Standing at the thresh hole of the Abyss

Hosea 9:1-6

Folks, we are standing at the thresh hole of the abyss, as was Israel at the time of the prophet Hosea.  Hosea’s assignment was to marry a whore and to have children by her, and to be faithful to her even as she left for other lovers, and to buy her out of slavery and she would return as his wife.  All for one main reason, to be a sign to Israel of the Love God has for them, and they were acting like Gomer the wife of Hosea.  And yet many who go by the title Christian are into the same whoredom as was Israel in the time of Hosea, but many pastors and priests are not sounding the alarm to their concentric circle of influence.

Could the problem be that many in speaking the message from God they are so caught up with being thought well of that they no longer hear, and they no longer seek the face of God?  Jan and I are blessed to have a pastor who hears from God, a pastor who I’m not sure what his political stance is, but this I know he loves those who call Oakwood their place of worship too much to not share with us the foolishness of our sin, and the victory we can have in obeying Jesus Christ.
  

Do you recall the prophet Isaiah, who God allowed to see not only His throne but to see God on His throne and how He was worshipped?  “Then I said, "Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts."   When a man has an encounter with God as Isaiah and they paid attention to His voice, then they will do what is in chapter 6:8, “Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?" Then I said, "Here am I. Send me!"

Isaiah volunteered, he did not ask where, or how much it paid, and that is what the world needs pastors and priests who will be willing to tell us what we do not want to hear, as did Isaiah and Hosea. 

Chapter 9 is titled “The coming Exile” and God’s mouthpiece Hosea is no longer saying turn or burn, for they are experiencing a downturn in their economy so the blessing or the hand of God was being removed and they were seeking other nations and not God.  Now they are going to have little in the way of harvest, not even enough to have food for their family, much less to bring an offering to God.  The dead all around them made the food defiled by their association with the dead and it could not be offered to God.  So Israel seeks refuge in Egypt, only to die there outside of their land.  Note: The symbolisms for Egypt in scripture are numerous, but at the center is mankind trying to get their needs met outside of Christ.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

We the people listen but not to God

Hosea 8:8-14  

As I listen to our national news in this year of electing a President to lead this great nation, we are being told the people have lost trust in the establishment of both parties and the young are looking to a socialist and the old are looking to a so-called non-political businessman.  They are not the only ones in the political race one woman is left who may be indicted, a governor with little chance, and a Senator who is a Constitutionalist.  As a follower of Christ, I see a whirlwind on the horizon.  It is being driven by lack of trust in both parties and rightly so, and fear that has lead to anger.  Many preachers are caught up in supporting a businessman who has not shown any of the character of Jesus Christ in his public actions.  I bet you are asking how this might relate to Hosea 8, and I hope to show that we, like Israel in Hosea’s time are going down the same path.

(As a student of history, I also see the Germany of 1933, not that long ago, where the churches wrongly believed Hitler was on their side, in fact, most pastors were convinced that Hitler was on their side based on a speech in 1922, where he called Jesus “Our great Aryan hero.”  Hitler’s religion was himself; and it looks as if history is repeating once more, (for it seems many who go to Washington have self as their religion) because we have not valued the lessons learned and the youth have not been taught history.)  Note: In no way am I implying the businessman is a Hitler, just full of self.

With that said, back to Hosea 8, it is not looking good for Israel, they have trusted in government, in the military, in the priest, false prophets, evil leaders, and in wealth and the gods of their neighbors, giving only lip service to the God of Abraham.  Foreigners are coming with vast armies to kill and destroy all that they have trusted in, and many of them will be carried away to other lands.  But before this, all happened they took some notice of the Prophets like Hosea, and Ephraim began to build many altars to God, but the altars only increased Israel’s sin, it may be what the USA did after 911, by filling the churches for a few weeks.  If only we understood that God always looks at our heart, not the outward acts of mankind, and He cannot be conned.

If only you and I would spend one-fifth the time in God’s word that we do on our smart- phones, with the heart attitude of obeying what we are reading, God would heal our Nation.  Listen to God speaking through Isaiah 1:13-17, “Bring no more vain offerings; incense is an abomination to me.  New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations—I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly.  Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hates; they have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them.  When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen;
your hands are full of blood.  Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good;
seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.”  Many a person who goes by the name Christian needs to turn off the smartphone that has made you its slave, and turn to Jesus who came to give you eternal life in Him.  Now I am fully aware to do so one must enter into a personal relationship with Jesus, not the church that comes later.  First, ask Jesus into your messed up life, full of self and hurts, He is the only one who can fix what is broken.  And never forget He knows you, and loves you and with that knowledge was still willing to die to set you free, now that is love!

