Jacqui: 0:12

Greetings listeners. Today we're exploring the book of Hosea, a prophet whose life was his message. Imagine being asked by God to live out a painful, heartbreaking relationship, to show the world just how deeply God loves his people, even when they're unfaithful to him. That's exactly what happens in the story of Hosea, and it's one of the most unforgettable prophetic books in the Bible. But what does this ancient story mean for us today? Well, let's explore that together. Well, welcome everyone.

Jacqui: 0:54

I'm your host, Jacqui Adewole, and this is the Bible Basics Podcast, where, weekly, we break down the basics of the Bible into understandable, bite-sized chunks. Let's set the stage. Hosea was a prophet in the northern kingdom of Israel somewhere between 755 to 710 BC. On the surface, things looked prosperous, israel's economy was strong and the nation felt secure, but beneath the surface, spiritual decay was eating Israel alive. The people worshiped Baal, b-a-a-l, a fertility god, while still claiming loyalty to the one true God, Yahweh. And instead of trusting God for protection, israel was courting alliances with Assyria, the very empire God would soon use to bring their judgment. Hosea's prophecy was God's final voice to the northern kingdom before its destruction, a last warning before everything collapsed. It was a classic case of trusting human power instead of divine protection, and Hosea had a lot to say about it. So who was Hosea? We don't know much about his background. What we do know comes almost entirely from his own book. His name means salvation and, interestingly, it shares the same Hebrew root as Joshua and Jesus, which mean Yahweh is salvation, salvation.

Jacqui: 2:49

Hosea wasn't a palace insider or a priest from a famous family. He was just a man called by God to deliver a deeply personal and painful message, one that played out not only in his preaching but also in his own marriage. His primary audience was the northern kingdom of Israel, and if you read his book, you'll notice Hosea calls them by several different names. Sometimes he says Israel, which is the usual name, other times he calls them Ephraim, because Ephraim was the dominant tribe in the north, and still other times he uses Samaria, the capital city, as a shorthand for the whole kingdom. His 8th century contemporaries included Amos in the north and Isaiah and Micah in the south. But what really sets Hosea apart is this God told him to marry a woman named Gomer, knowing from the start she would be unfaithful. Their broken marriage was meant to be a living picture, something the people could see with their own eyes that showed how Israel had betrayed God's covenant God's covenant. Even in that heartbreak, God used Hosea's marriage to illustrate his own relentless love, a love that refuses to quit even when the beloved has wandered far away.

Jacqui: 4:19

Now let's look at the way the book is organized and its contents. The book of Hosea has 14 chapters and flows between two main sections. Chapters 1 through 3, the Unfaithful Wife tells the story of Hosea's marriage to Gomer, showing how her repeated unfaithfulness mirrors Israel's spiritual adultery. Then there are chapters 4 through 14, the Unfaithful People. It shifts into a loose collection of prophetic messages delivered during Hosea's almost 50-year career as a prophet. In them, hosea lays out three primary topics the charges against Israel, the coming judgment, but it also offers a stunning promise of restoration if they would just return to God. In terms of genre, virtually the entire book is penned in poetry, with the exceptions of chapters 1 and 3.

Jacqui: 5:27

Now let's look at the prophet's main message. If you had to sum up the entire book of Hosea in one sentence, it would be this God's love for his people is relentless, even when they are unfaithful. But to really understand Hosea's message, we need to remember the covenant Israel was living under, the Mosaic Covenant. The Mosaic Covenant was a binding agreement that set Israel apart as God's chosen people, but it also came with conditions. If they obeyed they would be blessed. If they broke it they would face consequences. The covenant is the frame of reference for the whole book. Every warning of judgment, every call to repentance and every promise of restoration is tied to that covenant relationship.

Jacqui: 6:22

Hosea is not just saying try harder people. He was saying remember who you are. You are God's covenant people, but you're living like you don't even know him. That's the heartbeat of the whole book, and Hosea delivers this message through three main truths. First, God hates sin. Second, judgment the consequence of sin is coming. But third and this is the one we can't miss God's loyal love will not let them go. Let's break this down a bit. Truth number one God hates sin.

