Immerse: Prophets - Flipbook - Page 32
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IMMERSE
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PROPHETS
• First, Israel is called to court: “Hear the word of the Lord ,
O people of Israel! The Lord has brought charges against you.”
• Next, the charges are brought: “There is no faithfulness, no kindness, no knowledge of God in your land. You make vows and
break them; you kill and steal and commit adultery. There is violence everywhere—one murder after another.”
• Then the sentence is pronounced: “That is why your land is in
mourning, and everyone is wasting away. Even the wild animals,
the birds of the sky, and the fish of the sea are disappearing.”
The people of Israel have failed to remain faithful in their covenant
relationship with God, and the consequences include the undoing of
creation itself. Part of Israel’s failure involved embracing the debauched
fertility cult of Baal, which the people had unfortunately become addicted to. Instead of looking to Baal for life and prosperity, the people
should have looked only to the Creator himself as the true source of
life. But now, in their disobedience, they would experience the desert
of exile and destruction.
Hosea highlights key events of Israel’s earlier covenant history, especially the Exodus, to inspire the people to renew their relationship
with God and begin living out their story in the present. At one point
Hosea takes a step back from delivering prophecies in God’s name in
order to appeal personally to his fellow Israelites, “Come, let us return
to the Lord .” If the people would return, then the Lord ’s promises of
restoration given through Hosea would be realized: “I will heal you of
your faithlessness; my love will know no bounds, for my anger will be
gone forever.”