When Hosea said these words to the nation of Israel, it was also being said to each of us; as stated in verses 12-14, “Were I to write for him my laws by the ten thousands, they would be regarded as a strange thing.  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.  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.”

Note: Today we the American people have chosen, the businessman and the woman who was not prosecuted.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

How long can a Nation ignore God?

Hosea 8:1-7

“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.  To me they cry, “My God, we—Israel—know you.”  Israel has spurned the good; the enemy shall pursue him.

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

Many in and outside the Church today are wondering how long can a nation whose foundation was established on the precepts of Scripture ignore God?  The not so hidden answer may be found in Hosea chapter 8, for in the first fourteen verses we have God speaking to Israel.  In verse one God tells them to sound the alarm, for He was sending an army to swoop down on them, and why was this happening to a chosen people, the people of God?  Because they sought other gods, house gods made of silver and gold, much like many in the church who will search for hours to find a lost cell phone, but have no desire to open the Bible for instruction on how to love and obey our LORD.  And they, like us cried out to God; “My God, we—in the American Church—know you” as if knowing God was a free ticket to live as we desire.

 As I write this paper, we in the United States of America are listening to many voices that say they are the answer to our leadership problems they will be the best President we can hope for.  Maybe we as a people should take note of what God is telling Israel; that they made kings and set up princes, but not once did they come to Him for counsel. 

At Hosea’s time on earth Samaria was the capital of Israel’s northern kingdom, and listen to the prophet Isaiah as he speaks a warning to Jerusalem the southern kingdom in Isaiah 10:10-11, “As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols, whose carved images were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria, shall I not do to Jerusalem and her idols as I have done to Samaria and her images?”  The northern kingdom, Israel had allowed prosperity to make them arrogant, they looked to the military might and politicians and not God, so they are setting themselves up for the perfect storm.  Does this give one living in the USA something to be alarmed about?  Have we also sowed the wind, and then should we not reap the whirlwind? 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Bad company corrupts good morals.

Hosea 7:8-16

As I read verses 8-10, they bring back warnings from my youth, from both mother and dad, from coaches and preachers, that bad company corrupts good morals.   And you may wonder where did they all come up with that saying, for it seemed consistent as if it was a rule of some kind?  It was an order from God to the Chosen People and if you would like to read the total account it is found in Joshua 23:1-16, but for the purpose of this paper look at verses 6-8 with me.  “Therefore, be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left, that you may not mix with these nations remaining among you or make mention of the names of their gods or swear by them or serve them or bow down to them, but you shall cling to the Lord your God just as you have done to this day.”  That is not what is happening with Israel and now the judgment is taking place, but their leaders are far from God and have no clue about what is taking place.

Now, my parents, coaches, and preachers may not have come up with it from Joshua, but I believe they had read it and I would also bet the farm their parents and grandparents have given this quote from 1 Corinthians 15:33, “Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”  Israel was reaping a harvest from the customs and values of their godless neighbors, and it seems like that in 2016.  They, like us have moved away from seeking God and had allowed little gods to control our minds and hearts, gods that cannot bring peace or rest into our lives when the bottom falls out.  Israel, like us was in real trouble, but they were prideful and would not return to the LORD, and would not seek him in this crisis.  As this is being written, Franklin Graham is going to each state capital to lead the people in prayer, but only a few thousand are willing to make prayer a priority, are we not like Israel in Hosea’s time?

Hosea compares Ephraim to a bird, silly without sense, the leaders were running to godless nations asking for help, nations like Egypt, and Assyria, and God is telling them as they go, I will spread over them my net.  Hosea 7:12-16, “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.
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.  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.  Although I trained and strengthened their arms, yet they devise evil against me.  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.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The chickens have come home to roost.

Hosea 7:1-7

“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.
But they do not consider that I remember all their evil.  Now their deeds surround them; they are before my face.  By their evil they make the king glad, and the princes by their treachery. 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.  On the day of our king, the princes became sick with the heat of wine;
he stretched out his hand with mockers.  For with hearts like an oven they approach their intrigue; all night their anger smolders; in the morning it blazes like a flaming fire.  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.”

