FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

Scripture Reference: Hosea 11-14

2. God’s Disciplines in the Present – Continued

Please read Hosea 12:1-13.16 for the background to this section.

The example of discipline (Hosea 12:2–6, 12) – continued. In obedience to God’s command, Jacob left Shechem and went to Bethel (Genesis 35), for it was at Bethel that he had first met the Lord years before (Genesis 28:10–22). There God had revealed Himself and given Jacob promises for himself and his descendants, and there Jacob had made solemn vows to the Lord. Actually, the return to Bethel was a new spiritual beginning for his whole family; for Jacob commanded them to abandon their foreign gods and worship Jehovah alone. It does a family good to experience this kind of dedication. Alexander Whyte said that the victorious Christian life is a series of new beginnings, and he was right.

But the Bethel experience also included some pain, for it was on that journey that Jacob’s beloved wife Rachel died in giving birth to Benjamin (Genesis 35:16–22). She called the boy Ben-Oni, which means “son of my sorrow”; but by faith, Jacob renamed him Benjamin, “son of my right hand.” (These two names suggest the two aspects of our Lord’s life and ministry, a Man of Sorrows and the resurrected Son exalted to the Father’s right hand.)

The divine title “Lord God of hosts [armies]” in verse 5 reminds us of Jacob’s experience at Mahanaim when he was about to meet his brother Esau (Genesis 32). Mahanaim means “the two camps,” for Jacob saw an army of angels watching over his camp. He was afraid of Esau and tried to appease him with gifts instead of trusting the Lord to deliver him. After all, didn’t God promise to care for Jacob and bring him safely back to Bethel? It was there that the angel of God wrestled with Jacob and “broke” him.

Jacob’s experiences getting a wife and raising a family are examples of God’s loving discipline (Genesis 29–30). In order to get the family blessing, Jacob had schemed and lied to his father Isaac, but now Laban would scheme and lie to Jacob in order to marry off two daughters in one week! Trying to please two wives, only one of whom he really loved, and trying to raise a large family, brought many burdens to Jacob, but he persisted, and God blessed him and made him a wealthy man. However, during those difficult years, Jacob suffered much (Genesis 31:36–42), yet the Lord was working out His purposes.

The reasons for discipline (Hosea 12:7–13:6). Now Hosea names some of the sins that His people had committed. Some of these he has dealt with before, so there’s no need to discuss them in detail.

He begins with dishonesty in business, defrauding people so as to make more money. Their prosperity led to pride, the kind of self-sufficiency that says, “We don’t need God” (see Revelation 3:17). But the Lord warned that He would humble them. Instead of enjoying their houses, they would live in tents as they did during their wilderness journey. When the Assyrians were through with Israel, the Jews would be grateful even for the booths they lived in for a week during the Feast of Tabernacles.

The prophets God sent had warned the people, but the people wouldn’t listen. They turned from the Word of the living God and practiced idolatry. This provoked God to anger, and the way they shed innocent blood provoked Him even more. (On Gilead’s wickedness, see Hosea 6:8–9).

Hosea singled out the arrogant attitude of the tribe of Ephraim. The name “Ephraim” is found thirty-seven times in Hosea’s prophecy. Sometimes “Ephraim” is a synonym for the whole Northern Kingdom, but here the prophet was addressing the tribe of Ephraim in particular. Ephraim and Manasseh were the sons of Joseph whom Jacob “adopted” and whose birth order he reversed (Genesis 48). Manasseh was the firstborn, but Jacob gave that honor to Ephraim.

The people of Ephraim felt they were an important tribe that deserved to be listened to and obeyed. After all, Joshua came from Ephraim (Numbers 13:8) and so did the first king of the Northern Kingdom, Jeroboam I (1 Kings 11:26). The tabernacle of testimony was pitched in Shiloh which was in Ephraim (Joshua 18:1). In their arrogance, the tribe of Ephraim created problems for both Gideon (Judges 7:24–25; 8:1–3) and Jephthah (Judges 12:1–6).

To Be Continued

Adapted and modified excerpts from Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Amazed, “Be” Commentary Series.
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture Reference: Hosea 11-14

2. God’s Disciplines in the Present – Continued

Please read Hosea 12:1-13.16 for the background to this section.

From last lesson: “For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.” – Hebrews 12:6; (Proverbs 3:11–12).

Hebrews 12:11–17 is the classic passage in Scripture on chastening. The Greek word paideia means “the rearing of a child,” because the purpose of discipline is maturity. Sometimes God disciplines us to correct our disobedience, but He may also discipline us when we’re obedient in order to equip us to serve Him better. David is an example of correcting discipline (2 Samuel 12; Psalms 32; 51), while Joseph is an example of perfecting discipline (Genesis 39–42; Psalm 105:16–22). Note that the context of Hebrews 12 is that of athletics, running the race (Hebrews 12:1–3). Athletes must experience the pain of discipline (dieting, exercising, competing) if they ever hope to excel. Nobody ever mastered a sport simply by listening to a lecture or watching a video, as helpful as those encounters may be. At some point, the swimmer must dive into the water, the wrestler must hit the mat, and the runner must take his or her place on the track. Likewise, the children of God must experience the pain of discipline—correcting and perfecting—if they are to mature and become like Jesus Christ.

The need for discipline (Hosea 12:1). The Jewish people were living for vanity—“the wind”—and receiving no nourishment. The word translated “feed” means “to graze”; but whoever saw hungry sheep ignoring the green grass and chewing on the wind? The very idea is ridiculous, but that’s the way God’s people were living.

Israel was committing two sins: First, they were worshiping idols which are nothing, even less than nothing, and turning from the true God to live on empty substitutes. They were feeding on the wind. Second, they were depending for protection on treaties with Egypt and Assyria instead of trusting their great God. This too was emptiness and chasing after the wind, and God had to discipline Israel to bring them back to Himself and His Word.

