Hosea 2:14-23 (CLICK HERE FOR BIBLE VERSES)
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Hosea 2:14-23. Let’s go!
After describing in previous verses how God wanted to punish Israel for their unfaithfulness to Him, in verses 14-23 Hosea goes on to describe the amazing, forgiving, second-chance-giving love that God extends to Israel. It’s the picture of a husband forgiving, restoring and receiving back his wife who had been unfaithful to him.
From these verses we can learn 12 ways that God loves you and me. Let’s look at each one specifically.
Hosea 2:14 (NIV)
14 “Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her.
On verse 14: God’s love takes initiative. God is a leader and, like a good leader, God takes the initiative. God will not force Himself upon you, but He does take the first step and waits for you to respond. He stands at the door and knocks.
Hosea 2:15 (NIV)
15 There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.
On verse 15: God’s love for you is renewing and restoring. God will ultimately restore what we have lost. By the way, “Valley of Achor” means valley of trouble. God turns your valley of trouble into a door of hope.
Hosea 2:16 (NIV)
16 “In that day,” declares the LORD, “you will call me ‘my husband’; you will no longer call me ‘my master.’
On verse 16: God’s love for you is intimate, close and based on a promise. It’s not like a master-servant relationship which is colder, more distant and based on a contract. We see that same love when Jesus tells his disciples, “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” (John 15:15)
Hosea 2:17 (NIV)
17 I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips; no longer will their names be invoked.
On verse 17: God’s love purifies and makes us holy. God took idol worshippers like us and made us holy priests in His kingdom.
Hosea 2:18 (NIV)
18 In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and the creatures that move along the ground. Bow and sword and battle I will abolish from the land, so that all may lie down in safety.
On verse 18: God’s love protects. God is committed to keeping you from all harm, watching over your life (Psalm 121:7).
Hosea 2:19a (NIV)
19 I will betroth you to me forever…
On verse 19a: God’s love for you is forever. God is not one to use you for His own pleasure and then discard you. He wants to love you forever.
Hosea 2:19b (NIV)
19 …I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion.
On verse 19b: God’s love for you is righteous and just. God’s love for you does not delight in evil, but is full of righteousness and justice. The cross where Jesus died is the intersection where God’s righteousness and justice met God’s mercy and compassion. It’s the perfect sign of love. At the cross, God in His righteousness and justice punished our sin and at the same cross God extended the greatest mercy and compassion the world has ever known.
Hosea 2:20 (NIV)
20 I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the LORD.
On verse 20: God’s love is faithful. You can always count on God’s love for you.
Hosea 2:21a (NIV)
21 “In that day I will respond,” declares the LORD– “I will respond to the skies, and they will respond to the earth;
On verse 21a: God’s love is responsive. God is sensitive to your needs and to your call. When you cry, He hears you and responds.
Hosea 2:21-22 (NIV)
21 “In that day I will respond,” declares the LORD– “I will respond to the skies, and they will respond to the earth;
22 and the earth will respond to the grain, the new wine and oil, and they will respond to Jezreel.
On verses 21-22: God’s love brings you life. In love God made for us a system that is meant to bring us life and blessing. When our sin is dealt with, that life-giving system starts to work and is set in motion.
Hosea 2:23a (NIV)
23 I will plant her for myself in the land…;
On verse 23a: God’s love for you is personal. You’ve been chosen by God.
Hosea 2:23b (NIV)
23 …I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’ I will say to those called ‘Not my people,’ ‘You are my people’; and they will say, ‘You are my God.'”
On verse 23b: God’s love is redemptive and forgiving. He’s the God of second chances.
Father, thank You for Your perfect and amazing love for me. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
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