This writer is not about to say I understand all that is taking place in these seven verses, but it sure looks like the chickens have come home to roost.  I often wonder if people who go by the name Christian believe God is not paying attention?  When we deal falsely in business transactions or do not train our children in the ways of God, it brings shame on His name.   And like Ephraim and Samaria’s sins they have fallen into the pit they were hoping to trap others in.  So the question must be asked; are you playing the same game with God as they were?

The bad news is often your pastor or priest wants to share upbeat stories of love and prosperity not of, “But they do not consider that I remember all their evil.  Now their deeds surround them; they are before my face.”  So let us recall Micah 6:8, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”  Most of us understand a requirement, it’s not open for debate, it is set in stone, and yet we still try to negotiate or manipulate, and that practice started at a very early age for many of us.  But if you're one who has tried it with God, you experience what many of us have, “He changes not” but He does not force us to meet the requirement, but in not doing so we break fellowship with our Father.

Now the good news, once you grasp that God is not negotiating and that you are living a life of rebellion, you can come to the Father who loves you and agree that you have sinned against God, and desire to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with God, that is referred to as repenting.  The king and leaders did not repent, they went the other way, and the mighty hand of God brought judgment on them.  It should be stated they chose judgment and had little fear of a Holy God, do you find yourself in the same boat?

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

They only broke one rule

Hosea 6:7-11

“But like Adam, they transgressed the covenant; there they dealt faithlessly with me.  Gilead is a city of evildoers, tracked with blood.  As robbers lie in wait for a man, so the priests band together; they murder on the way to Shechem; they commit villainy.  In the house of Israel, I have seen a horrible thing; Ephraim's whoredom is there; Israel is defiled.  For you also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed, when I restore the fortunes of my people.”

Just one thing, that’s all I’ve ask of you, now look around and see it is all you’re to care for and enjoy, all but that one item, and you are not to touch or take any of it.  That is the covenant relationship God entered into with Adam; the garden was his to enjoy, to live in and to manage, only one tree was off limits, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  Now it is not easy for sinful people to grasp a world without sin with peace and perfection, where mankind is in harmony with God and His creation.  That was Adam’s life before he broke that one rule, and sin entered into the world.

The bad news is, sin entered into the world by the breaking of one rule.  I have never heard or even thought about Adam’s act as theft, but isn’t the definition of theft; a person who steals another person's property, and that was what Adam did.  But there is good news found in Romans 5:12-17, it is the big picture of God’s grace and mercy and it’s the story of how in Adam there is death, but in Christ, the God-man brings life to all who will confess sin in their lives and ask Jesus to enter into them, His life for theirs.  

I was 27 years of age, married, a member of a Baptist church, well grounded in the Scriptures to my way of thinking at that time, but had no relationship with the living Christ.  I was a sinful man in my life style, my thought life was about getting my needs met outside of Christ, and I was a mess.  My heart was on evil for it was centered on my wants over all others, and then I ask Jesus to enter into my life after reading Romans 10:9-10 in a hotel room late one night.  That night I became a new creation in Christ, yet the habits in me did not die, they are still alive and each day, and many times each day I war with my flesh about who is first, Jesus Christ or Bob?  Let me give a good report, I’m still a mess, but my hearts desire is for Christ to be my life, and much of the time my actions come into alignment with that desire.

Now back to what God has done for you and me; “But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the result of that one man's sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.”    (Romans 5:15-17 ESV)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

What shall I do with you?

Hosea 6:4-6

“What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?  What shall I do with you, O Judah?
Your love is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes early away.
Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth, and my judgment goes forth as the light.  For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”

What shall I do with you?  Many parents have asked such a question of a child, many teachers have asked the same question of a student, and many employers have the same questions about an employee.  But when it is God asking the question of you or me it time to stop and listen, to examine and to repent.  What do those asking the question above have in common; is it not authority? 

Authority and how one defines and submits to it have much to do with how a family, a church, a business, or a nation will fare.  So do you see authority mentioned in the above paragraph as having the right to command; to hold power; a source of reliable information and a quality that is respected?  I pray that you do, but what happens when those placed in authority, have no regard or fear of the authority over them?   This was Ephraim or Israel’s problem and it also became Judah’s problem, and when leaders of families, churches, business, or nations, forget that the source of power or authority is a gift of God; the question will always be “What shall I do with you?”

