Sermons – Grace Evangelical Free Church // Wyoming, MN

Hosea 9:1-9 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. 4 They shall not pour drink offerings of wine to the LORD, and their sacrifices shall not please him. It shall be like mourners’ bread to them; all who eat of it shall be defiled; for their bread shall be for their hunger only; it shall not come to the house of the LORD. 5 What will you do on the day of the appointed festival, and on the day of the feast of the LORD? 6 For behold, they are going away from destruction; but Egypt shall gather them; Memphis shall bury them. Nettles shall possess their precious things of silver; thorns shall be in their tents. 7 The days of punishment have come; the days of recompense have come; Israel shall know it. The prophet is a fool; the man of the spirit is mad, because of your great iniquity and great hatred. 8 The prophet is the watchman of Ephraim with my God; yet a fowler’s snare is on all his ways, and hatred in the house of his God. 9 They have deeply corrupted themselves as in the days of Gibeah: he will remember their iniquity; he will punish their sins.

INTRODUCTION

What’s the worst party you’ve ever been to? My own wedding shower was pretty rough, but probably the worst was one that a friend of mine had back in high school. I wasn’t a Christian at the time, and certainly wasn’t looking to sing Kumbaya, but even I was pretty disturbed by the type of behavior going on. On top of all that, because my friend had just started attending a different school from me, I didn’t know anyone there. It was not my idea of a great party.

Whatever your version of a bad party is, I can assure you that Israel had an even worse idea. Hosea tells us that she decided to have one with the wrath of God firing down on her, in the middle of a war, and in spite of the fact that messengers had been specifically sent to tell her the party was a bad idea. This morning, then, we’ll consider each of these three ingredients to a really bad party. We’ll also consider, however, the remarkable fact that Jesus flips all of this on its head. Let’s pray that our eyes would be opened to the reality that we live in and that we’d interpret it all through the lens of the gospel.

THREE INGREDIENTS TO A BAD PARTY

The Israelites, evidently, were in a festive mood. From Hosea’s words it seems that there was rejoicing and exulting, harvest and wine. It may have been the fall festival of Sukkoth/Weeks (Leviticus 23) that Israel was celebrating. And it may be that there was a break in Assyrian aggression and that caused the Israelites to decide to throw a party.

Whatever it was that made them think a party was in order, in the midst of it God chided the party-goers, commanding, “Rejoice not, O Israel! Exult not like the peoples…”.

What follows (in 9:1b-9) are the reasons for God’s halting the party. The three main reasons give us three ingredients for a really, really bad party.

Ingredient #1: God is Displeased with You

Hear this Grace!: We were made for awe. We were made to be amazed. We were made for wonder. We were made to be filled with joy. That’s why everyone goes after those things. However, sin has done two things in this regard. First, it has lied to us about where these things are to be found. That is, sin has lied to us about the source of genuine awe, amazement, wonder, and joy. Second, it has shriveled our capacity to truly experience it. We’re way too content (as C.S. Lewis so famously pointed out) with tiny slivers of those things whe...

Hosea 8:11-14 Because Ephraim has multiplied altars for sinning, they have become to him altars for sinning. 12 Were I to write for him my laws by the ten thousands, they would be regarded as a strange thing. 13 As for my sacrificial offerings, they sacrifice meat and eat it, but the LORD does not accept them. Now he will remember their iniquity and punish their sins; they shall return to Egypt. 14 For Israel has forgotten his Maker and built palaces, and Judah has multiplied fortified cities; so I will send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour her strongholds.

Introduction

Welcome to part 3 (of 3) on Hosea 8. In many ways, the key to understanding this chapter (and, in many ways, the key to understanding the entire book of Hosea) is found in the beginning of 8:1, “Set the trumpet to your lips!” Sound the alarm. That was Hosea’s way of warning the Israelites of the danger they were in for forsaking God. While the phrase (“set the trumpet…”) is only used in 8:1, it is implied in each of the four sections (1-3, 4-6, 7-10, and now 11-14) of the chapter. That is, Hosea 8 contains four sets of warnings describing Israel’s specific sins and their consequences.

In this final section Hosea warned the Israelites of their corrupt religion and self-exaltation. In particular, Hosea warned the people of God that if they did not forsake those things, the way of salvation would be closed to them and they would be destroyed. Let’s pray, thanking God that the New and Living Way, Jesus Christ, is open for all who will come. And let’s pray that all would come!

