September 27, 2010 Hosea 4-9

Hosea admonished Israel to listen to what the Lord wanted them to do. But no one did. The Lord was not happy with the priests and prophets. They were proud and stuffed themselves on the sin offerings. God was unhappy with the way the Israelites partied so much that they forgot about Him. They believed they didn't need God. They would rather not lead a decent life, so they would be swept away.

The Lord knew all about the sins of Israel and would judge the people. They brought sacrifices to the Lord, but refused to stop sinning, so the Lord refused their offerings. Judah would be crushed also. God would be waiting for the people to become desperate and need His help and call on Him.

Then the people remembered the peace and comfort they received from living in God's way. So they decided to return to Him. The Lord knew the short memories of the people and how they forgot Him when they became proud. The Lord told them they were unfit to worship Him.

The Lord told Hosea He would like nothing better than to help Israel. Then He would look at what the people were doing and realize that they weren't interested in Him. So they became weaker and allowed foreigners to rule over them. God compared Israel to a senseless bird that didn't know where it was going. The Lord knew they were howling just for show and calling it praying. The Lord told Hosea that the Israelites were useless as a crooked arrow and would be laughed at by the Egyptians.

The Lord reminded Israel that they broke the agreement they made with Him. They made kings and golden calfs without God's consent. Israel had built many altars and used them for sin. They ate their own sacrifices. But the Lord rejected their offerings and remembered their sins. God had created them and He could destroy them.

Hosea told the people not to celebrate. They had been unfaithful and would be punished. They wouldn't be able to offer sacrifices - they wouldn't please God anyway. Their terrible guilt had filled them with hatred, and they were brutal and corrupt. The Lord told the Israelites that at first, they were like green shoots, but they had become rotten. Hosea asked God to not let the women have children or be able to feed them. The Lord told Hosea that even if they did have more children, and He loved them dearly, He would slaughter them all.

Tomorrow read Hosea 10-14 & Joel 1-2:17