By Kara Parker
Background
Notes according to my NIV:
Purpose of this Book: To illustrate God's Love for His sinful people
Author: Hosea, son of Beeri (Hosea means, "Salvation")
Original Audience: The people of Israel (the northern kingdom)
Date Written: Approx: 715 BC, recording events from 753-715 bc
Setting: Hosea began his ministry during the end of the prosperous but morally declining reign of Jeroboam II of Israel (the upper classes were doing well, but they were oppressing the poor) He prophesied until shortly after the fall of Samaria in 722 BC.
Key Verse: "The Lord said to me, 'Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelis, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes." (3:1)
Key People: Hosea, Gomer, their children
Special Features: Hosea employs many images from daily life: God is depicted as husband, lion, leopard, bear, dew, rain, moth, and others; Israel is pictured as wife, sick person, vine, grapes, early fruit, olive tree, woman in childbirth, oven, morning mist, chaff, and smoke, to name a few
My notes and thoughts:
Chapter 1
Hosea writes in parallel. One moment Hosea is writing about Hosea and his adulterous wife-Gomer. The next he is comparing Israel and Israel's relationship with God.
Bear with me as I decipher which one he is talking about when!
Verse 1: Huh?!
Verse 2: So the story starts-- God tells Hosea to take an adulteress wife, because Israel has be adulteress towards God. Can you imagine being told to go do something that is going to "Fail?" Go take this girl, but she is going to cheat on you, and break your heart. All I can think is, "great God, I'll get right on that!" But Hosea did. And that is how our story begins.... 1st comes Love....
Verse 3: So he married Gomer-- daughter of Diblaim (great names!) And she conceived a son! Then comes marriage...
Verse 4-5: They called him Jezreel "Because I (God) will soon punish the house of Jehu for the massacre at Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel. In that day I will break Isreal's bow in the Valley of Jezreel."
Wow. Well, Ok! Apparently according to my study notes at the bottom of my page. Jezreel is the valley that Ahab's family was massacre. And 25 years later the Assyrians conquered the northern kingdom and carried the people into captivity.
Verse 6: Gomer gets pregnant again with a daughter named "Lo-Ruhamah" and "I will no longer show mercy on the house of Israel, but I will utterly take them away"-kjv
Verse 7: Yet God will show his love not by weapons or wars by by the Lord their God.
Verse 8 & 9: When Gomer quit nursing Lo-Ruhamah (wonder why it's important to point that out. This child could be anywhere from 6 weeks to (thanks to Time Magazine) 5 years! Or maybe the oldest 2 were so close in age that she was still nursing the first one when she had the second? So Hosea just wanted to point out the longer difference in the 2nd and 3rd child?) She had another son-- Lo-Ammi. Because God said, "You are not my people, and I am not your God." Eeeeek. Thank goodness he doesn't say that anymore!
Verse 10: Isrealites are compared to sand on the seashore, because there is so many of them. They cannot be measured or counted (is that not the same thing??) "You are not my people, 'they will be called 'sons of the living God."" WHO IS CONFUSED??? (my hand is raised)
Verse 11: but apparently the sons of Judah and the sons of Israel will be gathered together. And they will appoint ONE leader. And they will go up from the land. And it will be known as the "day of Jezreel" (Apparently relating back to Hosea and Gomer's first child that was conceived right after they were married.)
OK! That was it. We survived Book ONE. Next Chapter TWO!