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| Politically Incorrect
Hos 8:4-6 They
made kings, but not through me. They set up princes, but I knew it not.
With their silver and gold they made idols for their own destruction. I
have spurned your calf, O Samaria. My anger burns against them. How
long will they be incapable of innocence? For it is from Israel; a
craftsman made it; it is not God. The calf of Samaria shall be
broken to pieces. In the decades leading up to the collapse of Samaria
a whole string of kings ruled the Northern Kingdom. 2 Ki 15 records
these kings in Israel following the death of Jeroboam (second) who
ruled from Samaria for 41 years. Zechariah, son of Jeroboam, ruled 6
months and was murdered by Shallum. Shallum ruled 1 month and was
murdered by Menahem. Menahem ruled 10 years and started paying tributes
to Assyria. He died and was succeeded by Pekahiah who ruled for two
years. Pekah murdered Pekahiah and ruled for 20 years. Hoshea, the last
king of Israel, murdered Pekah and ruled 9 years. Samaria fell in 722
BC. A total of seven kings ruled Israel within a span of less than 50
years. All this king making was not what God wanted for Israel nor was
it by God’s hand. Each king was more evil than the one before, all the
way back to the first illegitimate king of Israel (Jeroboam, first) who
began the practice of accepting foreign gods out of spite, greed and
pride (1 Ki 12). Hosea expresses God’s frustration when he asks the
rhetorical question, “How long will they be incapable of innocence?”
The reference to the “calf of Samaria” is a direct reference to the
initiation of the practice of idol worship by Jeroboam (first) when he
led the Northern tribes away from Jerusalem’s king, Rehoboam, the son
of Solomon (1 Ki 12:28). God had spared Israel many times, but enough
was enough and the sin of Israel was about to reap its punishment. | | |
| I Never Knew You
Hos 8:2-3 To
me they cry, “My God, we—Israel—know you.” Israel has spurned the good;
the enemy shall pursue him. Taken together this passage sounds very
much like a practical application of Jesus’ words to the crowds in Mt
7:21-23: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the
kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in
heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not
prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many
mighty works in your name? And then I will declare to them ‘I never
knew you; depart from me you workers of lawlessness.’” Jesus
quoted the prophets, directly or indirectly, dozens of times in the
Gospels. In this case he may well have had Hosea’s prophecy in mind.
Human pride puffs us up and makes us believe in our own worthiness. God
does not judge us as we judge ourselves. He sees through our façade to
the foundation of our souls. We are either built on the rock or sinking
sand. Those who claim to know the Lord will be held most accountable.
Ancient Israel was a nation comprised of 10 of the 12 tribes who
worshipped YHWH in the wilderness. They were once united under Saul,
David, and Solomon. By the mid-eighth century BC, however, the security
and prosperity won by God’s hand was now being taken for granted.
Political correctness and tolerance replaced purity of faith,
righteousness of action, and holiness of character. Frighteningly, the
same assessment could be made of America and much of the rest of
western civilization today. | | |
| Vultures and Eagles
Hos 8:1 Set
the trumpet to your lips! One like a vulture is over the house of the
Lord, because they have transgressed my covenant and rebelled against
my law. The trumpet warns that someone is watching and waiting
to devour. The word translated “vulture” in ESV is translated “eagle”
in KJV. Since the meaning is uncertain, there are at least two ways of
viewing this passage. Vultures are scavengers. When an animal dies,
such as when a lion makes a kill, the vultures come and pick clean
whatever is left. Assyria attacked much like a lion, but a bit more
than a century later Babylon would strike down Jerusalem and take what
it desired from the countryside of Israel much like a vulture picking
over century old remnants. Nebuchadnezzar is also referred to as an
eagle (cf Eze 17). A reference to Babylon may also make sense in
context because a few verses later we see that Judah receives some
degree of judgment in the failures for which Israel is being judged. It
could also mean that like an eagle, Assyria is watching Israel closely
and waiting for the right time to swoop down upon its prey. Regardless
of the correct interpretation, the reason for the danger is Israel’s
own sin. Transgression against the covenant and the law (literally
“Torah”), both great gifts given by YHWH, is essentially the same thing
as open rebellion against God Himself. | | |
| They Could Have Done Better
Hos 7:13-16 Woe
to them, for they have strayed from me! Destruction to them, for they
have rebelled against me! I would redeem them, but they speak lies
against me. They do not cry to me from the heart, but they wail upon
their beds; for grain and wine they gash themselves; they rebel against
me. Although I trained and strengthened their arms, yet they devise
evil against me. They return, but not upward; they are like a
treacherous bow; their princes shall fall by the sword because of the
insolence of their tongue. This shall be their derision in the land of
Egypt. This passage contains phrases which are difficult to
translate into English and even more difficult to accurately interpret
regardless of language. There is no doubt that Israel was about to face
