall with them.
6 When they come with their flocks and herds
to offer sacrifices to the Lord,
they will not find him,
because he has withdrawn from them.
7 They have betrayed the honor of the Lord,
bearing children that are not his.
Now their false religion will devour them
along with their wealth.8 “Sound the alarm in Gibeah!
Blow the trumpet in Ramah!
Raise the battle cry in Beth-aven!
Lead on into battle, O warriors of Benjamin!
9 One thing is certain, Israel:
On your day of punishment,
you will become a heap of rubble.10 “The leaders of Judah have become like thieves.
So I will pour my anger on them like a waterfall.
11 The people of Israel will be crushed and broken by my judgment
because they are determined to worship idols.
12 I will destroy Israel as a moth consumes wool.
I will make Judah as weak as rotten wood.13 “When Israel and Judah saw how sick they were,
Hosea 5 NLT
Israel turned to Assyria—
to the great king there—
but he could neither help nor cure them.
14 I will be like a lion to Israel,
like a strong young lion to Judah.
I will tear them to pieces!
I will carry them off,
and no one will be left to rescue them.
15 Then I will return to my place
until they admit their guilt and turn to me.
For as soon as trouble comes,
they will earnestly search for me.”
Hosea 6 – A Call to Repentance
“Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces;
now he will heal us.
He has injured us;
now he will bandage our wounds.
2 In just a short time he will restore us,
so that we may live in his presence.
3 Oh, that we might know the Lord!
Let us press on to know him.
He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn
or the coming of rains in early spring.”4 “O Israel and Judah,
what should I do with you?” asks the Lord.
“For your love vanishes like the morning mist
and disappears like dew in the sunlight.
5 I sent my prophets to cut you to pieces—
to slaughter you with my words,
with judgments as inescapable as light.
6 I want you to show love,
not offer sacrifices.
I want you to know me
more than I want burnt offerings.
7 But like Adam, you broke my covenant
and betrayed my trust.8 “Gilead is a city of sinners,
tracked with footprints of blood.
9 Priests form bands of robbers,
waiting in ambush for their victims.
They murder travelers along the road to Shechem
and practice every kind of sin.
10 Yes, I have seen something horrible in Ephraim and Israel:
My people are defiled by prostituting themselves with other gods!11 “O Judah, a harvest of punishment is also waiting for you,
Hosea 6 NLT
though I wanted to restore the fortunes of my people.
Points to Ponder
- God doesn’t just call out the people, but the priests and leaders also. With good, God-Fearing leaders, a nation prospers. This also applies to church leaders today. The Roman Catholic Church is notorious for not following the Word of God. They invented their own rites and rituals to control the people.
- We can easily sell ourselves out to sin — what “feels good”. Unfortunately, what feels good for a few moments fades away and we’re left wanting more. We want the good feeling again. That’s addiction and we become salves to it.
- Whatever you give your heart to, becomes your master.
- We become slaves to sin and religion.
- True freedom is not freedom TO sin, but freedom FROM sin.
That’s What Jesus and ONLY JESUS Offers Us!
Did you know that only 11% of U.S. adults read the Bible daily? No wonder we’re in so much of a mess!
Both the Holy Spirit AND Sin Can’t Live in
Your Heart at the Same Time!
If you truly want to KNOW JESUS, if you want the knowledge of God — total restoration, without REPENTANCE, you won’t find Him. You MUST be willing to change and allow God to change you.
Like David wrote…
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Psalms 139:23-24 NLT
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 Point out anything in me that offends you,
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
Furthermore, when He DOES show you, you must sincerely repent — do a complete 180 degree turn in your life and stop doing what God hates!
Jesus quoted Hosea 6:6 when He recruited Matthew…
9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him.
10 Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. 11 But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?”
12 When Jesus heard this, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” 13 Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’ For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”
Matthew 9:9-13 NLT
Solomon Wrote…
My child, don’t reject the Lord’s discipline,
Proverbs 3:11-12 NLT
and don’t be upset when he corrects you.
12 For the Lord corrects those he loves,
just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.
Moreover, God LOVES YOU! He knew that by ourselves we could NEVER become good enough to stand in His presence. That’s why He sent Jesus to redeem us. Without Jesus, we are headed straight to hell — condemned to be as far away from God as possible. Jesus took ALL of our sins — past, present and future — with Him to the cross. There He defeated sin. Three days later, He defeated death by rising and later ascending to Heaven. There He is preparing a place for us, born-again believers. When God the Father says so, He’ll send Jesus to come and get the True Christians. That, my friend, is the salvation of Jesus Christ — the Good News.
If you’re not sure if you’re saved or not, if you truly want to be born again and have the assurance of salvation, receive the Holy Spirit, feel His Shalom — a peace that surpasses all understanding, and get a 1-way, non-stop ticket to Heaven after you die, or that you won’t be left behind at the Rapture, which can happen at any moment, this is what you have to do…
Believe. Repent. Be Baptized. Receive the Holy Spirit.
- Believe — have Faith — that Jesus is the Christ and He died taking your sins away forever and that He rose from the dead 3 days later.
- Repent of your sins — stop sinning! Do a complete 180-degree turn in your life and surrender your life to Him. When you ask Jesus to forgive you He will. ALL your sins will be wiped clean — past, present, and future! And All means ALL!
- Be Baptized by water baptism — show the world and yourself that you have died to your old life and are born again in Christ.
- Receive the gift of Holy Spirit in your heart.
Invite Jesus into Your Heart and Receive the Gift of Grace, Joy, Peace, and the Confident Hope of Eternal Life…
God So Loved
Soli Deo Gloria! To God Alone Be the Glory!
Left Behind After the Rapture Series
Rumble Video – “Don’t Compromise”
