Hosea 1 IS THIS FOR REAL? A fine young man who loved his country in spite of all the evil that was going on, and who wanted the best for his people, was told by the Lord to marry a prostitute. Hosea must have wondered if this was really a word from God or a trick of the devil. One hundred and fifty years after Jeroboam had led the ten northern tribes known as Israel from Judah and the temple at Jerusalem, the Lord clearly told Hosea that his marriage to Gomer was going to be an illustration to the Jewish people of what they were doing to the Lord God of Israel. Fourteen wicked kings, some weak and some strong had continued to lead the nation to the false gods around them beginning with the golden calves made by the first Jeroboam. Ahab and Jezebel had instituted the immoral religions of Baal and Ashtoreth to where it became appealing and popular to the people who believed they were released from the restraints of God's righteous laws.
The second Jeroboam was on the throne, and although he was successful in some ways by regaining some land that was lost, he still was an evil ruler. For years God had mercy on Israel but they still mixed the worship of idols with the worship of God which was an abomination. Overriding all the evil actions of the kings and the nation, was the sovereignty of God who chose then to allow people to make choices. The principle remains today as it did then, the day will come when we have to accept the consequences of our own actions. "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." We will reap. We will reap what we sow. We will reap more than we sow.
Prophets had prophesied before Hosea and had largely been ignored. Apart from a few brief times the evil of the nation and the leadership continued unabated. God does not limit Himself as to how He is going to deal with people who break their covenants with Him, defy His authority, demean His spokesmen, deny His word, and denigrate that which He intends to be holy. So in the case of Hosea He chose a living illustration to be enacted before the very eyes of the people. This time the Lord spoke through His servant, not only in words but in a dramatic living illustration of unfaithfulness with which everyone could identify. According to the first verse of the book, Hosea's ministry was for 72 years. If he started prophesying in his twenties he would have been in his nineties when he died. The whole book has many poetical metaphors with the most impacting one the living one of the sad domestic life of Hosea and Gomer, his wife.
Hosea, a prophet of God, took for a wife a prostitute, who though she was likely beautiful, was known for what she did more than who she was. In spite of who she was and what she did, Hosea chose to love her with devotion and in spite of unrequited love. His obedience to God led him into an unhappy marriage that became an example to thousands of people in Israel of the love of God for His unfaithful people. His unbroken commitment contrast with their unfaithfulness. He reaffirmed His love again and again and yet that love was spurned. He was rejected by those He loved and yet he showed mercy. Constant consistent love is contrasted with multiple affairs. With heartache He calls and there is only hardhearted refusal. His call to repentance is ignored by persistent wickedness. Hosea was called to live his message. Ingratitude is contrasted with amazing grace. His undying hopefulness is contrasted with the deliberate blindness of foolish people. This a picture of unregenerate people in every age and ungrateful nations that have been blessed by God.
I imagine people who knew Hosea and who also knew Gomer would have said to him, "What in the world are you doing? You know this woman's reputation! You know what she has been doing! Don't go any further in this relationship!" Those who obey God as did the prophets, are often called to do extraordinary things that will not be understood by those who know them. Hosea's obedience to God caused him emotional pain, humiliation and grief. He knew he could not change her, and he knew she would break his heart and make him a man of sorrows. But as a servant of God he also knew there are things of much more importance than my comfort, desires, and blessing.
Israel had been unfaithful to God who had provided for them, protected them and cared for them. Instead of showing appreciation to God for His grace, mercy and love, Israel had "married" idols - false gods, and had ignored His will and word. Breaking God's righteous laws without concern must break God's heart like the unfaithfulness of Gomer to Hosea made him a man of a broken heart. She had a child for Hosea but them went to other men and had a daughter and a son, likely by different men. Hosea's son Jezreel was significant and prophetic. But the name of the little girl, Lo-ruhamah, "not loved, unpitied," must have hurt her to the heart as she grew. The son of Gomer, Lo-ammi, "not my people, no son of mine," must have been hard for Hosea to give to the children because it identifies the tragedy that accompanies unfaithfulness.
These names of the children were given as a message from God to Israel warning of divine justice to come on those who are strangers to God and who will be disowned by Him. Idolatry is our false images of God. It is a human problem, and most people when faced with the charge of it would say, "Worship idols? Not me." However, everyone has a certain reverence for something greater than us. When we measure the time and attention given to various topics in a conversation, you soon get a picture, of what a person worships. That kind of worship is dangerous, because we come to adore that which outranks us. Such unfaithfulness as God's people showed toward Him has affected the children and the generations that have followed in the footsteps of those like Gomer who would not be restrained from her lustful ways. The northern tribes had passed the point of no return so God could not demonstrate His love to His people. Because they had abandoned Him, He had to abandon them.
Even after Gomer sank to the point of being a drunk prostitute, Hosea still loved her. He bought and paid for her like a slave and took her home again, cleaned her up, gave her a bed to lie on and told her he loved her and would wait for her to come back to him. God has promised that Israel will be restored in the future to the special union He made long ago with their forefathers. His commitment to Israel as His chosen earthly people remains unchanged in spite of the nation being unfaithful to Him to this very day. The modern nation is there today only as a political entity and is still in unbelief. A new day for Israel is coming when finally, they will see our Lord Jesus as their true Messiah, and then will see the promises of God that they have so long ignored, despised and rejected, actually come to pass just as the prophet foretold so long ago.