mortal crisis. It is clear God would have rescued them had they not
stubbornly remained in rebellion. As long as they remained attached to
the foreign gods, their worship of YHWH was at best tainted and more
accurately it should be described as an abomination. Their false
worship made a lie of their original faith. “Wailing on their beds” and
“gashing themselves” for grain and wine are very likely references to
cult practices including ritual prostitution and self-mutilation or
perhaps tattoos. These practices were intended generate bountiful
crops. God was their source of strength and they forsook Him for
pleasures that seemed right in to their broken human thinking. The
Hebrew term translated “Redeem” literally means to “buy back” in the
legal sense. The fall of Israel is not what God wanted, but because the
people rejected God so completely they were going to have to face dire
consequences. Hos 7:16 contains some very difficult to translate and
interpret language, but the basic idea is that they look everywhere
except to God and heaven. Hosea aptly compares them to a defective bow
that can’t shoot straight. The final phrases regarding the tongue and
Egypt, though difficult to translate clearly, are essentially are
saying that Samaria’s leadership will be slain for talking to Egypt. As
the record of 2 Ki 17:4 shows, this came to pass exactly as Hosea
predicted. Hosea’s prophecy for Israel applied directly and
specifically to Israel. In spite of its startling accuracy of detail,
the lessons intended for the ancient kingdoms of Israel and Judah are
eternal, unchanging, and as applicable today as they were in the second
half of the eighth century BC. God desires pure and honest worship. He
is creator of the universe and redeemer of all the lost who would seek
Him first and only. We play a dangerous game when we pretend religion
yet live our lives with hearts cold to the fire of the Holy Spirit. | | |
| Tweaks
I've tweaked the header and footer of my site. I'm open to opinion. In case you don't recognize the differences, I've eliminated the earthquake, hurricane, and local dark sky maps from the footer and added links to those items under my News section in the index at the bottom. I am using the miniature satellite map up top below the local radar instead of the big national map at the bottom. I've reorganized the top layout into three columns instead of four and moved stuff around. I'm open to suggestions if you all think there's still too much stuff, not enough, would look better another way, or whatever. Of course I may ignore advice, but I'd still like here opinions.
Shelfari
I've found an excellent site for people who love to read books (and authors, too). www.shelfari.com. I added my shelfari bookshelf at the very bottom of my site here. My book list will be growing soon as I start to catalog the dozens of books I have at home - I plan to only put the better ones on my shelf.
MIA
I'll be doing training next week and probably won't be around much. I might be here. I might not. Don't worry though if you don't see me.
SenselessnessHos 7:11-12 Ephraim
is like a dove, silly and without sense, calling to Egypt, going to
Assyria. As they go, I will spread over them my net; I will bring them
down like birds of the heavens; I will discipline them according to the
report made to their congregation. The dove is often associated
with hope and peace. We draw this image from the passage in Genesis
where Noah sends the dove and it returns with the olive branch (Gen
8:11). Another passage of hope where the dove is a powerful symbol is
found in Mt 3:16 when Jesus is baptized and John saw “the Spirit of God
descending like a dove.” Doves are notoriously easy going creatures. A
bit noisy and messy perhaps, but they don’t mind people very much and
they seem to thrive in most environments. This also makes them easy to
capture and thus seemingly silly. In this passage Hosea specifically
mentions the attempt made by Samaria to court Egypt to support them
against Assyria. Israel was already paying tributes to Assyria. The
tribute worked something like a tax, but in reality it was a bribe to
keep the brutal Assyrians from plundering by force. Either way it was
against God’s will for Israel to pay other nations for their own
security. Israel wanted to try to work a better deal so they began
courting Egypt. In about 725 BC Hoshea, king of Israel refused to pay
the tribute to Assyria and sent a message to Pharaoh asking for help.
Shalmaneser, the king of Assyria, discovered Hoshea’s plan. He captured
Hoshea and imprisoned him. For three years he assaulted Israel until
finally Samaria and all of the territories of the Northern Kingdom were
subdued. In 722 BC the conquest was complete. God promised Israel would
be captured like doves and that was a perfect description because, like
doves captured in a net, the people were gathered up and removed from
their homeland as exiles. 2 Ki 17 provides a complete and detailed
report of the fall of Israel, the capture of King Hoshea, the exiling
of the people, and the reasons why God allowed Israel to be punished –
exactly as Hosea prophesied.
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This is my book. It is for sale online. Ask James is a bible study in Q&A format. It is perfect for individual or small group studies. This book covers a multitude of topics from joy to anger, death to salvation, faith to doubt, temptation to religion, and many more. Learn to ask hard questions and how to find satisfying answers. Buy my book today. Buy enough for your next group study.
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