365 Reflections

What does it take to be a prophet? Amos is a case study as he declares God's word to the slumbering nation of Israel .  A prophet must be willing to hold people to account for the terms they have broken with the Lord.  Amos 3:1–2 ( ESV ) Hear this word that the LORD has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt : 2 “You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities. Amos calls out Israel's failure as God's chosen. They had an exclusive relationship with the Lord. And their relationship and knowledge of the Lord required extraordinary faithfulness and loyalty. They were to live according to the New Testament principle , to whom much is given, much is required . Many talk of the privileges that are ours in the Lord, but what about the responsibilities? The Lord asks: Amos 3:3 (ESV) “Do two walk together, unless they have agreed to meet? Israel was i...

Amos continues a series of judgments on the nations around Israel . From Ammon at the end of chapter 1 he moves on to Moab in the beginning of chapter 2.  Amos 2:1–3 (ESV) Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because he burned to lime the bones of the king of Edom . 2 So I will send a fire upon Moab, and it shall devour the strongholds of Kerioth , and Moab shall die amid uproar, amid shouting and the sound of the trumpet; 3 I will cut off the ruler from its midst, and will kill all its princes with him,” says the LORD. We should note that the Lord condemned the actions of Edom, who mercilessly treated his enemies; now Edom is the victim of Moab's merciless treatment. The image of "burning" bones of the king expresses a deep hostility within the nation.  It is an oft-forgotten reality that those who are hurt also hurt others. No one stands innocent in the righteousness. We are all cursed with the inward ...

The Lord will softly speak. And the Lord will shout when necessary. In Amos, the prophet opens up with the latter.  Amos 1:1–2 (ESV) The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake. 2 And he said: “ The LORD roars from Zion and utters his voice from Jerusalem; the pastures of the shepherds mourn, and the top of Carmel withers.” Amos is a southern kingdom prophet who lived during the reign of a righteous and noble king builder, Uzziah, and then in the years of the naive yet Lord-honoring Jeroboam. It was a world of peace and advancement. The lack of war led to significant commercial endeavors. However, that peace and prosperity gave rise to a different side of societal sin that is often found in modern America—a system based on greed and indulgence.  Amos opens his book denouncing the 6 nations outside of Israe...

Joel 2 is a fascinating chapter. In the previous post, we explored how the three-legged experience of the Christian is unpacked: Repent, Believe, and Receive. But there are three more intriguing verses at the end of the chapter as well. Joel 2:30–32 (ESV) “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls. On the heels of announcing what Peter described as fulfilled in Pentecost, there is another stage of God's working among men mentioned here that we have yet to experience. Joel declares an ultimate day of the Lord where the cosmic realities will quake, the moon will turn from white to b...

The world is dark, run by evil forces in the heavenly realms. We are born sinners, enslaved to the passions of our flesh along with everyone else. Paul makes that clear in Ephesians 2. Ephesians 2:1–3 (ESV) And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. The answer is simple: Repent - turn to God for mercy and grace. Joel calls on the nation of Israel to do just that as they watch the invading army decimate the Northern Kingdom.  Joel 2:15–17 (ESV) Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly; 16 gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegro...

The prophet Joel sets the record straight about the day of the Lord very clearly in chapter 2.  Joel 2:1–2 (ESV) Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near, 2 a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations. Trumpets were blown to announce the outbreak of war. That is what the day of the Lord would bring. Only, instead of a locust plague, an army descends upon the nation. Joel 2:6–9 (ESV) Before them peoples are in anguish; all faces grow pale. 7 Like warriors they charge; like soldiers they scale the wall. They march each on his way; they do not swerve from their paths. 8 They do not jostle one another; each marches in his path; they burst through the weapons and are not halted. 9 ...

We begin a study in the book of Joel. Historians believe he prophesied during the reign of Joash in Judah. Joash was trained by the priest Jehoiada. A national disaster was striking Israel - locusts were eating away the produce of the land in several waves.  Joel 1:4 (ESV) What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten. This tragedy, Joel proclaims, prefigured the Day of the Lord. Now, at that time in Israel, many believed the Day of the Lord would lead to Israel's rebound from her subjection to the nations. But Joel brings the bad news - it will be a day of judgment on the chosen nation.  In his first address to the nation, the Prophet Joel addressed four different groups.  First, he calls the elders of the nation to bear witness that what they experienced was something never before seen.  Joel 1:1–2 (ESV) The word of the LORD ...

Hosea 14:1–2 (ESV) Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. 2 Take with you words and return to the LORD; say to him, “Take away all iniquity; accept what is good, and we will pay with bulls the vows of our lips. Hosea outlines the path back to God in the final chapter of this book. What is first on the list? Confession of sin. Notice the line, "take with you words and return". Words are imperative for the worshipper. Words are the expression of the heart. A heart that seeks God will speak of God. There is no such thing as a silent Christian.  Moreover, they are to verbally renounce their false hope.  Hosea 14:3 (ESV) Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses; and we will say no more, ‘Our God,’ to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy.” They were to renounce their vain hope that Assyria would help them. Imagine this, Assyria was intent on destroying them, and the people were so blinded by their idolat...