Sound the Alarm because Israel’s religion is corrupt (11-13)

Once again, most of the book of Hosea, most of Hosea’s prophecies were meant to name the reasons for God’s displeasure with Israel and the consequences of her failing to rightly respond to them. In the first part of our text for this morning, 8:11-13, we find another handful of reasons (for God’s displeasure). In this case the reasons center around Israel’s corrupt worship. Let’s look at v.11 for the first cause of God’s displeasure.

Alters for Sacrifice Have Become Alters for Sin (11)

Sound the alarm, Hosea cried, because Israel had turned alters for sacrifice in to alters for sin.

11 Because Ephraim has multiplied altars for sinning, they have become to him altars for sinning.

Of this treachery, listen to the remarkably eloquent words of one commentator (James Mays).

“An alter marked a holy place, a shrine where a deity was thought to be available for worship and communion…Building alters was a pious act…Alters meant sacrifice and sacrifice atoned for whatever sins were committed. As Israel prospered in the land, more and more alters were erected (10:1). Religion got its proportionate share of the nation’s prosperity, probably because the [religion] was imagined to be the machine which produced the abundance…Yet Yahweh sends no commendation by the prophet. His startling word is that the many alters built to deal with sin have become a place to sin” (Mays, 122).

What was meant to be a place to atone for their sin—to have their sins forgiven—had become a place to commit sins. Can you see the horrific evil in this? Is it easy to see what an utter mockery of God this is?

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. On the earth, He placed the pinnacle of his creation, mankind, to rule the earth and be fed by it as God’s stewards. In fulfilling this purpose for which he was made, mankind would truly glorify God and enjoy him forever.

But mankind quickly fell into sin and rebellion, the earth became hard and fellowship with God was broken. In these things mankind got what God promised and he deserved.

Although it would have been entirely right and fair of God to leave mankind in this state of ruin, He did no such thing.

Hosea 8:11-14 Because Ephraim has multiplied altars for sinning, they have become to him altars for sinning. 12 Were I to write for him my laws by the ten thousands, they would be regarded as a strange thing. 13 As for my sacrificial offerings, they sacrifice meat and eat it, but the LORD does not accept them. Now he will remember their iniquity and punish their sins; they shall return to Egypt. 14 For Israel has forgotten his Maker and built palaces, and Judah has multiplied fortified cities; so I will send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour her strongholds.

Introduction

Welcome to part 3 (of 3) on Hosea 8. In many ways, the key to understanding this chapter (and, in many ways, the key to understanding the entire book of Hosea) is found in the beginning of 8:1, “Set the trumpet to your lips!” Sound the alarm. That was Hosea’s way of warning the Israelites of the danger they were in for forsaking God. While the phrase (“set the trumpet…”) is only used in 8:1, it is implied in each of the four sections (1-3, 4-6, 7-10, and now 11-14) of the chapter. That is, Hosea 8 contains four sets of warnings describing Israel’s specific sins and their consequences.

In this final section Hosea warned the Israelites of their corrupt religion and self-exaltation. In particular, Hosea warned the people of God that if they did not forsake those things, the way of salvation would be closed to them and they would be destroyed. Let’s pray, thanking God that the New and Living Way, Jesus Christ, is open for all who will come. And let’s pray that all would come!

Sound the Alarm because Israel’s religion is corrupt (11-13)

Once again, most of the book of Hosea, most of Hosea’s prophecies were meant to name the reasons for God’s displeasure with Israel and the consequences of her failing to rightly respond to them. In the first part of our text for this morning, 8:11-13, we find another handful of reasons (for God’s displeasure). In this case the reasons center around Israel’s corrupt worship. Let’s look at v.11 for the first cause of God’s displeasure.

Alters for Sacrifice Have Become Alters for Sin (11)

Sound the alarm, Hosea cried, because Israel had turned alters for sacrifice in to alters for sin.

11 Because Ephraim has multiplied altars for sinning, they have become to him altars for sinning.

Of this treachery, listen to the remarkably eloquent words of one commentator (James Mays).

“An alter marked a holy place, a shrine where a deity was thought to be available for worship and communion…Building alters was a pious act…Alters meant sacrifice and sacrifice atoned for whatever sins were committed. As Israel prospered in the land, more and more alters were erected (10:1). Religion got its proportionate share of the nation’s prosperity, probably because the [religion] was imagined to be the machine which produced the abundance…Yet Yahweh sends no commendation by the prophet. His startling word is that the many alters built to deal with sin have become a place to sin” (Mays, 122).