Jacqui: 7:05

The biggest issue spiritual adultery. The people of Israel were bowing to idols like Baal, but that wasn't the only problem. They were also putting their trust in political alliances instead of God. Hosea, chapter 7, verse 11, puts it this way. Hosea, chapter 7, verse 11, puts it this way quote Ephraim is like a dove, easily deceived and senseless. Now calling to Egypt, now turning to Assyria unquote. They were running to foreign nations for protection instead of trusting the God who had rescued them from Egypt in the first place. It's like spiritual cheating and political cheating rolled into one. And Hosea's message was clear Foreign alliances can't save you when you've abandoned the God who actually can. And there was another layer to the problem, and it was a leadership failure.

Jacqui: 8:06

In chapter 4, verse 6, God says quote my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Unquote. At first that sounds like the people just forgot some facts about God. But Hosea makes it clear that part of the blame falls on the priests, the very people God had entrusted to teach the people his law. And we find that in Deuteronomy, chapter 33, verse 10.

Jacqui: 8:33

Instead of teaching truth, the priests had become corrupt. Hosea, chapter 4, verse 8, says that they were literally feeding off of the sin of the people, profiting from sacrifices instead of calling the people to repentance. And chapter 6, verse 9, paints an even darker picture. God says the priests have become like a gang of robbers, committing violence themselves. Yes, this is not what priests were supposed to be according to Deuteronomy 33 and Malachi 2. Priests were meant to guard knowledge, teach God's ways and guide the people into right relationship with him. But in Hosea's day, the priests forgot God's law, so the people never really knew it either. Now, this is a warning that still applies today.

Jacqui: 9:26

When spiritual leaders stop teaching the truth or when churches replace God's word with feel-good messages or empty rituals, spiritual drift isn't far behind. And at the same time, each of us has the responsibility to seek to know God personally. It's not about filling our heads with religious facts, it's about growing in real relationship with him. That's why God says in chapter 6, verse 6, quote for I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings, unquote. In other words, I'm not after empty religious performances. I want hearts that actually know and love me.

Jacqui: 10:19

Now let's look at truth number two. Judgment was coming. The Assyrians would invade. Two judgment was coming. The Assyrians would invade. Exile was on the horizon. Chapter 8, verse 7 paints the picture with this well-known phrase, quote they have sown the wind and they shall reap the whirlwind. The very nation Israel trusted to protect them would become the instrument of God's judgment. Their false worship, injustice and refusal to know God would all catch up with them. But there's truth number three hope of restoration. Even though judgment was certain, it wouldn't be the end of the story, judgment was certain it wouldn't be the end of the story.

Jacqui: 11:04

Hosea's message doesn't stop at judgment. It ends with hope, and this is consistent with God's character. God is just, yes, but he is also merciful. After exile, after everything falls apart, god promises he will heal and restore his people. Chapter 14, verse 4, says I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them. Even after betrayal, even after judgment, god's love would still be there, pursuing forgiving, restoring and Hosea's own painful story pursuing and redeeming his unfaithful wife, even while she was in the midst of her sinful behavior. God was making a way to bring her back. That's an unforgettable message of hope.

Jacqui: 12:10

Now let's look at something we've been trying to do with all the prophets looking at their strange but powerful prophetic imagery. Prophets were famous for using bold, even shocking imagery to make their message impossible to ignore, and Hosea's book is full of vivid symbolic pictures. What makes Hosea unique, though, is that the imagery wasn't just in his sermons. It was in his life. The first and most personal image is in his marriage to Gomer. The first and most personal image is in his marriage to Gomer. God told Hosea to marry a woman who would be unfaithful, to show Israel what their unfaithfulness to God looked like. And Hosea obeyed Gomer, chased after other lovers and eventually ended up enslaved, but Hosea didn't give up. Enslaved, but Hosea didn't give up. In chapter three, hosea buys her back, paying a price to redeem his own wife. It's a living picture of grace, hosea rescuing Gomer, just like God longs to rescue his people. It's love that pursues, forgives and restores, even when it's undeserved.

Jacqui: 13:30

The next powerful image comes from the names God gave Hosea and Gomer's three children, and we see that in chapter 1, verses 4 through 9. Each name was a message from God to Israel, was a message from God to Israel. The first son was named Jezreel, meaning God scatters, a warning of coming destruction. The next daughter was named Lo-Ruhamah, meaning no mercy or no love, a sign that God's patience was running out. The third child, a son, was named Lo Ammi, meaning not my people, a heartbreaking declaration that Israel had broken the covenant. But here's the amazing twist, in chapter 2, verse 23, god reverses the names. Not my people becomes you are my people. No mercy becomes I will show mercy.