Some have a serious problem with God's actions and judgment in the Old Testament. The reason is that they do not bother to read it closely enough. Consider what Hosea says about the Tribe of Ephraim (a synonym for the Northern Kingdom in many cases) at the peak of her idolatry and immoral behavior.  Hosea 13:1–2 (ESV) When Ephraim spoke, there was trembling; he was exalted in Israel, but he incurred guilt through Baal and died. 2 And now they sin more and more, and make for themselves metal images, idols skillfully made of their silver, all of them the work of craftsmen. It is said of them, “Those who offer human sacrifice kiss calves!” They were in the human-killing business. Should God let it continue? Should God not put a stop to it? Honest engagement with the Bible demands an understanding of the evil humans are capable of before we put God on trial for how He chooses to handle it.  Now look at verse one. For there we find the root of the evil.  Hosea 13:1 (ESV) he w...

In Hosea 12, the prophet walks us through the history of Jacob, from whom the 12 tribes of Israel descend. If you know the story, Jacob is not the most admirable man.  Hosea 12:3–6 (ESV) In the womb he took his brother by the heel, and in his manhood he strove with God. 4 He strove with the angel and prevailed; he wept and sought his favor. He met God at Bethel, and there God spoke with us— 5 the LORD, the God of hosts, the LORD is his memorial name: 6 “So you, by the help of your God, return, hold fast to love and justice, and wait continually for your God.” I find hope in this verse despite the dire situation in which Israel found herself. For though they descended from a schemer, we must remember that Jacob schemed because it seemed as if the whole world was against him. Only his mother favored him. Everyone else sought to push him down (Isaac), steal from him (Laban), or kill him (Esau). But Jacob won in life because he wrestled with God and listened to His voice.  Now the...

How often do we forget what God has done for us? Think of this: what is the Bible but a collection of God's acts among His people from times past and a guarantee of God's acts on behalf of His people in times to come? Thus, Hosea outlines that Israel's forgetfulness led to their idolatry and shame.  Hosea 11:1–2 (ESV) When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. 2 The more they were called, the more they went away; they kept sacrificing to the Baals and burning offerings to idols. God called Israel out of Egypt. God made a way for them to respond by delivering them through His mighty power. The call and the deliverance work together. What a picture of salvation! Who enables the response to His call but the One who calls! How can anyone respond to the Lord's Word without the Lord making the way for them to do so? The problem with Israel is that the deliverance did not lead to lasting obedience. The more they called, the more they drifted, forg...

The 10th chapter of Hosea reveals the internal division within Israel's heart, as reflected in her actions. She was religious on the outside, presenting worshipful presentations, but it wasn't of God, and her heart was deceitful.  Hosea 10:1–2 (ESV) Israel is a luxuriant vine that yields its fruit. The more his fruit increased, the more altars he built; as his country improved, he improved his pillars. 2 Their heart is false; now they must bear their guilt. The LORD will break down their altars and destroy their pillars. Many prophets, such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Psalmists, referred to Israel as a vine, the planting of the Lord, abundantly provided for and prepared for bearing fruit. But Israel failed to produce anything other than sin. Here God stipulates the root of the problem: her "heart is false". They did not love the Lord, AND worse, they deceived themselves into believing they were fine.  God then calls them out regarding their commitment. Hose...

Hosea 9:1–3 (ESV) Rejoice not, O Israel! Exult not like the peoples; for you have played the whore, forsaking your God. You have loved a prostitute’s wages on all threshing floors. 2 Threshing floor and wine vat shall not feed them, and the new wine shall fail them. 3 They shall not remain in the land of the LORD, but Ephraim shall return to Egypt, and they shall eat unclean food in Assyria. Israel thought they could succeed like the other nations, worshipping the gods of fertility and winning at life, becoming rich. God said no. They had a larger purpose to fulfill for the world. They were the nation that brought an end to the silliness of idolatry and false gods.  The problem is that they would have to learn this purpose the hard way, by experiencing the devastating consequences of idolatry, rather than the delight it offered.  Israel, in following the nations around them, became blind and deaf to the Word of God.  Hosea 9:7 (ESV) The days of punishment have come; the...

The picture Hosea 8 paints of the house of Israel is one of a dumb, useless, isolated nation, left to its own devices and struggling for any sense of self. Thus, the picture of what idolatry does to the human heart becomes clear through this ancient picture.  Hosea 8:1 (ESV) Set the trumpet to your lips! One like a vulture is over the house of the LORD, because they have transgressed my covenant and rebelled against my law. The trumpet call for Israel was typically for holy occasions, joyful assemblies, or rallying cries for war. Here it is the announcement of judgment. The nation is prey for the vultures of other nations. Notice the designations of this nation from the prophetic oracle of this chapter: Hosea 8:4 (ESV)  They made kings, but not through me. They set up princes, but I knew it not. With their silver and gold they made idols for their own destruction. They established leaders whom God did not give, and they set up idols that soon took them over.  Hosea 8:6 (E...