What was meant to be a place to atone for their sin—to have their sins forgiven—had become a place to commit sins. Can you see the horrific evil in this? Is it easy to see what an utter mockery of God this is?

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. On the earth, He placed the pinnacle of his creation, mankind, to rule the earth and be fed by it as God’s stewards. In fulfilling this purpose for which he was made, mankind would truly glorify God and enjoy him forever.

But mankind quickly fell into sin and rebellion, the earth became hard and fellowship with God was broken. In these things mankind got what God promised and he deserved.

Although it would have been entirely right and fair of God to leave mank...

Hosea 8:7-10 For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind. The standing grain has no heads; it shall yield no flour; if it were to yield, strangers would devour it. 8 Israel is swallowed up; already they are among the nations as a useless vessel. 9 For they have gone up to Assyria, a wild donkey wandering alone; Ephraim has hired lovers. 10 Though they hire allies among the nations, I will soon gather them up. And the king and princes shall soon writhe because of the tribute.

INTRODUCTION

If you weren’t here last week, you should know that this sermon is part two (of three) on the four warnings of Hosea 8. In 8:1 we read, “Set the trumpet to your lips!” Sound the alarm, Hosea said! Last week we looked at the first two warnings (8:1-3 and 4-6). This week we’ll look at the third (7-10). Each of the warnings takes roughly the same form: Hosea named specific ways that Israel had sinned against God and then described the danger they placed her in.

Just like last week, then, we’ll consider Hosea’s warnings and the stakes for rejecting them. And we’ll do this as a reminder that we too must carefully consider the calling of God on our lives, the consequences for our disobedience, and then the amazing grace of God who sent His only Son to obey in our place, even to death on a cross. Let’s pray that God would see fit to work all of this in us for his glory and our good.

SOUND THE ALARM BECAUSE ISRAEL LIVES IN FUTILITY AND MULTIPLIES TROUBLE (7-10)

In the third set of (chapter 8) warnings (found in verses 7-10), we find that Israel was in danger because (1) she had committed herself to a life of futility and (2) she had committed to a life of multiplied trouble. Let’s consider each before examining what’s awaited Israel for her disobedience.

Israel’s Futility

The God of the Bible is never accidental. That is, everything about God is purposeful. Further, there is nothing in the universe that God has not assigned purpose to. There is a particular way in which every single person, place, thing, institution, and emotion, is designed by God to function.

Another way to say all of this is that all things fall under the sovereign reign of God and God is not indifferent to anything under his reign.

What’s more, every purpose of God is good, and only the purposes of God are good. God’s ways always lead to goodness and there are no alternative paths to goodness. Truly, God’s purposes are always better than every alternative.

Let me try to give an example of what I’m trying to communicate. God is just and made—purposed—mankind to join him in justice. Justice means fairness. We are to be fair in all our dealings as God is fair in all his dealings. This is good. Every alternative is bad. This is why we rightly recoil at bullying, stealing, deceit, child-abuse, bribery and the like. Those things go against the purposes for which God made relationships, resources, speech, kids, and power. Therefore, they are unjust and they are not good. We cannot go against God’s design and be good. God made us to be just and, therefore, every alternative to justice is bad.

Because of all of this, living as God calls us to is always meaningful and significant and productive, while every alternative is always meaningless and insignificant and barren. Let me say that again, purposefulness and fruitfulness are always connected to faithfulness to God, while vanity and futility are always connected to faithlessness.

There is a particular way in which every single person, place, thing, institution, and emotion, is designed by God to function, and it is only when we function according to God’s design that we can experience the fullness of life that God intended.

If God made you a screwdriver, you might be able to pound a nail, but it’s going to be much more difficult and inefficient than it should be—t...

Hosea 8:7-10 For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind. The standing grain has no heads; it shall yield no flour; if it were to yield, strangers would devour it. 8 Israel is swallowed up; already they are among the nations as a useless vessel. 9 For they have gone up to Assyria, a wild donkey wandering alone; Ephraim has hired lovers. 10 Though they hire allies among the nations, I will soon gather them up. And the king and princes shall soon writhe because of the tribute.

