Hosea 2:2-7

Spend time in prayer and silence with God asking Him to meet with you and speak to you.

Bible Reading

“But now bring charges against Israel—your mother—for she is no longer my wife, and I am no longer her husband. Tell her to remove the prostitute’s makeup from her face and the clothing that exposes her breasts. Otherwise, I will strip her as naked as she was on the day she was born. I will leave her to die of thirst, as in a dry and barren wilderness. And I will not love her children, for they were conceived in prostitution. Their mother is a shameless prostitute and became pregnant in a shameful way. She said, ‘I’ll run after other lovers and sell myself to them for food and water, for clothing of wool and linen, and for olive oil and drinks.’ For this reason, I will fence her in with thorn bushes. I will block her path with a wall to make her lose her way. When she runs after other lovers, she won’t be able to catch them. She will search for them but not find them. Then she will think, ‘I might as well return to my husband, for I was better off with Him than I am now’’’.

– Hosea 2:2-7

Devotion

The second chapter of Hosea summarizes the message of the entire book. Here, Hosea and Gomer become the backdrop as God begins to describe His relationship with His “wife,” Israel. The children represent the people of Israel while the “other lovers” are the false gods that Israel has worshipped in place of Yahweh. God determined to discipline Israel by showing her the emptiness of her pursuit of other lovers, all in an attempt to woo her back.

The Big Question

How often do we take God’s gifts and use them in ways that dishonor Him? He is the source of all our blessings, including life itself. Are there changes that you can make to better honor God with the gifts that He has given you? What do these verses tell us about God’s ridiculous love for His people?

Spend some time in prayer meditating on what God revealed to you today.