In Hosea 5 the tribes of Israel and Judah have fallen into the trap of turning to the world and human solutions for their troubles and problems. God starts off by letting the spiritual leaders know that they have fallen so far into this trap that judgement is inevitable for them. God lets them know that they are so far gone that the only way to fix it is for him to withdraw himself and let them see what the world will give them in their time of need (which is destruction). This can also happen in our lives. When you get in a bind or in trouble where does your heart turn to? This is a very important question to ask ourselves because this will tell us all we need to know about who or what are hearts belong to. All of us are different and have all been guilty of this. For me personally, it is easy for me in troubling times to slip when I’m in desperation mode. Sometimes my first initial instinct is not to turn to God. I try to fix my problems myself. My natural instinct is to make my life so busy with other things or projects so that I don’t have time to think about what my actual problem is. It is very hard for me to sit down and face my trials head on. I often times choose to ignore them and fill up my time with other things. God despises this. This chapter is scary to me because God lets us know that if we continuously pick the world or material things instead of him to face our problems with, he just might choose to depart from us completely and let us suffer from our own choices until we see how much we need him. I know this is true because it has happened to me before. It is the reason I have a relationship with him today. One thing I figured out about myself is that without God I’m pretty ignorant and dumb. God let me fall flat on my face in a puddle of my own bad choices long enough to see that this world had nothing good to offer me. This should be a warning to all of us. If we choose the world over God enough times he will eventually give us what we are turning to. It could be drugs, women, work, material possessions, or anything else we choose to turn to for comfort us instead of him. Right here in Hosea, he shows us that out of love he will let the world consume you and beat you down until you see that the only goodness in life comes from him. Choose God as your solution and he will give you peace and rest in the storm. Love y’all! Have a great day!
Hosea 5:1-15
Read scripture…
“Hear this, priests! Pay attention, house of Israel! Listen, royal house! For the judgment applies to you because you have been a snare at Mizpah and a net spread out on Tabor. Rebels are deeply involved in slaughter; I will be a punishment for all of them. I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hidden from me. For now, Ephraim, you have acted promiscuously; Israel is defiled. Their actions do not allow them to return to their God, for a spirit of promiscuity is among them, and they do not know the Lord. Israel’s arrogance testifies against them. , Both Israel and Ephraim stumble because of their iniquity; even Judah will stumble with them. They go with their flocks and herds to seek the Lord but do not find him; he has withdrawn from them. They betrayed the Lord; indeed, they gave birth to illegitimate children. Now the New Moon will devour them along with their fields. Blow the ram’s horn in Gibeah, the trumpet in Ramah; raise the war cry in Beth-aven: Look behind you, Benjamin! Ephraim will become a desolation on the day of punishment; I announce what is certain among the tribes of Israel. The princes of Judah are like those who move boundary markers; I will pour out my fury on them like water. Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment, for he is determined to follow what is worthless. So I am like rot to Ephraim and like decay to the house of Judah. When Ephraim saw his sickness and Judah his wound, Ephraim went to Assyria and sent a delegation to the great king. , But he cannot cure you or heal your wound. For I am like a lion to Ephraim and like a young lion to the house of Judah. Yes, I will tear them to pieces and depart. I will carry them off, and no one can rescue them. I will depart and return to my place until they recognize their guilt and seek my face; they will search for me in their distress.”
Leave a Reply