INTRODUCTION

If you weren’t here last week, you should know that this sermon is part two (of three) on the four warnings of Hosea 8. In 8:1 we read, “Set the trumpet to your lips!” Sound the alarm, Hosea said! Last week we looked at the first two warnings (8:1-3 and 4-6). This week we’ll look at the third (7-10). Each of the warnings takes roughly the same form: Hosea named specific ways that Israel had sinned against God and then described the danger they placed her in.

Just like last week, then, we’ll consider Hosea’s warnings and the stakes for rejecting them. And we’ll do this as a reminder that we too must carefully consider the calling of God on our lives, the consequences for our disobedience, and then the amazing grace of God who sent His only Son to obey in our place, even to death on a cross. Let’s pray that God would see fit to work all of this in us for his glory and our good.

SOUND THE ALARM BECAUSE ISRAEL LIVES IN FUTILITY AND MULTIPLIES TROUBLE (7-10)

In the third set of (chapter 8) warnings (found in verses 7-10), we find that Israel was in danger because (1) she had committed herself to a life of futility and (2) she had committed to a life of multiplied trouble. Let’s consider each before examining what’s awaited Israel for her disobedience.

Israel’s Futility

The God of the Bible is never accidental. That is, everything about God is purposeful. Further, there is nothing in the universe that God has not assigned purpose to. There is a particular way in which every single person, place, thing, institution, and emotion, is designed by God to function.

Another way to say all of this is that all things fall under the sovereign reign of God and God is not indifferent to anything under his reign.

What’s more, every purpose of God is good, and only the purposes of God are good. God’s ways always lead to goodness and there are no alternative paths to goodness. Truly, God’s purposes are always better than every alternative.

Let me try to give an example of what I’m trying to communicate. God is just and made—purposed—mankind to join him in justice. Justice means fairness. We are to be fair in all our dealings as God is fair in all his dealings. This is good. Every alternative is bad. This is why we rightly recoil at bullying, stealing, deceit, child-abuse, bribery and the like. Those things go against the purposes for which God made relationships, resources, speech, kids, and power. Therefore, they are unjust and they are not good. We cannot go against God’s design and be good. God made us to be just and, therefore, every alternative to justice is bad.

Because of all of this, living as God calls us to is always meaningful and significant and productive, while every alternative is always meaningless and insignificant and barren. Let me say that again, purposefulness and fruitfulness are always connected to faithfulness to God, while vanity and futility are always connected to faithlessness.

There is a particular way in which every single person, place, thing, institution, and emotion, is designed by God to function, and it is only when we function according to God’s design that we can experience the fullness of life that God intended.

If God made you a screwdriver, you might be able to pound a nail,

Hosea 8:1-6 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. 2 To me they cry, My God, we- Israel- know you. 3 Israel has spurned the good; the enemy shall pursue him.

4 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. 5 I have spurned your calf, O Samaria. My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of innocence? 6 For it is from Israel; a craftsman made it; it is not God. The calf of Samaria shall be broken to pieces.

INTRODUCTION

As some of you know, last year I was on a mission trip to southeast Asia. On our way home, our first stop-over was in Kolkata, India. Half of the passengers got off in Kolkata and another group got on. The rest of us never left our seats. While we were taxing to the runway the plane suddenly stopped, the doors were opened, the emergency, inflatable slides were deployed, and the flight attendant began shouting “evacuate, evacuate.” Having already begun to doze off with my headphones in, it took me a minute to recognize the panic in the announcement and the chaos that had ensued all around me. At that point, as you can imagine, my mind quickly cleared up and I joined the rest of the passengers in fleeing the plane.

Even though I did not yet know the reason for the alarm (we found out later that the plane—the one we’d just flown in on—had caught on fire), it never occurred to me to ignore the warning or to respond to it casually. I could tell by the flight attendant’s panicked voice that the only reasonable reaction was swift action.

And so it should have been for Hosea’s audience. In 8:1 Hosea called the Israelites to “set the trumpet to your lips!” (5:8). Israel was in danger and this was a call to sound an alarm warning them of it. (In reality all of Hosea’s prophecies were one collective alarm.) The proper response for Israel should have been to take immediate and decisive action; to take the warning siren of God seriously; to, without hesitation, turn from the dangerous things they had engaged in back to God.

In chapter 8, Hosea did not merely warn the Israelites of the presence of danger (like a warning siren today), he named it and its result. That is, he even went so far as to name four specific dangers that the Israelites had wandered into and the specific, dire consequences of continuing in those things.