Jacqui: 14:30

Even when Israel rebelled, god was already planning to restore the relationship. And the name Jezreel also gets a surprising twist in chapter 2, verse 22. At first Jezreel pointed to judgment. Israel would be scattered by exile, but later God uses the same name to promise restoration. He would sow them back into the land like a farmer planting seeds. It's a beautiful reminder that even in judgment, God is already planning redemption.

Jacqui: 15:08

But not all of Hosea's imagery is about restoration. Some of it is intense, describing judgment with the force of an attacking lion in chapter 5:14, or an enraged bear in chapter 13, verse 8. Why? Because sin isn't just breaking rules, it's breaking God's heart. It's harsh, even unsettling language, but it shows just how seriously God takes Israel's sin and just how deeply he feels the pain of broken covenant love. This isn't God lashing out in random anger. It's the grief of a betrayed spouse who has loved relentlessly and been rejected again and again. For us today it's a powerful reminder that sin isn't just breaking rules, it's breaking God's heart. It's breaking God's heart and yet, even in that heartbreak, God's love still pursues, forgives and restores.

Jacqui: 16:19

So at this point you might be wondering what does Hosea's story have to do with me? Honestly, a lot. Let me walk you through three key ways. This ancient story speaks directly to us today. First, jesus. Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of Hosea's message. Just like Hosea pursued and redeemed Gomer, jesus pursued and redeemed us. We were lost in sin, spiritually unfaithful and unable to save ourselves, but Jesus paid the price to bring us back. That picture of Hosea buying Gomer back from slavery, that's a preview of the cross, where Jesus paid the ultimate price to set us free. Second, Hosea calls us to faithfulness, and Jesus does too.

Jacqui: 17:09

Israel's mistake was chasing after other gods. What about us? What are the gods with a small g we chase today? Money, success, approval, relationships.

Jacqui: 17:24

There's an old hymn called Come Thou Fount that captures this tension so well. I included a link to some of my favorite renditions of this song in the show notes, but anyway it has a line that goes quote prone to wander, lord, I feel it Prone to leave the God I love, unquote. But that same hymn also gives us the hope we need. Quote Jesus sought me when a stranger wandering from the fold of God, unquote. And that's Hosea's message and the message of the gospel. So the third way this applies to us today and maybe most powerfully. Hosea reminds us that God's love never gives up, even when we wander, he calls us back. He doesn't excuse sin. But his love isn't based on our performance, it's based on who he is.

Jacqui: 18:32

I can't help but think of Hosea 11, where God reflects on his love for Israel like a parent remembering their child's first steps. Let me read this to you. It's too beautiful to skip. Quote. And we're starting with verse one. When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt, I called my son. But the more they called, the more they went away from me. They sacrificed to the Baals and they burned incense to images. It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms, but they did not realize. It was I who healed them. And if that doesn't move you, listen to this promise from chapter 14.4. Quote I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them. Unquote. I don't know about you, but that gets me every time.

Jacqui: 19:50

Actually, the whole final chapter of Hosea is a call to return, not to condemnation, but to healing. So if you've ever felt too far gone, hear this loud and clear God is still pursuing you. So what can we take away from this book of Hosea? If you could sum this message up in one line. It might be this God's love is faithful even when we're not.

Jacqui: 20:19

Hosea's story gives us a preview of the gospel A God who pursues sinners, pays the price to redeem them and invites them back into relationship despite their unfaithfulness. In the New Testament, jesus is described as the bridegroom, the faithful husband who rescues and restores his bride, the church. Hosea's story helps us understand just how costly and personal God's love really is, and it still matters today. Maybe you felt unworthy of God's love. Maybe you've wandered further than you ever imagined. Hosea reminds us God's love doesn't waver. It doesn't depend on our perfection. Doesn't waver. It doesn't depend on our perfection. It remains steadfast, patient and always ready to restore. No matter where you've been, god hasn't given up on you and he never will. Thank you for joining me today. Next time we'll continue exploring the prophets, so be sure to tune in and, as always, keep reading, keep seeking and keep growing in your faith so that we spread God's word further. Please share, like, follow, comment and subscribe.