The example of discipline (Hosea 12:2–6, 12). Abraham is the father of the Jewish nation (Matthew 3:9), but it was Jacob who built the twelve tribes of Israel (Genesis 46:8–27). Hosea used the name “Jacob” for the nation because Jacob is an illustration of God’s loving discipline. Hosea cited several key events in Jacob’s life.

“Israel” is the new name God gave Jacob after struggling with him at Jabbok (Genesis 32:24–32), but scholars aren’t agreed on its meaning. The generally accepted meaning is “prince with God,” that is, a “God-controlled person.” Others suggest “he persists with God,” which certainly fits the account; for Jacob wrestled with the angel of the Lord and didn’t want to give in. Though Jacob made some mistakes and sometimes trusted his own ingenuity too much, he did persist with God and seek God’s help, and God used him to build the nation of Israel. Some people have been too hard on Jacob, forgetting that believers in that day didn’t have the advantages we have today. God has deigned to call Himself “the God of Jacob,” and that’s a very high compliment to a great man.

Jacob struggled with his brother even before he and Esau were born (Genesis 25:20–23), and at birth, Jacob tried to trip up his brother Esau even as they were coming from the womb (Genesis 25:24–26). The name “Jacob” means “he grasps the heel,” which is another way or saying, “He’s a deceiver, a trickster.” During most of his life, Jacob struggled with himself, with others, and with the Lord, and until he surrendered to God at Jabbok, he never really walked by faith. God had to discipline him to bring him to that place of surrender.

All of us are Jacobs at heart according to Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” The Hebrew word translated “deceitful” is the root word for the name “Jacob.” It means “to take by the heel, to supplant.” The English word “supplant” comes from a Latin word that means to “to overthrow by tripping up.” Jacob tripped up his brother and took his place when it came to both the family birthright and the blessing (Genesis 27:36). Of course, God had given both to Jacob before his birth (Genesis 25:23), but instead of trusting God, Jacob used his own devices to get what he wanted. Faith is living without scheming.

To Be Continued

Adapted and modified excerpts from Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Amazed, “Be” Commentary Series.
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture Reference: Hosea 11-14

1. God’s Mercies in the Past – Continued

Please read Hosea 11:1-12 for the background to this section.

God’s love demonstrated by His long-suffering (Hosea 11:5–7). On more than one occasion, God could have destroyed the nation and started over again (Exodus 32:10), but He chose to be long-suffering. When the journey became difficult, the Jews wanted to go back to Egypt; they complained when they should have been praying and giving thanks for God’s mercies.

We have already seen that some of the references to Egypt in this book refer to the “new bondage” in Assyria. Israel refused to repent, so the nation had to go into captivity. They made plans without consulting God, so their defenses would fall before the invaders. The only time they called on God was when they were in trouble, and God graciously helped them; but now the end had come.

God’s love demonstrated by His faithfulness to His promises (Hosea 11:8–9). What a revelation we have in verse 8 of the compassionate heart of God! According to Jewish law, a rebellious son was supposed to be turned over to the elders of the city and stoned to death (Deuteronomy 21:18–21), but how could God do this to His beloved son, Israel? (Centuries later, His innocent, only-begotten Son would suffer for the sins of the whole world.) God destroyed the cities of the plain because of their sins (Genesis 18:16–19:29), and those people didn’t have the same privileges of learning about God that Israel had. What right did Israel have to expect God to spare them, especially since they were sinning against a flood of light.

What motivated God to spare Israel from total destruction? Not only His deep compassion, but also His faithfulness to His covenant. “For I am God, and not man.” – Hosea 11:9. “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” – Numbers 23:19.

God’s covenant with Abraham (Genesis 12:1–3) is unconditional and will not change; therefore, the nation of Israel is preserved. But His covenant with Israel at Sinai had conditions attached, and if the people failed to meet those conditions, God was obligated to withdraw His blessings. Israel’s possession of the land and its blessings is based on the Abrahamic Covenant, but their enjoyment of the land and its blessings is based on the Mosaic Covenant. God was faithful to both covenants: He preserved the nation, but He disciplined them for their sins.

God’s love demonstrated by the hope of future restoration (Hosea 11:10–12). Often in Scripture you will find a declaration of judgment immediately followed by a promise of hope, and that’s the case here. Hosea looks ahead to the end times when Israel will be gathered together from all the nations, brought to their own land, cleansed of their sins, and established in their kingdom. In the past, God roared like a lion when He judged the nation (Hosea 5:14; 13:7, but in the future, His “roar” will call His people to come back to their land. Like birds turned loose from their cages, the people of Israel will swiftly fly to their own land, and God will “settle them in their homes” (Hosea 11:11, NIV).

Meanwhile, God is long-suffering with His people, as He is with all sinners (2 Peter 3:9), even though they lie to Him and rebel against Him. What Jesus said to Jerusalem in His day, God was saying through Hosea to the people of that day: “How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” – Matthew 23:37.

God’s mercies in the past certainly proved His love, but Hosea offered a second evidence that God loved His people.

2. God’s Disciplines in the Present

Please read Hosea 12:1-13.16 for the background to this section.

“For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.” – Hebrews 12:6; (Proverbs 3:11–12). Chastening isn’t a judge inflicting punishment on a criminal in order to uphold the law. Rather, chastening is a loving parent disciplining his or her child in order to perfect his character and build his endurance. Punishment has to do with law, which is important, but chastening has to do with love, which is also important.

To Be Continued

Adapted and modified excerpts from Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Amazed, “Be” Commentary Series.
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Where noted, Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV © 2011 by Biblica, Inc.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.