Have you given thought to your love for God, is it like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes away early?  And to some degree, many of us allow the cares of this life to give us morning clouds or dew, instead of love for our LORD, and so God allows troubles and pain to enter into our lives so that we will return to our first love.  But love must have a driver, a desire for relationship, and a desire to love and be loved by spending time with the one you love.  And God has spoken often in Scripture about what He desires; as in Hosea 6:6, “For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”

It is my understanding that Hosea’s time was not much different that ours; God has the same question for parents, teachers, priest, preachers, employers, and leaders of nations; “What shall I do with you?”  And it seems clear that when leadership is not fulfilling its appointed role this always happens; "My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray and caused them to roam on the mountains. They wandered over mountain and hill and forgot their own resting place.”  (Jeremiah 50:6)  Or as stated in Isaiah 53:6, “All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.”  Yes, Jesus is the answer, so today if your relationship is strained or if it has become clear you do not have one, then do as Isaiah 55:6-7 instructs one to do; “Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near.  Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The foolishness of man

Hosea 6:1-3

“Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.  After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him.  Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.”

I had not shown up on planet earth at the time of Pearl Harbor, but I’ve read many accounts of the cowardly act of the Japanese government.   “Just before 8 a.m. on December 7, 1941, hundreds of Japanese fighter planes attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii.  More than 2,000 American soldiers and sailors died in the attack, and another 1,000 were wounded. The day after the assault, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan; Congress approved his declaration with just one dissenting vote.”  The Emperor of Japan, Hirohito renounced his divinity in 1946, at the insistence of a peace agreement with his nation, but during the war millions of people died because of this sick, evil, little man who wanted to be a god. 

 I was not around then as I’ve stated, but on September 11, 2001, I was driving in Houston, Texas to an appointment when the news broke that a plane had flown into the world trade center.  It was only moments later it seemed that the second report came that a second plane had hit the other tower, and my plans changed.  I drove to a mall and watched with many others as it became clear our Nation was under attack.  On September 11, 2001, 19 militants associated with the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda hijacked four airliners and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the United States. Two of the planes were flown into the towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C., and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.  These 19 were Muslims, and like the Japanese, they believe the cowardly act was fighting for a god.

Hosea 6:1-3, is so teachable for today; that the USA, like Israel has drifted far from God, and yet like Israel at the time of being taken captive they believed an outward show would bring God’s blessing, and that He would soon redeem them, and defeat the army of Assyria.  I’m not sure what was in the minds of the people of the USA after 911, but they flocked to church buildings all over the nation, hoping God would show favor to a sinful and evil people who had no desire for God’s face but wanted the comfort of His hand.  So once more, we see that mankind still believes they can con an all seeing and knowing God who tells us this truth in Psalm 139:16, “Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.”  That is who all should seek, one who can number the days of your life.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Sound the Alarm

Hosea 5:8-15

“Blow the horn in Gibeah, the trumpet in Ramah.  Sound the alarm at Beth-aven; we follow you, O Benjamin!  Ephraim shall become desolation in the day of punishment; among the tribes of Israel, I make known what is sure. The princes of Judah have become like those who move the landmark; upon them I will pour out my wrath like water.  Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment, because he was determined to go after filth.  But I am like a moth to Ephraim, and like dry rot to the house of Judah.  When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah his wound, then Ephraim went to Assyria, and sent to the great king.  But he is not able to cure you or heal your wound.  For I will be like a lion to Ephraim, and like a young lion to the house of Judah.  I, even I, will tear and go away; I will carry off, and no one shall rescue.  I will return again to my place, until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face, and in their distress earnestly seek me.”

Gibeah is a hill-town of Benjamin it was the birthplace of king Saul and a place known for the almost total destruction of the tribe of Benjamin found in Judges 19 and 20.  Now Ramah was “one of the cities of the allotment of Benjamin. (Joshua 18:25)  Its site is at er-Ram , about five miles from Jerusalem, and near to Gibeah.” (Smith's Bible Dictionary)  They were to sound the alarm at Beth-aven, “the house of nothingness; i.e., "of idols", a place in the mountains of Benjamin, east of Bethel. ( Joshua 7:2 ; 18:12 ; 1 Samuel 13:5 ). In Hosea 4:15 ; 5:8 ; 10:5 it stands for "Bethel" (q.v.), and it is so called because it was no longer the "house of God," but "the house of idols," referring to the calves they worshiped.” (Easton’s Bible Dictionary)

If you were in Ephraim you were in for a time of judgment, the battles were going, to begin with, Benjamin but all of Israel and especially Ephraim would be crushed in judgment.  Why was Ephraim to have the brunt of the punishment?  Because they chased after what is worthless, and how often do you and I do the same thing? 

