Old Testament Prophets

Class 5 – Hosea Introduction

1. Review last week – questions?
   
   
2. Hosea – “Hosea competes with Job for the distinction of containing more unintelligible passages than any other book of the Hebrew bible” (commentary on Hosea by Anderson & Freedman).
1. Most of the book is poetic – only two sections (1:2-2:1 and 3:1-5) are prose.
2. Because the book lacks normal “cues” such as “thus saith the Lord” it is difficult to distinguish individual oracles from one another.
3. However, both Judgment speech (such as 1:2-9) and salvation speech (such as 1:10-2:1) can be easily seen.
   
   
3. Historical Background
1. Audience – primarily the Northern Kingdom.
2. Date – superscription and opening verse place Hosea firmly in the 8^th century – ie., roughly @ 750 BC to 715BC (although some date him earlier – ie., between 793 and 753 BC and some modern scholarship believes it may have been written or at least heavily edited much later (due to the frequent references to Judah).
   
   “It’s origins belong in the northern kingdom, its transmission belongs for the greater part of its history of Judah”.
3. Author – Hosea is self identified

                                                               i.      Modern scholars disagree between those who accept Hosea as the primary (if not the sole) author and those who discount single authorship due to dating questions and prophetic utterances (which some scholars entirely discount).

                                                             ii.      Some scholars admit possibility that later (Judean) followers inserted Judah for prophetic utterances that were originally directed towards the North.

4. Historical period

                                                               i.      At the beginning of this period both northern and southern kingdoms are prosperous and expanding.

1.      Lesson learned – increased prosperity led not to increased faithfulness to God but to godlessness and abuse of the power and gifts that have been given.

                                                             ii.      After Jeroboam II’s death the north rapidly unwinds

1.      6 kings in 30 years; 3 last less than 2 years and 1 is deposed.

2.      Assyria becomes aggressive and finally annexes the North in 722.

4. HHStructure (from Dillard & Longman):
   
   
1. Superscription
2. 1:2-3:5 Hosea’s troubled marriage reflects God’s relationship with Israel

                                                               i.      1:2-2:1 Hosea, Gomer and their Children

1.      1:2-9 Prophetic Sing act of judgment

2.      1:10-2:1 the Relationship restored

                                                             ii.      2:2-23 The Lord’s marriage to Israel

1.      2:213 The relationship broken

2.      2:14-23 the relationship restored

                                                            iii.      3:1-5 Hosea’s restored marriage relationship

3. 4:1-11:11 First prophetic cycle

                                                               i.      4:1-19 God accuses Israel of unfaithfulness

                                                             ii.      5:1-15 God punishes Israel

                                                            iii.      6:1-7 – 7:16 Hosea’s cal top repentance ignored

                                                           iv.      8:1-10:15 God punishes Israel for rejecting Him

                                                             v.      11:1-11 God’s love for Israel overwhelms His anger

4. 11:12-14:8 Second prophetic cycle

                                                               i.      11:12-12:14 Israel sins against God

                                                             ii.      13:1-16 God is angry with His people

                                                            iii.      14:1-8 Israel repents and is blessed.

14:9 Wisdom Colophon

5. Theological message
1. Breaking of the covenant
2. Hosea’s marriage to Gomer represents Israel’s infidelity to God

                                                               i.      (Hosea may have been the first to use the marriage covenant in this way – this is important because these two relationships – marriage the covenant between God and man – are, unlike most agreements – exclusive)

                                                             ii.      We have a clear analogy between a marriage gone bad (sexual immorality) and idolatry.

3. Judgment and salvation

                                                               i.      Hosea 4:6 – ‘God’s people are destroyed from lack of knowledge’.

                                                             ii.      God will not leave his people under judgment

1.      Second exodus (2:14-15)

2.      Heal Israel of their wounds from disobedience (14:1-9).

6. Approaching the New Testament
1. Several New Testament passages refer back to Hosea’s inclusion of the Gentiles in God’s covenant (Romans 9:25 & 1 Peter 2:10).
2. Hosea 13:14 is quoted by Paul in 1 Cor 15:55
3. Most recognized is Matthew 2:15 – which takes Hosea as a prophecy for Christ’s coming out of Egypt (Hosea 11:1)
4. Continuation and development of Hosea’s understanding of the divine covenant as symbolized in human marriage (see especially Ephesians 5:22-33).