Originally posted 10/1/24
The ladies at Ridgeview Baptist are currently studying Hosea. Last summer we studied Nehemiah. Our summer studies are taken from www.studyandobey.com. They are excellent studies of books of the Bible if you are looking for a good Bible study.
Gomer is an unfaithful wife. The entire book of Hosea is an allegory for the nation of Israel. Israel (Gomer) was unfaithful to God. Gomer’s story is a journey back to God. It is really a beautiful story showing God’s ultimate love for us.
According to the book, 31 Women of the Bible, “God was furious and heartbroken all at once. He sent a prophet named Hosea to speak to his rebellious bride. In addition to asking Hosea to deliver a series of both tough and tender messages, God expected him to do something shocking and unthinkable: to give his people a vivid picture of their gross unfaithfulness, God actually commanded his prophet Hosea to marry a sexually immoral woman!” p. 83
John Macarthur writes about Hosea, “The Lord’s true love for his people is unending and will tolerate no rival. Hosea’s message contains much condemnation, both national and individual, but at the same time, he poignantly portrays the love of God toward his people with passionate emotion. Hosea was instructed by God to marry a certain woman, and experience with her a domestic life that was a dramatization of the sin and unfaithfulness of Israel. The marital life of Hosea and his wife, Gomer, provide the rich metaphor that clarifies the themes of the book: sin, judgment, and forgiving love.”
God asks Hosea to take a wife of whoredom (Gomer). Hosea 1:3, “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. “
It might seem strange that God instructed Hosea to take a wife of whoredom. Hosea obeyed God. It teaches us a great lesson about the nation of Israel as well as our own relationship with God. Do we obey God even when it’s something we do not want to do? Do we obey even when we don’t understand the reason?
In verse three, Hosea and Gomer begin to have children.
Hosea 1:4-5, And the LORD said to him, “Call his name Jezreel, for in just a little while I will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”
Jezreel means that “God will scatter”. It is a prediction of God’s judgment. John Macarthur states, “The bow was a common euphemism denoting military strength, the principal instrument of warfare in Israel. Jezreel, called Esdraelon, extends 10 miles in breadth from the Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea, near Carmel; it was the great battlefield (see Rev. 16:14–16) adjoining the Valley of Megiddo, which will become an avenue of blessing (cf. Hos. 1:11) when Christ returns in triumph.”
Hosea 1:6-7, “She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the LORD said to him, “Call her name No Mercy, for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all. 7 But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the LORD their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.”
“No Mercy” has a literal meaning of “not pitied” According to John Macarthur, “This daughter is named to symbolize God bringing judgment on Israel, no longer extending his favor toward them.”
Hosea 1:8-11, “When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son. And the LORD said, “Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God.” Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children of the living God.” And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head. And they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel.”
John Macarthur writes, “The name symbolizes God’s rejection of Israel. I am not your God. Lit., “I am no longer ‘I am’ to you.” The phrase gives the breaking of the covenant, a kind of divorce formula, in contrast to the covenant or marriage formula “I AM WHO I AM” given in Ex. 3:14.”
I cannot imagine God asking someone to give their children these names. Naming a child is a significant event. The name stays with a child for a lifetime. The level of obedience from Hosea should be an example for us all.
Hosea 3:1-5 “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.” So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley. And I said to her, “You must dwell as mine for many days. You shall not play the whore, or belong to another man; so will I also be to you.” For the children of Israel shall dwell many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or pillar, without ephod or household gods. Afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the LORD their God, and David their king, and they shall come in fear to the LORD and to his goodness in the latter days.”
Gomer did not remain faithful to Hosea. In the book, 31 Women of the Bible we read, “At her lowest point, Gomer ended up for sale in a disgraceful sort of slave market. In a remarkable act of grace, Hosea purchased her freedom and brought her back home. She isn’t mentioned by name again in the Bible, though her shameful unfaithfulness is the vivid backdrop for all of Hosea’s sermons.” p. 83
Hosea pursued Gomer just like God pursued Israel. Gomer isn’t mentioned by name after the first chapter of Hosea. Gomer is an excellent representation of the nation of Israel and all of the times she turned her back on God. Gomer turned her back on Hosea. Hosea left many things for her to take care of her. She didn’t know that it was Hosea who was leaving her things. She gave the credit to someone else. Israel did not give credit to God for the ways He was taking care of them. They assumed it was Baal. Israel had to be reminded of God’s power. Israel had to endure many trials and sufferings because of her rebellion.
Hosea had to “purchase” Gomer back. It was costly to him. Likewise, God purchased us with the blood of Jesus. God is looking for our repentance. He is faithful to us even when we are unfaithful to Him. He will forgive us when we repent. The final fulfillment in Hosea will take place when Christ returns.
What can we learn from Gomer? The biggest lesson is don’t do what she did. We all rebel against God at times in our lives. We are unable to live a perfect life. However, God wants us to repent and acknowledge his sovereignty.
“Gomer’s experience reminds us that God stays even when we stray. Paul would later say in the New Testament, “If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself” (2 Tim 2:13).” Woods, p. 85
If you have never surrendered your life to Christ, please consider it now. Your life will not be perfect nor will you be free from hard times. However, you will have the hope of Christ which carries us through those hard times.
#faith, #Bible, #Scriptures, #Christian Women, #Discipleship, #womenintheBible, #Gomer