But one should not overlook that Judah the near neighbor has been enticed by their sins and will also enter into judgment for their actions of going after filth.  The people chosen by God had festering wounds and had no cure for them, so Ephraim went to Assyria hoping to find a cure.  But God, like a lion, is carrying its prey to its den, yes God has withdrawn from Israel.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

When your best stuff is not enough

Hosea 5:5-10

The pride of Israel testifies to his face; Israel and Ephraim shall stumble in his guilt; Judah also shall stumble with them.  With their flocks and herds, they shall go to seek the Lord, but they will not find him; he has withdrawn from them. They have dealt faithlessly with the Lord, for they have borne alien children. Now the new moon shall devour them with their fields.”

The very best Israel has to offer God is on an encounter with Truth and with judgment before you get bold in your spirit, how would you do with a one on one with the Truth, how would your Nation do, and you understand I’m referring to God?  Would you do as Israel and Judah, come to God with your best stuff, your wealth, and talents, make the best business deal you could?  If so, you are in store for the same results that Israel and Judah received, they sought Him but He was not to be found.

How could God turn down such gifts, it is real simple and you and they should have a clear understanding of the why; it is stated in 1 Samuel 15:22, “But Samuel replied: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.”  And if Israel and Judah or the USA were looking for a right relationship with our LORD, there is only one path, and it is not your best stuff, but it is your brokenness!  We are given this insight in Psalms 51:16-17, “For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.” 

This is God’s judgment for Israel and Judah; “They have dealt faithlessly with the Lord” and as a lover of God does it not seem the United States of America has done the same, and many of the Nations who once were in name Christian?  What about His church has it not also allowed the world and it’s policy and practices to bring pride and not repentance?  Are you not fearful of falling into the hands of an angry God, have you moved so far into the darkness, that you believe God is going to overlook sin in your life, in your family, in your Nation?  My dear brothers and sisters dwell on 1 Peter 4:16-17, “Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Lord is addressing Leaders

Hosea 5:1-5

“Hear this, priests!  Pay attention, house, of Israel!  Listen, royal house!  For the judgment applies to you because you have been a snare at Mizpah and a net spread out on Tabor.  Rebels are deeply involved in slaughter; I will be a punishment for all of them. I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hidden from Me.

For now, Ephraim, you have acted promiscuously; Israel is defiled.  Their actions do not allow them to return to their God, for a spirit of promiscuity is among them,
and they do not know the Lord.   Israel’s arrogance testifies against them.  Both Israel and Ephraim stumble because of their wickedness; even Judah will stumble with them.”

Who is the Lord addressing is it not the leaders, the priests and when there is a void in Leadership or evil what happens to the people and the nation?  The answers are easily found in Hosea 4:6, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge I reject you from being a priest to me.”  And in 14b “a people without understanding shall come to ruin.”  Israel and Ephraim the North Kingdom and Mizpah and 

Tabor seem to be an unauthorized sanctuary where false religion was practiced.

In judgment you need someone to state the charge against the one being charged with the wrongdoing, and this is God’s condemnation of Ephraim and Israel, found in Hosea 4:1-2, “Hear the word of the Lord, people of Israel,
for the Lord has a case against the inhabitants of the land: There is no truth, no faithful love, and no knowledge of God in the land! Cursing, lying, murder, stealing, and adultery are rampant; one act of bloodshed follows another.”  The one who saw us before we were formed in our mother’s womb knows all about us, but often we, like Israel do not know him.  You and I would be wise to ponder on what the apostle Paul is telling us in Romans 6:16, “Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?”

Now this was Israel’s problem, sin had become the way of life and it is my opinion that the same thing has happened in the United States of America.  Listen to verses 4-5, “Their actions do not allow them to return to their God, for a spirit of promiscuity is among them, and they do not know the LORD.  Israel's arrogance testifies against them. Both Israel and Ephraim stumble because of their wickedness; even Judah will stumble with them.”

