Hosea 9:1-17: a reflection

1Don’t rejoice, Israel, to jubilation like the nations; for you were unfaithful to your God. You love the wages of a prostitute at every grain threshing floor. 2The threshing floor and the wine press won’t feed them, and the new wine will fail her. 3They won’t dwell in the LORD’s land; but Ephraim will return to Egypt, and they will eat unclean food in Assyria. 4They won’t pour out wine offerings to the LORD, neither will they be pleasing to him. Their sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners; all who eat of it will be polluted; for their bread will be for their appetite. It will not come into the LORD’s house. 5What will you do in the day of solemn assembly, and in the day of the feast of the LORD? 6For, behold, when they flee destruction, Egypt will gather them up. Memphis will bury them. Nettles will possess their pleasant things of silver. Thorns will be in their tents. 7The days of visitation have come. The days of reckoning have come. Israel will consider the prophet to be a fool, and the man who is inspired to be insane, because of the abundance of your sins, and because your hostility is great. 8A prophet watches over Ephraim with my God. A fowler’s snare is on all of his paths, and hostility in the house of his God. 9They have deeply corrupted themselves, as in the days of Gibeah. He will remember their iniquity. He will punish them for their sins. 10I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness. I saw your fathers as the first ripe in the fig tree at its first season; but they came to Baal Peor, and consecrated themselves to the shameful thing, and became abominable like that which they loved. 11As for Ephraim, their glory will fly away like a bird. There will be no birth, no one with child, and no conception. 12Though they bring up their children, yet I will bereave them, so that not a man shall be left. Indeed, woe also to them when I depart from them! 13I have seen Ephraim, like Tyre, planted in a pleasant place; but Ephraim will bring out his children to the murderer. 14Give them—LORD what will you give? Give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts. 15“All their wickedness is in Gilgal; for there I hated them. Because of the wickedness of their deeds, I will drive them out of my house! I will love them no more. All their princes are rebels. 16Ephraim is struck. Their root has dried up. They will bear no fruit. Even though they give birth, yet I will kill the beloved ones of their womb.” 17My God will cast them away, because they didn’t listen to him; and they will be wanderers among the nations.

Through Hosea, God grieves over a people who sought their joy in unfaithfulness to him, loving the rewards of turning away rather than the God who had loved them, only to find that such joy would fail. Don't rejoice, Israel, God says; for you were unfaithful to your God. You love the wages of unfaithfulness at every threshing floor. The people had turned from God to other loves, seeking their joy and reward apart from him, at every threshing floor; but the joy they sought in unfaithfulness would not last: the threshing floor and the wine press would not feed them, and what they loved would fail them. Joy sought apart from God, in unfaithfulness to him, ultimately fails. This shows that joy and satisfaction sought in unfaithfulness to God, apart from him, ultimately fail. Joy sought apart from God, in unfaithfulness to him, ultimately fails. What we love in place of God will not finally satisfy us. Be faithful to God, in whom alone lasting joy is found. Turning from God to other loves leaves us empty in the end.

Notice what the people had done and what came of it. They had been unfaithful to God, turning from him to other loves, seeking their joy and reward apart from him, loving the wages of their unfaithfulness at every threshing floor. They looked for satisfaction, gladness, and reward in turning away from God, in the things they had put in his place. But God's word to them is that this joy would fail: the threshing floor and wine press would not feed them; what they loved in place of God would not finally satisfy or sustain them. Joy sought apart from God does not last. This holds a searching truth for us. We too can seek our joy and satisfaction apart from God, in the things we put in his place, loving the rewards of turning away, looking for gladness in what is not God. But such joy, sought in unfaithfulness to God, ultimately fails; what we love in place of God cannot finally satisfy or sustain us, and leaves us empty in the end. Lasting joy is found not in turning from God to other loves, but in faithfulness to him, in whom alone our hearts find what they seek. We do well to seek our joy in faithfulness to God rather than in the unfaithfulness that ultimately fails, returning to the God in whom lasting joy is found. Seek your joy in faithfulness to God, not in the unfaithfulness that fails. What you love in place of God cannot finally satisfy you. Turning from God to other loves leaves the heart empty in the end. Lasting joy is found in faithfulness to the God who loves you.

That is worth taking to heart, for joy sought in unfaithfulness to God, apart from him, ultimately fails, and we do well to seek our joy in faithfulness to him, as God grieved over a people who loved the wages of turning away. We can seek our joy and satisfaction apart from God, loving what we put in his place; but the people who loved the wages of unfaithfulness found that such joy would fail. Return to God. Do not seek your joy in turning from God to other loves, which cannot finally satisfy; seek it in faithfulness to the God in whom lasting joy is found. Seek your joy and satisfaction in faithfulness to God rather than in unfaithfulness to him, which ultimately fails, as through Hosea God grieved over a people who sought their joy in unfaithfulness to him, loving the rewards of turning away rather than the God who had loved them, only to find that such joy would fail, telling Israel not to rejoice since they had been unfaithful and loved the wages of unfaithfulness at every threshing floor; for the people had turned from God to other loves, seeking their joy and reward apart from him, but the joy they sought would not last, since the threshing floor and wine press would not feed them and what they loved would fail them, so that joy sought apart from God ultimately fails, which holds a searching truth for us, since we too can seek our joy and satisfaction apart from God, in the things we put in his place, loving the rewards of turning away and looking for gladness in what is not God, but such joy, sought in unfaithfulness to God, ultimately fails, and what we love in place of God cannot finally satisfy or sustain us but leaves us empty in the end, since lasting joy is found not in turning from God but in faithfulness to him in whom alone our hearts find what they seek, so that we do well to seek our joy in faithfulness to God.

Lord, through Hosea you grieve over a people who sought their joy in unfaithfulness to you, loving the rewards of turning away rather than the God who had loved them, only to find that such joy would fail. Don't rejoice, Israel, you say; for you were unfaithful to your God. You love the wages of unfaithfulness at every threshing floor. The people had turned from you to other loves, seeking their joy and reward apart from you; but the joy they sought in unfaithfulness would not last: the threshing floor and the wine press would not feed them, and what they loved would fail them. Show me what the people had done and what came of it. They had been unfaithful to you, turning from you to other loves, seeking their joy and reward apart from you, loving the wages of their unfaithfulness. They looked for satisfaction, gladness, and reward in turning away from you, in the things they had put in your place. But your word to them is that this joy would fail: what they loved in place of you would not finally satisfy or sustain them. Joy sought apart from you does not last. This holds a searching truth for me. I too can seek my joy and satisfaction apart from you, in the things I put in your place, loving the rewards of turning away, looking for gladness in what is not you. But such joy, sought in unfaithfulness to you, ultimately fails; what I love in place of you cannot finally satisfy me, and leaves me empty in the end. Lasting joy is found not in turning from you to other loves, but in faithfulness to you, in whom alone my heart finds what it seeks. Take that to my heart. Keep me from seeking my joy in turning from you to other loves, which cannot finally satisfy; help me seek it in faithfulness to you, Lord, the God who has loved me, in whom alone lasting joy is found, returning to you rather than to the unfaithfulness that leaves the heart empty.