And yet, as we’ve seen over and over, Israel did not respond appropriately. Instead, she acted as if Hosea’s alarm was a test or a lie or an exaggeration. She continued on as if there was no real danger and, therefore, eventually faced the consequences Hosea promised.

This passage is another gift to you and me (and all God’s people) in that it allows us to see the folly of Israel’s (lack of a) response along with its devastating consequences. In this passage we get to see what will happen if we too ignore God’s call to acknowledge Him as God. And in this passage we learn how we can rightly respond to the alarm that’s still going off. That is, we’ll consider the four separate calls for alarm from chapter 8 (two this week and two next), along with the promised consequences for failing to heed the alarm, as a means of honoring God and avoiding Israel’s fate.

Grace, mankind remains in the same precarious position that Hosea warned the Israelites of. But God still offers the same gracious escape route that Hosea told the Israelites of—hope in Him. Let’s pray, therefore, that we would all hear the alarm, recognize its seriousness, and respond to it as God calls us to through Jesus Christ, our LORD.

SOUND THE ALARM BECAUSE ISRAEL BROKE THE COVENANT (1-3)

The first reasons (stated in this passage) for Hosea’s charge t...

Hosea 8:1-6 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. 2 To me they cry, My God, we- Israel- know you. 3 Israel has spurned the good; the enemy shall pursue him.

4 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. 5 I have spurned your calf, O Samaria. My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of innocence? 6 For it is from Israel; a craftsman made it; it is not God. The calf of Samaria shall be broken to pieces.

INTRODUCTION

As some of you know, last year I was on a mission trip to southeast Asia. On our way home, our first stop-over was in Kolkata, India. Half of the passengers got off in Kolkata and another group got on. The rest of us never left our seats. While we were taxing to the runway the plane suddenly stopped, the doors were opened, the emergency, inflatable slides were deployed, and the flight attendant began shouting “evacuate, evacuate.” Having already begun to doze off with my headphones in, it took me a minute to recognize the panic in the announcement and the chaos that had ensued all around me. At that point, as you can imagine, my mind quickly cleared up and I joined the rest of the passengers in fleeing the plane.

Even though I did not yet know the reason for the alarm (we found out later that the plane—the one we’d just flown in on—had caught on fire), it never occurred to me to ignore the warning or to respond to it casually. I could tell by the flight attendant’s panicked voice that the only reasonable reaction was swift action.

And so it should have been for Hosea’s audience. In 8:1 Hosea called the Israelites to “set the trumpet to your lips!” (5:8). Israel was in danger and this was a call to sound an alarm warning them of it. (In reality all of Hosea’s prophecies were one collective alarm.) The proper response for Israel should have been to take immediate and decisive action; to take the warning siren of God seriously; to, without hesitation, turn from the dangerous things they had engaged in back to God.

In chapter 8, Hosea did not merely warn the Israelites of the presence of danger (like a warning siren today), he named it and its result. That is, he even went so far as to name four specific dangers that the Israelites had wandered into and the specific, dire consequences of continuing in those things.

And yet, as we’ve seen over and over, Israel did not respond appropriately. Instead, she acted as if Hosea’s alarm was a test or a lie or an exaggeration. She continued on as if there was no real danger and, therefore, eventually faced the consequences Hosea promised.

This passage is another gift to you and me (and all God’s people) in that it allows us to see the folly of Israel’s (lack of a) response along with its devastating consequences. In this passage we get to see what will happen if we too ignore God’s call to acknowledge Him as God. And in this passage we learn how we can rightly respond to the alarm that’s still going off. That is, we’ll consider the four separate calls for alarm from chapter 8 (two this week and two next), along with the promised consequences for failing to heed the alarm, as a means of honoring God and avoiding Israel’s fate.

Grace, mankind remains in the same precarious position that Hosea warned the Israelites of. But God still offers the same gracious escape route that Hosea told the Israelites of—hope in Him. Let’s pray, therefore, that we would all hear the alarm, recognize its seriousness, and respond to it as God calls us to through Jesus Christ, our LORD.