 We have men who go by the name Christian running for the office of President of the United States, and they have brought shame on the one they say they are following.  Now I’m not saying their faith is not real, but it is clear they are slaves of the one whom you obey, their flesh has been on display for all to see.

From the Back Porch,

 Bob Rice

Like a stubborn heifer

Hosea 4:15-19

“Though you play the whore, O Israel, let not Judah become guilty.  Enter not into Gilgal, nor go up to Beth-aven, and swear not, “As the Lord lives.”  Like a stubborn heifer, Israel is stubborn; can the Lord now feed them like a lamb in a broad pasture?  Ephraim is joined to idols; leave him alone.  When their drink is gone, they give themselves to whoring; their rulers dearly love shame.  A wind has wrapped them in its wings, and they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices.”

Do you know of anyone who wants to admit they have played the whore?  Do you recall Jr. High and High School, I do and still have flashbacks of doing anything to be liked and noticed by the so-called popular kids.  Values and beliefs were disposed of as if they were in the way of reaching the goal of being part of the popular group.  This is what, to a large degree, Israel has done and at a time of affluence, military might, and stability, much like the USA.  Now Judah was much like me in Jr. High and High School, they were watching Israel and believe me sin is fun for a season, but payday always shows up unannounced and the cost of sin is our personal shame and disgrace.  So Hosea is warning Judah not to be conned by Israel’s promiscuity, that they were going to pay in the near future for leaving the care and protection of God and chasing false gods.

Never was a cowboy, but for a while about 13 years Jan and I owned a small place we called the Oleo Ranch, best defined as a “Cheap Spread.”  Did I say it was small, a little over five acres, but on that five plus acres, we raised horses, a few cows, plus chickens, honey bees, and rabbits.  We had a great garden and a smoke house for drying meat.  We even had a milk cow but that lasted only one winter and my bride informed me that we were going to buy milk from a store and the milk cow was going to market.  In those 13 years, we had some stubborn cows and being a city boy they ran me more than I controlled them.   

When you have small acreage you do a lot of cross fencing and it requires you to move cows to areas they may not want to go to when you want them to.  So I understand how Israel was acting, they were acting like sheep that do not follow the call of their Sheppard.

Payday came for Israel and it came like a wind you are not expecting, but it came after many warnings, and yet like the United States, they were deaf to the voice of God and our payday has already begun.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Changed thier glory to shame

Hosea 4:7-14

As the children of Israel increased and were blessed, the more they sinned against God, so He promised to change their glory into shame. Verse 7, “The more they increased, the more they sinned against me; I will change their glory into shame.”  Many years ago a pastor told me that if he were the pastor for more than seven years the church would take on much of his personality and beliefs, and is that not what is happening in Hosea’s time with these evil priests and prophets?  Referring to verses 8-9, “They feed on the sin of my people; they are greedy for their iniquity.  And it shall be like people, like priest; I will punish them for their ways and repay them for their deeds”.

As we look at verses 10-13, ask the question, is this consistent with what we are seeing in the USA?   “They shall eat, but not be satisfied; they shall play the whore, but not multiply, because they have forsaken the Lord to cherish whoredom, wine, and new wine, which take away the understanding.  My people inquire of a piece of wood, and their walking staff gives them oracles.  For a spirit of whoredom has led them astray, and they have left their God to play the whore.”  If you or I will take our heads out of the sand and look into our own mirror we will see a person who has much but is not satisfied.  It is those “want creators” that has us always wanting more, a bigger house, a new car, more clothes that anyone could wear, so we give good ones away to buy the latest, we are a picture of what Hosea is voicing.  We have people who put no hope in God but who believe the latest bull on Facebook or some Internet site, or put their faith in what government, the military, or the amount of paper money they have in the stock market. 

Verse 14 gives insight into the role of the man, the husband, the protector and the provider, who has no integrity, no moral compass, and yet finds fault with his wife and daughters when they play the whore, or their bride when she commits adultery when he is running to prostitutes.  It is not the daughter or wife that God holds in contempt it is the husband, the dad, for he alone is to be true to those God has assigned to be under his protection.

Today let’s end with a saying from verses six and fourteen, verse 6, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” and verse 14, “a people without understanding shall come to ruin.”  It is a political year in the USA, and we the people will elect a President, and those two quotes are the reason it is going to be a disaster!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice