Hosea

Background

Hosea was a prophet who lived in the mid 8th century (788-748 BC) raised in the Northern Kingdom. Most of the other prophets near that time came from the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Jonah came from the North, but his book was more of a biography. The Northern Kingdom was in a prosperous period, but also a period of pride and Baal and other idol worship. Baal worship was attractive because you didn’t have to offer much to the religion, it was easy religion. King Jeroboam II of Israel was the king at the time. The Mosaic Law was very exacting and demanding, but Baal worship was lenient.

Elder Eyring said, " conference of 1996, he said, the book of Hosea, like the writings of Isaiah, uses what seemed to me almost poetic images. The symbols in Hosea are a husband, his bride, her betrayal, and a test of

Hosea 1

In Hosea 1, the Lord commands Hosea to marry a woman who had committed whoredoms, so he marries Gomer and they have 2 sons and 1 daughter. The Lord commands Hosea to name them.

• “Jezreel” is the first son which in Hebrew (Yizre’el) means “God sows” or “may God give seed,”
• Name Lo-ruhamah: Not having obtained mercy; not pitied
• Name Lo-ammi: Not loved, not mercy

Hosea 1

3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son.

Hosea predicts the fall of Israel to the Assyrians.

• Creation