by Katrina
LINK: Hosea 9
BACKGROUND
This is a sobering chapter telling Israel that their time is up. Punishment is around the corner. It is time for the nation to reap what it has sown, like Hosea referred to in chapter eight.
Here are a few notes to help clarify some of the verses in this chapter:
Ephraim is the larger of the two tribes of Israel, and the title is used to refer to the whole nation.
v 1 - The threshing floor was a large flat area, often on a hill, where the grain was beaten to separate the chaff from the kernel of grain. During the threshing season, men would often sleep on the threshing floor to protect the grain from thieves. (You may remember that Boaz slept on his threshing floor in the book of Ruth.) Prostitutes would visit the men at the threshing floors.
v 3 - Some of the Israelites did leave and go to Egypt during this period of time. See 2 Kings 25:26.
v 7-8 - Not liking the message of Hosea, the people mocked the messenger.
v 9 - Refers to Judges 19-20 when the men of the city wanted to have sex with a man who was visiting overnight. They were given his concubine, whom they abused all night instead. Then the people rose up and destroyed the entire city.
v 10 - The sin at Baal-Peor is told in Numbers 25 and occurred shortly before God transferred leadership from Moses to Joshua.
v 15 - The evil at Gilgal was appointing a human king (Saul) over the nation of Israel (1 Samuel 11).
REFLECTION/APPLICATION
I wonder how many times I have ignored or mocked a messenger just because I didn't want to hear what he had to say. Or maybe I've ignored some warnings in Scripture, thinking they don't apply to me. This chapter concludes with the words, "My God will cast them away because they have not listened to Him. . . " Oh, I pray that would not be true of me!
PRAYER
Lord, help us to truly listen to you with our hearts and seek after you with all of our beings. Let us not get distracted with the glitter and sins of this world but seek to obey you in all things. Amen.
2 comments:
Hey Katrina - Thanks for this. Not "fun" reading, but something we need to heed. I do have a question about what you say about Ephraim. I understand that "Ephraim" refers to Israel (northern kingdom) as opposed to Judah, the southern kingdom and that Hosea's message is to Israel. But what two tribes are you talking about when you talk about the two tribes: "Ephraim is the larger of the two tribes of Israel, and the title is used to refer to the whole nation"?
Oops. That should have been *ten* tribes. The northern kingdom of Israel was made up of ten of the tribes. Sorry about that confusing mistake. Thanks for keeping my on my toes! :)
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