It starts with the second verse of the book.
Hosea captures all the goodness and beauty God has for us - "take for yourself a wife..." In chapter two, Hosea describes a marriage "in righteousness, justice, love, mercy, and in faithfulness." And then this beautiful phrase: "On that day I will answer, says the Lord, I will answer the heavens and they shall answer the earth; and the earth shall answer the grain, the wine, and the oil, and they shall answer Jezreel; and I will sow him for myself in the land. And I will have pity on Lo-ruhamah, and I will say to Lo-ammi, "you are my people"; and he shall say, "You are my God." Marriage of heavens and earth, marriage of listening, speaking and responding, marriage of man and woman, and marriage of God and his people. You are mine. I am yours.
("Man, maybe I'd better look through the good ol' wedding photo album again. It was worth all that money.")
But that's not all that begins with the second verse. Hosea captures all the tragedy of sin in that same verse: "take for yourself a wife of whoredom." This is not really about torturing poor Hosea. Remarkably, it is about journeying alongside God. What is it like to love someone like God loves Israel?
Through this journey, what really stands out is the chiding, wooing, scoffing voice of God. He sees the backroom deals, he hears the whispers of betrayal in the bedroom, he walks with Israel through the alleyways after she's gotten her scandalous paycheck. He observes, prophecies, and quips with proverbs, ironies, and mournful dirges. He could almost walk away from the whole mess and yet he can't.
("Yeah, come to think of it, maybe I won't look at the wedding pictures. I was way too happy, trim, and optimistic back then.")
God's redeeming love cuts so deep in Hosea's work. When Paul says that God died for sinners in Romans 5:6, we can accept it as a fact. When Hosea talks about God's love for sinners, it burrows deep into our bones. In 9:9, God has had it. Israel's sin is so repulsive, so incomprehensible that it can't be undone or forgotten: "he will remember their iniquity." In 9:10, we find a deeper memory: "Like grapes in the wilderness, I found Israel. Like the first fruit on a fig tree, in its first season, I saw your ancestors." However clearly God sees our dark hiding places and diagnoses our illnesses, he has a deeper memory. He has total childlike delight over real love and justice, like a weary traveler finding sweet grapes in the middle of the desert.
God is amazing. He is truly the best part of this whole world, being that he is creator. Hosea reminds us of the wedding album we have with God, not because the ceremony has already happened, but because it will happen. Through Christ's sacrifice, he has put heavenly life into us, making us a bride in righteousness, love, mercy, and faithfulness fit for the love of our life - God, the greatest lover of all.
No comments:
Post a Comment