SOUND THE ALARM BECAUSE ISRAEL BROKE THE COVENANT (1-3)

Hosea 7:8-16 Ephraim mixes himself with the peoples; Ephraim is a cake not turned. 9 Strangers devour his strength, and he knows it not; gray hairs are sprinkled upon him, and he knows it not. 10 The pride of Israel testifies to his face; yet they do not return to the LORD their God, nor seek him, for all this. 11 Ephraim is like a dove, silly and without sense, calling to Egypt, going to Assyria. 12 As they go, I will spread over them my net; I will bring them down like birds of the heavens; I will discipline them according to the report made to their congregation. 13 Woe to them, for they have strayed from me! Destruction to them, for they have rebelled against me! I would redeem them, but they speak lies against me. 14 They do not cry to me from the heart, but they wail upon their beds; for grain and wine they gash themselves; they rebel against me. 15 Although I trained and strengthened their arms, yet they devise evil against me. 16 They return, but not upward; they are like a treacherous bow; their princes shall fall by the sword because of the insolence of their tongue. This shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.

INTRODUCTION

Hosea’s message continues to focus on the consequences of God’s jealous love for Israel. Last week that message was wrapped in a condemnation of her internal political woes (the way Israel treated her own leaders and the way the leaders acted toward their own people). This week Hosea’s message is wrapped in a similar condemnation, this time of her external political woes (the way Israel’s leaders engaged the surrounding nations).

To that end, our passage for this morning begins with an interesting accusation. Hosea 7:8 reads, “Ephraim mixes himself with the peoples; Ephraim is a cake not turned.”

The omni-wise Mr. Miyagi and the Apostle John help us to understand what Hosea meant.

In the words of Mr. Miyagi, “Walk on road? Walk right side, safe. Walk left side, safe. Walk middle, sooner or later get the squish just like grape. …karate, same thing. Either you karate do ‘yes’ or karate do ‘no.’ You karate do ‘guess so,’ just like grape. Understand?” ”

The Apostle John’s words the same principle this way, “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth” (Revelation 3:15-16).

The point Mr. Miyagi and the Apostle John were making is this: It’s always better to be one thing or another than it is to be stuck somewhere in the middle.

Miyagi taught that if you don’t know karate, people who do know karate won’t feel threatened by you and are therefore likely to leave you alone (safe). On the other hand, if you do know karate well, they’ll likely be intimidated enough not to test you (safe). But if you kind of know karate, you’re likely to have the kind of unfounded confidence that gets people beat up (dangerous).

Similarly, John taught that there is nothing harder than being a wishy-washy “Christian”. You’re filled with the appetites of an unbeliever but with the conscience of a believer. When you do what you want in your flesh, you can’t enjoy it. But if you do what you think God wants, you can’t enjoy that either. You can’t not be miserable.

All of this is precisely what Hosea was trying to help the Israelites to see in v.8. They had mixed themselves–their practices, marriages, religion, money, politics, etc.—with the foreign nations. They were, therefore, not really pagan and not really faithful. The result was that they lost on every front. The pagans only used and mocked them and God looked upon them with adulterous contempt. Israel was like a “cake not turned”. That is, Israel was good for nothing; like a pancake that was burn...

Hosea 7:8-16 Ephraim mixes himself with the peoples; Ephraim is a cake not turned. 9 Strangers devour his strength, and he knows it not; gray hairs are sprinkled upon him, and he knows it not. 10 The pride of Israel testifies to his face; yet they do not return to the LORD their God, nor seek him, for all this. 11 Ephraim is like a dove, silly and without sense, calling to Egypt, going to Assyria. 12 As they go, I will spread over them my net; I will bring them down like birds of the heavens; I will discipline them according to the report made to their congregation. 13 Woe to them, for they have strayed from me! Destruction to them, for they have rebelled against me! I would redeem them, but they speak lies against me. 14 They do not cry to me from the heart, but they wail upon their beds; for grain and wine they gash themselves; they rebel against me. 15 Although I trained and strengthened their arms, yet they devise evil against me. 16 They return, but not upward; they are like a treacherous bow; their princes shall fall by the sword because of the insolence of their tongue. This shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.

INTRODUCTION

Hosea’s message continues to focus on the consequences of God’s jealous love for Israel. Last week that message was wrapped in a condemnation of her internal political woes (the way Israel treated her own leaders and the way the leaders acted toward their own people). This week Hosea’s message is wrapped in a similar condemnation, this time of her external political woes (the way Israel’s leaders engaged the surrounding nations).

To that end, our passage for this morning begins with an interesting accusation. Hosea 7:8 reads, “Ephraim mixes himself with the peoples; Ephraim is a cake not turned.”

The omni-wise Mr. Miyagi and the Apostle John help us to understand what Hosea meant.

