Law and Gospel in Hosea

The book of Hosea, especially the first three chapters, constitute one of the great Gospel Symbols of the Old Testament. In these first three chapters we have the story of Hosea's family. Apart from a brief introduction in verse 1, the story starts right in with God telling Hosea to do something that must have seemed unthinkable to him. He is told “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.” What was this prophet of God to think of that. If a pastor in nearly any church that calls itself Christian today would go to a brothel to find his wife, I'm fairly certain that he would not be in very good standing with his congregation.

Fortunately, the LORD gives him an explanation. He continues to say: “When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, "for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the LORD." It is certainly not that the LORD simply wants Hosea to take a whore as his wife, but He wants to use this marriage of a upright man to a disdainfully sinful woman as a message to the Israelites. Just as through the sacraments, we are given a visible and tangible manifestation of the Gospel, God provided his people a visible and tangible manifestation of the Law.

The marriage of Hosea and his wife of whoredom, Gomer, was to act a a mirror of the covenant relationship between the LORD and his chosen people. Just as Gomer was unfaithful to her Husband, so God's chosen people were unfaithful to Him. The Israelites at this time were constantly looking to other Gods, especially Baal. However, it is in the New Testament that we usually talk of the church as being the Bride of Christ.

This message can certainly be applied to the church today. Although the modern Christian church is certainly not turning to Baal, it is constantly putting things above Christ and his redeeming work. Those that teach a prosperity gospel put the love of possessions, Mammon, in place of God's grace. Those that advocate a 'Decision for Christ' put their own will and works above the saving will and works of God. Those that deny the work of the Holy Spirit and the Forgiveness of sins found in the Sacraments put their own reasoning and wisdom above the direct promises of God.

These “Christian” idolatries are no less real, no less sinful and no less deserving of temporal and eternal punishment than were the idolatries of of the ancient Israelites. It is easy to look back at the Israelites and be amazed at how sinful they were. However, we are every bit as sinful and evil as they were. Just because much of the modern Christian church's sin is couched in Christian terms, or perhaps not as public as that of the ancient Israelites, does not make it any less sinful. We have no right to look back at this story as simply historical. The marriage of Hosea and Gomer is as much an indictment of us today as it is of the Ancient Israelites.

Gomer eventually left Hosea, pursuing other lovers. As unbearable as this must have been for a man of God, one of the LORD's own prophets, it is infinitely more unbearable for God to put up with our sin and rebellion against him. The LORD understand more than anyone how Hosea must feel, but at the beginning of Chapter three He tells Hosea: “Go again, love a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress, even as the LORD loves the children of Israel.” The LORD tells Hosea to Love his wife. This is remarkable, I don't know if I could do it, yet this is how the LORD loves us, in spite of all our sin and rebellion.

So, Hosea goes to find his wife and not only does he love her, but he must buy her back. He redeems her from her life of sin. Even though she was not the kind of woman he would really want as his wife. Even though she had never done much right by him. He loved her, and redeemed her to be his own. This obviously parallels God's love for us. Even though we are so sinful that we constantly are putting other things in front God, even though we always look for our help and strength in other people and things, God still loves us and He still redeemed us with the Blood of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Even though the church is full of sinners and is not worthy to be the Bride of Christ, He loved us and chose us to be His.

SOLI DEO GLORIA