Hosea chapter 7 is perhaps the toughest assessment against Israel thus far. God is thoroughly distressed over their rebellion, sin, lies, and wickedness. Hosea 7:1–2 (ESV) when I would heal Israel, the iniquity of Ephraim is revealed, and the evil deeds of Samaria, for they deal falsely; the thief breaks in, and the bandits raid outside. 2 But they do not consider that I remember all their evil. Now their deeds surround them; they are before my face. The first verse seems to suggest that God would heal Israel, but their sins are overwhelming them. In the NLT, it reads: Hosea 7:1–2 (NLT) “I want to heal Israel, but its sins are too great. Samaria is filled with liars. Thieves are on the inside and bandits on the outside! 2 Its people don’t realize that I am watching them. Their sinful deeds are all around them, and I see them all. Sin was everywhere, surrounding them, dominating their whole nation. God's healing does not arrive on their terms (Hosea 6:1-3) but on the Lord's, a...

Hosea 6:1–3 (ESV) “Come, let us return to the LORD; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. 2 After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. 3 Let us know; let us press on to know the LORD; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.” On the surface, this text looks like Israel heard Hosea's strong words and repented. They did not. There are clues in these lines that the nation told itself that make clear this repentance was hollow and superficial.  They blame the Lord for their condition, saying, "he has torn us", but it was their own rebellion that led them into misery. They also do not at all mention forgiveness for their sin, but only speak about healing, binding up, and revival. Notice as well, they believe a simple turn to God will be enough to bring immediate change to their condition. Within thre...

Hosea 5:1–2 (ESV) Hear this, O priests! Pay attention, O house of Israel! Give ear, O house of the king! For the judgment is for you; for you have been a snare at Mizpah and a net spread upon Tabor. 2 And the revolters have gone deep into slaughter, but I will discipline all of them. God pronounces judgment on unfaithful Israel by calling out the leaders. In verses 1 and 2, the priests, the civic leaders (house of Israel), and the kings have led Israel into the idolatrous practices of the nations around them. Leadership is always in the line of sight with the Lord. He knows people are easily swayed to believe the loudest and strongest voice. When leaders fail His people, God comes against them.  We should be glad about this. As we see in America, leadership can go too far and also seek to undermine the trust of the people while presenting themselves as noble and trustworthy. I'm glad to know God is never fooled.  Hosea 5:3 (ESV) I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hidden from m...

A key phrase repeats in Hosea 4, cluing us into one of the most beneficial aspects of the Christian faith. We learn this, as usual, from Israel's failure. The people failed to know the Lord and the prophet makes clear that this failure leads to their downfall. Hosea 4:1 (ESV) Hear the word of the LORD, O children of Israel, for the LORD has a controversy with the inhabitants of the land. There is no faithfulness or steadfast love, and no knowledge of God in the land; Hosea 4:6 (ESV) My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. Verse 1 stipulates the lack of knowledge of God, and verse 6 reveals the results: Destruction. The people failed to abide by the covenantal stipulations; they sought after the Baals and Ashtoreths. They forsook the knowledge of God for the worship of created things. As a result, their community wa...

This verse has to be the biggest gut punch for knowing God's love in the Bible.  Hosea 3:1 (ESV) And the LORD said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress, even as the LORD loves the children of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins.” Could you imagine this ask of the Lord? He wants Hosea to remarry his wife, purchasing her out of slavery while she is the property of another man. And God says plainly, this is how the LORD loves the children of Israel.  Hosea actually has to purchase her.  Hosea 3:2 (ESV) So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley. We see in this passage a picture of two things. The insidious nature of sin and the indescribable love of God. Hosea's name is close to the name of Jesus in Hebrew. This is on purpose for Jesus is the true Hosea who does not give up on wayward people. He loves us even when we are ensnared in our sin. Moreover, He PAYS for u...

The Lord does not give up on His people. And sometimes that's what hurts the most in the process of sanctification.  Hosea married a whore. Gomer deserted him as an illustration of the desertion the Lord experienced with Israel. They took His good gifts and worshipped foreign gods with them. Moreover, they credited the pagan gods of Baal for the good things the Lord actually provided. You can see why God was speaking of disowning the Northern Kingdom in chapter 1 of this prophetic book.  Now in Hosea 2 we have a poetic dialogue from the Lord on how He determined to sanctify this people and tear their hearts away from the false idols in which they trusted.  Hosea 2:2 (ESV) “Plead with your mother, plead— for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband— that she put away her whoring from her face, and her adultery from between her breasts; The poetic oracle looks backward and forward. The nation is cast away from the Lord. Why? Because they have committed spiritual adulter...

The prophet Hosea is the last voice of God's warning to the Northern Kingdom of Israel. There were no righteous kings in the North, but there were still some seasons of prosperity. Hosea's minister begins on the heels of one such season. The people of Israel were worshipping idols and doing detestable things, and perhaps they assumed they could get away with it.  Not so.  To capture this nation's attention for the final time, the Lord asks Hosea to do the unthinkable.  Hosea 1:2–3 (ESV) When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the LORD.” 3 So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. The initial command to Hosea was to illustrate through his own family the spiritual condition of Israel, who whored after the false gods of other nations. God often asked His prophets to illustrate in dras...