In the words of Mr. Miyagi, “Walk on road? Walk right side, safe. Walk left side, safe. Walk middle, sooner or later get the squish just like grape. …karate, same thing. Either you karate do ‘yes’ or karate do ‘no.’ You karate do ‘guess so,’ just like grape. Understand?” ”

The Apostle John’s words the same principle this way, “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth” (Revelation 3:15-16).

The point Mr. Miyagi and the Apostle John were making is this: It’s always better to be one thing or another than it is to be stuck somewhere in the middle.

Miyagi taught that if you don’t know karate, people who do know karate won’t feel threatened by you and are therefore likely to leave you alone (safe). On the other hand, if you do know karate well, they’ll likely be intimidated enough not to test you (safe). But if you kind of know karate, you’re likely to have the kind of unfounded confidence that gets people beat up (dangerous).

Similarly, John taught that there is nothing harder than being a wishy-washy “Christian”. You’re filled with the appetites of an unbeliever but with the conscience of a believer. When you do what you want in your flesh, you can’t enjoy it. But if you do what you think God wants, you can’t enjoy that either. You can’t not be miserable.

All of this is precisely what Hosea was trying to help the Israelites to see in v.8. They had mixed themselves–their practices, marriages, religion, money, politics, etc.—with the foreign nations. They were, therefore, not really pagan and not really faithful. The result was that they lost on every front. The pagans only used and mocked them and God looked upon them with adulterous contempt. Israel was like a “cake not turned”. That is,

Hosea 6:11b – 7:7 11b… I [would] restore the fortunes of my people. 7:1 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. 3 By their evil they make the king glad, and the princes by their treachery. 4 They are all adulterers; they are like a heated oven whose baker ceases to stir the fire, from the kneading of the dough until it is leavened. 5 On the day of our king, the princes became sick with the heat of wine; he stretched out his hand with mockers. 6 For with hearts like an oven they approach their intrigue; all night their anger smolders; in the morning it blazes like a flaming fire. 7 All of them are hot as an oven, and they devour their rulers. All their kings have fallen, and none of them calls upon me.

INTRODUCTION

Welcome back to Hosea. If you’re just joining us Hosea is the name of an OT prophet and a book containing a compilation of his prophecies. He prophesied primarily to the 10 northern tribes of Israel (collectively referred to as “Israel” and “Ephraim”). God’s primary message to Israel through Hosea was one of jealous love resulting in certain judgment for her unrepentant sin.

To this point in Hosea, there have been three main takeaways for God’s people today—for you and I. First, we are more sinful than we could ever know. Second, God is more holy and therefore intolerant of sin than we could ever know. And third, God’s grace in Jesus is more amazing than we could ever know.

Over the past few months we’ve seen these things as I’ve preached through the first six chapters of this book. This morning, then, we’ll begin looking at the seventh.

Concerning our passage for this morning, I can honestly say that I’ve never encountered a section in the bible where the specific meaning of the specific references is as hidden. One of the more helpful commentators (Mays, 103-108) repeatedly uses phrases like “One would expect the sentence to begin with…but” and “perhaps Hosea meant…” and “The subject of the clause is also ambiguous” and “The term, however, might be…may be…or could be…” and “Of the various options…” and “It would be wise not to found a particular interpretation of events solely on this verse…”.

Examples of this ambiguity begin before we even get to the text. That is, there is even a bit of confusion about where chapter 7 is meant to begin. As I mentioned in my last sermon on Hosea, in spite of how your bible is formatted, it is generally agreed that 6:11b should begin the new chapter (which is why it’s included in this sermon). Concerning the text itself, it can be difficult to tell where metaphor stops and historical accounts begin. It’s difficult to tell which kings, princes, and rulers Hosea is referring to in 7:3 and 5 (or if he has any particular men in mind at all). And understanding the specifics of Hosea’s main analogy in this passage—that of the baker/oven—is challenging.

All of these things may very well have been (and probably were) crystal clear to Hosea’s original audience, but the particulars are at least somewhat lost to us. That is not to say, however, that the overall meaning is unclear. That remains as clear to us today as it would have been for the Israelites in the 8th century B.C.

Hosea’s primary message in this passage is that (1) although God remained eager to “restore” and “heal” his people should they repent, (2) Israel remained eager to increase in sin. Let’s consider each of those two points.

GOD DESIRES HIS PEOPLE TO REPENT IN ORDER THAT HE CAN “RESTORE” AND “HEAL”...